OwlCrate Unboxing May 2018: FIGHT LIKE A GIRL

A few months back, I decided I wanted to try out a book box. I was a bit skeptical, both because their contents are a little unpredictable (what if you hate the book? what if there’s a lot of merch for a series you haven’t read or don’t like? what if I just don’t like the kind of things included?) and because they’re a bit on the pricey side. Still, I decided I’d give it a go and signed up for a 3-month OwlCrate subscription. I was super excited when my first box came a couple weeks ago. Here’s what was in it and what I thought of it all!

OwlCrate May 2018: FIGHT LIKE A GIRL

Alright, so here is my overall shot of everything that was included in this box! I absolutely loved it all!

Let’s kick this off with the bigger stuff. Here’s what was included:

• Wall Hanging with a quote from Sarah J. Maas’s A Court of Wings and Ruin designed by Evie Bookish
  • I love this. I think it’s really neat because it’s a hanging poster, and while ACOTAR isn’t my favorite series ever, I do like it a lot. It has a ton of amazing little quotes that I have everywhere, and this is one I often forget about! I already have it up in room over my shelves.
• Double-sided bookmark featuring quotes from Renee Ahdieh’s The Wrath and the Dawn and Flame in the Mist designed by Indigo Eleven
  • I’ll be honest and say I’m not much of a bookmark person, especially tassel ones like this one (they just get in the way, okay?). Still, I think these are some awesome quotes and it’s a gorgeous bookmark, and I know I’m going to use it a lot for bookstagram photos.
•  Print of Inej Ghafa from Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows with art by Mélanie Bourgeois
  • MY DARLING INEJ. This is probably my favorite rendering of Inej. I mean, she just looks like the badass she is. I’ve seen other work by Mélanie, and I absolutely adore her character designs. Again, I’m not 100% I know what to do with prints, but for now I’m just enjoying staring at it and appreciating the beauty of it.

Now for the smaller stuff, which were my favorites:

• Exclusive enamel pin from Out of Print inspired by the one and only Hermione Granger from JK Rowling’s Harry Potter
  • I am in love with this. I am trying to start a collection of enamel pins (I just bought a jean jacket and that is where I am planning on putting all of them and am super excited), and this has one of my all-time favorite bookish quotes. And it’s so gosh darn cute, just look at it.
• Exclusive bath bomb inspired by Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi from Whipped Up Wonderful
  • I also don’t take a lot of baths and so don’t really use bath bombs by default. HOWEVER, I used this the day the box came (I was in the right mood for it), and it was an amazing experience. It smelled like cherries, and I felt like I was bathing in the blood of my enemies, so 10/10.

**No books were harmed in the making of this photo**

• Another enamel pin(!!) inspired by Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young
  • So I have yet to read Sky in the Deep, but I kept seeing this quote pop up and I think it’s epic. I obviously don’t understand what role it has in the story, but I am always down for a reminder to breathe fire.
• OwlCrate pin referencing the book in the box
  • I think this is really cool because it’s such a subtle reference to the book. Vikings are always awesome, so there’s really nothing not to love here.

And finally, the books! This was a super cool box because there were 2 (count ’em, TWO) books in this box instead of just one! Here’s what they were:

• Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young (with an exclusive OwlCrate cover)
  • When I saw the hint with the summary for the book, I had a feeling it was going to be this one. I was really hyped for it, because I knew I was going to get this book regardless. I’m really excited to read it! I am a little miffed about the “exclusive” cover, though. It’s barely different from the regular one, and while it’s kind of interesting that it’s so subtle, I think it’s a little half-assed? I could barely tell the difference and had to look at the booklet to see what they changed. Like if you’re going to do an exclusive cover, I would expect you to go all-in and really noticeably switch it up.

    

    Comparison included in the booklet for reference.

• Catching Stars by Cayla Keenan (another exclusive edition!)
  • I had not heard of this one, but it seems really cool! Obviously, it has some kickass female characters since it was included in the Fight Like a Girl box. I love the cover, because I can 100% see that girl being Inej, and you know you have my attention if something reminds me of Six of Crows. This is another kind of odd subtle change in cover. Looking at the one on Goodreads, all the gold in this is green in the normal edition. I actually like this more; it seems to fit the overall color scheme better (purple+gold rather than purple+green), but I’m still confused as to why it’s such a small change.

All in all, I loved this box! I’m super happy with everything that was in it. It was my first book box, and although I’m not entirely sold on the whole thing in general, I did think it was a lot of fun to get a bunch of bookish bits and bobs (that alliteration was really satisfying, sorry). I have two more OwlCrates coming, but I’ve skipped the June box because it’s contemporary-themed. While I trust the people at OwlCrate to curate an awesome box and pick a great book, I am SUPER picky about the contemporary I read and didn’t want to risk not liking the book or the stuff in it. So, I’ll be back in July and August with unboxings before my subscription ends! I probably won’t renew because it’s expensive and don’t want to be receiving stuff at school that will just add clutter. Still, I’m pumped for the next ones I’ll get!

Do you get book boxes? Which ones? Or do you absolutely hate the idea of them?

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