I was so excited to finally receive my first every Illumicrate box this morning, I feel like I've been waiting for this one forever! For those of you who are unfamiliar with Illumicrate, they offer quarterly book boxes alongside special edition one-off boxes. The quarterly book boxes are £29.99 including free UK shipping, which makes it the most affordable of the three boxes that I'm currently subscribed to. I've heard so many good things about Illumicrate and so I subscribed to the May box at the beginning of May. There was a slight delay of approximately 10 days due to a supplier issue but the box finally arrived this morning - a welcome sight on such an overcast day! As always, here's a quick recap of what Illumicrate told us about the May 2018 box: It’s time! I’m so pleased to announce that our May theme is HIDDEN TALENTS! 💛 The featured book is one of the best debuts I’ve read in a long time. It’s a stand-alone, with friendship and music at its heart, and it deals with a difficult topic beautifully. The book will be an exclusive edition with sprayed edges! 💛 The items in the box are inspired by Fangirl, Shadowhunters, Percy Jackson, Black Panther and Avatar: The Last Airbender! We’re including some really unique items we’ve never included before, and I’m so excited for you all to see them! 💛 And, as you’ve come to expect from us, we are including an advanced reader copy. It’s the start of a new series by a bestselling author, and its not out until October 2018! TWO BOOKS!?! I'M SO EXCITED FOR THIS BOX! First impressions: If you're looking for a comparison, this box is almost exactly the same size as the Book Box Club box. The box arrived the day after I had my tracking via Royal Mail and was in perfect condition with all items intact. On to the book of the month... OMG!! I'm so excited that A Thousand Perfect Notes by C.G. Drews is this months featured book! I have seen this book quite literally all over social media and I'm so excited to dig in! The book is an exclusive paperback with red sprayed edges (photo at the end). It's glossy and stunning and oh, so pretty! 😍😍😍 It comes with a signed bookplate, bookmark and a super-sweet note from the author. For those of you who don't know, C.G. Drews also goes by the handle @paperfury and she's been running an incredible Instagram account for a really long time. Her letter also doubles as a really handy guide to making the most of your #bookstagram channel! Sidenote: She's also a rep for Illumicrate so just head to @paperfury on Instagram for a 10% discount if you choose to sign up - I really wish I'd have used that one myself - doh! As mentioned above, this book box included an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of a novel that hasn't yet been published. The book is Light Years by Kass Morgan - it doesn't release in the UK until October 9th which means we got it a whole 4 months before everyone else!! I haven't heard of this before, and admittedly haven't read The 100 (a bestselling series by the same author) as it doesn't really grab my attention, but this book sounds fab and it has LGBT representation!! YAY!! *Does a happy dance!* 🤗🌈🤗🌈🤗 Now, we move onto the bookish goodies! First up, we have three items inspired/created by the wonderful Alice Oseman! I fell in love with Alice's work when I stumbled across Heartstopper. If you haven't heard of it, Heartstopper is an online LGBT comic series. It's cute, fun and amazing and I urge you to check it out - I don't ever read comics but I love this ongoing series! Alice also recently released her new novel, I Was Born For This, which I desperately need to get my hands on. I love the little pin inspired by the book that has already found it's way onto one of my four tote book bags. (I HAVE AN ADDICTION!!) Alice also created this really cute #prefersfictionalworlds box. It's probably a bit too small to put lunch in, but I'm sure I'll find a use for it. It's currently storing a few of my previous book box items that I'd left lying around with nowhere to keep them safe. Next up were some really gorgeous items. First of all, a Camp Half-Blood Enamel Pin designed by the fabulous Fable and Black - I have a few of her pins and I can honestly say that I've never been disappointed. This gorgeous pin is no different and is already in residence on my enamel pin tote bag. The wonderful Tara Spruit is one of my favourite artists and I love finding her work in various book boxes. These Infernal Devices cards are gorgeous, they look like super fancy tarot cards and whilst I haven't yet read the series, I can appreciate how stunning these cards are! 😱😍 HOLY S*** YOU GUYS! This box just took it to a whole new level! BLACK PANTHER BOOK SLEEVE!!!! 🤯🤯🤯 Do I even need to say anymore? This exclusive sleeve designed by Risa Rodil is incredible and I freaking LOVE that it features Okoye, Nakia and Shuri in all their badass glory! Alongside the sleeve is an exclusive set of Elemental Page Markers created by Another Studio! The markers are simply gorgeous, each one representing one of the four elements and inspired by The Last Airbender. Last, but certainly not least, there are a few bookish extras from Grey Sister, A Reaper at the Gates, From Twinkle with Love and How Do You Like Me Now? Overall, this box was most definitely worth the wait! I loved the double books (twice the reading fun!), especially the sprayed page design on the main book and the LGBT rep in the other. The book sleeve is without a doubt my favourite item in this box but I also love everything else in equal measure. I cannot wait for August's instalment! Let me know what you think in the comments! Comments are closed.
|
Never miss a post!
About Kay (She/Her)
Book addict, film mad, music lover, business owner, writer and mum (not necessarily in that order), living in the UK. About Sophie (She/Her)
Sophie loves books (obviously). She has a passion for photography and spotting wildlife, and is interested in anything made with passion and creativity. THIS BLOG IS SPOILER FREE!
Rating system: 5 Stars - AMAZING!! 4.5 Stars - Almost perfect! 4 Stars - I really loved it 3.5 Stars - I liked it alot 3 Stars - I liked it (I don't typically review books that I rate below 3 stars)
Archives
March 2023
Categories
All
Recently Read:
#Bookstagram:Upcoming Blog Tours:
|