Day: June 19, 2017

Owlcrate ‘Unboxing’

Yesterday I did a live ‘unboxing’ of an Owlcrate box over on the Bookies Facebook page.  Owlcrate is a monthly YA book subscription service.  Their website is HERE. They also offer an Owlcrate Jr. box which is also a monthly subscription service for kids ages 8-12. For the purposes of this post I will just be discussing Owlcrate.

There are three ways you can subscribe to Owlcrate:
Monthly at $29.99 a month
3 months at a time $86.98
6 months at a time $167.94

Shipping costs:
US $6.99
Canada $10.59
International $19.99

There was a special discount code for this particular box which was ALIVE15  and I was able to save 15% off my box which made the total $32.49.

The theme for June’s box was Make it out Alive! As this was my first ‘unboxing’, so I didn’t know exactly what to expect. Owl Crate had sneak peaks on their site, so I knew a little going in on what was in the box.

When the box arrived in the mail, I was surprised at its size.  I don’t know if the box is always this large, but it barely fit in my mailbox!  We measured the box and it was 11x7x5. My little hands had a hard time holding it.

If you would like to watch, here is a link to the video from my live unboxing:

https://www.facebook.com/Bookiesfan/videos/1580040855341747/


First in the box was a card with the theme and “spoiler warning”. It tells you what everything is and where it came from as they are Owlcrate exclusives.

Next was my bath bomb which came from Fizzy Fairy Apothecary. I knew about this ahead of time and was looking forward to it as it was mentioned on Owlcrate’s Facebook page.  It was Divergent themed and inside is a charm telling you what faction you are. Needless to say I just had to go ahead and take a bath, plus I have never used a bath bomb before and did not know what to expect.

It fizzed and turned my bath water green.  I enjoyed my bath and found out my faction:

Erudite: The Intelligent

There was also a nice double sided bookmark from A Court of Thorns and Roses series, which I have not read.  The bookmark was designed by Hey Atlas Creative. There was also a small pin. There wasn’t anything about it on the card, so I can’t really say anything about it other than it went with the whole theme of the box.  There was a big magnet that I really liked and it is already on the refrigerator.  It was inspired by An Ember in the Ashes, another book I have not read.  It was created by Little Inklings Design.

There was also a totally awesome sleeping mask that came from Archie McPhee. I LOVE it! I haven’t replaced my old one that broke, so this was a nice surprise to get.  Apparently my husband will be sleeping with a zombie in the very near future….  LOL

There was also a patch that is from The Giver (which is yet another novel I have never read) which came from Laserbrain Patch Co.

Now it’s time to talk about the books!

This month there are two books in the Owlcrate box.  The first one is New World Rising by Jennifer Wilson which is part of a series. The publisher is Oftomes Publishing.  The cover and the book description intrigue me, so I am looking forward to reading this one at some point!

Since witnessing her parents’ murders at the age of eleven, Phoenix’s only purpose in life has been to uphold her mother’s dying words- to be strong and survive. But surviving outside of The Walls- outside of The Sanctuary- is more like a drawn-out death sentence. A cruel and ruthless city, Tartarus is run by the Tribes whose motto is simple, “Join or die.”

Refusing to join and determined to live, Phoenix fights to survive in this savage world. But who can she trust, when no one can be trusted? Not even herself.

Here is the main event! 

The Sandcastle Empire by Kayla Olson
Published June 6, 2017

The theme was centered around this book  and the cover is an exclusive Owlcrate cover.  It also came with a letter from the author, a signed book plate, and a sticker sheet:

When all hope is gone, how do you survive?

Before the war, Eden’s life was easy—air conditioning, ice cream, long days at the beach. Then the revolution happened, and everything changed.

Now a powerful group called the Wolfpack controls the earth and its resources. Eden has lost everything to them. They killed her family and her friends, destroyed her home, and imprisoned her. But Eden refuses to die by their hands. She knows the coordinates to the only neutral ground left in the world, a place called Sanctuary Island, and she is desperate to escape to its shores.

Eden finally reaches the island and meets others resistant to the Wolves—but the solace is short-lived when one of Eden’s new friends goes missing. Braving the jungle in search of their lost ally, they quickly discover Sanctuary is filled with lethal traps and an enemy they never expected.

This island might be deadlier than the world Eden left behind, but surviving it is the only thing that stands between her and freedom.


Here is my whole box of goodies:

I really enjoyed my first unboxing experience and sharing that with the followers of the Bookies Facebook page and I plan to do more.  I liked how everything was green and stayed to the theme.  It seems that you definitely get your money’s worth, especially with two books in this box.  Opening the box is really an experience. I can see why people keep getting boxes every month; It’s like Christmas, you don’t know what you are going to get and it happens year round!  I just know I personally would not be able to afford a box every month. Anyone want to buy me a subscription????

With this box, I would recommend Owl Crate. 

**UPDATE** 6/28/17

After a few days of using the zombie face mask it snapped and was broken. I was disappointed as I did not have it long at all. I contacted Owlcrate about that and within a few days I had a replacement, which I received today.  Thanks for your great customer service Crystal!