Abbi Waxman
Abbi Waxman has published 7 books. The recommended reading order starts with The Garden of Small Beginnings (2017).
Abbi Waxman is a novelist who writes women’s fiction. She was born in England, the daughter of two copywriters, one of whom left the family and the other who became a successful crime fiction writer. Waxman followed a path through copywriting and served as a creative director for advertising agencies in London and New York. This career in advertising provided the foundation for her later work as a fiction writer. Her debut novel, The Garden of Small Beginnings, was released in 2017. Waxman lives in Los Angeles with her husband, three children, and a wide array of pets, including dogs and cats. She also finds time to lie down as much as possible.
Shelf & Shadows
Order of Standalone Novels
- TagsromanceDescriptionHow do you learn to live again when grief has hollowed you out? Lilian Girvan has been a widow for three years. She's mastered the basics: getting her two daughters to school, showing up to her job as a textbook illustrator, binge-watching TV. She's functional. She's also drowning in the quiet monotony of survival. One breakdown and a few dark thoughts behind her, she's stuck in the liminal space between falling apart and moving forward. Then her boss signs her up for a vegetable gardening class at the Los Angeles Botanical Garden. It's research for a new project, but it feels like punishment. Lilian doesn't want to get her hands dirty—literally or metaphorically. But with her kids and her fiercely supportive sister in tow, she shows up anyway. What she finds is a motley crew of gardeners, a patient instructor, and the slow, stubborn work of coaxing life from soil. Abbi Waxman's debut is tender and sharp, funny without flinching from the weight of loss. This is a book about grief that refuses to be maudlin, about a woman who discovers that healing doesn't arrive in grand gestures but in small, dirt-under-your-nails moments. It's poignant. It's real. It's the kind of story that reminds you: sometimes growth begins when you least expect it.Publication dateMay 2, 2017Amazon rating4.4/5Print length368LanguageEnglishPublisherBerkley
- Tags---DescriptionFrances Bloom is standing in her neighbor's kitchen when her world tilts sideways. Her husband is having an affair. The news spreads through their Los Angeles neighborhood like wildfire, and suddenly everyone knows. The carpool lane becomes a gauntlet. The school pickup a performance. This is domestic life under a microscope. Waxman captures the particular claustrophobia of tight-knit communities where your business is everyone's business, where friendships are built on convenience and proximity, and where a scandal becomes the season's entertainment. Frances has to navigate not just her crumbling marriage but the weight of all those watching eyes. Her friends rally, gossip, judge, and support in equal measure. It's messy and human and painfully real. What makes this sing is Waxman's sharp eye for the comedy tucked inside catastrophe. She knows how absurd it all is—the forced cheerfulness, the social choreography, the way we perform normalcy even when everything's falling apart. But she also knows the tenderness underneath. This is a book about resilience, about the unexpected grace of community, and about finding yourself when the life you built comes undone. Warm, witty, and surprisingly moving, it's the kind of story that reminds you why we need each other, even when—especially when—things get complicated.Publication dateApril 3, 2018Amazon rating4.1/5Print length352LanguageEnglishPublisherBerkley
- TagsromanceDescriptionThere's something deeply comforting about a life built entirely around books, trivia nights, and a perfectly calibrated routine that keeps the messy unpredictability of other people at a safe distance. Nina Hill has constructed exactly that kind of existence for herself, working at a bookstore, competing on a pub quiz team, and maintaining a color-coded planner that accounts for every hour of her carefully ordered days. She's content in her solitude, surrounded by fictional characters who never disappoint and a cat who asks for nothing more than regular feeding times. But then a father she never knew existed dies, leaving behind a sprawling family that suddenly wants to know her, and Nina's meticulously arranged world begins to tilt on its axis. There are half-siblings and nieces and nephews, all of them eager to fold her into their chaotic, affectionate fold, and a handsome lawyer who keeps showing up at the most inconvenient moments. For someone who's spent her entire adult life avoiding emotional entanglements, the prospect of letting all these people in feels like standing at the edge of something terrifying and possibly wonderful. What unfolds is a story about the courage it takes to let your life get a little messy, to risk the heartbreak that comes with caring about real people instead of fictional ones, and to discover that sometimes the best stories are the ones we never planned to live.Publication dateJuly 9, 2019Amazon rating4.2/5Print length352LanguageEnglishPublisherBerkley
