The first chick-lit book I ever read was Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. I was 11 years old and my older cousin lent it to me. Looking back, it was a teeny bit scandalous for my age. But I loved it. I brought it to Grade 6 for our post-lunch reading block and wanted to get lost in the saucy story for hours. But that’s just one of the early aughts chick-lit books that I loved.

Women’s fiction has always been a go-to for me. It’s fun and frivolous and makes you laugh. However, I also have a penchant for murder mysteries and thrillers! (Stephen King books are a favourite of mine.) I like to switch it up every now and then. After all, variety is the spice of life. And after being scared from one book, I like to crack open another to laugh, smile, and cringe along with the main character.

Here are 11 of the best early aughts chick-lit books.

11 Early Aughts Chick-Lit Books that Will Make You Laugh Out Loud

Title: Bergdorf Blondes
Author: Plum Sykes
Year: 2004

“Plum Sykes beguiling début welcomes readers to the glamorous world of Park Avenue Princesses, the girls who careen through Manhattan in search of the perfect Fake Bake (tan acquired from Portofino Tanning Salon), a ride on a PJ (private jet) with the ATM (rich boyfriend), and the ever-elusive fiancé.”

Read more here.

Title: In Her Shoes
Author: Jennifer Weiner
Year: 2002

“Rose Feller is thirty; a successful lawyer with high hopes of a relationship with Jim, Mr Not-Quite-Right, a senior partner in her firm. The last thing she needs is her messed-up, only occasionally employed sister Maggie moving in: drinking, smoking, stealing her money - and her shoes - and spoiling her chance of romance.”

Read more here.

Title: Can You Keep a Secret
Author: Sophie Kinsella
Year: 2003

“Meet Emma Corrigan, a young woman with a huge heart, an irrepressible spirit, and a few little secrets: Secrets from her boyfriend: I've always thought Connor looks a bit like Ken. As in Barbie and Ken. Secrets from her mother: I lost my virginity in the spare bedroom with Danny Nussbaum while Mum and Dad were downstairs watching Ben-Hur.”

Read more here.

Title: Everyone Worth Knowing
Author: Lauren Weisberger
Year: 2005

“Soon after Bette Robinson quits her horrendous Manhattan banking job like the impulsive girl she's never been, the novelty of walking her four-pound dog around the unglamorous Murray Hill neighborhood wears as thin as the "What are you going to do with your life?" phone calls from her parents.”

Read more here.

Title: Four Blondes
Author: Candace Bushnell
Year: 2000

“In a new collection of stories, 4 Blondes, the romantic intrigues, betrayals, victories, and insecurities of four modern women are told with Bushnell's keen wit and sardonic eye. A beautiful B-list model in "Nice N'Easy" attaches herself yearly to the man with the largest summer house in the Hamptons, but she soon realizes that snagging a rich man and living in a fancy beach house won't necessarily bring her happiness.”

Read more here.

Title: Sushi for Beginners
Author: Marian Keyes
Year: 2000

“This Prada-wearing magazine editor thinks her life is over when her "fabulous" new job turns out to be a deportation to Dublin to launch Colleen magazine. The only saving grace is that her friends aren't there to witness her downward spiral. Might her new boss, the disheveled and moody Jack Devine, save her from a fate worse than hell?”

Read more here.

Title: Babes in Captivity
Author: Pamela Redmond Satran
Year: 2004

“They met six years ago in a mom's group. Deirdre, Juliette, Anne, and Lisa are each living The Dream in the suburbs outside of New York City: beautiful wedding, big house, picture perfect family. What more could a woman want? Plenty, though none of them has ever admitted it. Out loud, anyway. It all starts with Deirdre....”

Read more here.

Title: Staying at Daisy’s
Author: Jill Mansel
Year: 2002

“Daisy MacLean runs the country house hotel owned by her flamboyant father, Hector. When she hears who's about to get married there, she isn't worried at all - her friend Tara absolutely promises there won't be any trouble between her and ex-boyfriend Dominic, whom she hasn't seen for years. But Daisy should be worried.”

Read more here.

Title: The Nanny
Author: Melissa Nathan
Year: 2003

“Twenty-three-year-old Jo Green knows that if she has to spend one more night in ultra-provincial Niblet-Upon-Avon she'll go completely bonkers! So she answers an ad in the paper, bids her devoted boyfriend Shaun adieu, and heads off to the big city. With a new job that offers excitement; a cool car; and her own suite with a TV, DVD player, and a cell phone, how can she go wrong?”

Read more here.

Title: The Little Lady Agency
Author: Hester Browne
Year: 2005

“When sweet, naive Melissa seeks a job with her old Home Economics teacher she is halfway through the interview before it dawns on her that Mrs McKinnon isn't interested in her cookery skills, but is in fact running an escort agency. Melissa panics, but she needs the cash - and what harm can providing lonely men with stimulating conversation over dinner do?”

Read more here.

Title: Something Borrowed
Author: Emily Giffin
Year: 2004

“Rachel has always been the consummate good girl—until her thirtieth birthday, when her best friend, Darcy, throws her a party. That night, after too many drinks, Rachel ends up in bed with Darcy's fiancé. Although she wakes up determined to put the one-night fling behind her, Rachel is horrified to discover that she has genuine feelings for the one guy she should run from.”

Read more here.

How many of these early aughts chick-lit books have you read?

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