Books, books, and more books! While I tear through stories like a voracious book worm, I also hoard beautiful editions just the way a dragon should. Interested in some hoarding yourself? Here is a recap of my March subscriptions, as well as my thoughts on which book box was the best for the month.

Boxes with Goodies

Illumicrate Goodies

Items: Mythical Sea Creatures Book Pot (fandom neutral; designed by Jane Tibbetts), Underwater Haven Plant Pot (inspired by Eliza Chan’s Fathomfolk; artwork by Anna Stead), Kraken in the Deep Book Jacket (inspired by Shannon Chakraborty’s The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi; designed by Pauhami), and Beneath the Waves Sticky Notes (designed by Marigona Suli).

Quality: WHAT A BOX! The book pot and plant pot are both ceramic items that are beautifully designed and extremely well made. I have many book pots from Illumicrate, and every time we get a new one, I’m ecstatic! I have this one on display on my bookshelf and it looks amazing amongst my novels! The plant pot is on my balcony and has made a nice little home for my aloe vera plant. I’m also a huge fan of Illumicrate’s book jacket. They are the absolute best. Not only are they well made with great stitching, but they truly do protect my books. No concerns about oily fingers on hardback foiling, and no concerns about minor spills or drink condensation. These book jackets are water resistant! (Not to be confused with waterproof.) I always compare every other boxes’s book jackets to Illumicrate’s, and they never hold up. The sticky notes were fine, and frankly, I would have been thrilled with a three-item box due to how great these were, so the sticky notes just felt like a bonus!

Theme: Hands down, all of the books and all of the items fit the theme. I really think it’s going to be tough for Illumicrate to beat this one because it’s such an amazing compilation of items. But I hope they try!

Book: Our book of the month is Fathomfolk by Eliza Chan. It is a Royal hardback with the following exclusive features: Colour-way change cover, full colour printing on the hardback (by @danlinz_art), digitally printed fore-edge (from the publisher); block sprayed top and bottom edge, character art endpapers (by @tropicalgloom), bonus content, a bound in author letter, and an author signature.

Final Thoughts: What an incredible box so far as items are concerned! I just squealed and squealed over all of these bookish goodies! Everything is so wonderful and functional and artful to display! The design of this exclusive edition is lovely. I was absolutely blown away by the hardcover design! So far as the content, I still need to read this month’s novel.

Interested in more Illumicrate?

Get an ongoing comparison of all the Illumicrate boxes for 2024 HERE, including book reviews, unboxing videos, and overall thoughts on whether the subscription is worth the price!

Outside of their subscriptions, FairyLoot sells exclusive edition novels in varying genres. If stock is available, these editions are open to the general public after private sales for subscribers.

*Image taken directly from FairyLoot website.

FairyLoot YA Goodies

Items: Book Sleeve (inspired by Hafsah Faizal’s A Tempest of Tea; designed by @thelolloco), Shoe Charms (inspired by Travis Baldree’s Legends and Lattes; designed by @bluelyboo), Letter Opener (inspired by Tolkein’s The Hobbit; designed by @no0nedesigns), Ceramic Soap Dish (inspired by Jordan Ifueko’s Raybearer; designed by @julie.reinhart_), Tea Tin (inspired by Stephanie Garber’s Once Upon a Broken Heart; designed by @bluelyboo), and the monthly exclusive tarot cards (designed by @rosalynnarts)

Quality: This is a book sleeve that, without a doubt, would cushion your precious novel! As always, I did a check if the seams were secure, and they are. The artwork depicting Arthie, one of the protagonists, is spectacular! I love that it included a kindle nook, which is a nice touch and can function to hold other items as well. The shoe charms were … interesting. I wasn’t the biggest fan, but I also don’t own crocs and I’m pretty sure these were exclusive to those little holes that crocs have. Now, as a person who actually enjoys enamel pins, I would have been all about the design of this item if it had been more functional for me! That being said, if you do own crocs, these were well-made and super cute. Though I want use the dagger replica as a letter opener, it’s on display next to my fantasy books and looks great amongst my other replicas. Again, the soap dish and tea tins were well made, but not an items that will be functional for me personally.

