36 Books like City of Girls

A Theatre for Dreamers

by Polly Samson

A motherless girl joins a Greek island's artists and learns who pays for their golden summer.

3.40

6k+

🎨 Real Artists Fictionalized 🍷 Bohemian Expats 🌿 Women Behind Genius 🌞 Summer Coming Of Age 🤝 Found Family

A Theatre for Dreamers 90%

A motherless girl joins a Greek island's artists and learns who pays for their golden summer.

by Polly Samson 2021

3.40

6k+ ratings

🎨 Real Artists Fictionalized 🍷 Bohemian Expats 🌿 Women Behind Genius 🌞 Summer Coming Of Age 🤝 Found Family

The Manhattan Girls

by Gill Paul • 2022

Four women in jazz age Manhattan fight for careers, love, and a table of their own.

3.69

3k+

🗽 Jazz Age Manhattan 👯 Female Friendship 🖤 Dark Humor 🎭 Backstage Broadway 🏠 Found Family

The Manhattan Girls 93%

Four women in jazz age Manhattan fight for careers, love, and a table of their own.

by Gill Paul 2022

3.69

3k+ ratings

🗽 Jazz Age Manhattan 👯 Female Friendship 🖤 Dark Humor 🎭 Backstage Broadway 🏠 Found Family

Rules of Civility

by Amor Towles • 2011

A sharp Brooklyn secretary navigates 1938 Manhattan high society after one New Year's encounter.

4.09

273k+

🪜 Social Climbing 💔 Love Triangle 💪 Self-Made Woman 🎩 Manners And Society 🕰️ Bittersweet Nostalgia

Rules of Civility 92%

A sharp Brooklyn secretary navigates 1938 Manhattan high society after one New Year's encounter.

by Amor Towles 2011

4.09

273k+ ratings

🪜 Social Climbing 💔 Love Triangle 💪 Self-Made Woman 🎩 Manners And Society 🕰️ Bittersweet Nostalgia

That Green Eyed Girl

by Julie Owen Moylan • 2022

Decades-old letters pull a teen into the forbidden romance that shattered in her New York apartment.

3.87

2k+

🕰️ Dual Timeline 📚 Sapphic Historical 💔 Forbidden Love 🔗 Intergenerational Trauma 🌫️ Quiet Grief

That Green Eyed Girl 90%

Decades-old letters pull a teen into the forbidden romance that shattered in her New York apartment.

by Julie Owen Moylan 2022

3.87

2k+ ratings

🕰️ Dual Timeline 📚 Sapphic Historical 💔 Forbidden Love 🔗 Intergenerational Trauma 🌫️ Quiet Grief

Bloomsbury Girls

by Natalie Jenner • 2022

Three bookshop women in postwar London hunt a lost novel to claim ownership of the shop.

3.85

18k+

🏪 Bookshop Fiction 🇬🇧 Postwar London 👯 Female Friendship 🫂 Found Family ✊ Feminist Historical

Bloomsbury Girls 90%

Three bookshop women in postwar London hunt a lost novel to claim ownership of the shop.

by Natalie Jenner 2022

3.85

18k+ ratings

🏪 Bookshop Fiction 🇬🇧 Postwar London 👯 Female Friendship 🫂 Found Family ✊ Feminist Historical

Friends Like These

by Meg Rosoff • 2022

A small-town intern in 1983 New York is remade by a magnetic friend, then must remake herself.

3.30

3k+

🖤 Toxic Female Friendship 🗽 1980s New York 🐠 Fish Out Of Water ☀️ Summer Coming Of Age 🥀 Loss Of Innocence

Friends Like These 90%

A small-town intern in 1983 New York is remade by a magnetic friend, then must remake herself.

by Meg Rosoff 2022

3.30

3k+ ratings

🖤 Toxic Female Friendship 🗽 1980s New York 🐠 Fish Out Of Water ☀️ Summer Coming Of Age 🥀 Loss Of Innocence

A Well-Behaved Woman

by Therese Anne Fowler • 2018

Her family ruined, Alva Smith marries a Vanderbilt. But old New York keeps its gates shut tight.

