Fairyloot unboxing

Hi All! I have a slightly different post today. I am sure you have all seen the various monthly boxes that you can buy where you get some surprise mini treats. The most obvious examples being all the choices of beauty boxes you can get out there, but surprisingly though there are very few book related subscriptions boxes and those that there are are in the USA and shipping to the UK is just insane! Now I had seen one UK subscription box start up a few months back, but when I saw some unboxings it just didn't really appeal to me that much, but then I saw Fairyloot. This is a YA subscription box and I'm gutted I missed out on the March box as it just looked amazing. I was straight on to buying the April box though. Before each box is sent out, we are each given a tiny teaser as to what that box may contain and April's box was dubbed Intrigue and not unsurprisingly I was intrigued. 
So what are the basics that you know before you buy the box- what can you expect to get?:
  • One recently published copy of an exciting Young Adult book, usually hardback.
  • A unique buddy reading hashtag that links you up with another person.
  • 3-4 bookish goodies related to the theme of the month. These can vary.
  • A promotional items and signed bookplates whenever it is possible.

Sounds good to me and I didn't think the price was too unreasonable for what you get either, it's £26 for one box and you can of course buy a 3 month of 6 month subscription and it doesn't automatically renew so you don't get any unwanted charges. You do unfortunately have to pay delivery and for me it was nearly £5 which was a little shame as it made another competitor slightly cheaper as they only charge £3 for delivery. If I am being honest though I hate paying delivery for anything so I may be a little biased there. I just wanted to put that in there though as just giving my honest thoughts and thinking about it reasonably they do source the wonderful products in the boxes from far and wide.

Anyway this hasn't stopped me from paying for a 3 month subscription and I was given a 5% discount on this so I was fairly happy with that and I of course ADORE the boxes.

Now onto what was inside April's box!


The box itself was beautiful and came with an even more beautiful quote. My box arrived at work and I was itching to open it, but savoured it until i got home.



Upon opening, I was greeted with a Pop Vinyl! How I love Pop Vinyls and I got Katniss. Now I do already have this one, but I still think it was a brilliant one to get and I will be giving it away in a future giveaway. I then dug through the lovely purple packaging to more treats inside.


I could see a wonderfully packaged hardback book and without really looking too hard at what it was, I began to unwrap it.



I was actually over the moon when I unwrapped Glittering Court. This has been on my wishlist for ages, so I was so so happy to get this in my Fairyloot box. It also came with some fab sequins which I have of course used to decorate my pictures with,


Other things in with the book packaging were some Glittering Court related material with a book mark poster and some transferable stickers.


And finally we got a little leaflet telling us all about what was in the box, along with a preview of the book The Wrath and The Dawn- need to read this and an exclusive vanilla scented candle aptly named intrigue. There was also my own unique hashtag to find my reading buddy with, but upon writing this I cannot find it anywhere. Already tweeted it though so not all is lost and I found my reading buddy.


There we have the delights of April's box and as I said I have ordered May, June's and July's. May's boxes got snapped up real quick so if you want to get your hands on June's box I would do so now! Overall a great YA subscription box- I think Fairyloot are the best ones out there UK wise at the minute and I CANNOT wait for what May's box holds.


April in Review


What I Learned

To do lists are even more helpful than I thought. I basically spent April making lists and crossing them off... And, it worked! There are some things that need to be tweaked, of course. There are hobbies I want to work on and just need to work them in. When the day starts, I am all about crossing things off and getting things done. I fizzle in the evening a lot of the time. As a result my reading is struggling because the evening is the time when I normally read. I am hoping to get back on track with that soon!

The Books

117. Fairest - Volume 5: The Clamour for Glamour by Mark Buckingham, etc.
118. Fairest: In All the Land by Bill Willingham, etc.
119. Baba Yaga's Assistant by Marika McCoola
120. Armada by Ernest Cline (audiobook)
121. Gotham Academy - Volume 2: Calamity by Becky Cloonan
122. The Autumnlands - Volume 1: Tooth and Claw by Kurt Busiek
123. Birthright - Volume 1: Homecoming by Joshua Williamson
124. Batgirl - Volume 1: The Darkest Reflection by Gail Simone
125. Kids Are Weird by Jeffrey Brown
126. Legends of Red Sonja by Gail Simone, etc.
127. Cloaks by Caleb Monroe
128. Ghost Racers by Felipe Smith
129. Inferno: Warzones by Dennis Hopeless
130. Captain Britain and the Mighty Defenders by Al Ewing
131. The Girl With All The Gifts by M.R. Carey (audiobook)
132. Paper Girls - Volume 1 by Brian K. Vaughan
133. Korvac Saga: Battleworld by Dan Abnett
134. E is for Extinction: Warzones by Chris Burnham
135. 1602 Witch Hunter Angela by Marguerite Bennett
136. Daredevil - Volume 4: The Autobiography of Matt Murdock by Mark Waid
137. Deathlok - Volume 2: Man Versus Machine by Nathan Edmondson
138. Guardian - Team up: Volume 2 by Bill Willingham
139. A Slip of the Keyboard: Collected Non-Fiction by Terry Pratchett
140. Bucky Barnes - The Winter Soldier - Volume 2 by Ales Kot
141. Giant Days - Volume 2 by John Allison
142. Illuminae (The Illuminae Files, Book 1) by Amie Kaufman
143. Batgirl - Volume 2: Knightfall Descends by Gail Simone
144. The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
145. Supergirl - Volume 1: Last Daughter of Krypton by Michael Green
146. Peter Panzerfaust - Volume 1: The Great Escape by Kurtis J. Wiebe
147. Lexicon by Max Barry (Audiobook)

