Fans pick 91 books like The Love Wars

By L. Alison Heller,

Here are 91 books that The Love Wars fans have personally recommended if you like The Love Wars. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of The Undomestic Goddess

Kathy Strobos Author Of Love Is an Art

From my list on romantic comedy to encourage you to pursue your dreams.

Why am I passionate about this?

I like to read about people pursuing their dream because that’s not an easy thing to do. When I was working as a lawyer at a corporate law firm, I was sure I wanted to become a partner. But eventually I realized that being in-house counsel at a company was a much better fit for me so I changed jobs. And similarly, I’d always wanted to write a romantic comedy and so, after many years as a lawyer, I started taking courses at night, and eventually I found the courage to quit my legal job and pursue this passion. The underlying theme of all of my books is to encourage readers to pursue their dreams. 

Kathy's book list on romantic comedy to encourage you to pursue your dreams

Kathy Strobos Why did Kathy love this book?

This is one of my favorite books—probably because I was a stressed-out corporate lawyer who definitely can’t iron.

The Undomestic Goddess is the story of a workaholic lawyer who is trying to become a partner at her law firm—only to get fired for an egregious mistake that she can’t believe she made. In her shock, she agrees to become a housekeeper. The only problem is she has no idea how to do any housework, which leads to some hilarious scenes.

I also loved how she figured out the mystery leading to her dismissal. This book made me feel less alone as a stressed-out workaholic lawyer and also made me consider that maybe being a partner at a law firm was not what I really wanted in life.

By Sophie Kinsella,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Undomestic Goddess as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Funny, fast and farcical. I loved it' JOJO MOYES

The hilarious romantic comedy from NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING AUTHOR Sophie Kinsella

Samantha thrives under pressure. A high-powered London lawyer, all she can concentrate on is taking the next step in her career; eating, sleeping, seeing friends - even taking a breath - will have to wait.

But just when she's about to get everything she has ever wanted, Samantha makes a mistake. A fifty-million-pound, career-destroying mistake. Unable to face the consequences, she does the unimaginable and runs away...

Catching the first train she can, she finds herself in the countryside, outside…


Book cover of Something Borrowed

Angela Terry Author Of The Trials of Adeline Turner

From my list on chick lit on lawyers from a former Biglaw attorney.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an attorney who formerly practiced intellectual property law at large firms in Chicago and San Francisco. Even while I was practicing law, I had dreams of becoming an author. I’ve always been drawn to Chick-Lit, Rom-Coms, and Women’s Fiction, and even more fascinated by other lawyers who made the leap from lawyering to writing in these genres. My debut novel was about a PR executive, but for my sophomore novel, The Trials of Adeline Turner, I couldn’t help but revisit law firm life. While I enjoy reading and writing about lawyers, my favorite thing about these books is their message of following your heart to live your best life. 

Angela's book list on chick lit on lawyers from a former Biglaw attorney

Angela Terry Why did Angela love this book?

On her thirtieth birthday, good girl and Manhattan attorney Rachel White sleeps with her best friend’s fiancé. To complicate matters, it’s not just a drunken mistake—Rachel realizes she’s always had feelings for him and learns that he too has feelings for her. With its messy, complicated relationships and deep dive into female friendship, I could not put this book down. This was one of the first “chick lit” novels I read about a single, urban professional woman navigating her career and personal life. And even while I was cringing at some of Rachel’s choices, I admired how honest and flawed the characters were in this story and loved Giffin’s smooth writing style, and have devoured all of her books ever since reading this one. 

By Emily Giffin,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Something Borrowed as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Something Borrowed is the smash-hit debut novel from Emily Giffin for every woman who has ever had a complicated love-hate friendship. The basis for the blockbuster movie starring Kate Hudson, Ginnifer Goodwin, and John Krasinski!

