The 52 Book Club: 2025 / 2026 Challenge discussion

34. Featuring mythology

What is mythology? Mythology is the study of myths. Myths are folklore that often feature origin stories or explain some sort of phenomenon. They may involve supernatural beings. They may be built upon fact or could be entirely fictional. Ancient myths and heroes often have symbolic meaning.

For this prompt, you could pick a book that retells or reimagines a classic myth – perhaps from ancient Roman, Greek, or Norse mythology. Mythology may be featured within the main plot or theme, OR it might appear as a secondary one. The prompt might also feature a character who is interested in mythology or who was told specific myths as a child. The book could have the word “mythology,” or the name of a specific myth or mythological creature in the title or subtitle. It may be mythology rooted in our world or in a fantasy world.


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Phaedra by Laura Shepperson

I've got Natalie Haynes Pandora's jar for this one

Circe would work for this! So would The Song of Achilles.

I plan to read Circe.

My sons love Percy Jackson and I haven’t read any of the books. My nephew and niece will be in a play based on the books, so I plan to read Lightening Thief as a way to be prepared for their performance.

I am reading Zeus Grants Stupid Wishes: A No-Bullshit Guide to World Mythology

I plan on reading Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

A Beloved Sin

Galatea by Madeline Miller. It’s 56 pages and a good pallet cleanser in my opinion!

I read The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden. I don't know if it counts since it doesn't feature mythology, but it does feature many creatures from Slavic folklore

For this prompt, I read Circe by Madeline Miller.

Greek mythology is my weaknesse, love it so much so I have far to many options for this one but probably the song of Achilles

EUROPE
Faroe Islands:
The Seven Skins of Esther Wilding by Australian author Holly Ringland is a magical book set in Tasmania, Copenhagen and the Faroe Islands. It covers Indigenous stories, Nordic mythology, selkies and fairytales as Esther tries to piece together what happened to her sister Aurora and what the seven verses tattooed on her back meant. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ here is my review

Myths and Legends Around the World - Collection 10

Neon Gods

I'm reading Heart of the Sun Warrior which contains Chinese Mythology!

I just finished Neon Gods for this prompt. It is retelling of Hades and Persephone, so I thought it was fitting.

I just finished Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman. I had been looking forward to reading it, but it wasn't as good as I thought it would be.

Skin of the Sea is a retelling of the Little Mermaid story by Natasha Bowen. It is set in the 14th century Oyo Empire (modern day Nigeria) during the time of Portuguese slave ships and features black mermaids (Mami Wata), West African mythology, gods and goddesses and a gentle romance. The author is British, of Nigerian and Welsh background. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ here is my review

I read Thistlefoot, which I am also using for the February mini-Challenge-a shadow on the cover.

Read Circe - Madeline Miller, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I listened to The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller for this one. 4⭐️‘s

I read The Barren Grounds by David Alexander Robertson based on Canadian Cree Indigenous mythology.

For this I chose “Small Bodies of Water” by Nina Mingya Powles. It was mostly memoir, based around what makes a home and her various homes, beautiful nature writing and loosely featured mythology in describing some sources of languages she studied and some stories she inherited. A beautiful book by the way 👍

I’m going to read The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida

I READ Oh My Gods! GN in Feb

I read The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

I read The Winter Knight by Jes Battis - Arthurian knights (and others) reincarnated in modern-day Toronto. Pretty good and very diverse!

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
This is a non-fiction book about plants using Native American folklore/mythology to tell the story. It is better then that one sentence sounds! 4.5 stars

For this prompt, I chose a debut novel that weaves Afro-Caribbean myths and folktales into a coming-of-age story about two young girls, daughters of a Jamaican father and a Trinidadian mother. The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter and Other Essential Ghosts by Soraya Palmer

The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree is the first book translated from Farsi to be shortlisted for the International Booker award. It is written by Iranian author Shokoofeh Azar who fled to Australia as a refugee when her book was banned in her home country. The story is an historical fiction with strong elements of magical realism and Persian mythology. It tells us about a family from whose lives are turned upside down after the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Here is my review.

The Tale of Aypi is the first book written by a Turkmen author to be translated into English. The author Ak Welsapar was imprisoned for 18 months before fleeing his country. His books are still banned in Turkmenistan. This story is about the bravery of a fisherman resisting the government relocation of his village. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ my review

I’m currently reading ‘The Gilded Ones’ and it mentions some gods but I’ve just started and wonder if anyone knows if this book would fit the mythology prompt?

I recently finished A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair and NOT LET ME TELL YOU !! I’m definitely on Team Hades 🥵😍😩

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

The Song of Achilles

The Stardust Thief is the first book in a YA fantasy trilogy by Kuwaiti author Chelsea Abdullah. Loulie al-Nazari, the Midnight Merchant is swept up in a grand adventures of Princes, Sultans, jinn and magical relicts. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ my review

I read Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes and absolutely loved it. 5 ⭐

Zombelina Dances The Nutcracker by Kristyn Crow Zombies, Ghosts, and the Phantom. Enjoy.

The Witch's Heart by Genevieve Gornichec

Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama

I read Gwen and Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher 4 Stars

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Will probably go with American Gods

The Night Tiger is an historical fiction by Chinese Malaysian author Yangsze Choo set in Malaya in the 1930s. The book incorporates elements of magical realism, mythology, mystery and romance and includes weretigers, ghosts and 1930s dancehalls. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ here is my review

Oh My Gods! by Stephanie Cooke

A Touch of Darkness - Scarlett St Claire
Hades & Persephone

The Maidens. It was really intense.

The Song of Achilles was a great read. I've seen the title on many lists and decided to give it a go.

Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz