R.A.D. Frequently Asked Questions
GENERAL
Q: HOW MUCH DOES R.A.D. COST?
A: RAD is $60 USD, plus shipping and handling.
Q: WHAT COMES IN A R.A.D. BOX?
A: R.A.D. boxes will include TWO completely redesigned special edition queer adult hardcovers each quarter.
Each special edition will get the complete works with completely redesigned dust jackets, illustrated end pages, foiled and/or illustrated hard case, and digitally printed edges, etc.
We are determined to create the most amazing special editions we can! We are not holding back.
Q: IS R.A.D. THE SAME AS THE ORIGINAL RAINBOW CRATE SUBSCRIPTION BOX?
A: This subscription is completely separate from the Rainbow Crate subscription box. You will need to subscribe to R.A.D. separately.
Q: IS R.A.D. MONTHLY?
A: R.A.D. boxes are quarterly. The current shipping schedule is August, November, February, and May.
Q: WHEN WILL I BE CHARGED FOR R.A.D.?
A: Each quarter's box will be charged the 15th of the month before shipment.
For your convenience, here is a yearly charging schedule:
February box: January 15th
May box: April 15th
August box: July 15th
November box: October 15th
Q: WHEN WILL R.A.D. SHIP?
We aim to ship R.A.D. boxes around the middle of the month. But boxes should be shipped by the end of the month unless there are unforeseen delays.
Q: WILL YOU STILL BE DOING SPECIAL EDITION INDIES IN RC?
A: Yes, we have no plans to stop doing special edition indies in RC. R.A.D. is a completely separate project and will not change the way RC is done.
Q: WHY IS R.A.D. MORE EXPENSIVE THAN RC DESPITE HAVING NO ITEMS?
A: In addition to licensing fees, we are hiring independent artists for every part of the redesign. So on average, we are commissioning 5 pieces of art per book as opposed to the 1-2 for Rainbow Crate. The limited print run of the R.A.D. books makes these not only extremely exclusive editions, but also leads to a higher cost per book.
Q: WHEN WILL THE R.A.D. BOOK CHOICES BE ANNOUNCED?
A: The RAD themes and titles will be announced on the following schedule:
February box: December 15th
May box: March 15th
August box: June 15th
November box: September 15th
*These dates start with the November 2024 box
Q: WHAT TYPES OF BOOKS WILL BE IN R.A.D.?
A: Similar to Rainbow Crate, R.A.D. will feature an array of queer rep, but with a focus on adult stories that are spicier and/or darker than books we would choose to include in RC.
Q: HOW SPICY/DARK WILL THE BOOKS BE?
A: Each book will vary. In general, we consider these books to be most appropriate for mature audiences.
We will also include content warnings and rep lists just like we do with RC.
If you have any questions about content, please don't hesitate to reach out through email or social media for more details. We want you to be an informed reader.
Q: I'M ONLY INTERESTED IN ONE OF THE BOOKS IN THE BOX. CAN I BUY JUST THAT ONE?
A: Unfortunately, we are unable to offer the books individually. Give the second book a shot and if it’s still not to your taste, these special edition books make excellent holiday and birthday gifts!
Q: WILL THE BOOKS BE AVAILABLE IN YOUR SHOP AT A LATER DATE?
A: There may occasionally be extra sets or individual copies left over, but it won’t be often and it will be extremely limited. We order enough for our subscribers and a few extra for potential damages, and that is all. If you want to ensure you get our the books, it is best to subscribe.
Q: I DON'T WANT A CERTAIN MONTH. CAN I SKIP THE RENEWAL OR CANCEL MY SUBSCRIPTION?
A: Yes, you can always skip a renewal or cancel your subscription after your first box. You cannot skip your first box. Just keep in mind that if you cancel your subscription, you will have to join the waitlist again if we are on one.
Skipping or canceling your subscription MUST be done before the renewal is processed. We can not offer refunds on already purchased boxes, as these actions incur fees for us, and we are a small, independent queer business.
SHIPPING
Q: HOW MUCH WILL SHIPPING COST?
A: Here are shipping costs as of Fall 2023. All charges are in USD. Customers are responsible for any customs fees imposed on import.
