Harold Robbins was a bestselling American novelist known for sweeping stories of ambition, sex, money, and power. Novels like The Carpetbaggers and The Adventurers plunge readers into worlds of glamour, excess, and ruthless determination.
If you enjoy Harold Robbins, these authors offer a similar mix of scandal, high stakes, and larger-than-life characters:
If Harold Robbins appeals to you for his flashy settings and dramatic power plays, Sidney Sheldon is an easy next pick. His novels thrive on ambition, betrayal, and characters clawing their way through elegant but dangerous worlds.
Start with The Other Side of Midnight, a slick, addictive story of passion and revenge that keeps the stakes high from beginning to end.
Jackie Collins is a natural choice for readers who love wealth, scandal, and unapologetically glamorous characters. Like Robbins, she pulls back the curtain on extravagant lifestyles while exposing the jealousy, affairs, and hidden agendas underneath.
Try Hollywood Wives for a juicy look at the power games and private chaos behind Hollywood’s polished image.
Irving Wallace writes intelligent, fast-moving novels packed with intrigue, scandal, and moral conflict. Readers who enjoy Robbins’ appetite for power and human weakness will likely appreciate Wallace’s talent for placing big personalities in explosive situations.
The Prize is a strong place to begin, following Nobel Prize winners drawn into a tangle of personal secrets and international tension.
Arthur Hailey is ideal for readers who like drama with a strong sense of place and structure. Much like Robbins, he explores how ambition, greed, and personal conflict play out behind the scenes of powerful institutions.
Check out Hotel, which turns a luxury hotel into the setting for a richly layered story of secrets, pressure, and human ambition.
If the glamorous settings and bold emotional stakes of Harold Robbins are what keep you hooked, Judith Krantz is well worth reading. Her fiction often centers on driven, charismatic women making their way through worlds of fashion, wealth, and influence.
A great starting point is Scruples, the story of a woman building a dazzling fashion empire while facing romance, setbacks, and sharp competition.
Jacqueline Susann shares Robbins’ fascination with fame, desire, and the heavy cost of success. Her characters chase status and glamour, only to discover how fragile those dreams can be.
Her best-known novel, Valley of the Dolls, dives into celebrity, addiction, and emotional collapse in Hollywood and New York, making it a strong match for Robbins fans.
James Clavell may work on a broader historical canvas, but his novels share Robbins’ interest in power, survival, and fierce ambition. He writes big, immersive stories filled with memorable characters and high-stakes conflict.
In Shōgun, Clavell delivers an engrossing tale set in feudal Japan, where strategy, status, and personal drive shape every decision.
Ken Follett is another strong option if you enjoy driven characters caught up in sweeping struggles for power. His books combine momentum, drama, and conflict in a way that can easily appeal to Robbins readers.
The Pillars of the Earth is an epic historical novel, but at its core it offers rivalry, ambition, and personal determination on a grand scale.
Mario Puzo brings a darker, grittier edge to themes Robbins readers already appreciate: power, greed, loyalty, and corruption. His stories are emotionally rich but never shy away from violence or moral compromise.
His classic The Godfather explores family, crime, and authority with unforgettable characters and an unmistakable sense of danger.
For readers drawn to Robbins’ emotional intensity and glamorous settings, Danielle Steel can be a satisfying alternative. Her novels focus more on romance and resilience, but they still deliver plenty of heartbreak, betrayal, and personal struggle.
The Promise is a good example, blending love, tragedy, and endurance in a story built around difficult choices and deep feeling.
Jeffrey Archer writes polished page-turners full of ambition, rivalry, and sudden reversals of fortune. If you enjoy Robbins’ rise-and-fall dynamics and taste for dramatic conflict, Archer should be on your list.
His popular novel Kane and Abel follows two fiercely ambitious men whose lives become locked together in a gripping struggle for success.
Lawrence Sanders blends suspense with sharp observations about status, greed, and the hidden lives of the powerful. That combination makes him a strong fit for readers who like Robbins’ interest in ambition and corruption.
In The First Deadly Sin, Sanders introduces detective Edward X. Delaney in a tense, atmospheric story that brushes up against wealth, privilege, and the darker corners of human behavior.
Dominick Dunne excels at exposing the polished surface and ugly underside of elite society. His novels are filled with privilege, scandal, and social maneuvering, all rendered with the authority of someone who knew that world well.
The Two Mrs. Grenvilles is a strong pick if you want a story steeped in wealth, status, and murder—territory that often overlaps with Robbins’ appeal.
Herman Wouk brings more historical depth than Robbins, but he shares a gift for compelling conflict and strong, pressure-tested characters. His best work examines authority, conscience, and the difficult choices people make under strain.
Readers looking for a more substantial but still engrossing experience may want to try The Caine Mutiny, a powerful novel about leadership, loyalty, and betrayal during World War II.
Rona Jaffe focuses on aspiration, relationships, and the social pressures shaping her characters’ lives. While her tone is often more intimate than Robbins’, readers who enjoy ambition, emotional conflict, and stories of people trying to rise may find plenty to like.
Her well-known novel The Best of Everything follows young women pursuing success in New York publishing, capturing both the excitement and the cost of that pursuit.
