6 Books 'The Handmaid's Tale' Fans Will Love - Your Dystopian Summer Reading List, Sorted

Elle

12 hours ago

The end of The Handmaid's Tale is almost upon us. The hit Hulu adaptation, which is now in its sixth and final series, of Margaret Atwood's 1985 novel foreshadowed much of the tumult that has unfolded in the world today. The series, which premiered in 2017, drew inspiration from Atwood's story but creators of the show extended the novel past its intended lifecycle to create the premise for the series. The result is a show that has stunned, shocked and seriously earned its stripes among its now-adoring legion of fans.
While The Handmaid's Tale might be drawing to a close (a confirmed adaptation of Atwood's sequel The Testaments is, thankfully, now in development), there are plenty more novels that may well scratch that dystopian Atwood-esque itch; here are just a few of them.
In Naomi Alderman's seminal novel The Power, women around the world develop the ability to generate electric shocks—giving them a physical power over men. Alderman flips the power dynamics at play in The Handmaid's Tale on their heads, asking what society might look like if gender roles were reversed.
Set in a near-future America ravaged by climate disaster and societal collapse, this novel follows a young woman who creates a new spiritual movement. Like Atwood, Butler explores gender, race, faith, and power in a dystopian context, but through a more grassroots survivalist lens.
Set in an authoritarian regime similar to that that exists in Gilead where women are limited to speaking 100 words per day, language becomes a tool of control. This dystopian thriller echoes The Handmaid's Tale in its portrayal of state-sanctioned gender repression and the fight to reclaim autonomy.
Not only a sequel but also a spiritual successor to The Handmaid's Tale, this novel revisits Gilead 15 years later from the perspective of three different women. It answers lingering questions and deepens the political and emotional complexity of Atwood's original 1985 novel.
More surreal than traditional dystopia, this experimental novel follows a woman born with her stomach twisted into a literal knot, living in a world where female suffering is normalised. It's a powerful allegory for bodily autonomy, beauty standards, and inherited pain.
While less overtly feminist than The Handmaid's Tale, this quietly haunting novel explores the dehumanisation of a group of children raised for a chilling purpose. It shares The Handmaid's Tale's themes of systemic control, resignation, and the search for meaning within a dystopian framework.
Naomi May is a seasoned culture journalist and editor with over ten years' worth of experience in shaping stories and building digital communities. After graduating with a First Class Honours from City University's prestigious Journalism course, Naomi joined the Evening Standard, where she worked across both the newspaper and website. She is now the Digital Editor at ELLE Magazine and has written features for the likes of The Guardian, Vogue, Vice and Refinery29, among many others. Naomi is also the host of the ELLE Collective book club.