▲ 140 r/Illumicrate
Illumicrate Aug/Sep Team Live Recap
another illumicrate team live means another hour of subscription hints, special edition clues, sequel announcements, and the team trying very hard not to tell us things they clearly want to tell us, so here’s everything from the august live.
september subscription updates
september apparently has one very consistent theme across the board : someone is dead and everybody else has problems.
illumicrate — a study of death
- magical medical school murder mystery
- follows a group of students sitting their final-year exams when one member of their group is murdered
- they then begin receiving letters from her from beyond the grave while trying to solve the murder and pass their exams
- multi-pov
- the author has actually been to medical school and apparently the medical school trauma is very real
- described as The Pitt meets The Raven Scholar
- standalone
- they especially hyped the way the cover and naked hardcover interact, the color palette and the endpapers
afterlight — fangs for the memories
- mm paranormal romance
- vampire takes a trip to italy with his talking cat
- a murder happens shortly after he arrives that suspiciously looks like it could have been committed by a vampire
- he starts working with the local detective to prove his innocence and obviously sparks fly
- grumpy x sunshine, except the vampire is actually the sunshine
- described as fun, campy and reminiscent of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- the author has published in other genres before but this is their romance debut
mindsight
- snowy ski resort murder mystery
- a body is discovered sitting inside a ski gondola when it reaches the top of the mountain
- one of the hotel guests happens to have a history of solving mysteries and starts investigating before anyone else dies
- technically connected to previous books through a recurring sleuth character, but completely readable as a standalone
- described as nostalgic, classic and relatively “cozy” for a murder mystery rather than graphic
- apparently very much a curl-up-with-a-blanket-and-hot-drink kind of book
- they worked with a fairly major author estate for this one
- they especially liked the cover details and sprayed edge design
illumicrate october / november / december
october
- sapphic dark academia / magical realism
- modern-day paris setting
- standalone
- main character compared to Alex Stern from Ninth House
- deals heavily with the horrors of men in academia
- lots of moments where you are questioning whether something supernatural is genuinely happening
- apparently very visual and atmospheric
november
this was VERY clearly one of the team’s biggest favorites from the upcoming lineup.
- start of a series
- follows a main character potentially facing trial for witchcraft
- described as having a similar tone to Little Thieves
- they specifically compared the characters to slightly older versions of the Little Thieves cast who actually like themselves
- also compared to Nina from Six of Crows
- main character is extremely optimistic, competent and kind despite being in a pretty awful situation
- major male character reminded Zoe of Briggan from Fire by Kristin Cashore
- uses humor to explore some surprisingly heavy topics
- the witchcraft accusations apparently parallel something that remains very relevant today
- they think the book has flown under the radar so far and are expecting people to really love it
- they compared their excitement around this pick to how strongly the team felt about The Raven Scholar before everyone else got to read it
december
- Brandon Sanderson
- standalone
- features a magical cat
- they described it as a really good entry point for anyone who has never read Sanderson before
- edition design is apparently completely different from the trade
- they were very excited about finally having him in the subscription
afterlight october / november / december
october
another huge staff favorite.
- extremely slow burn romance, apparently the slowest burn they have ever put in afterlight
- they repeatedly said the payoff is worth it
- intelligent, opinionated female main character who is unapologetically herself and does not suddenly change into a people pleaser
- complicated relationship dynamic plus lots of banter
- the only romance they have read where they think the Emily Henry comparison is actually accurate
- Emily Henry herself has apparently blurbed it
- very different from what they normally put in afterlight
- Bec called it her favorite afterlight design of the year and possibly one of her favorite afterlight editions they have ever done
november
- enemies to lovers
- remote arctic resort setting
- female main character is a photographer trying to photograph polar bears and save her career
- love interest is trying to save his lodge
- he is extremely distrustful of journalism
- they are forced to work together
- apparently lots of tension
december
- sexy billionaire vampires. that is apparently where we are ending 2026.
