Unboxed : A Box of Stories – February

I came across A Box of Stories through Facebook back in April 2020, when I was absolutely bored out of my mind due to being furloughed. The company wasn’t as big as it is now and they only had a few boxes to choose from; a Surprise Box of 4 Fiction Books (£14.99), a Surprise Box of 4 Mixed Fiction Books (£14.99), and I want to say a Crime, Thriller and Mystery Box of 4 Surprise Books (£21.99) though I’m not 100% on that one. Now however, they have all of those I’ve said above plus a Young Adult Box of 4 Surprise Books (£21.99), a Light Reads Box of 4 Surprise Books (£21.99) and a Historical Fiction Box of 4 Surprise Books (£21.99).

I only started my blog last week, so I’m still very new but I would love to share the books I receive in my boxes as I get very excited every month (your subscription doesn’t need to be every month) and would like to share my excitement with you all!

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Plume by Will Wiles (RRP £8.99).

Blurb: Jack Bick knows he needs to change. The cans of lager in the work toilets, blackouts and malevolent cockatoos that haunt his days are a long way from the luxury lifestyles he profiles for the magazine he works at.

When a giant, black plume of smoke appears on the London horizon, and a major scoop that might save his job falls into his lap, Jack spots a glimmer of light in the rising smog. He dives head first into a chaotic odyssey across a city full of real estate tycoons, literary fakes, late night muggings and conspiracy theories. Jack seeks salvation through exposing the secrets of others, but will he be able to hide his own?

My thoughts: I know they say you should never judge a book by its cover but I was so doing that, and I’m sorry! This is definitely not a book that would jump out at me but after reading the blurb I am surprised as it does sound interesting. Unfortunately for Mr Wiles however, his surname beings with a W and so, seeing as my books are shelved alphabetically by author surname, I won’t be reading this anytime soon. Will it be worth the wait?

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Guarding Diana: Protecting The Princess Around the World by Inspector Ken Wharfe and Robert Jobson (RRP £18.99).

Blurb: Diana, Princess of Wales – security code name ‘Purple Five Two’ – travelled all over the world during her incredible life. Wherever she went, in public or private, she was shadowed by her Scotland Yard personal protection officer, Inspector Ken Wharfe, whose hob it was to keep her safe, even to the extent of sacrificing his own life, if necessary.

In public Diana was feted wherever she went, greeted by adoring crowds and fawned over by the media. In private she craved anonymity, and it was Ken Wharfe’s brief to protect her and keep her away from prying eyes.

The SAS-trained officer from the Yard’s elite Special Operations 14, Royalty and Diplomatic Protection Department, was with the Princess every step of the way. As she dazzled among Washington society or walked the sand of exclusive Caribbean beaches he watched over her. In the foothills of the Himalayas, the heat and dust of India and the heart of Africa, he was always just a heartbeat away.

‘Purple Five Two’ – the woman, the princess – was Ken’s charge. In private when they travelled, they often posed as man and wife under assumed names, ‘Mr and Mrs Hargreaves’, to throw the determined paparazzi desperate for a photograph off the scent. Whenever she wanted a private holiday it would be to Ken she would turn, who would be despatched in secret to find the idyllic spot.

In the six years that Ken was at Diana’s side they travelled hundreds of thousands of miles together, sharing secrets, laughter and tears on a truly extraordinary journey. This is their exclusive story.

My thoughts: Well that was a lengthy blurb, wasn’t it? I’m going to be honest, non-fiction books just do not do it for me. I’ve tried so many times but I will try with this book also. Princess Diana, in my eyes was such a real, inspirational woman and what happened to her was such a tragedy (if you do not feel this way then I hold nothing against you). I am keen to find out though, where was Inspector Ken Wharfe when Diana died in that car crash? So do I find that out by reading this book? Or do I just take the easy way out and google it… we shall see!

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I Confess by Alex Barclay (RRP £12.99).

Blurb: Seven friends. One killer. No escape…

A group of childhood friends are reunited at a luxury inn on a remote west coast peninsula in Ireland. But as a storm builds outside, the dark events that marred their childhoods threaten to resurface.

And when a body is discovered, the group faces a shocking realisation: a killer is among them, and not everyone will escape with their lives…

My thoughts: Okay, not what I was expecting from the cover. I was thinking more of a haunted house sort of story but after reading the blurb I really want to read this one. I’m excited for it. What dark events marred their childhood? Who is the killer? Will everyone escape with their lives? So many questions!!!

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From the Wreck by Jane Rawson (RRP £14.99).

Blurb: When, in 1859, George Hills is pulled from the wreck of a steamship Admella, he carries with him memories of a disaster that claims the lives of almost every other soul on board. Almost every other soul…

Because as he clung on to the wreck, George wasn’t alone: someone else – or something else – kept George warm and bound him to life. Why didn’t he die, as so many others did, half-submerged in the freezing Southern Ocean? And what happened to his fellow survivor, the woman who seemed to vanish into thin air?

George will live out the rest of his life obsessed with finding the answers to these questions. He will marry, father children, but never quite let go of the feeling that he was not alone when he emerged from the ocean that day, that a familiar presence has been watching him ever since. The question of what this creature might want from him – his life? His first-born? Simply to return to its home? – will pursue him, and call him back to the ocean, where it all began.

My thoughts: Well this sounds bloody fantastic, don’t you think? With the cover in mind, was it an octopus type creature that saved him? Or do mermaids exist in this story? I think this is the one I am most definitely looking forward to the most.

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This box cost me £14.24 (you get 5% discount if you set up a subscription) and the cost of the books totalled £55.96 meaning a saving of £41.72. If you would like A Box of Stories for yourself, use this link for £4 off your first box – http://aboxofstories.refr.cc/geelizreads

What did you think of this selection? What book would you want to read the most out of these and which book would you want to read the least? Have you read any of these books? What did you think? Look forward to hearing from you all soon.

Gee Liz ❤ x