For readers who want one book that addresses the whole picture of making a home work — from floor plans and paint to seasonal maintenance — Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home delivers on that promise in structured, visually supported form. Emily Henderson called it 'useful, pretty and full of information... easy enough to pick up and read 5 minutes at a time,' which points to its rare dual-use appeal as both a practical reference and a coffee-table object. The key caveat is that its generalist scope means no single topic receives deep technical treatment, so specialists or advanced renovators may find it insufficient on its own.

Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home

by Maxwell Ryan, Janel Laban

A comprehensive home design and wellness guide from the founders of the Apartment Therapy brand, covering organization, décor, color, and how living spaces affect daily life.

$32.22 on Amazon Read our full review

At a glance

Pages320

First published2015

AudienceAdult

ISBN0770434452

About the Author

Maxwell Ryan, Janel Laban

1 book reviewed

Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home

Name: Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home by Maxwell Ryan, Janel Laban
Author: Maxwell Ryan, Janel Laban
ISBN: 0770434452

by Maxwell Ryan, Janel Laban

LuvemBooks Verdict

Best for

Renters, first-time buyers, and established homeowners who want a single, well-organised volume that walks them through the full arc of home design — from assessing their space and personal style to decorating specific rooms and maintaining them year-round.

Worth it if

You want one comprehensive, visually rich reference that covers the entire scope of home design thinking — self-assessment, room inspiration, and practical upkeep — rather than going deep on any single discipline.

Skip if

Skip it if you're already deeply versed in Apartment Therapy's online content and are looking for advanced technical instruction — the book's deliberately broad, introductory scope will feel too general for specialist needs.

What readers & critics say

The book carries a New York Times bestseller designation, confirming its wide reach beyond core design audiences, as noted by multiple retail listings. Waterstones positions it as a twenty-first-century successor to Terence Conran's Essential House books, framing it as a complete home guide for setting up, decorating, and caring for a home across all life stages.

Sources: Waterstones, Barnes & Noble

4.1from 182 Amazon ratings— reader ratings, not a LuvemBooks score

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Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home by Maxwell Ryan and Janel Laban is a sweeping illustrated home design reference that walks readers through the full arc of making a home — from self-assessment and visual inspiration (75 well-styled rooms) to seasonal maintenance and room-by-room organizing. A New York Times bestseller with a three-part structure praised by both Detroit Home and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, it earns its reputation as the most comprehensive single-volume expression of the Apartment Therapy philosophy. Its greatest caveat is that its deliberately broad scope means any individual topic is treated at an introductory level — readers seeking deep technical or specialist instruction will want to supplement it with a focused title.

Is it worth reading?: For readers who want one book that addresses the whole picture of making a home work — from floor plans and paint to seasonal maintenance — Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home delivers on that promise in structured, visually supported form. Emily Henderson called it 'useful, pretty and full of information... easy enough to pick up and read 5 minutes at a time,' which points to its rare dual-use appeal as both a practical reference and a coffee-table object. The key caveat is that its generalist scope means no single topic receives deep technical treatment, so specialists or advanced renovators may find it insufficient on its own.
Similar books: Readers who enjoy Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home will find natural companions across the home design shelf. Maxwell Ryan's earlier Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure offers the same brand's focused eight-step framework for those who want a more methodical approach. Joanna Gaines's Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave covers similar warm, livable design territory with a distinct personal voice. Emily Henderson — who endorsed Complete and Happy Home — authored Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves, which goes deeper on the art of arrangement and vignette styling. For readers drawn to the organizing dimension, The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing by Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin is a natural follow-on, and Myquillyn Smith's The Nesting Place shares the book's accessible, imperfection-friendly ethos.
Who should read this?: Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home is explicitly designed for a wide range — renters, first-time buyers, and longtime homeowners alike. Detroit Home described it as a resource for both seasoned homeowners looking to freshen up a space and first-time homeowners hoping to elevate their living environment, and the three-part architecture supports non-linear entry so readers can start wherever they are in the process. It is least suited to readers who need deep technical instruction in a single discipline — advanced renovators, architectural drafters, or professional-grade stagers will find its generalist scope limiting.
Where should I start with Maxwell Ryan?: For readers new to Maxwell Ryan's work, Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home is the publisher's own recommendation as the 'newest and most comprehensive' volume from the brand — making it the natural starting point if a broad, all-in-one reference is the goal. Readers who prefer a more focused, step-by-step intervention for a specific home reset may want to begin with Ryan's earlier Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure, which applies the brand's philosophy through a structured eight-step framework.
What are the main themes?: The book's central theme is the idea that a home should work for the people who live in it — not as aspirational fantasy, but as a practical, maintained space that reflects real life. This grounds three recurring threads: self-knowledge (understanding your own style and needs before decorating), visual literacy (training the eye through well-styled real rooms), and sustainable upkeep (cleaning, repairing, and organizing to maintain a happy home year-round). Maxwell Ryan's background as a former teacher — described as 'one part interior designer, one part life coach' — shapes the book's approachable, instructional tone.
Is this a good book club pick?: Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home is less a traditional book-club discussion book and more a shared reference that a group might work through together practically — comparing how the self-assessment exercises apply to their own spaces, or discussing favorites from the 75 well-styled rooms. Its visual richness and non-linear structure make it more browsable than argumentative, which suits informal design-focused groups better than literary discussion circles.