- vampire is blood-bound to protect someone who hates them
- very established and popular author who has never appeared in the afterlight subscription before
- they were apparently discussing this pick for quite a while before securing it
- heavily hyped the aesthetic and design
- they spent an absurd amount of time choosing the font, including debates over gold vs silver, so please appreciate the font when your copy arrives
final 2026 quarterly hints
evernight — october
this one sounds significantly heavier than their usual picks.
- debut author
- haunted house story
- the house essentially remembers the trauma both it and the land have experienced
- rooted in horror but also directly connected to real-world horrors that are still affecting people today
- apparently extremely emotional
- they literally said to have tissues prepared
- very important and personal pick for Yaz
- edition is very different from the trade while still capturing the themes of the book
starbright — november
- sapphic
- cozy
- part of a series
- by a very popular author they have featured before and consider one of their favorites
- apparently quite different from what this author normally writes
- they were so determined to get this book that they basically reserved the quarterly slot before even reading it and refused to consider anything else 💀
- especially hyped the redesigned cover
mindsight — december
- author has previously written extensively in another medium, especially plays, but this is their debut novel
- multiple povs with apparently very distinct voices
- not set in the uk
- one of the major characters is a queer woman going through menopause who is completely exhausted by everyone else’s nonsense
- relationship and romance is not a major focus
- darkest mindsight pick they have done so far in terms of actual subject matter, although the overall tone apparently does not feel relentlessly bleak
- very fast-paced
- basically everyone seems suspicious and multiple characters have believable motives
- very different design from both the uk and us trade editions
sequel announcements
they are doing a little sequel announcement run this week.
A Thief and the Traitor Bride
- officially announced (yesterday)
- standalone companion to The Second Death of Locke
- can apparently be read completely independently, although having read Locke will make the final section more meaningful because some familiar characters return
- new character artist for the cover but they said it still looks extremely cohesive with the first edition
- Caitlin actually prefers this book to The Second Death of Locke
- apparently expands the world quite a bit and the central relationship has a long, complicated history
two more sequel announcements coming
both are sequels to previous non-subscription special editions.
sequel #1
- one of their most anticipated books of the last several years
- they have basically been waiting impatiently for the manuscript
- part of an existing series
- apparently looks just as cool and vibey as the previous editions
sequel #2
- sequel to one of their most popular standalone special editions from last year
- the original was also one of their most successful shop editions
both announcements should be happening over the next couple of days.
2027 subscription hints
illumicrate
they gave a surprising amount away about the first four months.
january
- sapphic
- author has previously appeared in the illumicrate subscription
- the book actually had to move publication timing for them to be able to include it
- significant focus on a central relationship, although they would not necessarily describe the overall book as romance-heavy
february
- one of Caitlin’s early favorites
- something she would not normally naturally reach for but ended up loving
- complicated main character and complicated dynamics between basically everyone
- apparently includes important representation they do not see very often
- very good banter
- edition design is already looking incredible
- they think this could be an especially popular month
march
- apparently also very good
- they proceeded to give us almost nothing useful about it 💀
april
- sapphic main character, although the queerness is more part of their identity, worldview and motivations than the central plot
- standalone
- author has not appeared in the illumicrate subscription before
- author Caitlin personally already loves and had been waiting to feature
- contains horror elements
- apparently there is a significant twist
- the artwork is being described as unusually organic to the story, almost like it has “grown out of the book”
Caitlin currently considers april her favorite 2027 illumicrate pick she has read.
afterlight
- there will be a sapphic afterlight book in the first half of 2027
- they cannot say anything else because the book apparently has not even been properly announced yet
- january is by an author they already love who is writing in a new genre
- they have known about the january book for quite a long time and were basically waiting for it to become available
evernight
- january 2027 pick is sapphic
- they apparently knew very early that they wanted it
- edition is once again being described as extremely vibey
mindsight
- first 2027 mindsight pick is queer
realm of the elderlings
yes, they are continuing.
