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Maxwell Ryan

Founder and visionary behind Apartment Therapy, Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan has revolutionized how people think about their living spaces. Described as "one part interior designer, one part life coach," he created Apartment Therapy as a unique interior design practice in the New York metropolitan area that goes far beyond traditional decorating. His approach combines practical design wisdom with deeper insights about how our homes shape our daily lives and well-being.
Ryan's writing embodies his holistic philosophy, weaving together accessible design advice with thoughtful reflections on creating spaces that truly support how we live. His books offer readers more than just styling tips—they provide a framework for understanding the emotional and psychological connections we have with our homes. Through his warm, encouraging voice, he empowers readers to see their living spaces as vehicles for personal transformation, making interior design feel approachable and meaningful rather than intimidating or superficial. His work has inspired countless readers to view their homes not just as places to live, but as foundations for living well.
On LuvemBooks, we've reviewed 2 of Maxwell Ryan's books, including Apartment Therapy and Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home.
2
Books Reviewed
In order

Maxwell Ryan books in order

1 books; 1 reviewed on LuvemBooks. Dates and covers from Amazon.

  1. Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure cover
    2006
    Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure
    Our review →
Cover of Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure
Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure

4.3/5

reader rating · 179 ratings

*Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure* is a nonfiction home-improvement guide by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan, published by Bantam Books in 2006, built around a week-by-week program for transforming urban apartments on a real-world budget. *Publishers Weekly* praised the author's "ebullient" can-do attitude, and endorsers including designer Jonathan Adler and *Budget Living Magazine* Editor-in-Chief Angela Matusik highlighted its approachability and budget-consciousness. The guide is best suited to renters and first-time apartment dwellers who need a concrete starting framework; those seeking advanced design theory or a visually oriented showcase will want to look elsewhere.

Reviewed Mar 21, 2026

Cover of Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home
Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home

4.1/5

reader rating · 182 ratings

Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home is a New York Times bestseller and the most comprehensive home design guide from the Apartment Therapy brand, covering everything from floor plans and paint to room-by-room organizing — written for anyone who wants to set up and live well in a space they love.

Reviewed May 19, 2026

Ask LuvemBooks about Maxwell Ryan

Maxwell Ryan, founder of the Apartment Therapy brand, translates his small-space design philosophy into practical, budget-conscious home guides — we've reviewed two of them here. Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure lays out a week-by-week program for transforming an urban apartment without a decorator's budget, while Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home scales that same approach into a room-by-room reference covering floor plans, paint, and organizing. Both hold solid Amazon reader ratings of 4.3 and 4.1 respectively, each from around 180 ratings.
Where should I start?
Start with Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure. It's the foundational statement of Ryan's philosophy — a week-by-week program for transforming an urban apartment on a real-world budget — and it holds the higher Amazon reader rating of the two books we've reviewed, at 4.3/5 from 179 ratings. Once you've worked through its structured cure, Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home makes a natural next step as a comprehensive reference.
What's their writing style?
Ryan writes with what Publishers Weekly called an "ebullient" can-do attitude — encouraging, energetic, and firmly practical rather than precious about design. His books are structured as usable programs and references, breaking home transformation into concrete steps and room-by-room guidance. The tone treats good design as achievable for anyone, not just people with big budgets or professional help.
Books we've reviewed
We've reviewed 2 Maxwell Ryan books, both in the Home & Garden space. Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure is his week-by-week apartment transformation program, holding a 4.3/5 Amazon reader rating from 179 ratings. Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home, co-written with Janel Laban, is the brand's comprehensive New York Times bestselling design guide, rated 4.1/5 from 182 ratings.
How do their books compare?
The Eight-Step Home Cure is the more focused of the two: a week-by-week program for transforming an apartment on a budget, ideal if you want a structured plan to follow. Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home is the bigger, broader book — a New York Times bestseller covering everything from floor plans and paint to room-by-room organizing, better used as a reference. Reader ratings are close (4.3 vs 4.1 on Amazon), so the choice really comes down to whether you want a program or an encyclopedia.
What genre do they write?
Maxwell Ryan writes Home & Garden nonfiction — specifically interior design and home-improvement guides. Both books we've reviewed fall in that category, focusing on helping readers set up, organize, and transform their living spaces without requiring professional designers or large budgets.
What should I read after The Eight-Step Home Cure?
The natural follow-up is Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home, co-written with Janel Laban. After you've worked through the Eight-Step Cure's week-by-week program, this New York Times bestseller serves as a deeper reference you can return to whenever you're tackling a new room, repainting, or reorganizing. It's the most comprehensive guide the Apartment Therapy brand has produced.
Who is Maxwell Ryan?

Who is Maxwell Ryan?

Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan is the founder and visionary behind Apartment Therapy, the influential home-design brand, and he's credited with changing how people think about their living spaces. He writes practical home-improvement and interior-design guides aimed at real people on real budgets, including Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure and the New York Times bestseller Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home.

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Authors Like Maxwell Ryan
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Clea Shearer

Home & Garden
Clea Shearer’s The Home Edit matches Ryan’s upbeat energy and room-by-room approach, shifting the focus from living environment to categorized, visual storage systems.
1 book reviewed
The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing
J

Joanna Teplin

Home & Garden
Joanna Teplin’s The Home Edit shares that upbeat room-by-room organizing focus, shifting attention from overall home environment toward structured, color-coded visual storage systems.
1 book reviewed
The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing
Joanna Gaines

Joanna Gaines

Home & Garden
Joanna Gaines's Homebody shares the same full-home scope with a warmer farmhouse aesthetic, offering room-by-room visual inspiration for personality-driven design.
1 book reviewed
Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave
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Myquillyn Smith

Home & Garden
Myquillyn Smith's The Nesting Place shares Ryan's philosophy that beautiful living spaces do not require money or ownership, offering budget-conscious decorating that embraces imperfect, rental-grade homes.
2 books reviewed
The Nesting Place: It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect to Be Beautiful
Cozy Minimalist Home: More Style, Less Stuff
E

Emily Henderson

Home & Garden
Emily Henderson’s Styled offers a ten-step framework for room arrangement, shifting from Ryan's full-home approach to focus specifically on styling and finishing touches.
1 book reviewed
Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves
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Angelin Borsics

Home & Garden

Angelin Borsics is a New York-based editor and co-author of *Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves* (Potter Style, 2015) with Emily Henderson. She has held roles at Penguin Random House, West Elm, and Potter Style/Crown Publishing Group, and was promoted to Senior Editor at Clarkson Potter in 2019.

1 book reviewed
Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves