Fairyloot Adult #30: August 2024
The August Adult Fairyloot got delivered at the end of August, so what I said earlier for the July Illumicrate is apparently not entirely true. If I look at the delivery dates of this year alone, most of my monthly boxes get delivered in their actual month. Surprisingly enough, often even on the very last day of the month, but still their own month.
The theme for August was Villains Assemble with a book perfect for fans of spy-masters and villains.
This book was Long Live Evil by Sarah Reese Brennan.
When her whole life collapsed, Rae still had books. Dying, she seizes a second chance at living: a magical bargain that lets her enter the world of her favourite fantasy series.
She wakes in a castle on the edge of a hellish chasm, in a kingdom on the brink of war. Home to dangerous monsters, scheming courtiers and her favourite fictional character: the Once and Forever Emperor. He’s impossibly alluring, as only fiction can be. And in this fantasy world, she discovers she’s not the heroine, but the villainess in the Emperor’s tale.
So be it. The wicked are better dressed, with better one-liners, even if they’re doomed to bad ends. She assembles the wildly disparate villains of the story under her evil leadership, plotting to change their fate. But as the body count rises and the Emperor’s fury increases, it seems Rae and her allies may not survive to see the final page.
This adult epic fantasy debut from Sarah Rees Brennan puts the reader in the villain’s shoes, for an adventure that is both ‘brilliant’ (Holly Black) and ‘supremely satisfying’ (Leigh Bardugo). Expect a rogue’s gallery of villains including an axe wielding maid, a shining knight with dark moods, a homicidal bodyguard, and a playboy spymaster with a golden heart and a filthy reputation.
That magical contract is one that many book lovers would undoubtedly want to make. The entire blurb reminds me very much of Regina from Once Upon a Time and that makes me extra curious about the book!
The dust jacket of this Fairyloot edition has the same illustration as the standard edition, but as usual with slightly adjusted colours. Where it is usually Fairyloot that converts everything to purple hues, this time they had to go for a different colour and I have to say that this red vibe radiates much more evil than the original version!
On the reverse dust jacket, Fairyloot treats us to a completely new and unique illustration by @monolimeart that exudes even more cunning and malice (and further strengthens my association with Regina).
The book block has a digital illustration on three sides designed by @blanca.design which I find really beautiful. I love stained glass window designs and this is no different here. Lovely and matches the reverse dust jacket very nicely.
Underneath the dust jacket is a hardcover design that also completely steals my heart. The design clearly drew inspiration from old fairy tale books and I think it is a complete success! The design of the gold foil is by @bluelyboo and is executed on a linen-feeling red cover. Gorgeous!
Then the endpapers also come with two unique illustrations, probably of the main characters from the book, which only increases the intrigue to the story. The illustrator is @monolimeart, who also illustrated the new cover, which makes it a nice homogeneous whole.
This book also comes with bonus content and a bound-in letter from the author with a digital signature.
What a gorgeous Fairyloot edition! I often think that I am getting a bit dulled by all the beautiful publications that I have seen over the years, but Fairyloot can still impress me! This of course makes it difficult to say no to all those subscription services, lol.
And yes, I am also very curious about the content of this book. Sounds intriguing!
Cheers,
Charlotte