- more Realm of the Elderlings editions are definitely happening
- however, there will be no new set in 2027
- next continuation is currently planned for 2028
- they stressed multiple times that this is only a break and that the project is absolutely continuing
more books in the tortall universe
also yes.
- another Tamora Pierce / Tortall project is already being worked on
- they cannot announce it yet
- currently expected to ship around mid-2027
- likely announcement sometime this autumn
- they are huge fans of Tamora Pierce and want to keep doing as much from the Tortall universe as publishers and project logistics allow
how early do they choose subscription books?
apparently very early sometimes.
- they usually try not to lock things in ridiculously far ahead because it makes balancing genres, themes and representation across the year harder
- they have increasingly started looking at subscription curation across entire quarters rather than month by month
- however, they recently selected one book for the second half of 2028
- at one stage that book was apparently being discussed for 2029
- october 2026 was also chosen unusually early
- february and march 2027 were selected before Zoe had even fully transitioned into her current role
so yes, some of these boxes are being planned literally years before we ever see them.
special edition set hints
afterlight set
this one feels very guessable. their hints:
- “cottage”
- they have been “playing the long game”
- the finished editions will apparently be “quite unrivaled”
they have been working on the set for a long time and expect a full announcement sometime this autumn.
illumicrate duology set
- very popular duology
- second book is coming out very soon
- storytelling is a major part of the plot
- “telling lies” may also be relevant
- jacket artwork is apparently so good Bec made it her phone wallpaper
mystery dream project
okay this one sounds insane and potentially very big.
- absolutely no actual information yet
- described repeatedly as a “dream project”
- apparently we are “not ready” and “not prepared”
- they were very deliberately secretive about what exactly it is
- announcement coming in a couple of weeks
so whatever this is, they clearly seem very excited about it.
overall / what’s coming next
there is quite a lot happening over the next few months, both with the subscriptions and outside of them.
- september brings the next Illumicrate, Afterlight and Mindsight picks
- october has the next Evernight alongside Illumicrate and Afterlight
- november brings Starbright as well as the regular Illumicrate and Afterlight subscriptions
- december closes out the year with Mindsight alongside Illumicrate and Afterlight
- the two remaining sequel editions should be announced over the next couple of days
- the mystery “dream project” is being revealed in a couple of weeks
- the heavily hinted Afterlight set should finally be announced sometime this autumn
- another Tortall project is also expected to be announced sometime this autumn
- and they have already started giving us a pretty substantial look at the first few months of the 2027 subscription lineup
basically, there is a lot coming, and considering how much they were already willing to tease in this live, i feel like the next one is going to have even more to talk about.
personal note
as your self-appointed meeting minutes taker, thank you to everyone who comments saying you appreciate these recaps 🥹 i genuinely just make them for fun because i’m as excited about all of this as you guys are, and i’m very happy to keep doing them whenever we get another live !
a few thoughts from me :
- september Illumicrate + Mindsight is an absolute yes for me. december Mindsight also sounds spooky in the best way. both of the upcoming picks have me soooo excited.
- october Illumicrate has my attention because i’ve heard great things about the book already. november and december are more up in the air since i don’t know the books particularly well, but the team hyped november like CRAZY, which definitely has me curious… and i’ve never read Brandon Sanderson before, so maybe december will finally be the time.
- not an Afterlight subscriber, but some of these picks sound GOOD. december especially has my attention because vampires will always work on me. i may have to hunt that one down on resale.
- Evernight october is probably my biggest question mark. the concept sounds really interesting, but after not loving the july pick as much as i hoped and seeing some mixed early reviews for this one, i’m definitely being a little more cautious.
and obviously i’m VERY curious about all these mysterious special editions and projects they’re refusing to tell us about yet 👀
anyways, that is all from me ! thank you again for reading these ridiculously long recaps. i’ll be back and locked in for the next live 🫡
u/hnitch — 1 day ago