10 Fiction Books About Twins

The phenomenon of twins holds a certain fascination for us, especially in fiction. Whether they’re creepy twins standing at the end of a hallway portending our death, or grown twins whose lives have taken very different paths, it’s hard to look away. Here are ten captivating fiction books about twins to indulge your curiosity about a life lived in duplicate.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

The titular character in Fangirl, Cath, is a freshman student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has quite a bit to contend with, on the whole: her bipolar father has a full-on collapse, her twin sister has a burgeoning drinking problem, her mother has a whole new life (having abandoned the family when the girls were eight), and her primary love interest is her snarky room-mate’s ex-boyfriend. But most notably, her twin sister’s name is Wren. Cath-Wren. Geddit? Her anxiety is kind of understandable, really. Read my full review of Fangirl here.

The God Of Small Things by Arundhati Roy

The God Of Small Things is widely billed as a modern classic (not bad for a debut novel), a story that is “equal parts powerful family saga, forbidden love story, and piercing political drama”. It revolves around two seven-year-old twins, Estha and Rahel, whose world is irrevocably changed by the arrival of their beautiful young cousin, Sophie. What follows is a winding tale of tragedy and truth, all unfolding against the backdrop of a country that’s dancing ever closer to dangerous unrest.

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

The Vanishing Half is a Sliding Doors-esque story; through the lives of twins, Bennett guides us to wonder what could have been if the world saw us differently. This historical fiction novel examines the lives of twin girls who grew up together in a small Southern community; one grew up to “pass” as white, the other married a dark-skinned man and had a dark-skinned daughter. Through this multi-generational family saga, Brit Bennett plays out the domino effect of reductive labels: man/woman, rich/poor, gay/straight, black/white. Read my full review of The Vanishing Half here.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

Okay, fine, The Secret History isn’t about-about twins – but two of the cast of characters are twins, and their story is kind of a scene stealer. Charles and Camilla are two of a group of students in the thrall of a charismatic, enigmatic classics professor at a small liberal arts university. They are main players in a dangerous game that ends up with one of their party dead, and the rest of them terrified of discovery. All the while, you won’t be able to help but wonder if Charles and Camilla are just too close – even for twins. Read my full review of The Secret History here.

A Game Of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

Speaking of fictional twins who are just a bit too close: surely, there’s no more iconic such pair in contemporary pop culture than Jamie and Cersei Lannister. They first appeared in George R.R. Martin’s epic fantasy A Game Of Thrones, before becoming water cooler fodder in the HBO screen adaptation. For eight years, their incestuous union was a regular topic of conversation, even among folks who might never have otherwise uttered such a controversial idea out loud. Capturing the readers’ attention, even when there are dragons and zombies vying for it, is no mean feat, but this twin relationship is just so twisted, they pull it off. Read my full review of A Game Of Thrones here.

Nothing To See Here by Kevin Wilson

Sure, the twins in Nothing To See Here aren’t much more than a plot device – but they’re such a good one! Lillian is surprised to receive a phone call from her former (and far more successful) college roommate, and even more surprised when she finds herself agreeing to care for the woman’s twin step-children. But the surprises aren’t done there: it turns out these kids occasionally spontaneously combust, and it’s going to be Lillian’s job to keep that a secret so as to not ruin their father’s political career. Read my full review of Nothing To See Here here.

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

The Poisonwood Bible is narrated by a missionary family stationed in the Congo, including the perspectives of adolescent twin daughters Leah and Adah. As the country struggles for independence from Belgium, the Price family finds themselves calamitously transformed. The sharply observant twins, in turn, describe their new lives and reveal how they are impacted by their domineering father’s decisions. This is a book that will make you think hard about moral culpability and our responsibilities to ourselves and each other.

In The Woods by Tana French

For a fiction book about twins that will keep you up at night, you can’t go past the best-selling debut of the reigning queen of Irish crime, Tana French. In The Woods begins in 1984, when three children disappear (you guessed it) in the woods. Only one is found, near catatonic and soaked in blood, with no memory of what happened to his playmates. Twenty years later, that boy is now a detective with the Dublin Murder Squad, and when one of the 12-year-old Devlin twins is murdered, investigating the case may mean uncovering the truth about what happened to him. Read my full review of In The Woods here.

Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score

A romance book with a broody hero and an evil twin? Yes, please! That’s what you get with Things We Never Got Over. Naomi is a runaway bride, escaping her wedding and riding to the rescue of her twin at the same time. Unfortunately, Tina shows her “gratitude” by taking off with Naomi’s car and cash, leaving behind her eleven-year-old daughter in Naomi’s care. Enter bearded bad boy Knox, happy to help her out of a jam as long as she lets him go back to his simple, solitary life as soon as possible. But this is a romance book, so of course nothing goes to plan…

The Girls by Lori Lansens

The central characters of The Girls aren’t just twins, they’re conjoined twins. Rose and Ruby have been joined at the head since birth, by a spot the size of a bread plate. They’ve managed to live their lives – follow their passions and fall in love – for nearly thirty years. Soon, they’ll be history’s oldest craniopagus twins, and they’re reflecting on how they’ve made it so far. Rose, the more bookish of the two, is setting out to write their autobiography.