- TagschildrenDescriptionA mother and her teenage daughter embark on a college tour that promises to be educational. It becomes something else entirely. Jessica Burnstein thought she had parenting figured out—or at least managed. But when she and her seventeen-year-old daughter Emily join a group tour of East Coast colleges, the careful distance they've maintained begins to collapse. Emily is brilliant, anxious, and increasingly unknowable. Jessica is exhausted, divorced, and realizing that the finish line of high school doesn't mean relief—it means loss. Over the course of one week, hotel rooms and campus quads become stages for misunderstandings, revelations, and the kind of raw honesty that only happens when you're trapped together far from home. The other families on the tour bring their own chaos: helicopter parents, checked-out teens, and the ever-present hum of college admissions anxiety that turns everyone slightly feral. Abbi Waxman writes with the sharp eye of someone who knows that comedy and heartbreak share the same address. This is a story about the impossible task of letting go, the gulf between who we think our children are and who they're becoming, and the surprising grace that arrives when we stop performing competence and start telling the truth. Warm, observant, and bracingly honest about the mess of modern parenting.Publication dateJune 16, 2020Amazon rating4.3/5Print length352LanguageEnglishPublisherBerkley
- Tagsyoung-adultDescriptionWhat does it mean to build a life when you're still figuring out who you are? Abbi Waxman asks this question with warmth and wit, crafting a story that feels like coming home to a place you didn't know you were missing. The atmosphere here is Los Angeles sunshine filtered through apartment windows. Coffee shops and farmers markets. The hum of ordinary life punctuated by extraordinary moments of connection. Waxman creates a world where adulthood isn't a destination but a messy, ongoing project—one that requires instructions nobody bothered to include. Laura Costello thought she had it figured out. Then life handed her a curveball that sent her scrambling back to square one. Enter her neighbors: a found family of misfits and dreamers who prove that the people you choose can matter just as much as the ones you're born to. There's romance, yes, but also friendship that feels lived-in and real. The kind that shows up with takeout when words fail. Waxman writes with the sharp observational humor of someone who's been there, done that, and lived to laugh about it. Her characters stumble and recover, make mistakes and try again. They're flawed and funny and utterly human. This is a book about second chances and chosen families, about learning that assembly required doesn't mean you have to build alone.Publication dateMay 17, 2022Amazon rating4.3/5Print length400LanguageEnglishPublisherBerkley
- TagsromanceDescriptionChrista is a woman who has built her life around careful routines and comfortable boundaries, the kind of person who knows exactly how many steps it takes to get from her front door to her car and prefers it that way. But when circumstances push her out of her carefully constructed comfort zone, she finds herself navigating unfamiliar territory with all the grace of someone learning to walk on a tightrope for the first time. Abbi Waxman brings her signature warmth and wit to this story of a woman rediscovering what it means to be fully present in her own life. Christa's journey isn't about dramatic transformation or sweeping life changes—it's about the small, brave steps we take when we realize that safety and living aren't always the same thing. What sets this novel apart is Waxman's ability to find genuine humor in moments of vulnerability without ever making her characters feel small. Christa is deeply relatable in her anxieties and endearing in her determination, and watching her fumble toward connection feels both tender and true. This is a book about the courage it takes to let people in, to risk disappointment, to choose messiness over control. Waxman writes with the kind of generous understanding that makes you feel seen, crafting a story that's as much about self-acceptance as it is about opening up to others—a gentle, funny reminder that sometimes the shell we've built for protection becomes the very thing holding us back.Publication dateApril 16, 2024Amazon rating4.2/5Print length400LanguageEnglishPublisherBerkley