3.96

24k+

🏛️ Biographical Novel 🪜 Social Climbing 💍 Marriage Of Convenience 🥀 Mother-Daughter Conflict 💔 Betrayed Wife

A Well-Behaved Woman 90%

Her family ruined, Alva Smith marries a Vanderbilt. But old New York keeps its gates shut tight.

by Therese Anne Fowler 2018

3.96

24k+ ratings

🏛️ Biographical Novel 🪜 Social Climbing 💍 Marriage Of Convenience 🥀 Mother-Daughter Conflict 💔 Betrayed Wife

Hattie Big Sky

by Kirby Larson • 2006

An orphan inherits a Montana claim in 1918 and must survive brutal prairie and war prejudice.

4.03

20k+

🏡 Female Homesteader 🎖️ WWI Home Front 🔥 Wartime Hysteria 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family 👧 Orphan Protagonist

Hattie Big Sky 90%

An orphan inherits a Montana claim in 1918 and must survive brutal prairie and war prejudice.

by Kirby Larson 2006

4.03

20k+ ratings

🏡 Female Homesteader 🎖️ WWI Home Front 🔥 Wartime Hysteria 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family 👧 Orphan Protagonist

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

by Michael Chabon • 2000

Jewish cousins in 1939 Brooklyn invent a superhero who fights the evil they can only draw.

4.19

214k+

🌟 Golden Age Comics 🏳️‍🌈 Closeted Gay Protagonist 🎨 Refugee Artist 🗿 Golem Mythology 📚 Literary Pulp

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay Summary

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay 90%

Jewish cousins in 1939 Brooklyn invent a superhero who fights the evil they can only draw.

by Michael Chabon 2000

4.19

214k+ ratings

🌟 Golden Age Comics 🏳️‍🌈 Closeted Gay Protagonist 🎨 Refugee Artist 🗿 Golem Mythology 📚 Literary Pulp

Meet the Newmans

by Jennifer Niven • 2026

America's favorite TV wife is unraveling off camera. Her husband's accident forces the reckoning.

3.65

17k+

🎬 1960s Hollywood ✊ Feminist Awakening 🎭 Show Business Family 🏳️‍🌈 Closeted In Hollywood 💔 Marriage In Crisis

Meet the Newmans 91%

America's favorite TV wife is unraveling off camera. Her husband's accident forces the reckoning.

by Jennifer Niven 2026

3.65

17k+ ratings

🎬 1960s Hollywood ✊ Feminist Awakening 🎭 Show Business Family 🏳️‍🌈 Closeted In Hollywood 💔 Marriage In Crisis

Mary Jane

by Jessica Anya Blau • 2021

A sheltered Baltimore teen spends one summer nannying for a family hiding a famous rock star.

4.12

115k+

📅 1970s Coming Of Age 🏠 Bohemian Household 🩷 Found Family 👶 Nanny Protagonist 🔒 Sheltered Protagonist

Mary Jane 91%

A sheltered Baltimore teen spends one summer nannying for a family hiding a famous rock star.

by Jessica Anya Blau 2021

4.12

115k+ ratings

📅 1970s Coming Of Age 🏠 Bohemian Household 🩷 Found Family 👶 Nanny Protagonist 🔒 Sheltered Protagonist

Don’t Forget to Write

by Sara Goodman Confino

Banished to her matchmaker aunt, a coed discovers the old woman's secret life and her own voice.

4.48

79k+

🕰️ Midcentury Womanhood ✡️ Jewish American Life 👵 Unlikely Mentorship 🏳️‍🌈 Hidden Queer Love 🫂 Found Family

Don’t Forget to Write 90%

Banished to her matchmaker aunt, a coed discovers the old woman's secret life and her own voice.

by Sara Goodman Confino 2023

4.48

79k+ ratings

🕰️ Midcentury Womanhood ✡️ Jewish American Life 👵 Unlikely Mentorship 🏳️‍🌈 Hidden Queer Love 🫂 Found Family

The Air You Breathe

by Frances de Pontes Peebles • 2018

A servant and a planter's daughter chase samba, stardom, and a bond that will undo them.

