The 10 Best Sophie Kinsella Books, Ranked
On December 10, Sophie Kinsella — born Madeleine Sophie Wickham — died at the age of 55, due to complications from an aggressive form of brain cancer. Widely regarded as one of the best romance authors of the 21st century, Kinsella captured readers with her delightfully messy, chaotic protagonists. Since the news of her death, countless bestselling authors, including Jojo Moyes, Jenny Colgan, and Jodi Picoult, have shared statements celebrating her immense impact and wonderful personality.
Whether you’re a longtime fan revisiting the best of Sophie Kinsella or a newcomer eager to discover what made her books so beloved, we’ve got you covered. From the lighthearted Shopaholic series (the 2009 adaptation is a classic) to her semi-autobiographical novel about a woman with a brain tumor, here are the Sophie Kinsella books you simply must read and cherish forever.
Let us know your favorite Sophie Kinsella book in the comments below.
I Owe You One
Sophie Kinsella
A lot of life revolves around what we owe each other. You owe the person you’re dating a text back, you owe your friend an hour of your time, you owe your dog every treat it eyes at the park. And that’s the beating heart of Sophie Kinsella’s I Owe You One.
Fixie Farr (we’ll just… glide past that name) has a compulsion to make things right. So when a handsome stranger at a coffee shop asks her to watch his laptop, she agrees — and ends up saving it from total catastrophe. In return, the grateful owner, Sebastian, scribbles her an IOU.
Then she bumps into her teenage crush, who just so happens to need a favor, and suddenly that IOU comes in handy. From there, the back-and-forth favours escalate — from tiny gestures to life-changing debts — and we’re left hoping that this time, Fixie will finally stop fixing everyone else’s life and start fixing her own.
My Not So Perfect Life
Sophie Kinsella
Every girlie in her twenties needs to read this Sophie Kinsella novel. And every girlie past her twenties needs to read it and realize it wasn’t just them — it was never just them.
Katie Brenner looks like she has the perfect life: a chic London flat, a glamorous job, and an Instagram feed that screams cool girl energy. The truth? She has none of that. When she’s abruptly sacked from her “dream” job, she’s forced to move back home and rebuild her life from scratch. Soon enough, she’s handed the chance for revenge… or redemption. The question becomes: What does she actually want her perfect life to look like, especially when no one’s holding a camera?
Honestly, we could all learn a thing or two from this one.
What Does It Feel Like?
Sophie Kinsella
Kinsella described this novel as fiction, but also called it her “most autobiographical work to date. Eve’s story is [her] story.” Reading it now, after her death, makes it hit even harder.
Eve is a successful novelist who wakes up in a hospital bed with no memory of how she got there. Her husband — steadfast, attentive, heartbreakingly devoted — explains that she’s undergone surgery to remove a large malignant tumor from her brain. Now she must relearn everything: how to walk, how to talk, how to write… and, most painfully, what matters most to her.
It’s a story of grief before the end, grief over what’s slipping away, and grief wrapped inside a love so big it feels impossible to hold. Truly, you’re going to need the jumbo box of tissues for this one.
I’ve Got Your Number
Sophie Kinsella
No one writes a meet-cute like Sophie Kinsella. She knows exactly how to make two strangers collide and fall head over heels — sometimes literally. Forget dating apps. Her protagonists stumble into romance the chaotic, hilarious way. Case in point: Finding an adorable executive’s mobile phone in a bin after losing your own, and suddenly their lives are hilariously, irresistibly tangled.
Kinsella never shies away from messy beginnings or slightly unavailable love interests — oops — but somehow, she always has you rooting for them anyway.
Shopaholic and Sister
Sophie Kinsella
We’re skipping the third Shopaholic installment on this list and jumping straight to the fourth — not because the third isn’t great, but because the fourth brings something truly special: Becky’s polar opposite half-sister.