Summarize this book

Is it worth reading?

Who should read this?

Where should I start with Maxwell Ryan?

What are the main themes?

Is this a good book club pick?

Summarize this book

Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home is a 320-page illustrated home design and decorating reference published by Potter Style in September 2015, written by Maxwell Ryan and Janel Laban with photography by Melanie Acevedo. It is organized in three parts: the first helps readers evaluate their space and personal style; the second trains the eye through 75 of the most well-styled rooms in the country; and the third provides a guide to cleaning, repairing, and room-by-room organizing for year-round upkeep. Its stated ambition is to address every major dimension of design and decorating — floor plans, paint, specific room treatments, and style approaches — in a single, structured volume.

Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home by Maxwell Ryan, Janel Laban

4.1

/ 5

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.

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Age & Reading Level

Recommended age

Adult

Reading level

Adult

Browse all Adult books

Skip if you're looking for deep technical instruction on a single area of home design — advanced renovation, architectural drafting, or professional-grade staging.

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Books like Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home

Curated picks for readers who enjoyed Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home, with our reasoning for each match.

More by Maxwell Ryan, Janel Laban

In our catalogue

Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure

Maxwell Ryan

Maxwell Ryan's earlier book introduces the core Apartment Therapy methodology — ideal for readers who want the philosophy behind the Complete and Happy Home's broader framework.

If you loved Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home and want to go deeper into the thinking that drives Maxwell Ryan's design system, The Eight-Step Home Cure is the essential companion. Written before the comprehensive volume, this book lays out the original eight-step process Ryan developed for transforming any living space — from decluttering and flow to light and color — in a structured, week-by-week program. Where Complete and Happy Home spreads wide across every room and season, The Eight-Step Home Cure is focused and prescriptive, making it ideal for readers who found the bigger book inspiring but want a concrete action plan to follow. Readers searching for 'what to read after Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home' who crave a step-by-step challenge will find this a natural and rewarding next step.

If you liked Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home

In our catalogue

Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave

Joanna Gaines

Room-by-room design guidance with a warm, personal voice — shares Apartment Therapy's philosophy that a home should reflect who you truly are, not a showroom ideal.

Readers who connected with Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home's belief that great design starts with self-knowledge will feel right at home with Joanna Gaines's Homebody. Like Ryan and Laban's book, it moves room by room through the house, mixing practical decorating advice with a strong point of view about making spaces feel genuinely personal. Gaines draws on her Fixer Upper design sensibility to help readers identify their own style, which mirrors the self-assessment chapters that open Complete and Happy Home. The photography is rich and aspirational without feeling out of reach. If you've been searching for 'books like Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home' that blend stylish visuals with grounded, livable advice, Homebody delivers the same warmth and accessibility in a slightly more narrative-driven format.

In our catalogue

Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves

Emily Henderson, Angelin Borsics

Focuses on the visual-arrangement layer of decorating — perfect for readers who loved Apartment Therapy's 75 styled rooms and want hands-on styling principles they can apply immediately.

If the room photography and styling sections of Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home were the parts you kept returning to, Emily Henderson's Styled is the book that zooms all the way into that skill. Where Ryan and Laban cover the full arc of home-making, Henderson zeroes in on the art of arrangement — how to compose a bookshelf, style a coffee table, layer textiles, and build a vignette that looks intentional rather than accidental. The book is organized by design principle rather than by room, making it a strong complement to Complete and Happy Home's room-by-room structure. Readers looking for 'books like Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home' that emphasize the visual and decorative side of interior design will find Styled an immediately practical and visually rich follow-up.

In our catalogue

The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing

Clea Shearer, Joanna Teplin

Shares Apartment Therapy's room-by-room organizing structure but focuses sharply on systemized, photo-driven organization — great for readers drawn to the decluttering and maintenance chapters.

Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home gives serious attention to seasonal maintenance and room-by-room organization, and readers who found those sections especially useful will love The Home Edit. Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin — founders of the professional organizing company of the same name — bring the same comprehensive, visually driven approach to decluttering and storage that Ryan and Laban bring to overall home design. The book is packed with before-and-after photography, labeled systems, and product recommendations organized by space. Where Complete and Happy Home is broad in scope, The Home Edit goes deep on the organization layer, making it the ideal companion for anyone who wants their home to look as good inside the closets as it does in the living room. A top pick for readers searching for 'what to read after Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home'.

In our catalogue

The Nesting Place: It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect to Be Beautiful

Myquillyn Smith

A reassuring, philosophy-first approach to home decorating — ideal for readers who appreciated Apartment Therapy's encouraging tone and its message that imperfect homes can still be deeply livable.

One of the most appealing qualities of Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home is its inclusive, non-intimidating stance — the idea that anyone can create a home that works beautifully for their life. Myquillyn Smith, known as The Nester, builds an entire book around that same conviction. The Nesting Place argues that waiting for the perfect home, the perfect budget, or the perfect furniture is the enemy of actually living well, and it backs that argument up with practical decorating ideas and warm, candid storytelling. It's a lighter read than Complete and Happy Home — more memoir-flavored, less reference-heavy — but the underlying philosophy is closely aligned. Readers who found Ryan and Laban's encouragement motivating and are searching for 'books like Apartment Therapy Complete and Happy Home' that keep that spirit alive will find Smith's book a genuine comfort.