The green-eyed monster is a recurring character in fiction. We can all relate, in some measure, to a character who resents another’s achievements, belongings, or advantages – haven’t we all felt that way, from time to time? Here are thirteen fiction books about jealousy (and, spoiler alert, most of them prove that the grass isn’t really greener after all).
The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins
One woman’s jealousy is, in effect, the inciting incident of The Girl On The Train. Rachel rides the train every day, usually in a drunken stupor, staring into the windows of what could have been. She watches others play out the lives she could have lived as mothers and lovers – until, one day, she sees something different. Something dodgy. Or does she? Everything you know is filtered through the lens of an unreliable narrator, and you won’t know for sure whether Rachel really should be jealous of the women she watches or not. Read my full review of The Girl On The Train here.
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Daphne du Maurier herself described Rebecca to her publisher as “a sinister tale about a woman who marries a widower”. A naive young woman, the unnamed narrator, is moved into the Manderley mansion, taking the place of her now-husband’s late first wife. As the story progresses, she becomes increasingly of the dead mistress of the house, wondering if she’ll ever make the house – and Maxim’s heart – her own. The more she learns about her predecessor, the more jealous she becomes, until a ship washes up ashore that throws everything she knows about Rebecca into doubt. Read my full review of Rebecca here.
The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris
In The Other Black Girl, twenty-something Nella is the only Black employee at Wagner Books, until Hazel arrives. She thinks she’s found an ally in the office, someone to bond with over the microaggressions that are as much a part of the everyday as printing pages for her boss. Then, Nella starts receiving threatening notes on her desk: “LEAVE WAGNER, NOW”. Is it just a coincidence that the notes coincided with Hazel’s arrival, or is there something darker at play? Is this the jealous tantrum of a woman striving to get ahead, or something more sinister? Read my full review of The Other Black Girl here.
The Animators by Kayla Rae Whitaker
The Animators interrogates the nature of female friendship, fertile ground for the growth of jealousy. Mel Vaught and Sharon Kisses are a dynamic millennial duo, living and working together and taking the male-dominated world of animation by storm. They’re on the cusp of making it big with their first full-length feature, a film about Mel’s difficult childhood, but their friendship starts to crack under the pressure. When Sharon visits her home state of Kentucky, a former friend comes out of the woodwork, and everything that holds the two besties together is torn apart.
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
My Brilliant Friend is the first book in the Neapolitan quartet, a series of novels following Elena Greco (the narrator) and Rafaella “Lila” Cerullo, as they pull themselves up from their humble origins in a poor neighbourhood on the outskirts of Naples. Neither set of parents expects the girls to receive much of an education, despite the fact that they both show remarkable academic talent. Their lives diverge when Lila’s parents refuse to allow her to continue with school, while their teacher convinces Elena’s parents to cover the costs of further education. And so the jealousy that defines their friendship takes root… Read my full review of My Brilliant Friend here.
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
You could pretty much sum up Wuthering Heights in one sentence: Heathcliff is jealous and butt-hurt, and he dedicates his life to making it everybody’s problem. He was a street urchin taken in by a kind wealthy man, and he pined for his beautiful neighbour Catherine for years. When she marries the snooty boy next door instead of Heathcliff, it plunges them all into a tangled web of jealousy that stretches its tendrils all the way into the afterlife. Read my full review of Wuthering Heights here.
You by Caroline Kepnes
We’ve all Googled someone we’re interested in, haven’t we? Well, You takes this idea to its (il)logical extreme. When Guinevere Beck stumbles into a quiet East Village bookshop, it could’ve been the perfect meet-cute. Joe, the bookseller behind the desk, is instantly enamoured with her, and he takes her name from her credit card to look her up. Gradually, he ingratiates himself into her life, and soon his jealous guarding of her takes a deadly turn. Read my full review of You here.
You Have To Make Your Own Fun Around Here by Frances Macken
You know that old saying, “you can’t choose your family”? Well, sometimes you don’t get to choose your friends, either. In You Have To Make Your Own Fun Around Here, Katie grows up in the (fictional) Irish town of Glenbruff, where she has no choice but to become friends with the glamorous troublemaker Evelyn, and the wet blanket Maeve. They dream of escaping their small-town life someday, but in the meantime, they have to contend with the arrival of the glamorous Pamela. The natural order of things is disrupted and this coming-of-age novel takes a dark turn. Read my full review of You Have To Make Your Own Fun Around Here here.
The Temple House Vanishing by Rachel Donohue
Twenty-five years ago, a teenage student of Temple House vanished, along with her enigmatic and charming art teacher. In the present day, a journalist with a childhood connection to the girl decides to investigate. She uncovers multiple stories of unrequited love, artistic passion, obsession, jealousy, and betrayal. That’s the premise of The Temple House Vanishing; it starts with a bang, then simmers, until it boils over once again in a dramatic conclusion. Read my full review of The Temple House Vanishing here.
New Boy by Tracy Chevalier
Othello is the classic text on jealousy, but if you want the Shakespearean drama in a contemporary setting without the stuffy language and funny costumes, you need to pick up New Boy. The story is transposed onto a Washington schoolyard in the 1970s. Four eleven-year-olds – Osei, Dee, Ian, and Mimi – play out the full harrowing tale of drama and revenge over the course of a single day. By the end, none of them will ever be the same again.
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
The Bluest Eye, set in Toni Morrison’s hometown in the 1940s, revolves around Pecola, a young Black girl who is widely considered ugly due to her dark skin and her unpolished appearance. The point of view, though, is that of Claudia, a girl around Pecola’s age whose parents foster Pecola at various times. Flashbacks weave together Pecola’s story, and Claudia’s, and that of Pecola’s parents (Cholly and Pauline), as well as other characters that are in Pecola’s orbit. The jealousy in this story is complicated by layers of internalised racism and ingrained patriarchy. Read my full review of The Bluest Eye here.
The Woman In The Purple Skirt by Natsuko Imamura
The Woman In The Purple Skirt is named for the sad and ‘plain’ woman who spends her afternoons on a park bench, eating a cream bun, being watched (unbeknownst to her) by the Woman in the Yellow Cardigan. Her observer lures the woman to work in a hotel, where her fortunes begin to change. But soon her jealous colleagues turn against her – will the Woman in the Yellow Cardigan step in to help the object of her obsession? This short and unsettling book is chillingly voyeuristic, and it explores just how far envy and loneliness can take us. Read my full review of The Woman In The Purple Skirt here.
Notes On A Scandal by Zoe Heller
Notes Of A Scandal begins with the arrival of a new hippie art teacher, Sheba, at a London comprehensive school. This development is observed with keen interest by veteran teacher Barbara, who believes that she and Sheba are suited to a firm friendship (despite no indication from Sheba that she’s interested in such). Slowly, Barbara ingratiates herself into Sheba’s life – first with lunches off campus, then dinners at her home. Unbeknownst to Barbara, however, Sheba is doing some ingratiating of her own, “falling in love” with her 15-year-old student Steven Connolly. Read my full review of Notes On A Scandal here.
Leave a Reply