Jess is studious, thrifty, and a little standoffish, and she’s determined to teach Becky the art of saving. Becky, of course, cannot compute a life without fun. The result? Constant clashes, as Becky’s marriage is trying (and often failing) to find its footing post-honeymoon.
It’s refreshing to see the series shift its focus from romance to friendship, proving once again that Kinsella could write so much more than a love story.
Remember Me?
Sophie Kinsella
Imagine waking up after an accident to discover that three years have passed and your life now seems flawless. Perfect husband, perfect job, perfect home, perfect appearance… Lexi Smart experiences exactly that. But the longer she lives in this “perfect” world, the more she realizes that not everything is as perfect as it seems.
A story like this could easily come off as cliché — a forceful reminder that what you have now is pretty damn good. But Kinsella goes deeper. The novel delivers a love story that hits you in the gut, while exploring choices, consequences, and what it really means to live with them. Heavier than her usual fare, yes, but also full of lessons we could all take to heart.
Shopaholic Abroad
Sophie Kinsella
The first Shopaholic book was such a hit that a sequel could have been a daunting prospect. Some authors might have stuck to one success to avoid disappointing themselves, their characters, or their readers. But not Kinsella — she brought Becky back for another whirlwind adventure.
Becky Bloomwood is made for Manhattan, and it’s pure joy watching her traipse through the streets and shop her heart out at Barneys. But, of course, chaos follows her everywhere. We’re practically shouting at the pages for her to put the credit card down!
What’s especially powerful here is that love doesn’t fix everything. Luke doesn’t swoop in to bail Becky out of debt. A healthy relationship doesn’t curb her shopping addiction. Becky has to fix herself, and that’s what makes her story truly resonate.
Can You Keep a Secret?
Sophie Kinsella
Not nearly enough of Sophie Kinsella’s best books have made it to the big (or little) screen, but this one is an exception. It’s a perfectly chaotic novel, rooted in a premise we can all imagine — maybe inspired by a turbulent flight and a panicked passenger.
Here’s the gist: A woman terrified of flying accidentally spills her most profound (and mortifying) secrets to the handsome executive sitting next to her. Plot twist: He turns out to be her new boss. She’s officially kicked off their working relationship by confessing her biggest regrets and misdemeanors. Uh oh.
Emma is utterly likable as the protagonist, and Alexandra Daddario brings her to life beautifully in the 2019 film adaptation.
The Undomestic Goddess
Sophie Kinsella
This is one of Sophie Kinsella’s novels that truly sticks with you. It grabs hold of your brain and lingers for years — unless, like us, you keep rereading it.
Interestingly, the protagonist, Samantha, stands apart from other Kinsella heroines (and from the author herself). She’s a high-flying lawyer who botches a major client deal, suffers a breakdown, and escapes to a random small town. Miscommunication lands her a job as a cleaner for a wealthy family. The problem is, she has no clue how to handle the most basic domestic tasks.
Enter a small-town hunk who helps her find her footing, and suddenly the vibes are delicious. By the end, all we wanted was to ditch the chaos and find our own simpler, sweeter life.
Confessions of a Shopaholic
Sophie Kinsella
It’ll come as no surprise that, in our humble opinion, the best Sophie Kinsella book is the one that started it all. Not just a series — a movement. Published also as The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic and adapted into a movie starring Isla Fisher, it introduced the flawed, chaotic, utterly lovable Rebecca Bloomwood — aka Becky — front and center.
Becky is a full-on shopaholic. Maybe a serious addiction that warrants intervention, but it also leads to some stressfully hilarious situations. Along the way, she keeps running into her boss, Luke Brandon, and, naturally, can’t help noticing how ridiculously handsome he is. Fun fact: We named Brandon one of the best book boyfriends!
Half the time, you’re clutching the book in empathetic panic at the messes she creates. But you can’t help rooting for her anyway. This debut spawned sequels, merchandise, and a whole Shopaholic phenomenon. Honestly, if you haven’t started the series, now’s the perfect time to dive in.
