Amina Akhtar Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Amina Akhtar is a former fashion editor and writer who made waves with her debut novel “#FashionVictim.” She penned this novel in 2018 and was surprised when it went on to become a critically acclaimed work drawing rave reviews.

Given its notoriety, it was covered in the likes of “CrimeReads,” “Wall Street Journal,” “Book Riot,” “Forbes,” “Fashionista,” “Entertainment Weekly,” and “Martha Stewart Living” among many others.

Amina would follow the success of her first novel when she wrote the thriller novel Kismet in 2022. The work would go on to garner just as much attention and garner rave reviews.

Over the years, Amina Akhtar worked at many prestigious publications such as “The New York Times,” “Elle,” and “Vogue” and was the founding editor of “The Cut,” a women’s blog established by the “New York Magazine.”

She has also written for several other publications such as “Billboard,” “Yahoo Style,” “Refinery29,” “xoJane,” and “Fashionista” among others.
She currently makes her home in Sedona.

Growing up, Amina Akhtar always wanted to become a writer. However, since she was the child of immigrant parents, she had to do what they approved of.
In fact, it was drilled into her that if she wanted to become a writer, she would somehow make her own money to pay the rent.

When she was in high school, she got interested in journalism. Following graduation from high school, she was admitted to New York University since all she wanted was to get out of Texas.

Amina was lucky enough to be employed as a fact-checker at “Vogue” almost immediately. When an assistant to the managing editor position was advertised, she applied and was offered the job.

From then on, it seemed that the only jobs she could get were in fashion. From time to time, she desired to branch out but working in journalism tends to pigeonhole one and she was no exception.

For most of her career as a journalist, she felt stuck which sounds crazy given that she was working a prestigious job and building big brand names. But internally, she always felt that was not what she wanted to do.

She was forced to stick with it even though she was miserable for much of that time. Things were made even more difficult by the fact that she is a short and curvy Asian woman very much unlike her colleagues.

Amina Akhtar started out working for a very difficult boss who had a stereotype against Asians and expected her to be a docile Asian who did as she was told. Being very proud of the work she did, Akhtar soon quit and went to work for Elle.

While she did not like working in journalism and felt a lot of pressure, she kept going just to keep her mother proud. When her mother died, she lost all motivation and was soon enough laid off publicly.

This was so shocking and she was left reeling as colleagues in the industry started talking about it. Even though she got several job offers, she did not like any of them and spent much of her time in her apartment.

With so much time on her hands, she thought why not pen a book since it had been an idea she had for years. Amina sat down and for the next year, she wrote the manuscript for her debut novel.

Since she only knew about writing blog posts, the first manuscript started as 1000-word blog posts. She would then expand these into what would be the final manuscript for the novel.

But like many aspiring authors, she accumulated obligatory rejections which really made her frustrated. It was only when she was at the end of her rope and moved to live with her father in Arizona that she finally got a book deal.

“#Fashion Victim” by Amina Akhtar introduces a psychotic character named Anya St. Clair. She is a woman that has taken the art of climbing the ladder to success very seriously that she has resorted to murder.

She works as the editor of the New York fashion magazine “La Vie,” which follows the latest trends. The mean girls at the office have an obsession with the latest green juices, Louboutin heels, and designer bags.

Anya develops an obsession with Sahar her colleague and vows that she will do anything to ensure they become best friends, even if it means kissing her ass.
Her murderous actions result in all manner of hashtags posts on social media, and hot detectives. The office where the magazine is based has been recently becoming very dangerous and when a body is found in the hallway, almost no one leaves their offices.

Anya has been seeing a psychiatrist named Dr. M who tries to lead her as she is dealing with all the chaos in the magazine headquarters.
It is a thrilling read full of over-the-top characters, fashion drama, creepy frightful murders warped humor, and backstabbing office politics.

Amina Akhtar’s novel “Kismet” introduces Ronnie Khan the protagonist who leaves New York and heads to Arizona and the small city of Sedona seeking a new start.
She has moved in with Marley Dewhurst, a wellness guru that has been her friend for years that is also seeking a new life. Ronnie survives on an inheritance left to her by her parents while Marley relies on a small trust fund.

Marley is hoping to become an influencer while Ronnie is still trying to figure out her life. The latter had lost her parents while she was still a kid and now has to take time to recover from the abusive treatment she had gotten from her aunt.

When Marley and Ronnie find a severed head in the desert, they realize that there is a killer on the loose. New people come onto the scene including Brit and Star alongside the obnoxious Caroline.

As people die left right and center, the mystery just deepens. Amina Akhtar writes a brilliant thriller that will keep its readers turning over the pages and on the edges of their seats.