3.88

9k+

🏳️‍🌈 Sapphic Historical 💔 Toxic Female Friendship 👤 Invisible Creator 🌈 Queer Longing 🫂 Found Family

The Air You Breathe 90%

A servant and a planter's daughter chase samba, stardom, and a bond that will undo them.

by Frances de Pontes Peebles 2018

3.88

9k+ ratings

🏳️‍🌈 Sapphic Historical 💔 Toxic Female Friendship 👤 Invisible Creator 🌈 Queer Longing 🫂 Found Family

The Chanel Sisters

by Judithe Little • 2020

The forgotten sister who built Chanel tells the story Coco never would.

3.95

9k+

🧵 Fashion History 👤 Woman Behind The Icon 🏙️ Belle ÉPoque Paris ⚔️ Wartime Separation 👩‍👩‍👧 Orphaned Sisters

The Chanel Sisters 90%

The forgotten sister who built Chanel tells the story Coco never would.

by Judithe Little 2020

3.95

9k+ ratings

🧵 Fashion History 👤 Woman Behind The Icon 🏙️ Belle ÉPoque Paris ⚔️ Wartime Separation 👩‍👩‍👧 Orphaned Sisters

Honey

by Isabel Banta • 2024

A talent-show discovery enters the 1990s girl-group machine and emerges a stranger to herself.

3.44

16k+

🎤 Pop Music Industry 🎵 Girl Group 💫 Cost Of Fame 👯 Female Friendship 🌈 Queer Awakening

Honey 90%

A talent-show discovery enters the 1990s girl-group machine and emerges a stranger to herself.

by Isabel Banta 2024

3.44

16k+ ratings

🎤 Pop Music Industry 🎵 Girl Group 💫 Cost Of Fame 👯 Female Friendship 🌈 Queer Awakening

Lake County

by Lori Roy • 2024

Her aunt is Marilyn Monroe. Her boyfriend killed a gangster. Now 1955 Florida wants blood.

3.81

4k+

🏚️ Southern Gothic 🤫 Small Town Secrets 🎬 Hollywood Dreams 🎲 Gambling And Gangsters 🏠 Found Family

Lake County 90%

Her aunt is Marilyn Monroe. Her boyfriend killed a gangster. Now 1955 Florida wants blood.

by Lori Roy 2024

3.81

4k+ ratings

🏚️ Southern Gothic 🤫 Small Town Secrets 🎬 Hollywood Dreams 🎲 Gambling And Gangsters 🏠 Found Family

The Lions of Fifth Avenue

by Fiona Davis • 2020

A family's hidden life in the New York Public Library unravels when rare books start disappearing.

3.90

84k+

🕰️ Dual Timeline Mystery 📚 Books About Books 🏳️‍🌈 Forbidden Sapphic Love 🔐 Family Secrets 📜 Lost Manuscript

The Lions of Fifth Avenue 90%

A family's hidden life in the New York Public Library unravels when rare books start disappearing.

by Fiona Davis 2020

3.90

84k+ ratings

🕰️ Dual Timeline Mystery 📚 Books About Books 🏳️‍🌈 Forbidden Sapphic Love 🔐 Family Secrets 📜 Lost Manuscript

The Social Graces

by Renée Rosen • 2021

In Gilded Age New York, an old-money queen and an ambitious newcomer battle for society’s throne.

3.98

16k+

🏙️ Gilded Age New York 💎 Old Money New Money 🚪 Ambitious Outsider ⚔️ Female Rivalry 📰 Society Scandal

The Social Graces 90%

In Gilded Age New York, an old-money queen and an ambitious newcomer battle for society’s throne.

by Renée Rosen 2021

3.98

16k+ ratings

🏙️ Gilded Age New York 💎 Old Money New Money 🚪 Ambitious Outsider ⚔️ Female Rivalry 📰 Society Scandal

Kin

by Tayari Jones

One cradle, two motherless Black girls. Jim Crow Louisiana permits only one to rise.

