Book of the Month November 2015 Subscription Box Review + Half Off Deal!

Bookspan’s Book of the Month Club is a newer monthly book subscription box. Each month their panel of Judges selects 5 books, which they announce on the first of the month, and members have six days to decide which book (or books) they would like to receive. All books are shipped at the same time, so members can read and participate in their discussion forums as a group. One book per month is included in the membership fee, and members can purchase up to two additional books each month for $12.99 per title. The monthly price is $12.99 per month, $8.99 per month on a year long subscription, but you can get 3 months for $20.97 – $6.99 per month. Use Book Of The Month Invitation Code BOTM15 as the coupon code for this deal. Sign up by the 6th to get the current month’s box.

Joel Stein was the guest judge for November.

The November 2015 Book of the Month selections were:

• Barbara the Slut and Other People by Lauren Homes ($20.48)
• Home is Burning: A Memoir by Dan Marshall ($15.39)
• So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson  – Guest Judge Joel Stein’s Selection ($18.88)
• The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley ($18.30)
• The Witches: Salem 1692 by Stacy Schiff ($17.60)

There was a survey for last month’s subscribers, and I got a free book for filling it out!

The books are shrinkwrapped onto cardboard and include a note from the judge.

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley ($18.30) I have a love/hate relationship with modern British literature (I couldn’t stand Wolf Hall and quit after a few chapters! That’s my dirty reader admission for the day!). I think this one is really going to be up my alley.

1883. Thaniel Steepleton returns home to his tiny London apartment to find a gold pocket watch on his pillow. Six months later, the mysterious timepiece saves his life, drawing him away from a blast that destroys Scotland Yard. At last, he goes in search of its maker, Keita Mori, a kind, lonely immigrant from Japan. Although Mori seems harmless, a chain of unexplainable events soon suggests he must be hiding something. When Grace Carrow, an Oxford physicist, unwittingly interferes, Thaniel is torn between opposing loyalties.

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street is a sweeping, atmospheric narrative that takes the reader on an unexpected journey through Victorian London, Japan as its civil war crumbles long-standing traditions, and beyond. Blending historical events with dazzling flights of fancy, it opens doors to a strange and magical past.

The Judge’s note mentions that this novel combines love, intrigue, adventure, and fantasy, with some history thrown in.

This was an awesome cover!

I randomly turned to the page with the fob watch, so I had to include this.

Home is Burning: A Memoir by Dan Marshall ($15.39) I’m not sure yet that I can relate to this memoir, but it was a bonus item. I don’t recall selecting my book – I would have probably selected the Witches book.

For the Marshalls, laughter is the best medicine. Especially when combined with alcohol, pain pills, excessive cursing, sexual escapades, actual medicine, and more alcohol.

Meet Dan Marshall. 25, good job, great girlfriend, and living the dream life in sunny Los Angeles without a care in the world. Until his mother calls. And he ignores it, as you usually do when Mom calls. Then she calls again. And again.

Dan thought things were going great at home. But it turns out his mom’s cancer, which she had battled throughout his childhood with tenacity and a mouth foul enough to make a sailor blush, is back. And to add insult to injury, his loving father has been diagnosed with ALS.

Sayonara L.A., Dan is headed home to Salt Lake City, Utah.

Never has there been a more reluctant family reunion: His older sister is resentful, having stayed closer to home to bear the brunt of their mother’s illness. His younger brother comes to lend a hand, giving up a journalism career and evenings cruising Chicago gay bars. His next younger sister, a sullen teenager, is a rebel with a cause. And his baby sister – through it all – can only think about her beloved dance troop. Dan returns to shouting matches at the dinner table, old flames knocking at the door, and a speech device programmed to help his father communicate that is as crude as the rest of them. But they put their petty differences aside and form Team Terminal, battling their parents’ illnesses as best they can, when not otherwise distracted by the chaos that follows them wherever they go. Not even the family cats escape unscathed.

As Dan steps into his role as caregiver, wheelchair wrangler, and sibling referee, he watches pieces of his previous life slip away, and comes to realize that the further you stretch the ties that bind, the tighter they hold you together.

This extra selection was a great way to read something I wouldn’t normally dig into a chance.

After you read your book, you can rate it! There is also a discussion feature on the site.

I think the premise of this subscription is cool, and it’s a great way to discover some new books inexpensively.  The monthly price is $12.99 per month, $8.99 per month on a year long subscription, but you can get 3 months for $20.97 – $6.99 per month. Use Book Of The Month Invitation Code BOTM15. Sign up by the 6th to pick a book for December.  This is a really awesome gift for a reader, because your gift recipient can select their own book. I was really happy to discover a new historical fantasy book!

Visit Bookspan Book of the Month Club to subscribe or find out more!