Oh boy it’s already June! My job has been so busy lately that I haven’t had a chance to sit back and review something for quite a while now. In fact, the last review I did was for the May FairyLoot box! I’m currently on a two week break from work and spending my time catching up on sleep and visiting my grandparents in the north of the state. Unfortunately I don’t have my usual equipment/backgrounds but I’ve managed to make do with my grandparent’s blooming garden providing a nice green backdrop. That being said, some of my photos might be a bit all over the place brightness wise but that’s what you get when the sun is your lighting for a photo shoot!
Let’s dive into this month’s FairyLoot offering!
The theme for June is Broody Banter and this month’s box promises a delightful collection inspired by Young Adult’s most sassy and snarky series.
And our first item is one I unfortunately left home but fortunately already took some snaps of! Inspired by a quote from Ronan of Maggie Stiefvater’s The Raven Cycle. The iron patch has what is presumably the Raven Boy’s school crest, Chainsaw the raven and a delightful quote from everyone’s favorite Dream Thief:
I’m being perfectly F*cking civil (sic)
Indeed. As cute as this is I don’t think I’ll be putting it on my everyday denim jacket. My workplace is willing to overlook the occasional fun enamel pin on it, but I think that might be a bit much! Thankfully I have a bunch of patches put aside and an old torn jacket that could use some love…
Oh this is gorgeous! Alongside our regular Fairyloot bookmark, this box has what they call a “Woodmark”- a wooden bookmark. It smells amazing and is printed with thorns, roses which is very approprpoate considering the book it is inspired by! A romantic quote from Elise Kova’s Fire Falling is included:
He tasted of sweet liquor, every dark delicious dream she’d ever had.
The Air Awakens series is a really great one. I only managed the first two (three?) books a year back but I highly recommend them, for the romance (and covers!) alone.
And now for possibly the my favorite item I’ve ever received in a subscription box:
Drumroll Please…
It’s a false book (!!) to keep goodies inside (!!) filled with the best snarky quotes from your favourite series as well as Shadow Hunters and Throne of Glass. While it would be more conspicuous than anything on my shelf, I’ve always loved the aesthetic of these secret bookish hiding places and this one is so beautiful.
Up next we have some of the more useful items in the box. I’ve said before that I tend to prefer the things I’ll use again and again over the ‘pretty’ items, mostly because I’m busy and space poor for display. In this box we have two great summer items – a Strawberry and Kiwi iced tea mix inspired by Lira from the Of Poseidon series and a pair of thin sport socks with a quote from the Lux series. Which I had never heard of before opening them up. The socks are cute and have a quote from the book, along with some kitty cat imagery.
Simmer down, Kitten.
As I mentioned, these are great summery items but not so appropriate for-still-in-the-throws-of-winter Melbourne, where I live. I understand that the UK is going through a heatwave, which will probably mean the boxes in my summer will probably have lovely wintry items that will make me sweat. I guess we’ll see!
Continuing with the YA Lit inspired tarot cards we have Albus Dumbledore and Fawkes as The Magician and Draco Malfoy as Death. I’m not a great believer in tarot but I can appreciate the work that has gone into this series because the art has been consistently amazing.
Fancy paperclips! We have two from the-series-of-which-we-do-not-speak (Shadow Hunters, Throne of Glass), one cute purple one reading Mad but Fab and Jacks from the Caval series. Or at least someone who likes apples. It’s a shame I really don’t like the series two of them are from. They’re really well made and the art style is really cute. I’ll be re-housing two of them but the other two will get some use.
And some art! One is an adorable comic of everyone’s favorite broody Firebender, Prince Zuko, another depicts characters from this month’s FairyLoot read (see below!!) and the third has this month’s theme cover. Cute!
I love the Fairyloot enamel pins I’ve received so far and this Witchlands pin is no exception. I’ve had the first book in the series sitting on my shelf for months now so I may have to pick it up… The pin reads:
Sometimes justice was all about the small victories
In an early 2019 box, I received a Dragon themed book journal that I cooed over and then promptly lost track of. It’s a great idea and journaling is something I’d really like to get in to. This box included the journal for the second half of the year, complete with fun quotes and stunning artwork.
And finally the main attraction! The hardcover in this month’s box is the beautiful Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson! Rogerson’s books always have the most stunning covers and this copy is particularly beautiful with its sprayed sparkle edges. I love it!
I wasn’t such a fan of An Enchantment of Ravens, but that was more of an issue with me rather than the book. I’d just read it after finishing The Cruel Prince and didn’t give it a fair chance. I’m sure I’ll enjoy a kickass fantasy librarian though!!
So that is this month’s box! Lots of useful items, but not a box I liked as much as some of the previous ones. I can’t place why. Still, I’ll make use of what I can and re-gift what I can’t.
I’ve been quite busy lately, and as a conciquence I wasn’t able to get this posted quite as soon as I would have liked. So what’s next for FairyLoot and my unboxings? Because I missed the opportunity to cancel my subscription 18 minutes after it renewed, I guess I have three more boxes coming! Yay? I absolutely love receiving these boxes and all the goodies they contain but it is starting to cost me quite the pretty penny. If an antipodean equivalent were to spring up I’d certainly take it up!
I think the next box I will be receiving will be the July box, but I’m not really sure based on the renewal dates. Guess I’ll find out in a few weeks! The July theme will be…
Magic in the City
Oh dear. I feel the Shadowhunters are upon us again.
Otherwise I’ll be looking at the August box:
Things are not what they seem
How wonderful and mysterious.
Happy reading!
Nocturne Books 