The Source

Bought 13
Audible 4
Scribd 3
Marvel Unlimited 10
Borrowed 1

Series Talk

Fairest Series 5/5 (And a companion short story collection) - FINISHED!
Gotham Academy - 2/2 Caught up!
The Autumnlands - 1/1 Caught up!
Birthright - 1/2
Batgirl - 2/5 
Paper Girls - 1/1 Caught up!
Daredevil - 4/4 - FINISHED!
Giant Days - 2/2 Caught up!
The Illuminae Files - 1/1 Caught up!
Supergirl - 1/1 Caught up!

Other Talk

In April I actually listened to four audiobooks!
~ Armada by Ernest Cline
~ The Girl with all the Gifts by M.R. Carey
~ The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton
~ Lexicon by Max Barry

And, I watched TV... Well, Netflix...
~ Bones Season 10
~ Nashville Season 1
- Started Nashville Season 2 and watched other stuff I didn't record.

Books Added to the TBR

Baba Yaga's Assitant (read)
Batgirl - Volume 1: The Darkest Reflection (read)
Supergirl - Volume 1: Last Daughter of Krypton (read)
Batgirl - Volume 2: Knightfall Descends (read)
The Autumnlands - Volume 1: Tooth and Claw (read)
A Slip of the Keyboard: Reflections on Alzheimer's, Inspirations, Orangutans, and Hats (read)
Birthright - Volume 1: Homecoming (read)
2113: Stories Inspired by the Music of Rush
Gotham Academy - Volume 2: Calamity (read)
The Bachelor Girls Guide to Murder
Paper Girls - Volume 1 (read)
Rebel of the Sands
Illuminae (read)
Giant Days - Volume 2 (read)


Book Review: The Last Days of Summer by Vanessa Ronan

Title: The Last Days of Summer
Author: Vanessa Ronan
Published: 5th May 2016
Publisher: Penguin Ireland





I love a book that intrigues me and makes me want to read it and The Last Days of Summer was exactly this.


With Jasper's release from prison and returning to his small town in Texas, I was constantly left in suspense as to what it was that he had done. What was so terrible that the townspeople despised his return so much? With the constant narrative movement between characters we slowly start to learn more about Jasper and the other people that they interact with. Each of their emotions was palpable and you get a very intricate insight into each of their thinkings and feelings very well. I felt like I knew their every secret, their every desire and exactly who they were.

There was something close and claustrophobic about reading this and this was further emphasised by the blistering heat and humidity of where the book is set. It was a lot darker that I had anticipated and the author leaves very little to the imagination in her descriptions, it's explicit in it's detailing. Vanessa is brilliant at creating not only a vivid setting, but a palpable one, I felt like I was right there in Texas in amongst the characters and you could sense the tension between them.

What I found as well was that not knowing what Jasper had done initially made him a very hard character to judge. At times I felt almost sorry for him and the way that he wanted to avoid trouble. Like his twelve year old niece Joanna, who also knows nothing about what he did, you will find yourself torn. I liked the not knowing though as it compels you to read on and I found myself consumed by the story as I was reading.

A vivid and suspenseful debut from Vanessa Ronan. 



      








Vanessa Ronan was born in Houston and in her 28 years has lived in Texas, Mexico, New York, Edinburgh, and Dublin, where she now lives with her Irish husband. Among other things, she has been a dancer, a PA, a barmaid, a literature student, a dance teacher, and now, a writer. Home-
schooled by her literature teacher parents, Vanessa began writing as soon as she learned the alphabet. The Last Days of Summer is her first novel.

Find Vanessa on Twitter: https://twitter.com/vronan


Week in Review - Week 18


Random Thoughts

I call myself a project undertaker. I feel like with things like Bullet Journalling and a cleaning schedule, I am constantly trying to find ways to make my life better. I don't spend the weekend overwhelmed with everything that I have to do. I feel much more relaxed. If I had a spare moment I used to feel like I had to clean before anything else. Now there are a few things I have to do everyday regardless, but otherwise I follow my schedule. And, by having a list of things I want to accomplish everyday, I feel like I am getting better at managing my time. It is not perfect, but life is about learning something new everyday, right? 

Graphic Novel Year

Amazingly, nothing...

Currently Reading


Audiobook


Currently Watching


Weekly Reading

Lexicon by Max Barry - Audible - I am so happy that my audiobook listening continues. I really enjoyed this listen. The book made the rounds at one point and I snagged a copy, but took me until now to read it. It is a book about words and their power. I thought it was pretty originally done for the most part and enjoyed both of the narrators. Glad I finally got this read! Strongly recommended!



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