- TagsmysterycrimeDescriptionThis is a book that understands grief doesn't arrive with a manual, and sometimes the only way through the wreckage is to let yourself be messy, angry, and surprisingly alive in the midst of it all. Abbi Waxman brings her signature warmth and wit to a story about loss, family, and the strange, stubborn ways we find our footing again when the ground falls away. When death upends everything you thought you knew about your life, what do you do with the pieces that remain? This novel follows someone navigating the aftermath of profound loss, grappling with the impossible task of moving forward when the world insists on continuing without pause. It's not a story about tidy resolutions or inspirational epiphanies—it's about the small, unglamorous work of surviving one day and then the next, about the people who show up when you least expect it, and the ways humor and heartbreak can share the same breath. Waxman writes with the kind of emotional honesty that makes you feel seen, crafting characters who are flawed, funny, and achingly real. She captures the absurdity of grief—the way it coexists with mundane errands and unexpected laughter—and reminds us that healing isn't linear, it's chaotic and human. If you're looking for a book that feels like a compassionate companion through life's hardest moments, this one will sit with you long after you turn the final page.Publication dateApril 15, 2025Amazon rating4.2/5Print length396LanguageEnglishPublisherBerkley
Frequently Asked Questions about Abbi Waxman
Abbi Waxman writes standalone novels. While each book can be enjoyed on its own, many readers appreciate reading them in the order they were published to follow the author's progression. The standalone novels in order of publication are The Garden of Small Beginnings (2017), Other People's Houses (2018), The Bookish Life of Nina Hill (2019), I Was Told It Would Get Easier (2020), and Adult Assembly Required (2022). This order allows readers to experience the evolution of her distinct voice and recurring themes across her work.
A good place to start with Abbi Waxman is The Bookish Life of Nina Hill, published in 2019. This novel follows Nina, a woman who thrives on routine and avoids social interaction, until a series of unexpected events throws her carefully organized life into disarray. It captures the charm and wit characteristic of Waxman's writing, exploring themes of introversion, family, and self-discovery in a relatable and engaging way. It offers a strong introduction to her style and the types of characters she creates.
Abbi Waxman's novels are standalone works, meaning you do not have to read them in any particular order. Each book features a different cast of characters and a distinct storyline. Readers can choose any title and begin reading without needing prior knowledge of other books. However, reading them chronologically, starting with The Garden of Small Beginnings (2017), may offer a subtle appreciation for the author's development and recurring thematic elements across her bibliography.
Abbi Waxman writes standalone novels. Her books are not part of a series, and each title offers a complete story with its own set of characters. This allows readers the flexibility to pick up any of her books and enjoy a self-contained narrative. While they are individual stories, they often share a similar tone and focus on relatable characters navigating everyday life with humor and insight.
Abbi Waxman has written a total of seven novels. Her published works include The Garden of Small Beginnings (2017), Other People's Houses (2018), The Bookish Life of Nina Hill (2019), I Was Told It Would Get Easier (2020), Adult Assembly Required (2022), and two additional titles. This provides readers with a substantial collection of her witty and character-driven stories to explore.
The first book Abbi Waxman wrote and published is The Garden of Small Beginnings, released in 2017. This novel introduces readers to her characteristic blend of humor and heartfelt storytelling. It centers on a woman who starts a book club for young mothers, exploring themes of grief, friendship, and finding connection. It set the stage for the engaging narratives and relatable characters that define her subsequent works.
The most recent book by Abbi Waxman is Adult Assembly Required, published in 2022. This novel follows a woman who inherits her estranged father's company and must navigate the complexities of family relationships and business challenges. It continues Waxman's tradition of crafting stories with engaging characters, witty dialogue, and a focus on personal growth and unexpected life changes.
Abbi Waxman writes contemporary fiction, often categorized as women's fiction or general fiction with a strong emphasis on humor and relatable characters. Her novels typically explore themes of family, friendship, career, and self-discovery. While not strictly romantic comedies, her books often feature elements of romance and are known for their witty dialogue and charming, often imperfect, protagonists navigating everyday life.
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Adam Silvera
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We verified the reading order for Abbi Waxman's books by cross-referencing official publication dates, ISBN databases, and publisher catalogs.
Last verified: July 2026
Shelf & Shadows. (…). “Abbi Waxman Books in Order.” Retrieved …, from https://www.shelfandshadows.com/authors/abbi-waxman