Unboxing and Review: Fresh Fiction Box (June 2020)
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This is month five of my six month experiment for the Fresh Fiction Box Not to Miss book subscription service. If you are interested in what I’ve thought of my previous boxes, you can check those reviews out here.
No matter what I’ve thought of the contents, I can’t deny the excitement I feel at receiving my surprise book mail.
What did I get in my box this month? I am going to share the contents with you here. My review is not for the books I received because I haven’t read them yet, but instead will be for the content and subscription experience.
Unboxing
The first book in the box was the eBook, Bachelor Beast by Grace Goodwin (Science Fiction Romance). Here is the back cover blurb:
“Warlord Wulf thought nothing could be worse than being tortured and contaminated by the Hive. That was before he’s ordered to transport to Earth and represent The Colony in an unfamiliar horror… a human reality show. The Bachelor Beast is the hottest new program on Earth, but being set up with two dozen clingy females is not his idea of a good time. When his Beast refuses to show the slightest interest in any of the show’s potential mates, he knows he must choose one or die due to his raging mating fever.
His Beast prefers execution to claiming anyone but his true mate. Wulf is resigned to his fate, a one-way trip to Atlan, a prison cell and execution. It is the only honorable thing left to do.
Until one glance, one sweet, feminine scent lingering in the air and his beast rages for a female who is not supposed to be his.
But try telling that to his Beast when his entire body transforms on live television and one simple word thunders from his lips…MINE.”
The second book in the box was Hostile Intent by Juno Rushdan (Romantic Thriller, Harlequin Intrigue). Here is the back cover blurb:
“Only twenty-four hours remain until Marshal Nick McKenna’s informant, Lori Carpenter, will testify against a powerful drug cartel. Nick has kept her safe for an entire year, but now all hell is breaking loose. With a team of cold-blooded assassins closing in, the by-the-book lawman decides to go rogue. He’ll risk his life for duty…and put it all on the line for his irresistible witness.”
The third book in the box was Cinderella’s Royal Secret by Lynne Graham (Contemporary Romance, Harlequin Presents). Here is the back cover blurb:
“Izzy Campbell has no time for love—she’s too busy cleaning houses to support her family. Accidentally interrupting her most exclusive client, Sheikh Rafiq, coming out of the shower is mortifying…yet their instantaneous attraction leads to the most amazing night of innocent Izzy’s life! But then she takes a pregnancy test…
Crown Prince Rafiq’s world changes the instant Izzy arrives in his desert kingdom and reveals her royal secret. He always thought he could never have children, so he’s determined to make this pregnant Cinderella his queen!”
The fourth book in the box was an ARC of The Wrong Mr. Darcy by Evelyn Lozada with Holly Lorincz (Romantic Comedy, St. Martin’s Griffin). Here is the back cover blurb:
“Hara Isari has big ambitions and they won’t be sidetracked by her mother’s insisting that she settle down soon. She dreams of leaving her small-town newspaper behind, as well as her felon father, and building a career as a sports writer, so when she is chosen to exclusively interview a basketball superstar, she jumps at the chance. It’s time to show the bigwigs what she’s truly made of.
At the same time, she meets a rookie on the rise, Derek Darcy. Darcy is incredibly handsome, obnoxiously proud, and has a major chip on his shoulder. Hara can’t think of a man more arrogant and infuriating. However, fate keeps bringing them together―from locker rooms to elegant parties, to the storm of the century―and what begins as a clash might just be more complicated than Hara anticipated. When she begins to see Darcy in a new light, Hara is not quite sure if she should drop the ball or play the love game.”
The fifth book in the box was an ARC of A Sweet Mess by Jayci Lee (Romantic Comedy, St Martin’s Griffin). Here is the back cover blurb:
“Aubrey Choi has been content running her highly successful bakery Comfort Zone and with its first expansion taking up all of her time, dating has been the least of her priorities. Then a one-night-stand with gorgeous Korean hunk Landon Kim makes her want things she didn’t think she had time for. Too bad it turns out he’s a celebrity food critic whose scathing review of Comfort Zone goes viral and nearly destroys Aubrey’s business—and her fond memory of their night together.
Landon tries to clean up the mess he made by offering Aubrey a spot on the new celebrity cooking show he’s producing. She agrees to use this as a way to save her bakery and her reputation—no thanks to him—but vows to guard her heart. Now Aubrey and Landon find themselves sharing a villa in California wine country, which is a guaranteed recipe for disaster. For the next three weeks, baker and critic will tempt each other as they struggle to resist admitting that they have all the necessary ingredients for love.”
Here is the whole box: two mass market paperback, two ARC paperbacks, one eBook, two packets of tea and a treat.
Check out the unboxing video on YouTube!
Review
What I liked:
- 🙁
What I didn’t like:
- The box was not packed well; the tissue paper was ripped as if it had been opened.
- The cookies were crushed. Not that I buy the box for the cookies, but they should be packaged to handle transport.
- Two ARCs in this box. Again. Those are freebies to me. For some people those might be considered a bonus, but not for me. I only read them for reviewing purposes and that is rare. I wouldn’t buy an ARC copy of any book online or in the store.
- The eBook and Harlequin titles are not clean reads so I won’t be reading them.
Overall Opinion
I am disappointed with this box. One eBook and two mass market Harlequin titles amount to about $15, which made it overpriced this month. I am also getting frustrated by receiving so many ARCs. I’m giving this box subscription service one more month but I have to say that July’s box will have to blow my mind in order for me to keep the subscription.
The cost of this service is $25.95/month including shipping. If you add up the retail prices of the three that I received (not including the ARCs), it is $15.23. Even adding in shipping and tax, I wouldn’t have paid that much if I bought them outright.
One more month to go. I will be donating those books that weren’t for me to my local library.
-Loraine Nunley
Unboxing and review of the @FreshFiction subscription box for June 2020 #FreshFictionbox #SubscriptionBox Share on X