*Updated Nov 3, 2023*
US: $8.50
Canada, China: $13.00
France, French Guiana, Germany, Guadeloupe, Hong Kong SAR, Martinique, Mexico, Réunion, South Korea, United Kingdom: $15.00
Croatia, Greece, India, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, San Marino, Singapore, Sweden, Thailand: $17.00
Czechia, Switzerland, Iceland, Gibraltar, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia: $19.00
Argentina, Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Romania, Spain, Venezuela: $22.00
Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Faroe Islands, Greenland, Vatican City, Latvia, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, St. Pierre & Miquelon, Slovenia, Ukraine: $24.00
Åland Islands, Ascension Island, Bolivia, British Indian Ocean Territory, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Caribbean Netherlands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Comoros, Cook Islands, Curaçao, Eswatini, Falkland Islands, French Southern Territories, Guernsey, Guyana, Isle of Man, Jersey, Kosovo, Malta, Mayotte, Monaco, Myanmar (Burma), Niue, Norfolk Island, Norway, Palestinian Territories, St. Barthélemy, St. Martin, Sint Maarten, Somalia, South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands, South Sudan, St. Vincent & Grenadines, Sudan, Svalbard & Jan Mayen, Taiwan, Tokelau, Turks & Caicos Islands, U.S. Outlying Islands, Western Sahara, Yemen: $27.00
Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Botswana, Brunei, Burundi, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo - Brazzaville, Congo - Kinshasa, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Honduras, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Macao SAR, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Pitcairn Islands, Qatar, Cameroon, Rwanda, St. Helena, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, Samoa, São Tomé & Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Tristan da Cunha, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, British Virgin Islands, Wallis & Futuna, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Colombia: $28.00
Austria, Indonesia, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam: $31.00
Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Hungary, Serbia: $32.00
Brazil: $34.00
Turkey, United Arab Emirates: $35.00
DAMAGES TO ITEMS AND BOOKS, REFUNDS, ETC
Q: CAN I GET A REFUND IF…?
A: All Sales are Final. We do not process refunds if you accidentally purchase a box, decide you do not want a box after purchasing, or forget to skip or cancel your subscription on time, or the box is returned to sender. We send reminder emails several days before renewals process. We know that things happen, but we cannot afford to process refunds as this actually costs us a fee from the payment processors, which is why we give you so much time and also send reminder emails. Please understand our position on this, and note that it is a standard practice for subscription boxes. There are many aftermarket places such as ebay, Mercari, Depop, and Bookish B/S/T Buy/Sell/Trade groups on Facebook where you can likely easily sell or trade your box.
Q: MY BOOK AND/OR ITEM ARRIVED DAMAGED, CAN I GET A REPLACEMENT?
A: If you receive a product that is damaged please contact us at support@rainbowcratebookbox.com with a detailed description of the damage and photo(s) of the damage.
If an item has slight cosmetic damage that does not impede the use, the item will not be refunded or exchanged.
If a book has slight damage, such scuffs, slight bending of the edges, slightly crinkled dust jackets or anything that can be considered normal wear and tear, the book will not be refunded or exchanged.
However, if a book or item arrives damaged to a degree that we deem truly damaged we will send you a new copy/item free of shipping & handling charges. Rainbow Crate is still not liable for any fees accumulated due to customs, duties, or VAT, etc.
OTHER
Q: I'M AN AUTHOR. HOW DO I GET MY BOOK TO BE CONSIDERED FOR RAD?
A: We are using the same form linked in our bio as before. You can fill that out so we have your information and can contact you when we are ready to use your book.
If you have any questions about what being included in the box entails, you can message us on social media or email danielle@rainbowcratebookbox.com
Q: I'M AN ARTIST. HOW CAN I BE CONSIDERED FOR COMMISSION TO DO AN ART PIECE FOR RAD?
A: You can fill out the artist form linked in our bio. We like using a variety of artists and styles with a range of experience.
Q: DO YOU SUPPORT PROBLEMATIC AUTHORS?
A: We do our best to stay aware of what is going on in the book community, and want our company to remain a safe space. We plan our boxes up to a year ahead of time, so there may be times when something happens too late for us to cancel a book, but we do our very very best to keep abreast in a fast-changing climate. We believe in learning and allowing room for growth when authors make mistakes, but there are some authors we have come to the conclusion Rainbow Crate will never support. That list, as of January 2023 includes: JK Rowling, Cassandra Clare, André Aciman, Meredith Russo, Jay Kristoff, Emily Duncan, Rory Powers, Christine Lynn Herman, Claire Wenze, and Bridget Collins.
We want to make it clear, however, that any authors we work with are not employees of Rainbow Crate and we have no jurisdiction over how they behave online or towards anyone else. They can promote their books however they see fit and often do separate from our own promotion. Any thoughts or opinions shared by any author we feature are their own and do not reflect Rainbow Crate's core values
If you are worried about a particular author because of something that has happened please feel free to send us the information at hello@rainbowcratebookbox.com and we will review and make a decision.