What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedThe Affair
Sarah Treem · Series · 2014
If you loved The Affair, start with Unfaithful (Adrian Lyne, 2002) — a film on the same thread. Below: 4 books, 4 films and 2 podcasts, each matched to The Affair across media.
If you loved The Affair, you are drawn to stories that dissect how subjective memories and hidden transgressions reshape our intimate lives.
Books on the same thread
The Girl on the Train
Paula Hawkins · Book · 2015
Shares a thread with The Affair: Infidelity.
Like The Affair, this narrative relies on the unreliable nature of human perspective and memory, pulling you into the psychological wreckage that follows a life-altering act of infidelity.
The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel Hawthorne · Book · 1950
Explores: sin and guilt, atonement, social stigma.
Just as The Affair examines the heavy burden of guilt and social perception, this classic explores the profound, life-defining consequences that arise when private adultery enters the public sphere.
The Promise
Damon Galgut · Book · 2022
Shares a thread with The Affair: Guilt.
The Affair captures how individual choices ripple through a family, and this story mirrors that intensity by tracing how long-held secrets and broken promises erode a family's foundation over time.
Theatre
William Somerset Maugham · Book · 1977
Shares 2 threads with The Affair: Marriage, Infidelity.
Fans of The Affair will recognize the familiar collision of vanity, boredom, and infidelity, as this novel masterfully deconstructs the fragile ego and the complicated reality behind a marriage.
Films on the same thread
Scenes from a Marriage
Film · 1974
Shares 3 threads with The Affair: Infidelity, Psychological drama, Relationship drama.
This film is the spiritual predecessor to The Affair, providing an unflinching, granular look at the communication breakdown and emotional devastation that occur when a marriage faces sudden dissolution.
Unfaithful
Adrian Lyne · Film · 2002
Shares 2 threads with The Affair: Infidelity, Guilt.
Much like the central relationship in The Affair, this story captures the intoxicating pull of an extramarital affair and the inevitable, destructive guilt that follows a moment of reckless passion.
The Tale
Jennifer Fox · Film · 2018
Shares a thread with The Affair: Psychological Drama.
If the shifting, subjective nature of trauma in The Affair resonated with you, this film offers an equally powerful investigation into how we curate our own memories to survive pain.
The Burning Plain
Guillermo Arriaga · Film · 2008
Shares 2 threads with The Affair: Guilt, Psychological Drama.
Connecting multiple timelines through the lens of tragic consequences, this film echoes The Affair by showing how secret affairs can permanently alter the trajectory of several interconnected, grieving lives.
Podcasts on the same thread
The Archers
Podcast
Explores: family life, community, farming.
Those who enjoyed the rural setting and character-driven focus of The Affair will appreciate this long-running drama, which explores the complex, evolving relationships within a tight-knit community over many years.
Where Should We Begin? with Esther Perel
Esther Perel Global Media · Podcast · 2026
Shares a thread with The Affair: infidelity.
If the clinical, raw dissection of infidelity in The Affair kept you watching, these real-life therapeutic dialogues offer a deeper look at the vulnerability and conflict inherent in modern relationships.
Keep exploring
Common questions
What is the premise of The Affair?
The Affair explores the emotional consequences of an extramarital relationship between Noah, a schoolteacher and novelist, and Alison, a waitress from Montauk. The story follows how their connection impacts Noah's family and Alison's attempt to rebuild her life following a personal tragedy.
Is The Affair based on a book?
The Affair is a television series created by Sarah Treem that premiered in 2014. It is an original work for television rather than an adaptation of a book or other source material, focusing on the complex dynamics between its central characters, Noah and Alison.
Who are the primary characters in The Affair?
The primary characters in The Affair are Noah, a New York City schoolteacher and budding novelist who is married with four children, and Alison, a young waitress living in Montauk who is trying to recover from a tragedy while married.
What central conflict drives The Affair?
The central conflict in The Affair is the extramarital relationship between Noah and Alison. This connection serves as the catalyst for examining the emotional fallout experienced by Noah’s wife and family, as well as Alison's ongoing struggle to piece her life back together.