K-Squared Book Reviews

Unboxing: Moonlight Crate Crow Club Crate

“The Club of Crows is accepting new members, and if you think you have what it takes – determination to crush your enemies, craving for some coin, love for guns and blades, and live by carpe diem philosophy, then join us!

“And there are also some exciting perks in joining the club as you will receive a mysterious MERCH crate, filled with exclusive items! During signing-up campaign, YOU had a chance to tell us what items you’d like to get in your box, and your top choices made into it, including A BOOKSLEEVE (with a beautiful design featuring a couple of troublemakers), A SHIRT (on fridays we wear black… right?!) and DUST JACKETS (by @niru.sky, of course!)! And that’s not even everything! You will receive 12 items with your crate in total, so there definitely will be something for everyone! We have even 5 different and amazingly talented artists working on prints and designs for this box and we put our biggest efforts to create a box and we can’t wait for you to see it!”

Enamel Pin – designed by Myvalenstyles

Alternate Soc/CK Dust Jackets designed by Nirasky
Coin Prop – Moonlight Crate Exclusive
Kaz/Inej Ceramic Mug – designed by Roosdrawsthings
Jesper/Wylan Booksleeve – designed by Naercissa and Bookchicboutique
Jesper Playing Card – designed by Astrolauu
The Hunter Candle – made by Catcocandles
Crows Club Shirt – designed by Nirasky
Nina/Mattias Print – designed by Myvalenstyles
Dagger Necklace – Moonlight Crate Exclusive
Nina Woodmark/2D Figurine – designed by Tarajah
Crows Club Print – designed by Nirasky

~Kinzie

Unboxing: Nerdy Ink TOG Dust Jackets

Throne of Glass Redesigned Dust Jacket Ultimate Box

Nerdy Ink is a company well known for their beautiful alternative dust jackets for different series. They have done jackets for the whole Harry Potter series and, just recently, the Throne of Glass series. I really love how the jackets and all of the extras turned out and they were 100% worth the wait and money!

I will say this now, yes they were VERY late being sent out: they were originally set for June shipment and I received it in August, which isn’t horrible on covid-time at this moment. A problem happened with the Kingdom of Ash dust jacket where the character looked like an orange Oompa Loompa, which NerdyInk decided was not quality enough for their customers. I appreciated that. I’d rather wait for a quality item to be redone than get something fast, but not quality. On that note, here are the redesigned covers:

The Redesigned Covers of Throne of Glass by Nerdy Ink

Throne of Glass Full Series Prints of the Covers

Overall, for $75 including shipping, it was a fairly fantastic box! I have other jackets on my TOG books right this second, but they may have to be changed fairly soon because these are too beautiful!

~Kinzie

Unboxing: Fairyloot August 2020

“We are so excited to reveal the August theme for our monthly box and it is… LET THE GAMES BEGIN!
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The stakes are high and the games are on – make sure you come prepared! This month is all about games; whether they are physical or mental, magical or non-magical. These games will test your mettle and have your adrenaline soaring!
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You can expect items inspired by An Ember in the Ashes, Hunting Prince Dracula, Nevernight, Scythe, Aurora Rising and Harry Potter.
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Our featured book of the month, Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar, is a contemporary fantasy that is a magical blend of Stardust by Neil Gaiman and Hindu mythology. We were hooked from page one of this unique story and were constantly in awe of all of the celestial settings. This FairyLoot exclusive edition will have SHIMMERY SPRAYED EDGES, ARTWORK ON THE REVERSE OF THE DUST JACKET by @bxromance and will be SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR.”

An Ember in the Ashes Booksleeve – designed by @monolimeart
Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar – Signed, Autho’s Note, Sprayed Shimmery Edges, Reverse Dust Jacket designed by @bxromance
Aurora Rising Enamel Pin – designed by Iron and Ink
Nevernight Tarot Cards – designed by Katherine Britt
Hunting Prince Dracula Notebook – designed by @noverantale (outside cover) & @taratjah (inside)
Nevernight Metal Bookmark – designed by @taratjah
Scythe Magnet – designed by @taratjah

“The daughter of a star and a mortal, Sheetal is used to keeping secrets. Pretending to be “normal.” But when an accidental flare of her starfire puts her human father in the hospital, Sheetal needs a full star’s help to heal him. A star like her mother, who returned to the sky long ago.
Sheetal’s quest to save her father will take her to a celestial court of shining wonders and dark shadows, where she must take the stage as her family’s champion in a competition to decide the next ruling house of the heavens–and win, or risk never returning to Earth at all.”

A golden egg bath bomb came in the box, but it came as a glittery mess, so it’s not pictured, but it was there.

~Kinzie

Unboxing: Owlcrate August 2020

“We are so excited to reveal that the theme for our upcoming August box is… WRITTEN IN THE STARS!

