What’s better than one Fairyloot exclusive book? Why, two, of course! I was so happy to learn that the Fairyloot YA book box of April contained an additional paperback!

About Fairyloot

Fairyloot is one of the best known UK book boxes that ship internationally. They offer two types of subscription plans: Young Adult (book box with goodies or book-only) and Adult (book-only). In most cases, their featured books are fantasy books. Next to their monthly subscription, they also have special edition boxes and exclusive editions.

The teaser

This is the info we received upfront:

• Featured book:
  • inspired by Yoruba-Nigerian mythology
  • Content warnings: inspired by the real-life horrors endured by child soldiers.
• Paperback: Romeo & Juliet retelling

The goodies

The first item I discovered was one that Fairyloot mentioned they had never included in a box before. It was a canvas basket inspired by The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue (my review) and designed by @Blanca.Design. While definitely pretty, I did not see any use case for this, so I was happy that I could sell it quickly.

Next, I found a tray inspired by The Night Circus, designed by @stellabookishart. Once again, pretty, but not really useful.

The box also contained a fandom neutral item, namely a string of heart-shaped fairy lights. Now, that’s something I like. There’s nothing that creates an atmosphere quite like fairy lights, wouldn’t you agree?

I also found another enamel pin, this one inspired by Strange the Dreamer and designed by @jezhawk. I’m really not into them and seeing that book boxes include them all the time, I would be drowning in them by now if I would be keeping them all. Luckily, pins sell relatively well.

My favourite item was – as always – the set of tarot cards. This particular set features Chang’e and Liwei from Daughter of the Moon Goddess as The High Priestess and The Emperor. They were illustrated as usual by @arz28.

The books

The featured book of the month is Blood Scion by Deborah Falaye. It is inspired by Yoruba-Nigerian mythology and tells the cruel tale of a young girl forced to become a soldier. While this is a theme that definitely piqued my interest, I did not finish the book. The first sentence might have very well been the strongest opening sentence I’ve encountered in a while, but I could not get into the story. To be fair, I think that’s largely due to two things: 1) the main character is 15, making her almost unrelatable to this 31-year-old; 2) the story is told in the 1st person present tense, which I really don’t like. I do think the story has a lot of potential, though. So if you are the intended audience and you’ve checked the trigger warnings, this might just be the book for you. The Fairyloot edition has an exclusive cover, sprayed edges, artwork on the reverse of the dust jacket (by @igions), art wrapped around the hardcover, custom endpaper, and it’s signed by the author. The box also included an author letter.

The secondary book is An Arrow to the Moon by Emily X.R. Pan. This is a contemporary Romeo & Juliet retelling infused with Chinese Mythology. I’m sorry to say I didn’t quite like this novel either. If I’m honest, I’ve seldom encountered a Romeo & Juliet retelling that I did like though. It’s just not my story, I’m afraid. That was not why I didn’t finish this book though. I struggle with poetic language and this book has an overdose of it, which becomes clear from the very start. The Fairyloot edition has an exclusive cover, sprayed edges and digital signature.

Interested in more unboxings? My unboxing of the Fairyloot Adult April 2022 can be found here!