The 52 Book Club’s 2026 Reading Challenge

Now, I know I am late to the party with this challenge since we are already almost in June; however, I completely forgot about this challenge until I was looking through previous blog posts.. Admittedly, I don’t think I’ll complete it, but I’m determined to give it a good go! Additionally, I came across a blog post about this very challenge originally last year from The Book Haze, which has kept me inspired to write my own post so that I can be held accountable.

visit The 52 Book Club to find out more and potentially take part yourself!

What is the challenge?

The 52 Book Club’s annual reading challenge is made up of 52 unique reading prompts. The goal is to match one book to each prompt, for a total of fifty-two books over the year. Prompts are related to everything from specific words in the title, to cover design, authors, genres, settings, themes, characters, etc. (Think of it like a giant bookish scavenger hunt!) We encourage participants to try books outside of their regular reading comfort zones and push themselves to read more, read differently, and get creative with it!

I have listed below the 52 Book Club’s list of prompts for 2026. These prompts are linked to the Goodreads Lists for books that fit each prompt. I copy and pasted them from here and I will be linking to each of them and updating this post with the book I have read once I have completed a prompt.

The Goodreads 2025 list:

1. Set in an ancient civilization –
2. Kangaroo word on the cover –
3. Written without quotation marks –
4. Has a dust jacket – Starside by Alex Aster
5. Featuring a conspiracy –
6. Title starts with the letter “O” –
7. Title starts with the letter “P” –
8. A three-word syllable in the title – Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid
9. Featuring a natural disaster – Accidentally Wedded to a Werewolf by Isabelle Taylor
10. Spans a decade or more –
11. Requires suspension of disbelief –
12. A genre-defining read – A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
13. Bookface –
14. Includes a character list –
15. Subtitle with a comma –
16. Deus Ex Machina –
17. Author’s bio mentions their dog –
18. Provokes strong emotion – The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
19. A nosy neighbour character –
20. Day of the week in the title –
21. Written in the 1800s –
22. Spotted in a TV series or movie –
23. Grumpy sunshine trope – First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison
24. Uneven number of chapters –
25. Includes a red herring –
26. Title in a serif font – The Fall Risk by Abby Jimenez
27. Two or more authors, one pseudonym – Accidentally Yours by Christina Lauren
28. From a series at least 8 books long – Delicious in Dungeon Vol 7 by Ryoko Kui
29. Set in the Arctic or Antarctic –
30. Author related to another author –
31. Author related to author in prompt 30 –
32. Publisher starting with the letter “B” –
33. A standalone fantasy novel –
34. Inspired by the top-grossing movie the year you were born *No Goodreads list* –
35. Character with a secret identity –
36. Award-winning book from last year –
37. Started on the 26th of the month *No Goodreads list* –
38. Domestic fiction –
39. A book that cost you nothing *No Goodreads list*– Masquerade of Mirrors by Samantha Hartwood
40. Author’s first and last name start with the same letter – Sons of Fenris by Lee Lightner
41. A guide to… – A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
42. Includes a handwritten interior font –
43. A Goodreads recommendation for you *No Goodreads list* –
44. Literary device: Personification –
45. Biographical fiction –
46. Non-fiction about character in prompt 45 –
47. A diacritical mark on the cover –
48. Related to the word “Nemesis” –
49. From the 800s of the Dewey Decimal System –
50. Set in a castle –
51. Includes a map –
52. Published in 2026 –