💫 Our August book is a contemporary fantasy tale about a girl who is the daughter of a star and a human. She’s had to keep her magical abilities hidden her entire life, but when disaster strikes, she sets out on a journey to the stars to seek her mother’s help. This Hindu mythology inspired story has everything you could want – celestial courts, political intrigue, an exciting competition and absolutely stunning writing!

Unboxing Photo by @opheliafeyre on Instagram

💫 We are including a truly beautiful edition of Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar! It will have a gorgeous exclusive cover, sprayed edges, and the book will be signed by the author!

💫 Items included will be inspired by Aurora Rising, The Starless Sea, Strange the Dreamer plus a few items not related to fandoms. This box is beautifully aesthetic and filled with useful goodies for you to enjoy day after day.”

Monthly Enamel Pin – designed by Band of Weirdos
Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar – Owlcrate Exclusive Cover, Sprayed Purple Edges, Signed, & Includes the Author Letter
The Starless Sea Booksleeve – Designed by Quirky Cup Collective
Strange the Dreamer Bandanna – designed by Fern & Ink
Star Shaoed Bottle w/ Silver Push Pins – Owlcrate Exclusive
Aurora Rising Clipboard – Designed by Daphna Sebbane
Metal Star Pin – Owlcrate Exclusive

“The daughter of a star and a mortal, Sheetal is used to keeping secrets. Pretending to be “normal.” But when an accidental flare of her starfire puts her human father in the hospital, Sheetal needs a full star’s help to heal him. A star like her mother, who returned to the sky long ago.
Sheetal’s quest to save her father will take her to a celestial court of shining wonders and dark shadows, where she must take the stage as her family’s champion in a competition to decide the next ruling house of the heavens–and win, or risk never returning to Earth at all.”

~Kinzie

I’m Back!

I have returned & I have a bunch of unboxings for you! So far I have some August book box unboxings, a dust jacket set unboxing, and some books to show off! I’m a bit off the rails and I now have 4 book box subs: Owlcrate, Fairyloot, The Bookish Box, & Illumicrate (Book Only). I have also been ordering from Easton Press, more info to come!

~Kinzie

Temporary Absence

Good morning everyone! Due to some recent issues both physically & mentally, I’ll be taking a short break from posting. I just need to work on both because I just had some huge life changes happen that I’m not dealing with well.

I will be back at the beginning of September with some August book unboxings though! I hope everyone stays well & I will be posting again soon enough!

~Kinzie

Unboxing: Fairyloot July 2020

“We are so excited to reveal the July theme for our monthly box and it is… RESILIENT ROYALS!

Prepare your crown, and don’t forget to sharpen your sword − you might need it! This month is all about royals that always hold their ground and are willing to do whatever it takes to protect their kingdom and the ones that they love.

You can expect items inspired by Crescent City, The Lunar Chronicles, Ash Princess, The Queen’s Rising, Woven in Moonlight and The Bear and the Nightingale. We are thrilled to announce that this box will include a hand poured candle by @inthewickoftime, a beautiful cushion cover plus many other goodies that we have never featured in a previous box!

Our featured book of the month is an epic story of a kingdom ravaged by war, and a princess that may be the key to saving it. Something about this book gave us classic fantasy vibes − you can expect magic, resilient royals and romance! This FairyLoot edition of Shielded by KayLynn Flanders will have an EXCLUSIVE COVER, SPRAYED EDGES and will be SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR.

Crescent City Cushion Cover – designed by @chattynora
Shielded by KayLynn Flanders – Fairyloot Exclusive Cover, Sprayed Edges, Author’s Note, Signed
Ash Princess Candle – poured by @inthewickoftime
Shielded Print – designed by @faeriereverie
The Bear & the Nightingale Print – illustrated by @dominiquewesson
The Queen’s Rising Royal Card Holder – designed by @jezhawk
Woven in Moonlight Magnetic Bookmarks – designed by @isabelwriter09
Winter Quote Bookish Food Tray – designed by @eviebookish
Shades of Magic Tarot Cards – Designed by Katherine Britt

“The kingdom of Hálendi is in trouble. It’s losing the war at its borders, and rumors of a new, deadlier threat on the horizon have surfaced. Princess Jennesara knows her skills on the battlefield would make her an asset and wants to help, but her father has other plans.
As the second-born heir to the throne, Jenna lacks the firstborn’s–her brother’s–magical abilities, so the king promises her hand in marriage to the prince of neighboring Turia in exchange for resources Hálendi needs. Jenna must leave behind everything she has ever known if she is to give her people a chance at peace.
Only, on the journey to reach her betrothed and new home, the royal caravan is ambushed, and Jenna realizes the rumors were wrong–the new threat is worse than anyone imagined. Now Jenna must decide if revealing a dangerous secret is worth the cost before it’s too late–for her and for her entire kingdom.”

