The 52 Book Club: 2025 Challenge discussion

20. Related To The Word "Gold"


This prompt is open to wide interpretation, so let’s get creative! The only criteria? It has to relate to the word gold! Here are a few suggestions to get the ideas flowing:

* Set during the goldrush
* The word “gold” in the title
* An author with a last name Gold, Goldberg, Goldsmith, Goldstein, Golding, etc.
* Gold on the cover: either a picture of gold, or color treatment on the cover / font, etc.
* Metaphorical: “Not all that glitters is gold” or someone “with a heart of gold”
* A heist or theft
* A character who is a “gold digger,” a character who hordes gold
* Non-fiction: memoir by a gold medalist, a book about mining, etc

Check out our Goodreads List for examples

The Lady in Gold: The Extraordinary Tale of Gustav Klimt's Masterpiece, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer is a fantastic read for this. Non-fic: an amazing story a Jewish family, a glimpse of Vienna before the the wars, of WWII art looting, and the incredible journey of this particular piece. Incredibly vivid and mesmerizing. It was also later turned into a movie, Woman in Gold with Helen Mirren which is also great.

This book would also fit these other prompts should you want to read it but have another one for that prompt: involving the art world, set in two continents, based on a real person, with photographs inside,

Gilded by Marissa Meyer.

Darling Rose Gold

Sheally wrote: "Gilded by Marissa Meyer."
Love Marissa Meyers writing. I read almost the whole Lunar Chronicles series in 2021 (all but Cinder which I read in 2020). I will read this in 2022 but it remains to be seen if I will count it for this prompt of the 500+ page book prompt.

Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian

Last year I read “A Betting Woman” based on Madame Moustache who introduced the game Blackjack to America during the gold rush. It was really good. I was impressed with her ingenuity and determination to do things her way!

Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce is a lovely novel involving the hunt for a gold beetle in New Caledonia.

I think I'm reading Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler, although it also fits a few other prompts. Like wealthy characters, more than 500 pages, set mostly on a ship...

reading Gild by Raven Kennedy. first book in the plated prisoner series

I'm using Josephine Tey's A Shilling for Candles for this prompt. My rational is based on the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary

History and Etymology for shilling: Middle English, from Old English scilling; akin to Old High German skilling, a gold coin.

think i need to use The Golden Thread for this prompt. its all about fabric has a gold spine,even white gold gets a mention as in wool. book is by Kassia St Clair

I'll be reading Witches Steeped in Gold by Ciannon Smart.

I read The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen.

I read Star Mother for this prompt. "Star" being related to gold.

Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian - 4.5 stars!

I picked this book because the title fits the "gold" prompt well, and I generally love books written by Indian authors. I really, really liked it. It's weird, though - contemporary and magical realism tied to a great story of finding belonging among cultural struggles and striving, striving, striving. The theme of "gold-digging" was woven through in several different ways, and it was masterfully used. I hope Sanjena Sathian writes more books because this was far above average.

Another reread here -- Julian May's The Golden Torc, second in the Saga of Pliocene Exile. I loved these books as a teenager, and though some aspects haven't aged well I still found this very enjoyable.

I just finished One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle and noticed that the cover of the hardcover has gold flake reflective buildings on it, so I used it for this prompt. A little outside the box on that one, but I didn't have anywhere else for that book to go that I didn't already have completed!

I read The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner (it has a colour treatment on the cover).

I'm currently reading Iron Gold

I read How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C Pam Zhang.

I really enjoyed the subversion of expectations and assumptions that this book threw at me, loved the quest-like tale at the beginning, loved method the writer used to do the flashbacks. I can't think of many writers who can wield vagueness so well.

For more thoughts, check me out of Youtube at Justin's 52 Books.

Crucible of Gold by Naomi Novik is from her Temeraire series, which is about the Napoleonic War fought with dragons.

Janet wrote: "Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce is a lovely novel involving the hunt for a gold beetle in New Caledonia."

I am so glad you suggested this. I have the book on my shelf but didn't know what it was about so I probably wouldn't have picked it for this prompt.

I read These Happy Golden Years

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson-

Golden Prey (Lucas Davenport #27) by John Sandford

I read Damsel by Elana K. Arnold, 2 Stars

Reading “The Man with the Golden Gun” by Ian Fleming

I read Golden Girl by Elin Hilderbrand

I listened to Last Night at the Golden Hotel.

The Golden Spruce by John Vaillant

I read "Gold Rush Women" by Claire Rudolf Murphy & Jane G. Haigh.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel by Deborah Moggach - could also be read for #12 Set on at least two continents and #19 Book with an alternate title, as originally published as These Foolish Things, before the film was made...

This cozy has lost treasure, gold jewelry and of course a pirate chest on the cover

Death by the Sea by Kathleen Bridge 2/17/22

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

https://titlesurfingwithtraci.blogspo...

The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

I choose Cruel Prince for this one since the front cover has a gold crown and it's a "prince"

I read "The Golden Rendezvous," by Allistair MacLean. Not my go-to genre, but he excels at it!

Fool’s Gold by Skinner. Set in the late 80s, treasure hunting, light intrigue. Easy read.

The Other's Gold by Elizabeth Ames. https://cdnbookworm.blogspot.com/2022...

I have started reading “the boys in the boat: Nine Americans and their epic quest for gold at the 1936 Olympics”. Not sure I will finish or whether I will go for something else. But I is a memoir of sorts based on the US rowing team from 1936

Jenny Dahl Bakken wrote: "I have started reading “the boys in the boat: Nine Americans and their epic quest for gold at the 1936 Olympics”. Not sure I will finish or whether I will go for something else. But I is a memoir o..."
I used this book and loved it. Try the Audio if reading gets too much.

Golden Son by Pierce Brown

Gild by Raven Kennedy, ⭐️⭐️

Star Father by Charlie N Holmberg

I read The Other's Gold by Elizabeth Ames.