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    House of Gold: A Novel
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    House of Gold: A Novel
    Unavailable
    House of Gold: A Novel
    Audiobook15 hours

    House of Gold: A Novel

    Written by Natasha Solomons

    Narrated by Marisa Calin

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    From the New York Times bestselling author of The House at Tyneford, an epic family saga about a headstrong Austrian heiress who will be forced to choose between the family she's made and the family that made her at the outbreak of World War I.

    The start of a war. The end of a dynasty.

    Vienna, 1911. Greta Goldbaum has always dreamed of being free to choose her own life's path, but the Goldbaum family, one of the wealthiest in the world, has different expectations. United across Europe, Goldbaum men are bankers, while Goldbaum women marry Goldbaum men to produce Goldbaum children. Jewish and perpetual outsiders, they know that though power lies in wealth, strength lies in family.

    So Greta moves to England to wed Albert, a distant cousin. Defiant and lonely, she longs for connection and a place to call her own. When Albert's mother gives Greta a garden, things begin to change. Perhaps she and Albert will find a way to each other.

    But just as she begins to taste an unexpected happiness, war is looming and even the influential Goldaums can't alter its course. For the first time in two hundred years, the family will find themselves on opposing sides and Greta will have to choose: the family she's created or the one she was forced to leave behind.

    A sweeping family saga from a beloved and New York Times bestselling author, House of Gold is Natasha Solomons's most dazzling and moving novel yet.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateOct 23, 2018
    ISBN9780525640417
    Unavailable
    House of Gold: A Novel
    Author

    Natasha Solomons

    Natasha Solomons is the author of five internationally bestselling novels, including Mr Rosenblum's List, The Novel in the Viola, which was chosen for the Richard & Judy Book Club, and The Gallery of Vanished Husbands. Natasha lives in Dorset with her son, daughter and her husband, the children's author, David Solomons with whom she also writes screenplays. Her novels have been translated into 17 languages. When not writing in the studio, Natasha can usually be found in her garden.

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    Reviews for House of Gold

