Fiction often offers a window into human experience — capturing drama, subtle emotion, and complex realities through compelling storytelling. While novels explore a vast array of settings, one environment that remains surprisingly underrepresented is the workplace, despite it being where many of us spend a significant portion of our lives.
There is no dedicated category for “workplace fiction” in industry-standard book classifications, reflecting how little this arena is explored outside romance subgenres. Yet, recent novels are changing that landscape by offering insightful and often provocative takes on work life, from corporate offices to temp gigs.
Lorna Graham, author of Where You Once Belonged and The Ghost of Greenwich Village, both set largely in the workplace, recommends seven contemporary novels that illuminate the challenges and dynamics of modern work.
Whisper Network by Chandler Baker
Set amid the backdrop of the #MeToo movement, Whisper Network follows four women at Truviv, an athletic wear company, who band together to confront a toxic male boss. As the CEO unexpectedly dies and Ames Garret is poised to take over, the women must navigate secrets and solidarity to protect themselves and a new employee from abuse. Baker’s novel highlights how women’s separations—physical and emotional—can undermine collective strength.
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
This bestselling novel presents the 1950s through the eyes of Elizabeth Zott, a determined chemist battling sexism at a research institute and later, while hosting a TV cooking show. With wit and resilience, Elizabeth challenges the patriarchal constraints in both her scientific and television worlds. Garmus’s story has inspired readers to reconsider their own work lives and ambitions.
Several People Are Typing by Calvin Kasulke
Presented entirely through Slack messages at a PR agency, Kasulke’s novel offers a fast-paced, surreal take on office culture. When protagonist Gerald’s consciousness is trapped in Slack, the story unfolds through humorous and relatable digital exchanges. The novel captures the peculiar camaraderie and coded language of modern workplaces.
Careering by Daisy Buchanan
Echoing the tone of Bridget Jones’ Diary, this novel explores the career struggles of two women navigating the pressures of media jobs. Young Imogen’s experiences at a feminist startup, including uncomfortable assignments like writing about her sex life, reflect Gen Z frustrations with workplace precarity and the elusive nature of career success.
Temporary by Hilary Leichter
A poignant parable for gig economy workers, Temporary follows a young woman hopping between temp jobs — from ghosting a family to swabbing a pirate ship’s deck — all while yearning for stability. Leichter intersperses mythical narratives to underscore the timelessness of precarious labor in capitalist systems.
The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris
A workplace thriller set in a publishing house that touts diversity initiatives but hides a toxic culture, The Other Black Girl focuses on Nella Rodgers, the sole Black employee, and the arrival of a new Black colleague. As Nella’s workplace safety and identity are threatened, the novel probes the complexities of race, belonging, and ambition in corporate America.
The Exception by Christian Jungersen
This Danish thriller situates four women at a genocide research center, juxtaposing their critical work against the petty, sometimes cruel office dynamics they endure. The novel examines how the nature of evil manifests both in history’s darkest moments and mundane workplace interactions, blurring lines between the monumental and the trivial.
These seven novels demonstrate that the workplace, often dismissed as banal or purely functional, offers rich ground for storytelling — reflecting societal issues, power dynamics, and the enduring human quest for meaning in work. As more authors turn their gaze to this vital arena, readers gain fresh insights into the worlds they inhabit daily.
