Fairyloot Adult #40: June 2025
At the beginning of May, Fairyloot revealed the theme for their June book, and based solely on the illustration, I could already guess which book it was, because it’s one I was really curious about. I didn’t doubt Fairyloot would be publishing an edition, but I was very happy that it would be included in my subscription and I wouldn’t have to buy it separately. I was definitely going to buy the book, and I was definitely going to look for an alternative edition to the regular one, because I find the standard cover a bit of a 1990s Photoshop mess, lol.
But let me first get back to the theme reveal.
The theme for June was Echoes in the Earth with a book full of vampires, female love and rage.
Behind this theme was the book Bury our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V. E. Schwab.
1532. Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
A young girl grows up wild and wily—her beauty is only outmatched by her dreams of escape. But María knows she can only ever be a prize, or a pawn, in the games played by men. When an alluring stranger offers an alternate path, María makes a desperate choice. She vows to have no regrets.
This is a story about love.
1827. London.
A young woman lives an idyllic but cloistered life on her family’s estate, until a moment of forbidden intimacy sees her shipped off to London. Charlotte’s tender heart and seemingly impossible wishes are swept away by an invitation from a beautiful widow—but the price of freedom is higher than she could have imagined.
This is a story about rage.
2019. Boston.
College was supposed to be her chance to be someone new. That’s why Alice moved halfway across the world, leaving her old life behind. But after an out-of-character one-night stand leaves her questioning her past, her present, and her future, Alice throws herself into the hunt for answers . . . and revenge.
This is a story about life—
how it ends, and how it starts.
V.E. Schwab is an author who always manages to captivate me with her original ideas. Her concepts are invariably creative and compelling, but the execution sometimes feels a bit awkward. For example, I found the ending of the Shades of Magic trilogy disappointing, and Vicious lacked some emotional connection for me. Addie LaRue, on the other hand, I thought was absolutely brilliant. The fact that Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil is also a standalone makes me hope that Schwab will be able to capture that same magic again. So I’m really looking forward to reading this one!
For the Fairyloot edition, they’ve gone all out with a completely redesigned cover and I couldn’t be happier with it. The new illustration is by @teaganwh and the design is by @aeadraws, and I think it’s absolutely gorgeous! The choice of colours and the detail in the flowers are perfection!
I briefly touched on the original cover at the beginning of this post. As usual, Fairyloot also included it on the back of the new cover, but in a unique Fairyloot colour palette. These colours make it look even more like a clumsy Photoshop edit, lol.
Yeah, I’m really not a fan of the regular cover. Based solely on that, this book doesn’t look appealing at all, does it? So I’m absolutely thrilled with my new Fairyloot cover, which, in my opinion, is miles above it!
The hardcover features a full-colour illustration printed on the boards, finished with foil. The colour palette perfectly complements the new cover, and the illustration by @niallcgrant is lovely. It’s elegant, yet gothic, which I think is perfect for a vampire story!
The spray-painted edges complete the look, not with an illustration taken from the cover, but one that flows logically from it. It’s clear that @teaganwh also provided this illustration.
The endpapers feature two exclusive illustrations by @vetyyr, finished with foil. The illustrations have a dreamy quality, thanks to the smoky colour palette. What makes me particularly curious is that the illustration at the front is clearly set in the past, while the one at the back is much more modern, yet the same character is clearly unchanged – apart from the clothing.
My only minor disappointment is that this book isn’t signed. Considering the thousands of copies V.E. Schwab signed for the standard editions, I’d hoped Fairyloot would have gotten a signature as well. But it was only a digital one, at the bottom of the author’s letter. It’s a bit of a shame.
Anyway, that lack of signature doesn’t ruin this edition for me at all. I think it’s another beautiful copy, from the design and illustrations to the overall coherence. A real beauty!
Cheers,
Charlotte
