Chronicle Book Box: November 2020

My Chronicle Book Box is a subscription from the UK, that I fell in love with. I willingly pay for the international shipping, that's my level of love. The "extra" goodies are better quality (and less) which I appreciate. I don't need any more junk.

​I also like that most of the books included are British or European focused. As I'm across the pond, I don't always have access to them (or get the media, so I might miss the roll out). 

This is a seasonal box, with three books (sometimes signed). it's a mix of hardcover and paperback. 

The options are mystery or science fiction/fantasy. I think. I get the mystery box so I don't always pay attention to the other box.

They also have an online shop, so if you miss a book in another box, it's available (sometimes) for purchase. 

There are always letters from the authors (or author Q&As), plus a letter from Louise, who is the CEO of the box. 

They've changed things up a bit, one of the books comes in this cloth bag. It's a bit small for groceries, but I've used it for gifts with success. The other books are wrapped in paper and ribbon. The ribbon/string I save for my friend's cat. Who goes crazy for ribbons and strings. So four times a year he gets British string. He's never thankful. 

The two non-book items were right up my alley. One was a bath fizzer, that was shaped like a rainbow and cloud. The second was lip balm. 

The bath fizzer has been used. It did quite well and lasted for a time. I put it with a blue bath bomb so I can't tell you if it did any major changes to the water. Fizzers are different than bath bombs, so I wasn't expecting anything like that (no bath art). The box included a card that explained what the fizzer was made of and how it wouldn't stain your tub (it didn't). 

The lip balm was a struggle for me. Well, just photographing it. It didn't matter the angle, the light, the lack of light, the height...it wasn't great. I'm sorry about that. Anyways, It was titled "Detective's Kiss" and the flavor is 'toffee apple.' I have it in my bathroom and I've just started using it. I like the flavor, it's sweet and light. It is in a tub, so I tend to use a mini-spatula in order to get it out so I'm not contaminating it. Although, it's just me using it so it probably doesn't matter too much. I have a lot of mini ice cream spatulas, so I might as well use them. I mean, I reuse them -they're washable!- it's just that I have a collection of them. 

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The Books

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As you can see, the first book is in blue paper. The letter from Louise talks about each book using these descriptors so you know what she's talking about without having to tear open each packaging. We received a letter from the author (with a photo heading). This book was signed by the author, which is always lovely to have. 

So this is actually the third novel in the series featuring DI Helen Birch but it seems like I'll be able to just start with the third and see how I like it. The book's setting is Edinburgh, Scotland. I'm already a fan. I love Scotland and I adore Scottish settings. 

The book has a glossy cover jacket, but the shiny spot on the right is covering up the fact that Claire Askew is the Writer in Residence at the University of Edinburgh. 

I do really like yellow for my books. It seems to be quite trendy right now but it's so lovely. Plus it's very striking against the black. 

It won the "Bloody Scotland Debut of the Year", which is a great name for an award. Good job there. 

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The book in the green paper is from David Mark. I've actually read this one, but I'll try not to spoil anything. It was different than most books I've read recently. 

We received a letter from the author and this book was signed as well. Absolutely wonderful. 

This book is set in England, near the border of Scotland. I'm not as familiar with England...I mean, yes, I lived in the UK for years but I mostly stayed in Scotland. Not important for this book obviously. It features two women and switches between current day and moments in the past. I felt it did start slow but picked up steam as the mystery built and unraveled. ​

Richard and Judy are kinda the UK's Kelly Ripa and Regis (or whoever, it's Ryan Seacrest now but I don't know if he has time to read. That man is everywhere). They have a morning show. 

The Gold Dagger is good though. 

The third book came into the blue bag. It was a hardback from Nicci French. I've heard of French but I've never read any of her stuff. We received a sticker with signatures. I don't love these as much because I'm not great at putting them in the book so they'll be straight. A personal failing. 

Nicci French is actually two authors together. I didn't know that until I read the materials included. It's Nicci Gerard and Sean French. They sent a "facts" sheet which was nice. It was all new to me so I enjoyed it. 

The book is set in England. It follows a woman accused of murder as she tries to prove she didn't do it. This sounds much more suspenseful than I'd normally pick up but I've been reading against my normal genres so I'll be glad to pick this up. ​

Overall, a great box! I know I've only read one book, so it seems that it would be unfair to judge but I'm quite excited about the other two. Although I'm not sure where they are in my TBR pile. It's grown somehow. I'm going to really read the rest of the day. I've got to stay awake as long as possible (without having a migraine). 

The Chronicle Book Box page outlining what was in the box is here. It also has links to the Sci-fi/Fantasy box and other boxes. While I do the quarterly, they do have a monthly box as well. 

I couldn't find a quarterly unboxing, but I did find a monthly one so I'll put that up. Plus, I just love his accent so...