Willoughby Book Club Subscription Review
(This post is an Ad for the Willoughby Book Club but as always, all opinions are my own)
Book delivery boxes are all the rage nowadays - available in any way imaginable, for big budgets and small, it can be difficult to decide which ones to spend your money on.
Today I want to introduce the wonderful Willoughby Book Club, a book subscription service owned by Marianne Chala that specialises in individually curated book deliveries. The process is simple. When choosing a subscription for yourself or a loved one, take a browse through their menu of personal book subscriptions. Here you can choose from a wide variety of genres, from the broader ‘fiction’ subscription to more specialised crime, non-fiction, young adult, food and drink, wellbeing, natural history, or home and garden subscription. They even have categories for different demographics of readers: whether you’re shopping for a baby, toddler, child, couple or mum and baby, there really is something for everyone. They even have a bespoke subscription available if your reading tastes don’t fit into any these categories.
Once you’ve chosen your subscription package, the next step is to provide some information about yourself and your reading preferences. However much you would like to provide is up to you, but their online form asks for you, or your recipient’s first, second and third favourite genres, as well as some additional information about your (or their) favourite books and authors. The last thing to do is to select the length of your subscription, where you can choose to purchase either 3, 6, or 12 months of books. Each month contains one curated book choice based on the information that you have provided, delivered straight to your doorstep.
One of the best things about the Willoughby Book Club is that giving back to the community is a core part of their business. To date they have donated more than 50,000 books to a range of charities, each targeting groups who find it harder to access books. This is why I am so proud to be supporting the Willoughby Book Club: by purchasing one of their subscriptions you’re not just adding to your library, but you’re also supporting a worthy cause. For each subscription sold the company donates one book to Book Aid International, who work towards their vision that everybody should have access to books and education. Additional groups that have benefitted from this philosophy include care homes, who received book drops during the pandemic, refugees who are arriving in the UK, and children who find themselves in emergency foster care.
Now that I’ve introduced you to the service and how it works, let’s have a look at the books that I received from my three month bespoke subscription!
I was so excited when I found these three parcels on my doorstep. Usually subscribers will receive one book each month, but as I am providing a review they kindly sent me all three books at once. The Willoughby is a no frills, quality book subscription service that prides itself on their presentation. That was definitely the experience that I had - each book arrived in neat cardboard packaging, with a cute Willoughby Book Club sticker on the top. Upon opening each package, I found that the book choices were wrapped with a paper Willoughby Book Cub casing, and the first package included some other bits and pieces about the service as well.
The real test, however, would be the actual books that were personally selected for my reading tastes, and whether I would be excited by their choices. Before the order was processed Marianne asked me to provide her a bit of information about the books that I like to read. After a short wait, the three book parcels landed on my doorstep, and these are the books that I received!
Book One
The first was Staunch by Eleanor Wood, which is described as a ‘fun and uplifting memoir. Here is the synopsis:
Eleanor finds herself in her late thirties on a beach in India with three old ladies trying to ‘find herself’ and ‘discover her family history’ like some sad middle-class crisis cliché. How did she get here?
Truthfully, it could be for any one of the below reasons, if not all combined:
Stepmum dying/Stepdad leaving – family falling apart, subsequent psychotic break; both parents now on third marriage
Breaking up with K after 12 years – breaking up a whole life, a whole fucking universe – for reasons that may have been… misguided?
New boyfriend moving in immediately, me insisting ‘it’s not a rebound!’ even after everyone has stopped listening, then breaking up with me
Going into therapy after dating a threatening narcissist (the most pertinent point of which should be noted: I did not break up with him – he ghosted me)
How to address this situation? Take a trip to India with your octogenarian nan and two great aunts of course. The perfect, if somewhat unusual, distraction from Eleanor’s ongoing crisis.
But the trip offers so much more than Eleanor could ever have hoped for.
Through the vivid and worldly older women in her life, she learns what it means to be staunch in the face of true adversity.
My thoughts: I’ve never heard of this book before but it sounds great! I’m a big memoir fan and I’m always trying to read from different perspectives. I like the idea of hearing from someone in her late thirties who is trying to find her place in life, and I have a feeling that I’m going to really enjoy it.
Book Two
The second book I unwrapped was Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez, a contemporary romance story that was nominated for a Goodreads choice award in 2022. This is the synopsis:
‘After a wild bet, gourmet grilled-cheese sandwich, and cuddle with a baby goat, Alexis Montgomery has had her world turned upside down. The cause: Daniel Grant, a ridiculously hot carpenter who’s ten years younger than her and as casual as they come—the complete opposite of sophisticated city-girl Alexis. And yet their chemistry is undeniable.
While her ultra-wealthy parents want her to carry on the family legacy of world-renowned surgeons, Alexis doesn’t need glory or fame. She’s fine with being a “mere” ER doctor. And every minute she spends with Daniel and the tight-knit town where he lives, she’s discovering just what’s really important. Yet letting their relationship become anything more than a short-term fling would mean turning her back on her family and giving up the opportunity to help thousands of people.
Bringing Daniel into her world is impossible, and yet she can’t just give up the joy she’s found with him either. With so many differences between them, how can Alexis possibly choose between her world and his?’
My thoughts: I am so pleased to have received a contemporary romance book as it’s one of my all time favourite genres! I love that the main character is a doctor (I’m a sucker for medical stories) and it comes highly recommended from Emily Henry, aka, the queen of contemporary romance herself. Perfect!
Book Three
The third and final book that I received was Furies, an anthology of feminist stories that’s been contributed to by 15 different authors. This is what it’s all about:
A fun and fearless anthology of feminist tales, to celebrate Virago's 50th birthday, featuring new and original stories by Margaret Atwood, Susie Boyt, Eleanor Crewes, Emma Donoghue, Stella Duffy, Linda Grant, Claire Kohda, CN Lester, Kirsty Logan, Caroline O'Donoghue, Chibundu Onuzo, Helen Oyeymi, Rachel Seiffert, Kamila Shamsie and Ali Smith - introduced by Sandi Toksvig.
Dragon. Tygress. She-Devil. Hussy. Siren. Wench. Harridan. Muckraker. Spitfire. Vituperator. Churail. Termagant. Fury. Warrior. Virago. For centuries past, and all across the world, there are words that have defined and decried us. Words that raise our hackles, fire up our blood; words that tell a story.
In this blazing cauldron of a book, fifteen bestselling, award-winning writers have taken up their pens and reclaimed these words, creating an entertaining and irresistible collection of feminist tales for our time.
My thoughts: I don’t usually read short stories, but this anthology sounds fantastic. I love feminist tales, and I’m looking forward to trying something different.
A huge thank you to Willoughby Book Club for sending me these three lovely books and for sponsoring this post. I can honestly say that I love their subscription service and would highly recommend treating yourself, or a loved one, to one of their subscription packages. It’s a great way to treat yourself, your shelves, and to give back to those who need books the most.
Take a look at the Willoughby Book Club website for yourself here, and follow them on Instagram @willoughbybooks. Happy reading!