This unboxing is such a special one! This is the 6th anniversary box of Illumicrate! I have such high hopes for this one! Let’s discover it together.
About Illumicrate
Illumicrate is one of the best known UK book boxes that ship internationally. They offer both a full box and a book-only subscription, and the books they feature are generally YA fantasy, but they also include other genres and adult books. Next to their monthly subscription, they also have special edition boxes and exclusive editions.
The teaser
This is the info we received upfront:
- Young Adult
- Contemporary Fantasy
- First in a series
- Female main character
- Prominent side characters in M/M relationship
“Some monsters can be easy to spot (dragons!) and others less so, hiding behind positions of power.” This month’s theme is dedicated to all the monsters, and to those who defend the world against them.
The goodies
The first item I found was another tea tin. I am starting to get a whole collection of these, so I wasn’t initially very impressed by this item, although I had to immediately admit the design by Shirley Jackson was gorgeous. It was inspired by all the monster families in Only a Monster.
Next, I discovered a totebag inspired by A Deadly Education and designed by Nova. It’s clearly a high quality one and the design is certainly pretty enough, but I am getting so sick of totebags…I’ll be hoping to sell this one.
The box also included a scarf, inspired by The Winternight Trilogy and designed by Janine Lecour. Now THIS is an item I love. Great quality, beautiful, and warm: the holy trinity.
Last but not least, there was another sword replica included in this box. This particular one was inspired by The Priory of the Orange Tree and designed by Stacey McEvoy-Caunt. I’m not sure why people are so crazy about these replica’s and they are difficult to sell too, unfortunately.
All in all, I had expected better items for the anniversary box, although I have to say they were all very high quality. It comes downs to preference, of course.
The book
The featured book is The Luminaries by Susan Dennard . This is the story of the luminaries, a secret society dedicated to protecting the world from the nightmares that spawn at certain points across the globe.
The Illumicrate edition has a redesigned cover, foil embossing on the hardback, digitally printed edges, and artwork on the endpapers. All UK editions feature interior illustrations and the Illumicrate edition has exclusive bonus material! This book is also the first acquisition of Daphne Press.
I absolutely love everything about this book: the foil on the dust cover, the illustrated endpapers, the amazing naked cover…Definitely a great choice!
Update: Even better, I’ve read it and it was a-ma-zing! My review can be found here.