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).
This is the what I got in my March Fiction Box.
Little Big Love by Katy Regan (RRP £7.99)
Blurb: Liam Jones is the love of Juliet’s life. He was her brother’s best friend, then hers, then the father of her son. In those shining weeks after Zac was born, she’d never been happier, and neither had Liam.
Until the night he disappeared without a trace.
Zac is now ten, and collects facts: octopuses have three hearts; the world’s heaviest man weighed over one hundred stone; only three species of animals have a blue tongue. The one piece of information he really wants, though, is the truth about why his father left.
His family refuse to talk about that night, but when Juliet inadvertently admits to him that Liam is the only man she’s ever loved, Zac decides to find him and give his mum a second chance at a happy ever after.
After all, nothing can stand in the way of love… Or can it?
My thoughts: I’m going to have to read this book just because I want to know what happened to the father. I think he had an affair, it seems like that kind of book. I’m a being a bit stereotypical towards this genre… Yes. But I’m intrigued! What do you think happened to Liam?
Dead Girls by Abigail Tarttelin (RRP £8.99).
Blurb: A quiet community is shocked by the murder of an eleven-year-old girl. As police swarm the village looking for a killer, fear compels parents to keep their children indoors. Unbeknownst to her mum and dad, though, one girl roams free.
That girl is Thera Wilde.
Thera was the murdered girl’s best friend. Together they were unstoppable and, even alone, Thera is not afraid. It’s 1999, girls can do anything – and Thera reckons she can find the killer first.
My thoughts: I’m really confused by this blurb. How would a parent not know that their child is ‘roaming free’. Does that mean she is sneaking out? Does it mean she is living on the streets? I’m confused (but it doesn’t take a lot). I’m not really sure how I feel about this one. Of course, it will be read but it won’t be jumping up the TBR pile any time soon.
The Corporation: Gangsters. Drugs. Sex. And Violence by T.J. English (RRP £12.99).
Blurb: Cuba. 1961.
A failed invasion at the Bay of Pigs results in Fidel Castro tightening his hold over Cuba. Jose Miguel Battle Sr., a former cop and a member of the counter-revolutionary group intent on overthrowing him, is captured.
Miami. 1962.
Jose Miguel Battle Sr. travels to the USA, chased from the island by revolution, and is renamed The Godfather. A 2,500 strong Cuban-American criminal alliance is established.
Known on both sides of the law as ‘The Corporation’, its powerful members were fellow outcasts and enemies of Castro. A hero to many Cuban-Americans, The Godfather created a unit of trusted men who fought alongside him to reclaim their nation from the Marxist dictator.
Gaining money, power and influence by running gambling rackets, money-laundering, drug trafficking and murder, The Corporation never gave up the dream of killing Castro and reclaiming their homeland. This explosive Biography reveals how an entire generation of political exiles, refugees, racketeers, corrupt cops, hitmen (and their wives and girlfriends) became caught up in this violent desire, and built a criminal empire surviving over 40 years.
My thoughts: This is definitely not my kind of book. I’m really not in to the Godfather gang type movies or books. Plus, it’s a Biography and I struggle with these too! It’s a big book! Nearly 600 pages. On the back it states that it is soon to be a major motion picture starring Benicio Del Toro, produced by Leonardo Dicaprio – I’m still not excited….
I’ll try to read it, but I feel this will be joining my very small DID NOT FINISH pile.
The Age of Light by Whitney Scharer (RRP £12.99).
Blurb: ‘I’d rather take a picture than be one,’ Lee Miller declares, as she arrives in Paris one cool day in 1929. Lee has left behind her life in New York and a successful modelling career at Vogue to pursue her dream of becoming a photographer. She soon catches the eye of a renowned Surrealist artist Man Ray and convinces him to hire her as his assistant. Man is an egotistical, charismatic force, and as Lee becomes both his muse and his protegee, they embark upon a passionate affair.
Lee and Man spend their days working closely in the studio and their nights at smoky cabarets, opium dens and wild parties. But as Lee begins to assert herself, and to create pioneering work of her own, Man’s jealousy spirals out of control, and leads to a betrayal that threatens to destroy them both…
My thoughts: I like the sound of this book, I like that it isn’t set in present day and I like that there is a romantic element to it which all goes wrong – everyone loves a bit of drama!
This box cost me £14.24 (you get 5% discount if you set up a subscription) and the cost of the books totalled £42.96 meaning a saving of £28.72. 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
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