THE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION

+ When will my first parcel arrive?

The cutoff for classic and minimalist orders is the 20th of the previous month. This is for recurring and gift subscriptions.

Therefore, if you ordered before the 20th of a given month, you can expect your first parcel to arrive in the first week of the following month.

If you ordered on or after the 20th of a given month, the first parcel won't arrive until the month after that.

eg: If you ordered between January 1-19th, your first parcel would arrive in the first week of February. If you ordered between January 20th-31st, your first parcel would arrive in the first week of March.

For Sweet Read parcels the cutoff is the 1st of the month. Orders ship once the new release novel arrives (most often in the fist week).

GENERAL

+ How do the subscriptions work?

The NovelTea Book Club offers a subscription that is highly personalised to you. As a subscriber you can choose between the classic book of the month or a lucky-dip secondhand alternative book or a new release fiction, as well as getting to choose between either tea or coffee for your drink sample.

Subscriptions are auto-renewing. You can choose to pay monthly, quarterly (every 3 months), bi-annually (every 6 months) or annually (every 12 months).

You can subscribe at any time, but the automatic renewal date is on the 20th of the preceding month for minimalists and classics and the 1st of the month for sweet reads. So if you subscribe before the 20th of January, your first parcel will be the February parcel. If you subscribe before the 1st of February for Sweet Read your first parcel will be the February parcel.

+ What price is your subscription?

Prices for subscriptions depend on which subscription you've chosen. All prices include tracked monthly shipping. Subscription to the Minimalist parcel starts at $30 per month, the Classic parcel starts at $49 per month and the Sweet Read parcels starts at $52 per month.

+ Where are you based?

The NovelTea Book Club is an Australian-based subscription service currently posting out of Canberra.

+ How does your shipping schedule work?

The aim is to have Australian parcels arrive at your door as close to the start of the month as possible. Parcels are shipped in the final week of the preceeding month for Classics and Minimalists and within the first week for Sweet Reads, however shipping times are currently quite unpredictable. All subscribers receiving tracking information via email once their parcels are on the way.

The cutoff date for subscribing allows some time to process and finalise all the orders before shipping!

+ Should I subscribe or buy a single-purchase envelope?

There are a limited number of envelopes per month based on the number of subscribers. If there happens to be any leftover envelopes from a particular month they will be available for single purchase after the subscriptions for that month have been shipped. This means there is no quarantee that there will be any envelopes available for single-purchase. Subscribing means that you are guaranteed to receive the parcel of the month.

+ What payment methods can I use?

The NovelTea Book Club uses PayWhirl and Stripe, and therefore offers any payment forms that they do. This includes:

• MasterCard
• Visa
• American Express
• Discover

+ How do I sign up for your newsletter?

You can sign up for the monthly newsletter here: The Afternoon Tea Times.

PARCEL S

+ What is in your subscription parcels?

What you receive in your parcel depends on which subscription type you choose. But in general, each parcel contains a book, a tea or coffee sample, a bookmark, and a selection of stationery items.

+ What is in the classic parcel?

Each parcel contains one penguin classic book, one tea or coffee sample (enough for 3 cups), one bookmark, and two selected stationery items. Bookmarks and stationery items are all designed to match a monthly theme, which is inspired by the chosen book of the month.

+ What is in the minimalist parcel?

Each parcel contains one second-hand book, one tea or coffee sample (enough for 3 cups), one bookmark, and one selected stationery item. The bookmarks and stationery items for the Minimalist parcel all match the same theme as the Classic parcel.

+ What is in the sweet read parcel?

Each parcel contains one new release fiction book, one tea or coffee sample (enough for 3 cups), one bookmark, and one selected treat. The bookmark and book for the Sweet Read parcel all match the same theme as the Classic and Minimialist parcel.

+ What kind of book will it be?

Depending on your subscription choice you will either receive a randomly chosen secondhand book, a penguin classic novel, or a new release fiction novel.

+ What if I already own the book?

Unfortunately, there is a possibility that a subscriber might receive a book they already own. I hope that the other goodies in the parcels make up for the occasional occurence of this, but if you're certain that you don't want to risk owning duplicate books you can always skip a particular month (prior to the cutoff date) by logging into your account portal.

+ Can I buy a subscription pack as a gift for someone?

Yes, gift subscriptions are offered on the shop page of the website where you can choose to buy a three, six or twelve month subscription for a friend. These subscriptions will automatically cancel after the set number of months so you won't have to worry about canceling them yourself.

+ How do you send the coffee samples?

I'm pleased to be able to offer coffee as an alternative drink option for those who need an extra caffeine boost. Coffee is roasted to be shipped ASAP so that it arrives to you as fresh as possible. The coffee can be sent as whole beans, or pre-ground. Please note that the coffee retains flavour and freshness better if it is ground immediately prior to brewing, so I do recommend whole beans.

SUPPORT

+ Can I cancel my subscription?

You can cancel your subscription at any time by logging into your customer portal. If you cancel after the 19th of the month you will still receive the parcel for the next month before your subscription offically ends. If you have subscribed to a bundle of multiple months you will receive all of the parcels you've paid for before your subscription officially ends.

+ Can I pause my subscription?

You can't pause your subscription, but you can choose to skip a particular month by logging into your customer portal. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any issues doing so. Be sure to do this before the 20th of the preceding month if you are trying to skip a specific month.

+ Can I skip a month of my subscription?

You can skip a month of your subscription by logging into your customer portal. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any issues doing so. Be sure to do this before the 20th of the preceding month if you are trying to skip a specific month.

+ How do I cancel my subscription?

You can cancel your subscription at any time by logging into your customer portal. If you are unsure of how to do this please don't hesitate to contact me!

+ Is there a cancelation fee?

No, cancelling your subscription is entirely fee-free. If you've subscribed to a multiple-month bundle and you cancel your subscription, you will still receive the outstanding parcels before your subscription officially ends. If you don't want to receive any further parcels from your multiple-month bundle you will need to contact me to arrange a refund for the outstanding parcels.

+ Is there a cutoff date for canceling my subscription?

Yes. The scheduled payment date for subscriptions is the 20th of each month. If you cancel your subscription after this date you will still receive the envelope for the next month before your subscription cancels.

+ Can I edit or change my subscription plan?

Absolutely, if you want to change your subscription then contact me and I will arrange it for you. You can also change your subscription through the customer portal.

+ Can I request a return or an exchange?

Unfortunately I cannot accept returns or exchanges on parcels once they have been shipped. However, I will do everything I can to make sure that you're satisfied with your purchase.

+ What if there's an item missing from my parcel?

I check all parcels as carefully as possible to ensure that this doesn't happen. However, if there is an item missing from your package, contact me and I will do my best to fix that for you.

+ What if there's a damaged item in my parcel?

I check our parcels as carefully as possible to ensure that this doesn't happen. However, if you receive a damaged item in your parcel, contact me and I will do my best to fix that for you.

SOCIAL

+ I'm a blogger/Instagrammer/YouTuber, can I review your subscription?

I love to hear from customers so you are more than welcome to review a parcel! Unfortunately I only have a limited number of parcels available for 'free' review, but if you follow the NovelTea book Club on Instagram you can stay up to date on when rep positions are available.

+ Do you collaborate with other bookish businesses?

If you have a product that you think would be a good fit with the subscription parcels I would love to hear from you! Please don't hesitate to contact me with any collaboration ideas you might have.