OwlCrate YA Book Subscription Box Review – January 2016

ByLiz CadmanJan 20, 2016 | 14 comments

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OwlCrate is a YA book subscription box. Each month they send you a newly released YA book with some bookish goodies.

My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).

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The Subscription Box: OwlCrate

The Cost: $29.99 plus shipping ($6.99 to US, $10.59 to Canada, $19.99 Worldwide)

The Products: A new YA book and 3-5 book-related goodies.

Ships to: Worldwide!

Check out all of my OwlCrate reviews!

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Each box comes with a card detailing the items included. This month’s theme is Magic!

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Worlds of Ink and Shadow by Lena Coakley - Retail Value $17.95 (On Amazon for $12.04)

Book Summary from Amazon:

Charlotte, Branwell, Emily, and Anne. The Brontë siblings find escape from their constrained lives via their rich imaginations. The glittering world of Verdopolis and the romantic and melancholy world of Gondal literally come to life under their pens, offering the sort of romance and intrigue missing from their isolated parsonage home. But at what price? As Branwell begins to slip into madness and the sisters feel their real lives slipping away, they must weigh the cost of their powerful imaginations, even as the characters they have created—the brooding Rogue and dashing Duke of Zamorna—refuse to let them go.

This is an interesting premise! It gets mixed reviews on Amazon and GoodReads, so I'm not sure if it will be for me, but I'll give it a try!

This set also came with a paper doll kit:

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And an exclusive letter for Owl Crate subscribers from Lena:

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Ron Weasley Funko POP Vinyl Figure - Value $9.50

This is the first box from Owl Crate that included a POP! Subscribers will get one of five Harry Potter characters! I was secretly hoping for Snape, but we will be buying the whole collection anyway now that we have one so that's OK! Here is a closer look at Ron:

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This box also include a coupon to get the eBook of A Knot in the Grain for $3.99. (It's also free for Kindle Unlimited subscribers).

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Evie Bookish Print Inspired by Throne of Glass - Value $8?

This measures 5.5 X 8.5 inches, and is from one of my favorite YA books of all time! I highly recommend the Throne of Glass series if you haven't read it yet1

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Evie Bookish The Trees Speak Latin Bookmark - Value $2?

An item from another YA series I enjoyed! Did the Raven King book release date get pushed back? I feel like I preordered it so long ago...

Geek Fire Labs Patronus Lip Balm - Value $4

A Harry Potter inspired lip balm that tastes like mint and white chocolate!? Love it!

Verdict: This box has a value of about $35.50 (using the Amazon sale prices). I think that's a good value for a book box, especially with the curation and bonus book extras that OwlCrate includes each month. Every OwlCrate box feels so special - you can really tell that a lot of thought goes into the box each month! (And of course, I love the Harry Potter items this month!)

What do you think of the January OwlCrate box?

Starting at $32.99

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OwlCrate

4.5 overall rating

35 Ratings | 6 Reviews

OwlCrate is a monthly subscription box for people who love Young Adult literature. Every month they send you a highly anticipated new YA release, as well as 3-5 bookish items (such as fandom jewelry, collectible toys, bookmarks, and more!). Each box will also include exclusive content from authors a... read more.

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Posted in Book Subscription Boxes, Subscription Box Reviews, UK Subscription Box Reviews

Liz Cadman

Liz is the founder of My Subscription Addiction. She's been hooked on subscription boxes since 2011 thanks to Birchbox, and she now subscribes to over 100 boxes. Her favorites include POPSUGAR Must Have, FabFitFun, and any box that features natural beauty products!

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14 comments

Jolie D.

I love, love, love that print if anyone wants to sell it please email me teamdill at me.com <3

Alex

I got Harry who I already had but I thought the box was amazingly put together. This is one of my fav curators and I love the majority of the items I get every month – as per the review, you can really appreciate the love and care that is put into the box. If anyone wants to trade me for a Ron, please let me know!!

Brenna

Granted, I have only received 2 OwlCrates (“Myths & Legends” and this month’s “Magic”) but I’ve just been disappointed with the curation so far. Neither book in the boxes I received seemed to fit the theme at all. They were both historical fiction. Especially since the leaked item was an HP item, I assumed it would be more “fantastical” magic, not “magical imagination.” I don’t know… I recently canceled my subscription and just decided to buy one-off boxes where the themes sounded interesting, but I’m not sure I’ll even do that if the curation isn’t in line with the theme. I feel bad because they’re clearly a great company run by passionate people and every interaction I’ve had with customer service has been stellar. Just think they need to work on the curation and balance of the boxes (a paper bookmark, for example, should not be a featured item, in my opinion). This month the value was actually UNDER what I paid with shipping, and that’s just not the kind of value you expect from a box.

Kimberly

You took the words straight from my mouth! I bought the same exact two boxes as you and felt the same. Soundless was an okay read, I think it must have gone with either Chinese myths or it meant that the plot had myths of that world becoming real. I was really disappointed with the January box, and I was so excited for it too! I did enjoy getting my Ron Pop!, but the other items were all meh. I’m not one for word art so I didn’t really enjoy the two designs by Evie Bookish. Customer service was great for me too as I forgot to cancel while I was on vacation and was billed for February, but Karina was amazing enough to refund me my money. I will only be buying again if the theme and sneak peek thrill me.

Lindsay

I really really agree, re: the book choice and theme. There are so many other themes that would’ve fit better with this book, and there are so many magical fantasy YA books out there that would’ve been stellar and in theme. Especially with the Harry Potter items. Other months have been so much better so I will give it more time before I decide to switch to something else.

Shaunte

I couldn’t agree with you more. I feel very let down by the book and curation this month. Magic is an incredible theme but they could have done so much more with it. For me the Pop was the best item and I got Hermione. I was really hoping for Snape though.

Debbie Luciew

I love, love, love Owl Crate and I am 52! I love this subscription.

Liz Cadman

Yay!! 🙂

Sennym925

I got Harry Potter….but I’m a huge harry potter nerd and already have the whole set…like I pre-ordered them! I originally thought to swap but I think I may keep it and give it to my nephew for his bday since its Harry. Even with the duplicate Pop I thought this was a really great box!

Rachel

When I saw your Pop!, I couldn’t help it, my mind blurted out “Ron, Ron, Ron WEAS-ley” from Potter Puppet Pals. Then I remembered the start of the song and got sad again. Sigh.

Rachel

Me too! Must be a Rachel thing… 🙂

Donna

Is this a crate for teens

Liz Cadman

I like to consider it a box for people in their teenage years and up! 🙂 Basically for anyone who enjoys the YA book category!

Laurie

I got Hermione!! Yay!!

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OwlCrate YA Book Subscription Box Review – January 2016

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