9 Authors Who Write Like Vita Sackville-West

Orlando, a young nobleman in Elizabethan England, mysteriously transforms into a woman after a particularly extended nap. Orlando journeys through several centuries, living as both a man and a woman, and experiencing life in different roles, relationships, and societies.

Traveling throughout time, Orlando navigates the complexities of love, work, and society, finding that the expectations placed on them shift dramatically depending on their gender. 

Spark’s novel takes the reader back to the 1930s, into an all-girls secondary school in Edinburgh. Miss Jean Brodie is an eccentric and unorthodox teacher who prides herself on shaping the minds of her select group of students. These particular students become known to the others as “Brodie’s set.” She encourages them to embrace unconventional ideas, defy authority, and reject the traditional education system.

Miss Brodie is initially viewed by her set as a charismatic figure, and the girls are drawn to her unique confidence—but this fascination doesn’t last. As they grow up, they begin to find flaws in Miss Brodie’s ideas.

Raised in a deeply religious household, young Jeanette is taught that her purpose in life is to become a missionary and follow the path of faith. But as she grows up, she starts to recognize her own feelings toward other women. These feelings butt up against the rigid expectations of her community, disrupting the deep-seated beliefs that were once gospel.

As Jeanette struggles to reconcile her love for another woman with the guilt and shame that she was taught to feel, she embarks on a journey of personal liberation. 

This atmospheric novel is told from the perspective of Cecil Grey, a 13-year-old girl on vacation in the French countryside with her family. It should be an idyllic trip, but when their mother contracts an infection, the children are left in the care of strangers. Godden’s coming-of-age work paints an immersive picture of a bittersweet summer.

Faith’s life seems comfortable enough—she has a great job, and a close family. Raised in England by Jamaican parents, she’s grown up with a sense of self that’s tied heavily to English culture. But when her parents unexpectedly announce their plans to move back to Jamaica, Faith’s sense of self is upended. 

Armed with little knowledge of her parents’ lives before they emigrated to England from Jamaica, Faith is forced to confront previously unasked and unresolved questions about her heritage. This trip forces Faith to face the complexities of her dual identity and the painful realities of history, family loyalty, and self-acceptance.

The Enchanted April follows four perfect strangers—Lotty, Rose, Caroline, and Mrs. Fisher—who are dissatisfied with their lives. In desperate need of a change, they decide to take a chance on a month-long rental in a chateau on the Italian Riviera.

As the days pass, the villa works its magic on them. Lotty, the most whimsical of the group, has arranged the retreat, convinced that a change of scenery will raise their collective spirits. Rose, on the other hand, is seeking to escape a stale marriage. Caroline is a reserved cynic who hopes to unwind from her stressful life. Mrs. Fisher is a reclusive widow with a sharp tongue. Over the course of the month, the beauty of the villa, the warmth of the sun, and simple pleasures begin to transform them, allowing each woman to rediscover herself.

Butler’s haunting novel follows the Kid, who has been living in a remote colony with her grandparents. The Kid’s world is confined to an island with a group of self-isolating seniors who are known as the Wrinklies. 

The Kid’s life has been shaped by the difficulties of her upbringing—her father’s mental health struggles, her mother’s distance, and the strange sense of place that the island holds over its inhabitants. But as the Kid waits for her parents to return, the island is increasingly faced by the dangers of climate change, and is under threat of crumbling into the sea. 

Fitzgerald’s semi-autobiographical novel is centered around a young couple who become entangled in the bohemian lifestyle of the Lost Generation. Alabama Beggs, a Southern debutante, marries a successful artist and moves to Paris during the 1920s. 

Alabama’s narrative is a passionate and unflinching account of her internal turmoil as she grapples with the demands of being a wife, an artist, and an individual in a world that seems to both elevate and stifle her. The novel explores her struggles with identity, artistic ambition, and the complexities of her marriage to David, whose emotional distance and infidelities push her further into a spiral of self-doubt. 

Laura, a teenaged girl raised in high society, is preparing for a lavish garden party at her home. As the garden party grows nearer, Laura is confronted with a tragic event: a working-class cart-driver, Mr. Scott, dies in an accident near her home. While Laura shows concern for the accident, her family brushes it off as if nothing has happened. 

Laura’s inner conflict grows as she grapples with the tension between her sheltered, privileged life and the harsh reality of the world beyond her social circle. Her pushback from her family, and a harrowing interaction with Scott’s grieving family, force her to confront the ease of the world she was raised in, and the realities of a world that she’s hardly seen.