Review: Your Paper Quest Self Published Book Subscription

AD Gifted: Reading has always been my passion; from the minute I could hold a book my nose was always firmly planted within the pages and that enthusiasm has only grown as I’ve got older. I’ll be honest until I began my blogging era I read only traditionally published books and would go as far as saying I was naïve if not a little ignorant when it came to self published and indie author’s and their works. However once I started writing and sharing my thoughts on the books I was enjoying I began to receive review requests from a variety of indie authors and as I will literally read anything I began broadening my reading horizons and I haven’t looked back since. This has meant I have had the pleasure of finding some of my all time favourite reads thanks to opening myself up to different books- I highly recommend Josie Jaffrey, Olga Gibbs and Kelly-Marie Pollock’s books if you are looking for recommendations.

Therefore imagine my delight when I discovered a monthly book subscription that exclusively includes titles from self published and independent authors exists. Your Paper Quest is a reasonably new venture created by founder Ryan Haidar in an effort to increase exposure for these often overlooked authors as well as helping to broaden readers tastes and help expand their ever increasing TBR shelves!

Ryan’s early love for reading was reignited when he created his Instagram account to talk about the books he enjoyed  During his time as a content creator he has connected with countless authors and taken time to really understand readers and their tastes which lead him to kickstarting his passion project; Your Paper Quest. His aim is to help break the stigma that is often attached to self published titles and to introduce readers to books that would have previously been under their radar. Working alongside Ryan is Steven William Hannah who curates the titles that make it into the monthly mailings. Sifting through numerous submissions Ryan and Steven ensure nothing but the best make it to their readers doors.

What’s included in the Subscription?

Each month you will receive a themed selection on books of varying genres delivered directly to your door in stunning personalised packaging. We received the October box which was themed ‘Love Against All Odds’ and has a nod to Halloween promising “monsters of every variety”. Alongside the book picks Necrotown by Alexander Nader & Orchard of Skeletons by Eli Wilde the box included a specially created bookmark for each title with a quote from the book and an information sheet about the monthly choices.

Necrotown by Alexander Nader is described as having ‘ grimy noir aesthetics with an immortal detective, set in a (very) urban fantasy world with werewolves, trolls, necromancers, vampires, gargoyles and more’

The dystopian Orchard of Skeletons by Eli Wilde is described as ‘relentlessly grim and inhospitably bleak’ following a young couple on the run from a psychopath.

Both the titles sound intriguing and right up my street as I love anything dystopian and fantasy. I will of course be reading these books and will be sure to share my thoughts here and on my social media channels.

As a subscription member you can also receive access to the Your Paper Quest virtual book club which includes exclusive video interviews as well as the opportunity to pose questions to the authors plus it’s the perfect space for bookish discussions with fellow subscribers.

At the moment the subscription package is only available for delivery within the UK and is priced at £18 per month.

Our Thoughts

Anything that champions and shines a spotlight on indie authors is going to be a winner for me, but I feel that the value for money offered by Your Paper Quest is fantastic. The price point is less than you would usually pay for two indie or self published books and the fact that time and care has been taken when specially curating the titles adds value ten fold.

I feel the subscription will help readers unearth some real hidden, undiscovered gems that they would never have had exposure to when shopping and buying books in your average bookstore or even shopping online. The passion, attention to detail and care that’s gone into the book box as a whole is evident and I simply adore the personalised packaging as well as the special gold endorsements that are included inside the front cover of each book. The virtual book club also adds something extra and I really enjoyed watching the video interviews for the books that arrived in my box; it made me even more excited to grab a cuppa and dive right in. 

The Your Paper Quest subscription is perfect for any reader and would make a great gift for any booklover. Be sure to check out their website for more information.