4.23

67k+

🎭 Respectability Politics 💔 Motherless Daughters 🌈 Queer Awakening 🏠 Found Family 👯 Lifelong Friendship

Kin 89%

One cradle, two motherless Black girls. Jim Crow Louisiana permits only one to rise.

by Tayari Jones 2026

4.23

67k+ ratings

🎭 Respectability Politics 💔 Motherless Daughters 🌈 Queer Awakening 🏠 Found Family 👯 Lifelong Friendship

Not Our Kind

by Kitty Zeldis • 2018

A car crash pulls a Jewish teacher into a WASP home, where hiding her identity is survival.

3.76

6k+

🤝 Cross-Class Friendship 🗽 Postwar New York 🎭 Hidden Identity 💔 Forbidden Romance 🩹 Trauma And Healing

Not Our Kind 91%

A car crash pulls a Jewish teacher into a WASP home, where hiding her identity is survival.

by Kitty Zeldis 2018

3.76

6k+ ratings

🤝 Cross-Class Friendship 🗽 Postwar New York 🎭 Hidden Identity 💔 Forbidden Romance 🩹 Trauma And Healing

The Flamethrowers

by Rachel Kushner • 2013

A motorcyclist turns speed into art, then follows her Italian lover into his family's violent world.

3.51

25k+

🎨 1970s Art World 💫 Artist And Muse 💰 Old Money Family ⚡ Political Violence 👩‍🎨 Woman Artist

The Flamethrowers 91%

A motorcyclist turns speed into art, then follows her Italian lover into his family's violent world.

by Rachel Kushner 2013

3.51

25k+ ratings

🎨 1970s Art World 💫 Artist And Muse 💰 Old Money Family ⚡ Political Violence 👩‍🎨 Woman Artist

Someday, Someday, Maybe

by Lauren Graham • 2013

Franny Banks gave herself three years to make it as an actress. She has six months left.

3.54

60k+

🎬 Show Business 🎭 Struggling Artist 💘 Romantic Comedy 👫 Friends To Lovers 🔺 Love Triangle

Someday, Someday, Maybe 90%

Franny Banks gave herself three years to make it as an actress. She has six months left.

by Lauren Graham 2013

3.54

60k+ ratings

🎬 Show Business 🎭 Struggling Artist 💘 Romantic Comedy 👫 Friends To Lovers 🔺 Love Triangle

Harlem Rhapsody

by Victoria Christopher Murray • 2025

She built the Harlem Renaissance from the shadows. Her secret lover was its powerful married leader.

4.06

10k+

🎷 Harlem Renaissance 📖 Biographical Fiction 🎺 Jazz Age Harlem ⚖️ Mentor Affair 💼 Ambition And Sacrifice

Harlem Rhapsody 90%

She built the Harlem Renaissance from the shadows. Her secret lover was its powerful married leader.

by Victoria Christopher Murray 2025

4.06

10k+ ratings

🎷 Harlem Renaissance 📖 Biographical Fiction 🎺 Jazz Age Harlem ⚖️ Mentor Affair 💼 Ambition And Sacrifice

Girl Through Glass

by Sari Wilson • 2016

A dance professor's past as a child ballerina groomed by a collector returns with a letter.

3.38

3k+

🩰 Ballet Fiction 🕷️ Predatory Mentor 🎭 Artistic Obsession 🌫️ Haunting Atmosphere 🗽 1970s New York

Girl Through Glass 90%

A dance professor's past as a child ballerina groomed by a collector returns with a letter.

by Sari Wilson 2016

3.38

3k+ ratings

🩰 Ballet Fiction 🕷️ Predatory Mentor 🎭 Artistic Obsession 🌫️ Haunting Atmosphere 🗽 1970s New York

The Only Woman in the Room

by Marie Benedict • 2019

A film star weds a munitions mogul, escapes, then invents a weapon the world dismisses.

