Emma McLaughlin Books in Order (Updated March 5, 2026)

Emma McLaughlin is an American novelist best known for her long-running collaboration with Nicola Kraus. Most of the novels are standalone satires or contemporary dramas, with one clear exception: the two-book Nanny sequence.

If you’re deciding where to begin, the choice is less about a giant shared universe and more about which “lane” you want (Upper East Side nanny satire, workplace/celebrity satire, or YA).

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Read-this-first guide

If you want the book everyone starts with: begin with The Nanny Diaries (2002).

If you want the only true “series order” first: read the Nanny books in order:

1. The Nanny Diaries
2. Nanny Returns

If you want YA instead of adult fiction: start with The Real Real (2009).

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The Nanny books (the only connected sequence)

1. The Nanny Diaries (2002): A young woman takes a nanny job for an Upper East Side family and gets an unfiltered view of wealth, parenting-by-proxy, and what “employment” really means in that world.
2. Nanny Returns (2009): Years later, Nan is pulled back toward the life she escaped, forcing her to measure who she became against the people and power structures she once served.

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Adult novels (standalones, but best in publication order)

Citizen Girl (2004): A sharp workplace satire following a recent grad as she ricochets through entry-level jobs, discovering how “opportunity” can be another word for exploitation.

Dedication (2007): A relationship and identity story where loyalty and ambition collide, and the choices meant to secure a future start eroding the present.

Between You and Me (2012): A fame-adjacent, family-shadow novel in which a woman becomes assistant to her celebrity cousin and learns that proximity to glamour can be its own kind of trap.

How to Be a Grown-Up (2015): A forty-something mother re-enters the workforce and finds herself managed, and judged, by a younger culture that treats adulthood like a branding problem.

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Young adult novels (written for teens, no required order)

The Real Real (2009): A Hamptons teen gets swept into a “reality” documentary and has to sort out what’s staged, what’s earned, and what’s left of her private self.

Over You (2012): A teen heartbreak story that moves from devastation to recovery, tracking how first love can feel like the whole world, and how you rebuild when it ends.

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Short fiction (optional)

Cinderella Gets a Brazilian (2011): A brief, playful e-short that riffs on makeover expectations and the pressure to “fix” yourself to fit someone else’s idea of ready.

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What order should you use?

Publication order (best for most readers)

This preserves how the authors’ targets and tone shift over time, from nanny satire, to workplace and relationship stories, to YA, then back to adult fiction.

“Just give me a good starting point” order

1. The Nanny Diaries (2002): The defining premise and the cleanest introduction to their voice.
2. Citizen Girl (2004): Same satirical bite, aimed at the post-grad grind.
3. How to Be a Grown-Up (2015): A later-career adult novel that modernizes the workplace lens.
4. The Real Real (2009): Jump here if you’d rather sample their YA style.

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Latest release status

The most recent widely listed new novel is How to Be a Grown-Up (2015). As of today (March 5, 2026), I did not find a reliably confirmed newer fiction release under Emma McLaughlin’s name (solo or with Nicola Kraus).

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FAQs

Do Emma McLaughlin’s books connect to each other outside the nanny books?
Not in a continuity-required way. Themes overlap (class, work, image), but you won’t be lost if you skip around.

Are the YA books linked to the adult novels?
No. They share a satirical eye, not a shared storyline.

Why do I sometimes see different years for the same title?
Different editions (hardcover, paperback, reprints, and sometimes region-specific releases) can display different publication dates. For reading order, the sequence above remains the same.

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Bottom line

If you want the safest path, read The Nanny Diaries (2002) first, and if you continue the nanny storyline, go straight to Nanny Returns (2009). After that, treat the rest as standalones and pick the premise that matches your mood.