Rachel White is the consummate good girl. A hard-working attorney at a large Manhattan law firm and a diligent maid of honor to her charmed best friend Darcy, Rachel has always played by all the rules. Since grade school, she has watched Darcy shine, quietly accepting the sidekick role in their lopsided friendship. But that suddenly changes the night of her thirtieth birthday when Rachel…


Book cover of Biglaw

Angela Terry Author Of The Trials of Adeline Turner

From my list on chick lit on lawyers from a former Biglaw attorney.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an attorney who formerly practiced intellectual property law at large firms in Chicago and San Francisco. Even while I was practicing law, I had dreams of becoming an author. I’ve always been drawn to Chick-Lit, Rom-Coms, and Women’s Fiction, and even more fascinated by other lawyers who made the leap from lawyering to writing in these genres. My debut novel was about a PR executive, but for my sophomore novel, The Trials of Adeline Turner, I couldn’t help but revisit law firm life. While I enjoy reading and writing about lawyers, my favorite thing about these books is their message of following your heart to live your best life. 

Angela's book list on chick lit on lawyers from a former Biglaw attorney

Angela Terry Why did Angela love this book?

Mackenzie Corbett is an ambitious second-year corporate associate at a Manhattan law firm; but when she finds herself being thrown under the bus in an investigation that could ruin her career, she has to ask herself if life in Biglaw is worth it? This book is part exposé, part life-affirming self-discovery. Cameron made me laugh out loud at the absurdity of associate life (it’s totally crazy and yet so real) and at her depictions of the various intense personalities at the fictional firm. This book is a funny, fast-paced rollercoaster ride that ultimately asks, What does success mean? I highly recommend this book if you’re looking for an entertaining read with a smart, witty heroine (or someone questioning their career choice). 

By Lindsay Cameron,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Biglaw as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Devil Wears Prada meets One L, BIGLAW provides an insider's view of the cut-throat world of big New York law firms. Mackenzie Corbett has always dreamed of living in New York City. Now, almost two years into her job as an associate at a premier Manhattan law firm, she's living her fantasy-big salary, high profile deals, cute boyfriend, designer bag on her arm. The giant bags under her eyes from lack of sleep don't fit into the fantasy, though. To make matters worse, she's being tormented by a bitter, bitchy senior associate, her cute boyfriend is annoyed she never…


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Book cover of Tap Dancing on Everest: A Young Doctor's Unlikely Adventure

Tap Dancing on Everest By Mimi Zieman,

Tap Dancing on Everest, part coming-of-age memoir, part true-survival adventure story, is about a young medical student, the daughter of a Holocaust survivor raised in N.Y.C., who battles self-doubt to serve as the doctor—and only woman—on a remote Everest climb in Tibet.

The team attempts a new route up…

Book cover of Just Saying: An absolutely perfect and feel good romantic comedy

Angela Terry Author Of The Trials of Adeline Turner

From my list on chick lit on lawyers from a former Biglaw attorney.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an attorney who formerly practiced intellectual property law at large firms in Chicago and San Francisco. Even while I was practicing law, I had dreams of becoming an author. I’ve always been drawn to Chick-Lit, Rom-Coms, and Women’s Fiction, and even more fascinated by other lawyers who made the leap from lawyering to writing in these genres. My debut novel was about a PR executive, but for my sophomore novel, The Trials of Adeline Turner, I couldn’t help but revisit law firm life. While I enjoy reading and writing about lawyers, my favorite thing about these books is their message of following your heart to live your best life. 

Angela's book list on chick lit on lawyers from a former Biglaw attorney

Angela Terry Why did Angela love this book?

Alice Carlisle is an intellectual property attorney trainee in London about to secure full-time employment at her firm. But when the head of the department is suspended (the circumstances of which are revealed throughout the story), HR informs Alice that there will be a hiring freeze. Needing money, she takes on a temporary job at her local pub and her boyfriend’s ex moves in to help with the rent. Ouch! I felt so bad for Alice—to work so hard at something and then have it fall apart through no fault of her own. This is a smart, page-turning, relatable read that I devoured in an afternoon, and I loved the message that sometimes a detour takes you right where you need to be.

