Unspoken tensions, old memories, and complicated dynamics… holidays are that one time when the big family reunion happens. So what better season to dive into stories that unpack the messy, and emotional beauty of family life? Take a look at 13 of the best fiction books about family drama!
These will make you gasp at the secrets, relate to the patterns you’ve lived through, cringe at the emotional chaos, and flip pages like your mind is trying to make sense of it all.
So, consider this your guide to the best fiction books about family drama and perfect for your holiday reading list!
Read more here: 9 Fall Books To Read If You’re Obsessed With Pumpkins, Leaves, And Latte Season
Best Fiction Books About Family Drama For The Holidays!
1. A Nearly Normal Family by M.T. Edvardsson
This is a sharp, twisty legal-family thriller that involves a pastor, a lawyer, and their teenage daughter. The family is thrown into a nightmare when she’s accused of murder.
Each chapter reveals how “normal” this family really is (or isn’t). And you surely won’t put it down before finding out the truth! And if you don’t have the bandwidth to read it’s also available on Netflix as a limited television series directed by Per Hanefjord.
1. The School For Good Mothers By Jessamine Chan
A haunting, unsettling look at motherhood under surveillance. When a single mistake lands Frida in a government-run “school,” she must fight to prove she’s a good mother. One of the best family drama books if you want something bold, thought-provoking, and unforgettable.
3. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
This is the bestseller 2001 novel by American author Jonathan Franzen that revolves around the hardships of an elderly Midwestern couple and their three adult children, following their lives from the middle of the 20th century to their final Christmas as the millennium changed.
So if you love messy characters, biting observations, and long-standing tension, this classic family-drama chaos novel is your pick!
4. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
This stunning and addictive read explores identity and family secrets as it follows twin sisters who make drastically different life choices. One is Black, the other passes as white, and their decisions have a lasting impact on generations to come.
5. Commonwealth by Ann Patchett
Exploring the complexities of family life, this beautifully written novel spans across five decades. It begins with one illicit kiss at a party that leads to an affair, destroying two marriages and triggers decades of blended-family chaos and drama.
If you love character-driven novels, or slow-burn love with emotional depth, then it’s the perfect read for you!
6. The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
Siblings clash over a possible inheritance, causing chaos to unfold. Funny, sharp, and painfully relatable, this is one of the best family drama books, if you’ve ever dealt with money and family.
7. Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
This novel centers on a mixed-race Chinese-American family whose middle daughter, Lydia, is tragically found drowned in a nearby lake, setting off decades of emotional repercussions…
It’s tender, honest, and deeply human. So, if this is your mood, then it’ll be just the perfect read!
8. Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane
Mary Beth Keane’s Ask Again, Yes is a poignant and powerful story exploring family relationships, old wounds, and defining moments in life.
It’s a gorgeous story about forgiveness and survival, involving two families, two houses, and one explosive incident that leads to decades of fallout…
9. The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
A sweeping novel of remarkable ambition and depth, The Immortalists probes the line between destiny and choice, reality and illusion, this world and the next. It revolves around siblings who learn the dates of their deaths, then spend their lives shaped by that knowledge. A sweeping family saga with a magical edge.
10. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
In Taylor Jenkins Reid’s “Malibu Rising,” the celebrated Riva siblings host a party that exposes generations of wounds, creating a whirlwind of glamour, heartbreak, and explosive drama.
11. The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett explores the complicated and enduring bond between siblings Maeve and Danny Conroy, who are exiled from their lavish childhood home after their father’s death.
12. The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo
“The Light We Lost” by Jill Santopolo explores relationships, the connections between people, and the impact of those bonds. While relationship-focused, the novel also weaves in compelling emotional threads related to family dynamics, choices, and regret, creating a resonant reading experience, especially during the holidays.
13. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
A memoir, yes, but reads like fiction, “The Glass Castle” is a best-selling 2005 memoir by Jeannette Walls about her nomadic and often impoverished childhood with her unconventional, “brilliant but alcoholic” father and her free-spirited, but neglectful mother.
The story reveals the family’s struggles, the children’s resilience, and her eventual move to New York, where she later finds her impoverished parents living on the streets.
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Family gatherings are warm and cozy… until they’re not. These family drama books give you all the emotional complexity without any real-life consequences. Plus, they remind you that no family is perfect, and that’s what makes them interesting.
If you’re building a TBR list full of tension, emotion, secrets, and heart, these best fiction books about family drama are the perfect place to start.