Theme: Of the three books I’ve read (The Tempest of Tea, Legends and Lattes, and The Hobbit) I would say the theme absolutely fits! Definitely a creative take that allowed for items to be crafted after various novels. I enjoy that we get a variety of different fandoms and texts in the FairyLoot boxes and that the focus doesn’t consistently fall on a select group of authors.

Book: Our book of the month is The Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal. It is a Royal hardback with the following exclusive features: Redesigned cover (by @rosiethorns88), a digitally sprayed fore edge with art (by @rosiethorns88), solid sprayed top and bottom edges, a foil design on the hardcover (by @blanca.design), character artwork on the endpapers (by @rosiethorns88), a bonus chapter exclusive to FairyLoot, and a digitally signed author letter bound into the book.

Final Thoughts: I do think all of the items, in general, would be functional for someone. They also were of quality materials and had lovely artwork. That being said, the only item I kept was the sword replica. The shoe charms were by far my least favorite item, though I did like the design of them. So far as the book—I enjoyed it! I have special editions of Faizal’s Sands of Arawiya duology, and it was exciting to get another work of hers. An odd box, because on the one hand, I could have done without these items, but on the other, I’m extremely pleased with this book!

Interested in more FairyLoot?

Get an ongoing comparison of all the FairyLoot YA boxes for 2024 HERE, including book reviews, unboxing videos, and overall thoughts on whether the subscription is worth the price!

Outside of their subscriptions, Owlcrate sells exclusive edition fantasy novels. If stock is available, these editions are open to the general public after private sales for subscribers.

*Image taken directly from Owlcrate website.

Owlcrate YA Goodies

Items: Umbrella (inspired by Spirited Away; designed by @annguyenart), Reusable Snack Bag (inspired by Sangu Mandanna’s The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches; designed by @littleforestcat_), Dragons Hanging Door Sign (fandom neutral; designed by @sajrafox), Sketch Journal (inspired by Ava Reid’s A Study in Drowning; designed by @niallcgrant), and the Perfect Pairings Enamel Pin Collection (inspired by V.E. Schwab’s The Shades of Magic Trilogy (designed by Saiyre)

Quality: This was definitely a box for me! I’ve been in need of an umbrella, but I’ve held off on getting one because I knew a book box would provide eventually. And here it is! Very well made and hasn’t broken or warped despite multiple uses and heavy winds. I love the colors and the design, as well, which is always a plus. Though the reusable snack bag isn’t my cup of tea due to the silicone, it’s well made. I especially love that it has a press-close top. Plus, it was nice to get an item from a different novel than we typically see. The sign has a dragon on it. That’s all that needs to be mentioned. I love it! While I’m no artist and don’t have a need for the sketch pad, I can say that the artwork was lovely in person. The paper is also quite thick, which I think is nice (not sure how an artist would feel—maybe thin paper is better?), and there are fifty pages in total. And lastly, the enamel pin. I adore an enamel pin, but if you aren’t excited to find them in every box the way that I am, getting this item every month could be disappointing. For me, it means I know I’ll get an item I enjoy! My favorite item this month is by far the umbrella. It’s practical, functional, and beautifully patterned.

Theme: I can’t speak to the masks aspect, but both A Study in Drowning and The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches are chock full of secrets! With that alone, this was a good selection to match the month’s theme.

Book: Our book of the month is The Last Bloodcarver by Vanessa Le. It has the following exclusive features: Redesigned dust jacket (by @annguyenart), reversible dust jacket (by @golden.rose.art), foiled hardcover case (by @divineliterary), foiled end pages (by @eevientan), stenciled edges (by @annguyenart), a ribbon bookmark⁠, bound-in author letter, and a chapter annotated by the author—exclusive to Owlcrate

Final Thoughts: The items in this box definitely hit the mark! They were well made and varied, as well as being practical, which is always a bonus in my opinion. What’s the point of the merchandise if it can’t be used? I will say that the design of the book is not my favorite. The image of the back of the dust jacket is cartoony in nature, and the sprayed edges are busy enough to be overwhelming to the eye. I would have preferred a block-color sprayed edge to the current design, which doesn’t transition well from cover-to-edge-to-cover.