By Sophie Ranald,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Just Saying as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

‘I absolutely loved this book and devoured it in a matter of hours! The perfect Saturday-night read which I found impossible to put down… I literally laughed out loud.’ Book Lover, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

When the inflatable hot tub my boyfriend hired for a surprise deflated with me in it, spilling water everywhere and almost flooding our flat, I should have known it was a sign…

Could things get any worse? First Alice gets fired from her job as a lawyer out of the blue, and she has absolutely no idea what to do with her life. Then she and her boyfriend…


Book cover of In Five Years

Beth Duke Author Of It All Comes Back to You

From my list on great characters, riveting plots, and twists.

Why am I passionate about this?

Like all writers, I am first and foremost a reader, with deep appreciation for a great story. I’m also a veteran book club member who meets with book clubs all over the U.S. and Canada (usually via Zoom) three or four times a week to discuss my own work. They are, as I am, invariably pleased by a plot twist. It All Comes Back to You delivers a big one, along with emotional involvement in two worlds, as it’s a dual timeline. I consider myself an expert as a result of hundreds (thousands?) of hours discussing books with groups who are, without exception, smart, fun, funny women who educate me.

Beth's book list on great characters, riveting plots, and twists

Beth Duke Why did Beth love this book?

Upmarket Women’s Fiction at its finest! Women’s Fiction isn’t, incidentally, fiction written by or necessarily for women.

It comprises rich stories in which the plot is driven by the protagonist’s emotional journey. You’ll always witness external events creating an interesting and lasting impact from beginning to end, changing our main character inside forever. 

In Five Years excels at that, and packs a devastating, shocking, powerful punch in the process. I cried, but experiencing this story was worth it.

By Rebecca Serle,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked In Five Years as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'SMART, EMOTIONAL, INTRIGUING AND COMPELLING - I LOVED IT!' JILL MANSELL

'Full of twists and turns, this is a heart-breaking yet uplifting story about love and friendship, and is one of this year's must-reads' Heat magazine *****

Dannie Kohan has held true to her meticulously crafted 5-year plan since she understood the concept. On the day that she nails the most important interview of her career and gets engaged to the perfect man, she's well on her way to fulfilling her life goals.

But that night Dannie falls asleep and dreams of a night five years in the future where…


Book cover of For Us, the Living: A Comedy of Customs

Paul James Gabol Author Of The Brittle Foundations of our Civilization

From my list on the Western’s social unrest and decay.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a privileged individual of our Western society, with access to a good education, living away from hunger and despair. Am I wealthy? Far from it. I am amid that middle class where working hours are well understood and spare time is fully enjoyed. I have been a consultant to businesses of all sizes and I have learned closely how the wheels turn, how in order to produce anything, always someone and something is crushed and squeezed. Profit on one side and destruction and poverty on the other one. Throughout time, I have met people from various countries and understood the value of a multicultural world, which I defend.

Paul's book list on the Western’s social unrest and decay

Paul James Gabol Why did Paul love this book?

This book is an unfinished work, hard to follow, because it is a draft never reviewed by the author and published posthumously.

However, it is a must-read, so please do not be discouraged as I was, for the ideas that it encloses picture a more equalized society practically based on the changing of our economic road, nothing else than ending capitalism as we know it.

Two subjects are of particular interest: first, how to correctly retribute people for the wealth they generate through their work; and second, a demonstration of how excess production and money amassing do not amount to wealth. An interesting lesson in economics.

By Robert A. Heinlein,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked For Us, the Living as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

After crashing his car in 1939, Naval Airman Perry Nelson awakens to find the radically different world of 2086, one marked by a United Europe, the destruction of Manhattan island by two helicopters in 2003, and other changes in the economy, legal system, and the relationships between men and women, in a remarkable, long-lost first novel by the late master of speculative fiction. 75,000 first printing. Science Fiction Bk Club.