    4/5

    45 ratings9 reviews

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    • 4/5
      A vast novel taking place in Europe in the early twentieth century. The focus is on an arranged marriage between two branches of the Goldbaum banking family. The Austrian branch sends a young lady (Greta) to England to wed her distant cousin (Albert). The marriage bonds the two branches to their mutual benefit. The primary backdrop here is the period just before and during WW1 and it's affect on the two branches. The fact that they are Jewish plays into the plot. I think that anyone who enjoys historical fiction will like this one.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book, saga about a Jewish family during WWI. Such a different life. Did not realize England was basically bankrupted by the war.
    • 4/5
      This novel follows the lives of the Goldbaum family, a family of Jewish bankers that spread their influence across Europe in the years before World War I. Immensely wealthy, the family members still have their struggles - Greta and Albert with their arranged marriage, Henri with the mistress he wants to marry, Otto is unable to pursue his love of astronomy. They all find themselves hopelessly unprepared for war to break out and the consequences of war for their family and business. Overall, this was a good read and I would highly recommend it for historical fiction fans.
    • 4/5
      HOUSE OF GOLD is a family saga about an Austrian heiress from a Jewish banking dynasty (inspired by the Rothschild family) who upon the outbreak of WWI is forced to choose between the family she has created for herself in England or the family members on the opposite side of the war.The story begins in Vienna, 1911. Greta Goldbaum is engaged to marry the man chosen for her, a distant cousin, a man she has never met. But Greta dreams of living life her way, of breaking through those restraints proper society has placed upon her. But that is especially difficult to do as her family is one of the wealthiest in the world with expectations that must be met.Fun-loving Greta thus gives in to her fate and moves to England to marry her all-too-serious cousin Albert. Knowing Greta is lonely and feeling lost, Albert’s mother gives Greta a garden. Lady Goldbaum advises Greta to think not of her marriage or her husband, but to think only of her garden. Fontmell Abbey is to be rebuilt for Albert and Greta but the gardens are Greta’s. Lady Goldbaum too had felt alone and sad when she first married. Greta throws herself into learning about gardening and finds she is actually happy. But as Greta and Albert build a life together, war looms on the horizon. Greta becomes less and less self-absorbed, caring for the people around her. Like most of the society women at that time, Greta volunteers at the hospitals. She even converts Fontmell Abbey into a hospital for them unwed mothers, and then teaches the women about gardening so they will have a marketable skill. Solomons writes beautifully (and extensively) of the gardens, and her description of Greta’s self-growth and the developing bond between Greta and Albert are heartwarming, thus giving the reader a bit of pleasure amongst the horrors of war. Natasha Solomons writes complex family sagas and the Goldbaums were certainly complex. Branches of the family were spread all across Europe. When war broke out, their wealth could not save them. Being Jewish and controlling so much money, they were targets. Thus the family finds themselves fractured and fighting on different sides in the war. I did find the book lagged in places and I found myself losing interest as there just seemed to be too much descriptive details. I felt quite a bit could have been cut from the book and the ending would not have been so rushed. But still it is a story of family, love, politics, war, heartbreak, and anti-Semitism which will remain in my mind well after the last page of their lives was read.
    • 5/5
      Lindas Book Obsession Reviews "House Of Gold" By Natasha Solomons, G.P.Putnam's Sons , October 23, 2018Kudos to Natasha Solomons, Author of "House of  Gold" for writing such an intense, intriguing, captivating, page turning, suspenseful, and emotional novel. I love the way that the Natasha Solomons weaves the layers of her story in such a descriptive and vivid way, that appeals to the senses. One can smell the flowers and plants, and the landscape, and growth and death. One can touch the fabrics of the clothing or uniforms of the time. One can taste the vegetables growing in the garden., or the foods mentioned in the European countries. One can see the riches at peacetime and the destruction of war, on the family. One can hear the "quiet" nature of peace, and the battle of war.The Genres for this Novel are Fiction and Historical Fiction. The author describes her colorful and dysfunctional cast of characters as flawed, complex and complicated as perhaps circumstances dictate. The timeline for this story is before and during World War One. The novel centers around the Goldenberg Family, a dynasty of bankers and high finance in Europe, known as "House of Gold". Money and wealth seem to equal power.  There were five brothers who each opened a branch of their bank. They were highly regarded, and in some ways tolerated because they were Jewish and wealthy.Great and Otto Goldenberg  are extremely close siblings., that live in Vienna.  Greta is adventurous, and often finds a way of finding trouble, with Otto covering for her.  Greta's parents want her to marry a distant cousin Albert Goldenberg.   That will force Greta to move to England.As war breaks out, the family is divided. Be warned, I suggest a box of Kleenex.  The House of "Gold" becomes extremely vulnerable . I appreciate the author's research of the historical period. I would highly recommend this amazing novel for those readers who enjoy reading about dynasties and World War One. I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.
    • 4/5