3.87

111k+

📖 Biographical Fiction 🎬 Golden Age Hollywood 🏰 1930s Vienna 🔒 Gilded Cage 🎭 Hidden Intellect

The Only Woman in the Room 90%

A film star weds a munitions mogul, escapes, then invents a weapon the world dismisses.

by Marie Benedict 2019

3.87

111k+ ratings

📖 Biographical Fiction 🎬 Golden Age Hollywood 🏰 1930s Vienna 🔒 Gilded Cage 🎭 Hidden Intellect

Hang the Moon

by Jeannette Walls • 2023

Banished as a child, a bootlegger's daughter returns to claim his empire from a pious half-sister.

3.81

84k+

🥃 Prohibition Era 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family Saga 🏠 Prodigal Daughter 🚗 Whiskey Running 🤝 Found Family

Hang the Moon 90%

Banished as a child, a bootlegger's daughter returns to claim his empire from a pious half-sister.

by Jeannette Walls 2023

3.81

84k+ ratings

🥃 Prohibition Era 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family Saga 🏠 Prodigal Daughter 🚗 Whiskey Running 🤝 Found Family

Whatever Happened to Lori Lovely?

by Sarah McCoy • 2025

At her aunt's convent, a student pieces together why a sixties starlet became a cloistered nun.

3.93

3k+

🎬 Old Hollywood ⏳ Dual Timelines 🫂 Chosen Family 🔐 Family Secrets 💔 Star-Crossed Lovers

Whatever Happened to Lori Lovely? Summary

Whatever Happened to Lori Lovely? 90%

At her aunt's convent, a student pieces together why a sixties starlet became a cloistered nun.

by Sarah McCoy 2025

3.93

3k+ ratings

🎬 Old Hollywood ⏳ Dual Timelines 🫂 Chosen Family 🔐 Family Secrets 💔 Star-Crossed Lovers

Mrs. Everything

by Jennifer Weiner • 2019

Two sisters. One loves women in secret. One buries her past. A lifetime of becoming themselves.

3.85

95k+

🏡 Family Saga 👭 Sisterhood 🏳️‍🌈 Repressed Sexuality 🩹 Trauma And Healing 🇺🇸 Midcentury America

Mrs. Everything 91%

Two sisters. One loves women in secret. One buries her past. A lifetime of becoming themselves.

by Jennifer Weiner 2019

3.85

95k+ ratings

🏡 Family Saga 👭 Sisterhood 🏳️‍🌈 Repressed Sexuality 🩹 Trauma And Healing 🇺🇸 Midcentury America

The Golden Cup

by Belva Plain • 1986

A tenement fire, a radical reformer. She marries him anyway, then spends a lifetime reckoning.

4.02

2k+

🏠 Multi-Generational Saga 🕍 Jewish American Family 💔 Marriage In Crisis 💰 Class Divide Romance 🪖 War Trauma

The Golden Cup 91%

A tenement fire, a radical reformer. She marries him anyway, then spends a lifetime reckoning.

by Belva Plain 1986

4.02

2k+ ratings

🏠 Multi-Generational Saga 🕍 Jewish American Family 💔 Marriage In Crisis 💰 Class Divide Romance 🪖 War Trauma

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Reclusive screen legend Evelyn Hugo tells a journalist the love story she hid behind seven husbands.

4.39

4.2M+

🎬 Old Hollywood 💋 Sapphic Romance 💍 Fake Marriage 🏠 Found Family 💔 Second Chance Romance

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Summary

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo 89%

Reclusive screen legend Evelyn Hugo tells a journalist the love story she hid behind seven husbands.

by Taylor Jenkins Reid 2017

4.39

4.2M+ ratings

🎬 Old Hollywood 💋 Sapphic Romance 💍 Fake Marriage 🏠 Found Family 💔 Second Chance Romance

A Fortune of Sand

by Ruta Sepetys • 2026

Inside a Jazz Age arts retreat, a Detroit heiress discovers the mansion is a gilded asylum.

