If you’re familiar with Illumicrate, then you’ve probably heard of their Contemporary Romance Exclusive Edition Book Box: Afterlight. And if not … now you have! This monthly subscription includes a newly-released adult romance novel in exclusive edition hardback, alongside special character artwork and an author letter.

Sounds great, right? I sure think so!

As the year progresses, I’ll update this page with 2024 Afterlight Unboxing videos, book reviews, and my thoughts on whether the subscription is indeed worth its pretty penny. You can check back monthly to see updates, or sign up for the newsletter to be notified! Either way, we’re hoarding the love and reveling in the gems received. What more could a book dragon ask for?

THE READS SO FAR

Currently Reading: The Prospects by K.T. Hoffman

I’m pleasantly surprised by the novels that have been chosen thus far! We’ve had solid writing, solid plotlines, and solid characters. And, of course, we get some on-page SPICE. There hasn’t been a standout that made me go “ohmygoshohmygosh I LOVE THIS,” but the year is young and there’s more to come! I’m hoping to get a novel that has me gripped and unable to put the book down. Despite this, Afterlight has put out some stunning editions that look great on my bookshelf!

Although I had to switch to Plan B (meaning audio) to get through At First Spite, I enjoyed the voice Dade gave her characters, as well as her body-positive-rep and her take on depression. Tessa Bailey’s launch into her sports series, Fangirl Down, was adorable, and it’s clear that this author has the romance framework perfected! Unfortunately, it did have little-to-no diversity, which makes me happy that this lack of representation was offset by Etta Easton’s The Kiss Countdown, featuring a black FMC and MMC. Easton’s piece, however, was lacking in the relationship department as the couple felt forced together for the sake of the plot, as opposed to being an organic partnership. Betty Cayouette had a rather bland book in One Last Shot, and though I thought an important theme was touched on here, the overall text felt a bit like a knock-off of People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry: travel-setting, past and present time jumps, and miscommunication galore.

All novels have depicted straight couples as the main relationship, but this changes in April’s exclusive edition (The Prospects by K.T Hoffman) which spotlights a trans MMC in a queer relationship. I usually check The Story Eater for book box spoilers, and they have predicted Cross the Line by Simone Soltani as the June release. So much to read, so little time! (I mean, who needs sleep, right?)

DESIGN: What sets At First Spite apart from the rest? I love the scenes depicted on the endpages (so cute and pivotal to the story!) as well as the full-colour hardback. While foiling on a hardback is nice, I absolutely ADORE that we get a full illustration of Spite House in this edition! Frankly, all of the books thus far are stunning, and I really like the character artwork and redesigned dust jacket for Fangirl Down, But I just love me a full-colour hardback with well chosen scenes on the end pages!

CONTENT: Tessa Bailey has romance framework perfected. And while Fangirl Down isn’t anything crazy new, I think this text executed a dual POV far better that At First Spite, which got repetitive and lagged in pacing. The Kiss Countdown was a difficult read for me. The characters felt distant, and I really think Amerie’s story was forced into a romance plot when it would have served her far better to be in a women’s contemporary piece. One Last Shot also took me over a week to get through. I never connected to the characters and was so aggravated by the rampant miscommunication and immaturity that I would have DNF’d if this weren’t a book I needed to review for you guys.

PRICE: At this point, it’s too soon to definitively tell whether the cost of the Afterlight subscription is worth its pretty penny. They are all beautiful editions, no qualms there! Have I been blown away by the stories themselves? Meh … not really. Fun, but forgettable. I don’t think I would have sought out an exclusive edition of any of these individually, and even if I had, it seems that most of them are reselling for about the cost of the box (once US shipping/taxes are applied). That being said, having the box subscription does give me first access to independent novels released by Afterlight, which makes being a subscriber more enticing. I’m waiting for a novel to sweep me off my feet and make me squeal with delight! Right now, with four books under my belt, and with no independent Afterlight sales snagging my attention, I’d say it’s not worth the price. Especially when you can pick and choose the novel you want on the resale market, then pay the exact same cost (At First Spite being the exception) without wasting money on the books you aren’t interested in. We’ll see if this changes through the rest of the year!

GET ALL THE DETAILS

Want to know more about a specific novel? Check below for unboxings, book reviews, exclusive edition details, and sneak peeks at upcoming subscription picks!

MORE TO COME

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