      The House of Gold is the Goldbaum dynasty, who own and run an international banking company. Probably the richest family is the world at the time of the novel (pre- and through WW 1), they keep it in the family by marrying cousins. Thus Greta Goldbaum of the Viennese branch of the family is arranged to marry Albert Goldbaum of the London branch. Never mind that they have never met and have nothing in common but their name. Goldbaum men are bankers; Goldbaum women marry Goldbaum men and have Goldbaum babies. Greta is not a quiet, do as she’s told girl and she balks at the thought of marrying someone she doesn’t know, that, furthermore, sounds boring as can be- an entomologist as a passionate hobby!. And, she’ll miss her brother, with whom she’s spent many a night outdoors, gazing up at the sky. The marriage takes place as planned, of course. Albert turns out to be not a monster, but no more eager for the marriage than Greta is. Albert’s mother, though, takes to Greta. She is an avid gardener, and has huge greenhouses as well as outdoor plantings. She gives an undeveloped portion of the estate to Greta for her own garden, and Greta, despite never having shown an interest in learning before, reads gardening book after gardening book, taking it all very seriously but also joyously. She has found her forte. And it leads to a bit of a link to Albert- with any garden come insects. But this isn’t just a frivolity for Greta. When she finds herself with a home for unwed mothers on her hands, she starts teaching them vegetable and fruit gardening, so that they shall have a way of earning money once they are back on their own. I really enjoyed this aspect of the book, showing Greta’s growth. When World War 1 breaks out, life changes. The younger Goldbaum men uniform up and go to war. The women roll bandages. The manor house is turned into a hospital. The Goldbaum men, formerly insulated from most of the bad things in the world, suddenly find themselves in horrendous circumstances, and not all survive. I found Greta frustrating at first, but as her character grew and matured, I enjoyed her a great deal. The relationship of Greta and Albert was also a joy to read. The descriptions of the house and gardens were beautiful and detailed, which makes the harsh conditions and events of the war harder to read. And, of course, all the thread of anti-Semitism runs through it all. There are a lot of different threads woven into this tale, and several POVs, including an orphan who is not related to the family but was dependent on it for a while. Not all the threads get tied off at the end of the novel, which seemed abrupt and forced. Hopefully this means there will be a sequel. Four and a half stars.
    • 4/5
      The Goldbaum family is known the world over in the banking industry. Their wealth is astounding. Greta is from the Austrian Goldbaums. She has an arranged marriage to her cousin, Albert Goldbaum. This is not exactly what she wants out of life and the marriage has a terrible start. These two eventually learn to love each other and create a nice life. Then WWI enters their world and their lives change forever.Greta is a strong-willed woman! And if you follow this blog, you know those are my favorite characters. The start of her marriage is just about her undoing. However, she is determined to overcome and make her life better. I love her resilience and her intelligence. She is the character this novel could not do without.This first part of this book has a lot of gardening and a large amount of business dealings. The last half of the book is much more enjoyable, in my opinion. It is full of action and emotion. This story is full of historical detail and rich with information. I enjoyed this time period. I am usually a WWII reader so, I relished reading about WWI.And isn’t this cover fantastic!I received this novel from G.P. Putnam’s Sons via Netgalley for a honest review
    • 4/5
      Greta had been a handful since birth with her governesses explaining that if she had been anything but a Goldbaum, she would be out on the street.The Goldbaums always married distant cousins to keep the name, their power, and their wealth secure.Greta was to marry her second cousin from London whom she never met, but she was fine with it because she was hoping this would take her away from her daunting mother and all her rules about proper behavior.As I was reading, it seemed as if I were living in a fairy tale. Every whim and want was satisfied for Greta and her family. The description of the mansions was unbelievable, and I laughed when one of the servants confessed she needed a map to navigate the home.The writing style and the detail Ms. Solomons uses draws you into the story even though some of it is filled with politics and business dealings. She adds enough family drama and interest of the era to keep you reading, but it did get tedious at times.The characters were definitely depicted as true to this era and class, and they grew on you as you read. Some you grew to like and others you grew to wonder why they acted as they did.If you enjoy reading about aristocrats, politics, European history in the late 1800's/early1900's, war, and the non-public side of the wealthy, HOUSE OF GOLD will be of interest.The book was well written, but was a bit long. The characters - especially Greta - made the book. She was a feisty, strong woman. 4/5This book was given to me as an ARC by the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
    • 4/5
      A meandering family history, based on the real life Rothschilds. set in the years leading up to the First World War. Austrian socialite Greta Goldbaum is married off to her English cousin Albert, uniting two of the five European branches of the powerful Jewish banking family. She is a wild bohemian spirit, more interested in pleasing herself than doing her duty to others, while he is the typical English gentleman. Their union is awkward at first, after she bluntly told him that she didn't love him on the eve of their wedding, but they eventually grow to love each other. Then fun-loving, outspoken Greta has children and turns into an amorphous adjunct of her husband. I didn't object to the laborious detail or the focus on gardening, as other reviews have, but the life being sapped out of Greta by her obnoxious daughter and wailing son did disappoint and bore me. I know that's what rich wives did, and why Greta was married off in the first place, but she is literally reduced to wandering aimlessly around leaking breast milk.The war, told from the perspective of Albert, Greta's brother Otto and cousin Henri, makes for a jarring contrast to Greta's domestic trials. I felt sorry for Otto, even while trying to buy his way out of a Russian prisoner of war camp with the family cheque book, and admired Karl, his batsman, who started life picking bones out of sewage beneath the Goldsbaum palace in Austria. The wheeler-dealing with Albert in America was instructive but a trifle dull, however.Although the plot is a bit loose, I can't understand the complaints that there is too much detail and padding about gardening - the descriptions of the Goldbaums' wealthy lives and grand homes was the best part of the book for me. I really felt like I got to know everyone.