Interested in more Owlcrate?

Get an ongoing comparison of all the Owlcrate YA boxes for 2024 HERE, including book reviews, unboxing videos, and overall thoughts on whether the subscription is worth the price!

Box with Goodies Comparisons

Goodies: Illumicrate annihilated the competition so far as items were concerned! In fact, this box was so amazing that I don’t even think Illumicrate itself will be able to craft a bundle this fantastic for the remainder of the year. (Though, fingers crossed we get more like this from them!) FairyLoot and Owlcrate had well-made and functional merchandise with lovely artwork, but they had no chance of competing against a book pot, a planter, and a book jacket. I felt like I won a bookish lottery with this one!

Book Aesthetic: Because I personally care more for the character art than the reversible dust jacket, this was the tie breaker for me! Unfortunately, I felt the Owlcrate book looked more juvenile in design, putting it in the rear for March.

Book Content: WOW, this is hard. Both A Tempest of Tea and The Last Bloodcarver had solid prose, solid plot, and solid character development. They tackled difficult themes in ways that teens (and adults) could relate to. TLB had an amazing FMC and a heavy focus on biology, which I ate up. ATOT created complex character stories that had me emotionally invested in our POVs. Both texts had some pacing issues, and both texts had unimpressive romantic subplots. What led me to my final decision was the ending of each book. A Tempest of Tea had me bemoaning the fact that I couldn’t pick up the sequel immediately to find out what happens next! On the other hand, I finished The Last Bloodcarver wishing it had been a standalone and uncertain of whether I would get the final installment or not. A tight competition, but FairyLoot won out this month! I still need to read Illumicrate’s novel from March, but each time I pick it up, I struggle to get invested.

Read my book review for: A Tempest of Tea

Read my book review for: The Last Bloodcarver

Favorite Box of March: I mean, the items were too phenomenal to go any other way. The winner is … Illumicrate! Yes, I know—I haven’t read the book. Even still, the content won’t sway me one way or the other. I was blown away by the box as a whole. The merchandise was incredible, and the hardcover design of the novel is stunning. FairyLoot’s edition of A Tempest of Tea was pretty, and I love the character artwork. But the box doesn’t even come close.

Book-Only Boxes

Outside of their subscriptions, Afterlight sells exclusive edition novels in the contemporary romance genres. If stock is available, these editions are open to the general public after private sales for subscribers.

*Image taken directly from Illumicrate website.

Book: Our book of the month is The Kiss Countdown by Etta Easton. It is a B-format hardback with the following exclusive features: exclusive cover (from the publisher), foil embossing on the hardback (by @no0nedesigns), digitally printed edges (from the publisher), illustrated endpapers (by @ridartwork, different front and back), and is signed by the author

Interested in the book? Read my REVIEW

Want more Afterlight?

Get an ongoing comparison of all the Afterlight Book-Only boxes for 2024 HERE, including book reviews, unboxing videos, and overall thoughts on whether the subscription is worth the price!

Outside of their subscriptions, FairyLoot sells exclusive edition novels in varying genres. If stock is available, these editions are open to the general public after private sales for subscribers.

*Image taken directly from FairyLoot website.

Book: Our book of the month is A Feather So Black by Lyra Selene. It has the following exclusive features: redesigned cover (by @afterblossom_art), an alternative colour-way of the trade cover on the reverse dust jacket, digitally sprayed edges on all three edges and artwork on the endpapers (both by @afterblossom_art), a foil design on the hardcover (by @blanca.design), bonus content, an author letter bound into the book, and a digital signature.

*Review to come

Want more FairyLoot?

Get an ongoing comparison of all the FairyLoot Adult Book-Only boxes for 2024 HERE, including book reviews, unboxing videos, and overall thoughts on whether the subscription is worth the price!

My Favorite Subscription Read of March

By Title or Author

ARCHIVES

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