3.61

4k+

🎷 Jazz Age 🖤 Gothic Mystery 🏚️ Decaying Dynasty 🏰 Gilded Cage 💎 Hidden Fortune

A Fortune of Sand 90%

Inside a Jazz Age arts retreat, a Detroit heiress discovers the mansion is a gilded asylum.

by Ruta Sepetys 2026

3.61

4k+ ratings

🎷 Jazz Age 🖤 Gothic Mystery 🏚️ Decaying Dynasty 🏰 Gilded Cage 💎 Hidden Fortune

The Masterpiece

by Fiona Davis • 2018

A divorcée uncovers a lost painting in Grand Central and the forgotten woman who created it.

3.87

35k+

🕰️ Dual Timeline 🎨 Art World Mystery 👩‍🎨 Forgotten Woman Artist 💕 Rivals To Lovers 🎭 Hidden Identity

The Masterpiece 89%

A divorcée uncovers a lost painting in Grand Central and the forgotten woman who created it.

by Fiona Davis 2018

3.87

35k+ ratings

🕰️ Dual Timeline 🎨 Art World Mystery 👩‍🎨 Forgotten Woman Artist 💕 Rivals To Lovers 🎭 Hidden Identity

The Other Typist

by Suzanne Rindell • 2013

A prim typist's obsession with a glamorous coworker draws her into 1920s New York's underworld.

3.55

19k+

🎭 Unreliable Narrator 🖤 Dangerous Obsession 💋 Femme Fatale 🍸 Jazz Age 👤 Stolen Identity

The Other Typist 89%

A prim typist's obsession with a glamorous coworker draws her into 1920s New York's underworld.

by Suzanne Rindell 2013

3.55

19k+ ratings

🎭 Unreliable Narrator 🖤 Dangerous Obsession 💋 Femme Fatale 🍸 Jazz Age 👤 Stolen Identity

Me Before You

by Jojo Moyes • 2012

A caregiver falls for her quadriplegic client, only to discover he has a plan to end his life.

4.26

1.8M+

🖤 Tragic Romance ☀️ Grumpy Sunshine ⚖️ Right To Die 💔 Bittersweet Ending 🌿 English Village Life

Me Before You 89%

A caregiver falls for her quadriplegic client, only to discover he has a plan to end his life.

by Jojo Moyes 2012

4.26

1.8M+ ratings

🖤 Tragic Romance ☀️ Grumpy Sunshine ⚖️ Right To Die 💔 Bittersweet Ending 🌿 English Village Life

Scandal in Babylon

by Barbara Hambly • 2021

A British scholar in 1920s Hollywood must find the killer who framed her movie-star sister-in-law.

3.77

469

🎬 Golden Age Hollywood 🕵️ Amateur Sleuth ⚖️ Frame Up Plot 👪 Found Family 🎷 Jazz Age

Scandal in Babylon 89%

A British scholar in 1920s Hollywood must find the killer who framed her movie-star sister-in-law.

by Barbara Hambly 2021

3.77

469 ratings

🎬 Golden Age Hollywood 🕵️ Amateur Sleuth ⚖️ Frame Up Plot 👪 Found Family 🎷 Jazz Age

Kaleidoscope

by Danielle Steel • 1987

A murder-suicide leaves three sisters orphaned and scattered across continents and separate lives.

3.99

17k+

🎭 Family Saga 👯 Separated Siblings 🤫 Hidden Parentage ⬆️ Rags To Riches 💔 Orphaned Heroines

Kaleidoscope 89%

A murder-suicide leaves three sisters orphaned and scattered across continents and separate lives.

by Danielle Steel 1987

3.99

17k+ ratings

🎭 Family Saga 👯 Separated Siblings 🤫 Hidden Parentage ⬆️ Rags To Riches 💔 Orphaned Heroines

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