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Book cover of The Stark Beauty of Last Things

The Stark Beauty of Last Things By Céline Keating,

This book is set in Montauk, under looming threat from a warming climate and overdevelopment. Now outsider Clancy, a thirty-six-year-old claims adjuster scarred by his orphan childhood, has inherited an unexpected legacy: the power to decide the fate of Montauk’s last parcel of undeveloped land. Everyone in town has a…

Book cover of This Beautiful Life

Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg Author Of The Nine

From my list on campus novels for the 21st century.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an award-winning author of two novels, the most recent of which, The Nine, is set on a fictional New England boarding school campus. Although a secret society’s antics and a scandal on campus keeps readers turning the page, at the heart of the novel is the evolution of a mother-son relationship. Even before my three children began considering boarding schools, I was a fan of the campus novel. Think classics like A Separate Peace or Catcher in the Rye. My fascination surrounding these little microcosms—their ideals, how they self-govern, who holds power—only increased after experiencing their weird and wily ways as a mother. 

Jeanne's book list on campus novels for the 21st century

Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg Why did Jeanne love this book?

A painful examination of all that’s at stake when kids make bad decisions, This Beautiful Life made me reflect on the pressure contemporary kids feel to be beyond reproach while growing up amid the instant connectivity and permanent consequences of the internet age. Like Testimony, Schulman’s novel begins with a video, this time one whose ramifications are amplified and complicated as it goes viral in a matter of hours.

A gripping early scene dramatizes the split second when fifteen-year-old Jake Bergamot makes the fateful choice to forward a video he’s received to a friend. The scandal that ensues threatens not only Jake, but his entire family’s “beautiful life.” Rather than a boarding school, this novel is set at an elite Manhattan private school where the social strata among parents are even more painfully felt. As the story unfolds, this book takes readers even deeper into the mom’s head—a delightful place…

By Helen Schulman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked This Beautiful Life as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"ThisBeautiful Life is a gripping, potent and blisteringly well-written story offamily, dilemma, and consequence. . . . I read this book with white-knuckledurgency, and I finished it in tears. Helen Schulman is an absolutely brilliantnovelist." —Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love
 

Theevents of a single night shatter one family’s sense of security and identity inthis provocative and deeply affecting domestic drama from Helen Schulman, theacclaimed author of A Day at the Beach and Out of Time. In thetradition of Lionel Shriver, Sue Miller, and Laura Moriarty, Schulman crafts abrilliantly observed portrait of parenting and modern life, cunningly exploringour most…


Book cover of Taming Manhattan: Environmental Battles in the Antebellum City

Thomas Hynes Author Of Wild City: A Brief History of New York City in 40 Animals

From my list on the surprising history of New York City wildlife.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was drawn to the topic because I love everything about New York City. But, I also loved how the topic seemed at odds with itself. New York City wildlife felt like a contradiction of terms. Sure, there might be some rats, pigeons, and cockroaches here, but that was it. Well I was very wrong. Learning about the city’s natural history and legacy of wildlife allowed me to learn about the city in a whole new way. It’s also a great comeback story and it has been so inspiring to learn – and see! – how effective a few short decades of environmental regulations have been in making this a greener city. 

Thomas' book list on the surprising history of New York City wildlife

Thomas Hynes Why did Thomas love this book?

This book revealed a pastoral Manhattan few of us could imagine, including feral pigs that roamed the streets, and horses that transported everything and everyone around town. Set in the transformative 1800s when New York City underwent unprecedented urbanization, this book shows how farmers and other New Yorkers who worked the land were ultimately squeezed from Manhattan for more profitable tenants, and how Central Park, and other open spaces, sought to replicate all that recently displaced nature.   

By Catherine McNeur,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Taming Manhattan as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

George Perkins Marsh Prize, American Society for Environmental History
VSNY Book Award, New York Metropolitan Chapter of the Victorian Society in America
Hornblower Award for a First Book, New York Society Library
James Broussard Best First Book Prize, Society for Historians of the Early American Republic

With pigs roaming the streets and cows foraging in the Battery, antebellum Manhattan would have been unrecognizable to inhabitants of today's sprawling metropolis. Fruits and vegetables came from small market gardens in the city, and manure piled high on streets and docks was gold to nearby farmers. But as Catherine McNeur reveals in this…


Book cover of Manhattan Transfer

Amanda Schuster Author Of Signature Cocktails

From my list on making it there from anywhere in New York City.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a lifelong New Yorker and author of two books about drinking in the city—New York Cocktails and Drink Like a Local New York—these are the books about bygone days of city living that I would tell you to read if we met in a bar. You already know the ones by E.B. White, Patti Smith, Lou Reed, or possibly Pete Hamill or Walt Winchell. Those books are fantastic, but these are some “deep cuts” New York City appreciation books that you should also get to know.  

