Once Upon a Book Club is a uniquely engaging book subscription box. Instead of just sending along books and bookish items, this monthly subscription box sends you one book and a series of individually wrapped packages, each with a numbered tag that corresponds to a page in the book. As you read and come across those pages, you’ll open the packages and reveal items that relate to that moment in the story!
Once Upon a Book Club offers a young adult box geared towards readers 13+ and an adult box intended for readers 18+. Both are priced the same and feature newly released books. (According to the site, the books have been released within the last 3 months, unless otherwise noted.)
This is a review of the Adult box for 18+ ($34.99 per month + shipping).
This box was sent to us at no cost to review. (Check out our review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About This Book Box
The Subscription Box: Once Upon a Book Club Adult Box
The Cost: $34.99 a month. There is also a 3-month prepay ($100.99), 6-month prepay ($199.00), and 12-month prepay ($390.00) subscription options.
LIMITED TIME DEAL: Use code MOMSDAY to save 15% off your first box!
ACTIVE DEAL: Save 10% off your first box!
CODE: ADDICTION10
The Products: Women’s fiction with an aspirational bent, plus gifts related to the story.
Ships to: Worldwide
Once Upon a Book Club March 2019 Review
There’s a simple paper booklet inside the box. I like that this subscription hosts book “discussions” and "read-a-longs" on their social media pages! It makes it a lot like an IRL book club. You'll notice, however, that there is no info about the box contents. That would spoil the surprise! This month, I also noticed that I received the box much later than any of the read-along dates. I'm not 100% sure, but I think I received my box much later than regular subscribers. Many times subscription companies send comped box later to reviewers to make sure that regular subscribers all get their boxes without issue. That's completely understandable. But, if you are a regular subscriber and would like to comment on the timeliness of this subscription, please feel free to do so in the comments below.
This little envelope was included with OUABC "Perks" which provide savings on related products and services. I like little extras like this.
This postcard featuring a quote from Marilyn Monroe was also included. Foreshadowing!
The Beautiful Strangers by Camille Di Maio - Retail Value $14.95 (found here for $10.37)
What a neat book! First of all, I was impressed that this was the March book selection as it was only published on March 5th of this year! That's hot off the press. It's the story of a young woman's journey of self-discovery and finding love. The story is interwoven with the same story of a different young woman in the same place decades earlier. The themes are all pretty classic, but the exception is that this book has a heavy dose of glamour thrown in. It's a pretty easy read, but still interesting enough to be a page-turner. That's a winning combination to me!
I am always, always so happy when I receive either a signed book or a signed bookplate like this one. I immediately stuck it to the inside of the book!
Page 72: Pearl Cat Eye Sunglasses - Estimated Value $15?
Look at how cute these sunglasses are! I could not find anything like them for sale online, so the value is just a guess. They are not super high quality, but they definitely have an overstated glamour about them that is in keeping with the storyline at this point in the book!
Page 121: Float Frame and Picture - Estimated Value $30?
I could not find this exact picture frame for sale online either, so this value is an average of the many similar ones I found. I am also not totally sure I assembled it correctly, but it's a really cool frame nonetheless. It is two pieces of thin acrylic held together by gold standoff bolts. It should also be hung by the gold chain, but I could not figure out exactly how. In any case, the gold trim suits the glamour theme for sure. The picture inside is of guests at the Hotel Coronado in 1908. The hotel is the setting of the book. I use a lot of picture frames, and this one is really pretty and different. I am happy to have it!
Page 170: Satin Bathrobe - Retail Value $17.50 (found here for $8.93)
It definitely fits the storyline at this point in the book, but wow! I was surprised to receive such a nice gift! It's a little small for me, but I think it would fit most sizes. It's a relatively inexpensive robe, but it feels luxe and glamorous nonetheless!
Page 285: Letter to Marilyn Monroe from Arthur Freeman
The final gift was this letter, which is totally cryptic unless you have read to this point in the book. It's just a fun little extra, really. You know when you open the box what it is going to be (a letter), so it is just kind of fun and not disappointing.
The Verdict: This was a really fun box from Once Upon a Book Club! The book was a really surprisingly beautiful story and well told, too. The other items really went along well with the parts of the book they correspond to. I really liked the three main gifts this month! The frame is really nice, and while the other items aren't super valuable, they definitely support the ongoing glamourous theme. This is a fun subscription!
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No. Sign up before the 14th of this month to receive the next month’s box!
LIMITED TIME DEAL: Use code MOMSDAY to save 15% off your first box!
Coupon - Use code ADDICTION10 to save 10% off your first box!
Value Breakdown: This box cost me $43.49 after shipping. If I subtract the known retail values of the book and the robe from that amount, I’m left with $15.62. There are really only two items otherwise - the sunglasses and the picture frame, so the average cost for each of those would be $7.81. I feel confident that the value of all the items collectively exceeds that, but I'm not even sure the value measurement is relevant to this subscription box. The value comes from the experience of reading the book and getting related surprises along the way, the experience as a whole. If you would be bothered by a subscription that does not have a big value surplus, then this might not be the right box for you.
Check out all of our Once Upon a Book Club reviews and the best book subscription boxes of 2019!
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What do you think of the items in this Once Upon a Book Club box?
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