I was really excited for this box because I’ve been so excited for this edition of Shielded…. but I ended up underwhelmed with the green cover. I’ll keep it becaue I love the book, but I may have to get a regular blue edition with black sprayed edges.

~Kinzie

Foreign Editions of Books!

Pile of Foreign Editions of Stephanie Garber’s Caraval Trilogy – Photo by Stephanie Garber

Good afternoon everyone! I’m so sorry that our posts have been so erratic! I have been dealing with running the store that I work at by myself because my manager is on a 2 week medical leave & Kelsey has been training at her new job and working both jobs 7 day a week. We’ve been kinda stressed & busy.

I am here today though to talk about & show off some of the foreign editions of books that I own, that I’m waiting for to come in, and that I’m hopefully going to order soon. I understand that UK editions of books are technically considered foreign, but they’re more common than other countries. Also, I could go on and on with UK editions, so I am excluding them *for now*. Recently, Polish editions of books have been on my radar the most and they’re SO pretty! Without further adieu:

Polish Editions:

(Owned) Polish Daughter of the Pirate King

French Editions:

Taiwanese Editions:

Bulgarian Editions:

Russian/Serbian Editions:

So, if it’s not obvious, I’m collecting the foreign editions of Caraval. They’re so beautiful, but my Caraval shelf really can’t hold much more….. or I can make a 2nd Carval shelf….. Ideas & thoughts.

~Kinzie

Unboxing: Owlcrate July 2020!

“We are thrilled to reveal that the theme for our upcoming July box is… DATE WITH DESTINY!

💫 Our July book is a futuristic sci-fi novel about a girl escaping from a dying Earth in cryogenic sleep…only she wakes up 1000 years later than she was supposed to. She finds herself on a new planet, and everyone she ever knew is gone. To survive, she’ll have to quickly learn the ways of this new society as she tries to find a way back home.

💫 We are including an out of this world edition of Goddess in the Machine by Lora Beth Johnson! It will have a gorgeous exclusive cover, gilded foil edges, exclusive stamp on the hardcover, and the book will be signed by the author!

💫 Items included will be inspired by The Raven Boys, Star Wars, Carry On, The Hunger Games and Harry Potter. This box will contain the next mug in our series with artist @carakozik, and this will be the final Harry Potter inspired item we’ll be sending out this year.”

So this box came with a beautiful book & some fun goodies! The only problem is, I meant to skip it. It just didn’t interest me because Syfy just isn’t my genre. I’ve seen mixed reviews on this box, so it’s you opinion to make on it.

“When Andra wakes up, she’s drowning.

Not only that, but she’s in a hot, dirty cave, it’s the year 3102, and everyone keeps calling her Goddess. When Andra went into a cryonic sleep for a trip across the galaxy, she expected to wake up in a hundred years, not a thousand. Worst of all, the rest of the colonists—including her family and friends—are dead. They died centuries ago, and for some reason, their descendants think Andra’s a deity. She knows she’s nothing special, but she’ll play along if it means she can figure out why she was left in stasis and how to get back to Earth.

Zhade, the exiled bastard prince of Eerensed, has other plans. Four years ago, the sleeping Goddess’s glass coffin disappeared from the palace, and Zhade devoted himself to finding it. Now he’s hoping the Goddess will be the key to taking his rightful place on the throne—if he can get her to play her part, that is. Because if his people realize she doesn’t actually have the power to save their dying planet, they’ll kill her.

With a vicious monarch on the throne and a city tearing apart at the seams, Zhade and Andra might never be able to unlock the mystery of her fate, let alone find a way to unseat the king, especially since Zhade hasn’t exactly been forthcoming with Andra. And a thousand years from home, is there any way of knowing that Earth is better than the planet she’s woken to?”

Photos not labeled are by Heather Roth on Facebook

~Kinzie Marie Sydnor

WWW Wednesday – July 15

Hi everyone! 😊

I know it’s a little late but before the day is over I wanted to post my WWW Wednesday!

This is hosted by Taking on a World of Words where we share the 3 Ws with each other every week.

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

What are you currently reading?

So I haven’t started on this yet because I’m waiting for my Fairyloot edition to come in. But as soon as it does I’m gonna jump right on it I’m curious about a few things that happened at the end and must see how they play out in this next one.

What did you recently finish reading?

This book was good and I’ll have plenty more to say about it soon in another post. But the only thing though I will say is that I think I am just too in love with the movie. It is still my favorite by far and dont think that will ever change!

What do you think you’ll read next?

It’s probably going to be between these two anime series. I’m in the mood for a good reread and these are soooo amazing. The only thing with it though is that the Yona of the Dawn seris is not finished yet. They are still coming out with new volumes as we speak. But I have 24 volumes I could always do a catch up. 🤷‍♀️

Well that’s my WWW Wednesday post for tonight. I appreciate you all for reading!

I also hope to talk to see you all for the next post!

Bye for now!

~Kelsey🥰📚