Some of my favourite BookTube videos to film were my Fairyloot and illumicrate unboxings, and given that I’m on a bit of a roll when it comes to blog writing, I figured why not write out my thoughts! So, here are my thoughts on the Fairyloot August 2022 ‘Tell Me Lies’ box.
Firstly, I’ve been struggling over the past couple of months with both book boxes. I have found the items very hit or miss, and have been debating moving to the book only subscriptions. So writing these posts will partly help me to also remember what is within them and whether I want to continue on the full box or not, because I so often forget what is in them as I sell the unwanted items on my depop which you can check out here: https://www.depop.com/careyberry/
So, when they released the art and description I had absolutely no idea what the book was, it wasn’t one that had been put on my radar which is for sure! So this made me excited as Fairyloot described it as ‘a darkly enchanting fantasy about a morally gray witch, a cursed prince, and a prophecy that ignites their fate-twisted destinies.’ Which sounds perfect to kickstart the autumn months! So I was already excited to see what it was.
One thing I really enjoy sometimes about not knowing or hearing of the books, is that I get to explore books I might not have otherwise picked up and end up adoring. As happened recently with illumicrate’s A River Enchanted, which is one of my favourite reads so far this year! Sometimes it feels like a really good surprise, and more like a present which I adore.
So, opening the box what immediately caught my eye was the jewelry box nestled on the top, a gorgeous black case with gold celestial detailing (designed by @catarinabookdesigns) inspired by the book of the month which I will tell you more about later. I saw it and immediately went “oh wow” because already the box was surpassing my expectations given the past few months. This is a new item to Fairyloot, and I think potentially one of my favourites they have done yet! It has space for rings and earrings inside and is perfect as I’m looking for a place to store my everyday jewelry that isn’t just my windowsill, as I spent a good ten minutes yesterday crawling on the floor trying to find an earring I accidentally swept off the side… So already a perfect item for me! I’m also really hoping this is maybe a hint that they will do some rings soon (eyes emoji).
The next item I pulled out was this beautiful bookshelf tote (designed by @chattynora) which I adore, it gives the perfect autumn vibes because of the tones of the books on the shelf. The books themselves all seem to be special editions that Fairyloot have done themselves which I think is a really nice touch, and while I find that the tote bags in the past I haven’t loved as they’ve been a bit too specific, that this is fandom neutral I love it! I really love some of the books such as Once Upon a Broken Heart too, which makes it more special. I think it’ll be perfect to take out for an autumn book store trip, so I can definitely see myself using it in the near future.
Next, I found the list pad (designed by @Jezhawk) which is inspired by Romeo and Juliet and also features a quote from the play, “these violent delights have violent ends”. Unfortunately, the first two pages of my pad were slightly bent at the corner, but it is still a pretty item! I think it works really well for future book photos because of the whole kind of dark academia vibe to it with the ink splatters and quill so I’m very happy with it! Also useful to have around because you can never have too many list pads…
Continuing the black and gold theme we have the gilded pin (designed by @No0nedesigns) which is a gorgeous small pin of a hand holding a cage. I always love the designs by this artist and this is no exception, although I haven’t read the book I really love the pin!
Next, I found the pretty tarot cards of the month (designed by @arz28), featuring characters from Only a Monster which I loved, usually I sell the tarot cards on but I do love these ones as the art is just stunning! Then I found the beautiful mythology bookmarks of this box - a series which I am loving by the way! These are designed by @Gracezhuart and depict Anansi and Apate, or so the card says… The first one is clear, the beautiful red Goddess is Apate - the Greek deity who personified deceit, which fits in well with the tell me lies theme.
But Anansi… I’m not sure. The depiction which is supposedly of Anansi according to the Fairyloot spoiler card looks more like Anubis. Anubis famously has the figure of a man with the head of a jackal/dog, and is the Egyptian God of the dead, which makes more sense for the foiled hieroglyphs. But Anansi is a West African trickster God that takes the shape of a spider and is the God of the knowledge of stories, a great choice for a bookmark but clearly not the one depicted here. I’m really disappointed that Fairyloot got this wrong as the two Gods are completely different and not easy to mix up given that they originate from completely different parts of Africa and are in no way similar trait/role wise. Although these are mythological figures and people assume that no one believes in them anymore - there are still people out there in the world who do believe in these Gods. So I want to make sure that people know that these figures are not the same. I have also reached out to Fairyloot to let them know of the mistake prior to publishing this post.
Finally, onto the book of the month which is Violet Made of Thorns by Gina Chen. The book is about Violet, a lying prophet that influences the royal court. After the King asks her to falsely prophesy the Prince's love story, Violet awakens a dreaded curse about the Prince's future bride. Her wits may protect her in the cutthroat court, but they can't protect her against fate - nor the doomed attraction growing between her and the prince… This book sounds so good and I am really excited to dive into it!
The Fairyloot edition is just gorgeous as well, a beautiful sunset cover with a matching ombre sprayed edge, but when you take the dust jacket off you get a beautiful artwork of the book’s fantasy city skyline printed directly onto the hardcover, with a very intriguing looking tower. And gorgeous character art awaits you on the endpapers inside, with a bookplate featuring Gina Chen’s signature which I stuck into my copy and a gorgeous map of the city which I assume is also in the standard editions of the book.
Overall, despite the blatant mix-up of two different Gods, I loved this box and it has made me really happy. I think this month the items were definitely worth it, and I will genuinely be keeping everything which is unusual for me, so I’m really happy! My favourite item is definitely the celestial jewelry case, which is just beautiful! I’m looking forward to seeing what they do with the Farewell, my love theme next month which is definitely featuring an anticipated read! And who knows, maybe we will get a bookmark of the real Anansi soon.
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