Gold Rush

By Olivia Petter

‘Addictive writing wrapped up in a compelling page turner that makes you deeply think and feel’ YOMI ADEGOKE

‘An incisive new voice in fiction’ COCO MELLORS

We give celebrities a power they don’t deserve. Power they haven’t earned. What happens when they exploit it?

Imagine you’ve just spent the night with the most famous man on the planet. Except you don’t quite remember it. That is what happens to Rose, a twenty-something woman who seemingly has everything going for her.

Working for one of the most powerful news outlets in the country, Rose spends her days doing PR for glossy magazines. There are tedious spreadsheets, fashion divas, and many A-list parties. It’s at one of those parties where she meets Milo Jax, the world-famous, globally adored, British pop sensation. An unlikely flirtation turns into an even more unlikely evening and then Rose wakes up, unable to piece it all together. What happens next changes everything.

Gold Rush is a story about consent, celebrity culture, and trying to figure out where women fit in a world that consistently devalues and disrespects their bodies.

‘Powerful, nuanced, richly drawn and skilfully done, Gold rush will stay with me for a long time’ LAUREN BRAVO

Format: Hardback
Release Date: 18 Jul 2024
Pages: 384
ISBN: 978-0-00-860641-1
Olivia Petter is an award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster based in London. She is currently a columnist at The Independent and has also written for The Sunday Times, The Guardian, British Vogue, Stylist, and Grazia, among others. She has hosted The Independent’s chart-topping Millennial Love podcast since 2017; in 2023, Olivia relaunched the podcast under the name Love Lives. That same year, she was named one of Forbes’ ‘30 under 30. She wrote her first book, Millennial Love, in 2021. Gold Rush is her first novel.

'I devoured this nuanced exploration of consent within the glimmering and sometimes grotesque world of celebrity and influencer culture. Petter writes with compassion and clarity about both the vulnerability and resilience at the heart of womanhood, distinguishing herself as an incisive new voice in fiction' Coco Mellors, author of Cleopatra and Frankenstein and Blue Sisters -

”'Addictive writing wrapped up in a compelling page turner that makes you deeply think and feel” - Yomi Adegoke, author of The List

'I raced through Gold Rush, a clever, nuanced, and perceptive excavation of celebrity and consent' Louise O'Neill, author of Idol -

'A triumph of a debut - I finished this in a day. Utterly addictive, beautifully written and perfectly paced. Olivia’s ability to capture the voice of younger women, examining consent and power dynamics is on point' Poorna Bell, author of In Case of Emergency -

'Olivia Petter has written the millennial Valley of the Dolls and, like that book, Gold Rush is destined to be both a hit and a classic' Emma Forrest, author of Royals -

‘Brilliant in its specificity but universal in feeling, Gold Rush perfectly captures a moment and mood that will resonate with so many women who lived through the last couple of decades and are still wondering why we put up with so much' Lauren Bravo,author of Preloved -

'One to put on your summer books list right now. A must-read story about consent and celebrity culture' Independent -

”'Petter’s insider knowledge of a giddy, gilded but grubby world tingles with menace” - Financial Times

”'A book you’ll be turning over in your head long after you’ve finished” - Heat

”'This novel deftly explores themes of celebrity culture, power dynamics, consent, and navigating a world that devalues and disrespects the female body” - W Magazine