Amanda's book list on making it there from anywhere in New York City

Amanda Schuster Why did Amanda love this book?

This novel of interconnected stories is a fascinating snapshot of life in 1920s New York City.

Considering that it was written in 1925, Dos Pasos does an incredible job of representing different backgrounds and classes as they move through the city with one another. It shows how one can’t exist in such a setting on the highest levels of society without the help of people who make up the fabric of the rest of the town.

Encountering day-to-day strangers in the city won’t feel the same after reading this book. Plus, it takes place during Prohibition from a real time perspective, showing that the “Roaring Twenties” were more of a yelp.

By John Dos Passos,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Manhattan Transfer as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'My literary hero is John Dos Passos' - Adam Curtis (filmmaker)

'A modernist masterpiece, capturing ... the fragmented lives it sketches, in a dazzling kaleidoscope of New York City in the 1920s' Christopher Hudson, Evening Standard

'Dos Passos has invented only one thing, an art of story-telling. But that is enough to create a universe' Jean-Paul Sartre

'The best modern book about New York'
D.H. Lawrence

A modernist masterwork that has more in common with films than traditional novels, John Dos Passos' Manhattan Transfer includes an introduction by Jay McInerney in Penguin Modern Classics.

A colourful, multi-faceted chronicle of New…


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Book cover of Follow Me to Africa

Follow Me to Africa By Penny Haw,

Historical fiction inspired by the story of Mary Leakey, who carved her own path to become one of the world's most distinguished paleoanthropologists.

It's 1983 and seventeen-year-old Grace Clark has just lost her mother when she begrudgingly accompanies her estranged father to an archeological dig at Olduvai Gorge on the…

Book cover of The Butterfly and the Violin

Elizabeth Musser Author Of By Way of the Moonlight

From my list on time-slip with present day and WWII protagonists.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a Southern girl from Atlanta who writes ‘entertainment with a soul’ from my writing chalet—tool shed—outside Lyon, France where my husband and I have worked with a non-profit for over 30 years. I love to incorporate little-known historical facts into my award-winning and best-selling contemporary, historical, and time-slip fiction. I want my reader to find not only a good story and an interesting plot, but also the soul in my book and in my characters with themes of betrayal, regret, redemption, forgiveness, and faith that allow my reader to think, to ask questions, to laugh and cry and hope. To be entertained way down in her soul. 

Elizabeth's book list on time-slip with present day and WWII protagonists

Elizabeth Musser Why did Elizabeth love this book?

Manhattan art dealer Sera James watched her world crumble at the altar two years ago, and her heart is still fragile. Her desire for distraction reignites a passion for a mysterious portrait she first saw as a young girl—a painting of a young violinist with piercing blue eyes. Along with wealthy heir William Hanover, Sera unravels the story behind the painting’s subject, an Austrian violinist Adele Von Bron who smuggles Jews out of Vienna and finds herself in Auschwitz.

Evocative, haunting, soul searching, this debut by Cambron is time-slip historical fiction at its best: heartbreaking truth of the horrors of Auschwitz, romance with a musical refrain, art and faith. Just the kind of story I try to write. A delight.

By Kristy Cambron,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Butterfly and the Violin as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Based on the real orchestra composed of prisoners at Auschwitz, The Butterfly and the Violin shows how beauty and hope can penetrate even the darkest corners.

Present day: Manhattan art dealer Sera James watched her world crumble at the altar two years ago, and her heart is still fragile. Her desire for distraction reignites a passion for a mysterious portrait she first saw as a young girl-a painting of a young violinist with piercing blue eyes.

In her search for the painting, Sera crosses paths with William Hanover-the grandson of a wealthy California real estate mogul-who may be the key…


Book cover of The Undomestic Goddess
Book cover of Something Borrowed
Book cover of Biglaw

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