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Quick answer: If you read Acts of Desperation, read Megan Nolan's Ordinary Human Failings, then Normal People, Conversations with Friends, My Year of Rest and Relaxation and The Days of Abandonment. All are sharp, intense novels about obsessive love, self-erasure and young women in unequal relationships.
Megan Nolan's 2021 debut follows an unnamed narrator in Dublin and London who falls for a charming, distant man, Ciaran, and loses herself in wanting him. It is frank, bleak and brilliantly observed. The books below offer similar portraits of desire, shame and the cost of needing someone too much.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Ages | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Normal People | Sally Rooney | Adult | two lovers |
| Conversations with Friends | Sally Rooney | Adult | triangle of friends |
| Beautiful World, Where Are You | Sally Rooney | Adult | friends and love |
| My Year of Rest and Relaxation | Ottessa Moshfegh | Adult | numbed existence |
| The Days of Abandonment | Elena Ferrante | Adult | marital collapse |
| Sorrow and Bliss | Meg Mason | Adult | mental illness and marriage |
| Ghosts | Dolly Alderton | Adult | modern dating |
| Luster | Raven Leilani | Adult | messy desire |
| Open Water | Caleb Azumah Nelson | Adult | young love in London |
| Writers & Lovers | Lily King | Adult | creative lives |
| Heartburn | Nora Ephron | Adult | funny betrayal |
| The Idiot | Elif Batuman | Adult | campus comedy |
| Vladimir | Julia May Jonas | Adult | desire and campus |
| Milkman | Anna Burns | Adult | Troubles-era Belfast |
| Pizza Girl | Jean Kyoung Frazier | Adult | restless young woman |
1. Normal People by Sally Rooney
Marianne and Connell drift together and apart over the years. Quiet, intimate and addictive.
Best for: two lovers.
2. Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
A young writer becomes entangled with a married couple. Cool, witty and honest.
Best for: triangle of friends.
3. Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
Two friends write to each other about love and the state of the world. Reflective and warm.
Best for: friends and love.
4. My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
A young woman tries to sleep through a year in New York. Dark and funny.
Best for: numbed existence.
5. The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante
A woman unravels after her husband leaves. Raw, intense and unforgettable.
Best for: marital collapse.
6. Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason
A woman with an undiagnosed illness struggles with love and family. Funny and sad.
Best for: mental illness and marriage.
7. Ghosts by Dolly Alderton
A woman in her thirties deals with ghosting and her father's illness. Funny and honest.
Best for: modern dating.
8. Luster by Raven Leilani
A young Black artist becomes involved with an older married man. Daring and funny.
Best for: messy desire.
9. Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson
Two Black artists fall in love. Lyrical and moving.
Best for: young love in London.
10. Writers & Lovers by Lily King
Casey, a waitress and aspiring novelist, grieves her mother while juggling two men. Honest and funny.
Best for: creative lives.
11. Heartburn by Nora Ephron
A cookbook writer discovers her husband's affair. Witty and delicious.
Best for: funny betrayal.
12. The Idiot by Elif Batuman
A Turkish American freshman falls for an older student. Dry, funny and observant.
Best for: campus comedy.
13. Vladimir by Julia May Jonas
A professor becomes obsessed with a colleague. Dark, funny and daring.
Best for: desire and campus.
14. Milkman by Anna Burns
A young woman is stalked in a divided city. Unusual, funny and sharp.
Best for: Troubles-era Belfast.
15. Pizza Girl by Jean Kyoung Frazier
A pregnant pizza delivery girl becomes obsessed with a customer. Funny and tender.
Best for: restless young woman.
How to Choose
For more Nolan read Ordinary Human Failings. For cool, close relationships choose Sally Rooney. For darker obsession pick The Days of Abandonment or My Year of Rest and Relaxation. For funnier takes read Ghosts, Sorrow and Bliss or Heartburn. For Irish voices try Milkman. Acts of Desperation deals with controlling relationships, so check content notes. Nolan also writes essays and criticism, and her sharp eye on desire shows in all of it. The novel has been widely discussed for how it handles self-erasing love. Contemporary novels about desire and shame often work best when read slowly, with time to reflect. If you want a quicker, funnier read, Ghosts and Pizza Girl are lighter. If you want something equally sharp but more experimental, Ferrante and Moshfegh are good. Audiobooks are widely available.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Acts of Desperation about?
A young woman's obsessive relationship with a charming, withholding man.
Who wrote it?
Megan Nolan.
When was it published?
2021.
Is it a debut?
Yes, Nolan's first novel.
Is it similar to Sally Rooney?
It shares a close, clear style, but it is darker and more intense.
Is it triggering?
It deals with emotional abuse and disordered eating, so check content notes.
Is it set in Ireland?
Partly in Dublin and London.
What should I read next?
Try Normal People or The Days of Abandonment.
Is Acts of Desperation autobiographical?
It is a novel, though Nolan has said it draws on emotional truths from her own life.
Which book here is best for numbed existence?
Try My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh, which suits readers looking for numbed existence.
Which book here is best for modern dating?
Try Ghosts by Dolly Alderton, which suits readers looking for modern dating.
Which book here is best for creative lives?
Try Writers & Lovers by Lily King, which suits readers looking for creative lives.