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Home > Books > Writer's Corner > Book Clubs > Fantasy & SF Book Club
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User Reviews

for Fantasy & SF Book Club

Rating Summary based on 16 reviews

  • 5 Stars
    		3
  • 4 Stars
    		7
  • 3 Stars
    		2
  • 2 Stars
    		3
  • 1 Star
    		1

Detailed rating

  • Catalogue
  • Variety on offer
  		• 3.7
  		• 4.0

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Previous page Next page Page 1 of 2 | 1 to 10 out of 16 Review(s)
  • 45 of 45 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of Calypte

    Level 7 Calypte

    Member since 01/08/2001

    Reviews written: 139

    4 Stars For Super Fantasy - set cynicism aside 02/09/2001
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages cheap books!

    Disadvantages Disadvantages have to order from every magazine, and I'm not fond of the club editions

    Now, I make no secret of the fact that I’m one of life’s cynics, and all these adverts for book clubs seem far too good to be true. Well, of course they are – you might get your first five for 25p each, but you have to agree to buy how many more? From what kind of choice? And for what price? Despite my reservations, though, many years ago I somehow persuaded myself to join one of these book clubs, QPD to be precise. I reasoned that as I’m a complete junkie when it comes to books and reading, I’d have little difficulty fulfilling the obligation to buy another ... more
  • 19 of 19 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of Taymist

    Taymist

    4 Stars Reading From Your Armchair 21/01/2005
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages Special Offers, Great Variety, Easy To Use

    Disadvantages Disadvantages Editors Choices, Postage Charges, Minimum Membership Orders

    I've been a member of FSF since my student days over 13 years ago and to be honest rely on it for most of my purchases. I initially joined World Books, part of Book Club Association (BCA), through a magazine advert and then, through a leaflet drop with that club, discovered FSF Book Club, also part of BCA. My first point would be that they have a long standing history as a reputable company, you aren't going to get ripped off in any way and the deals they offer are 100% genuine. Being fair to all book sellers, FSF is not quite as competitive on stand alone book offers as they were when I first ... more
  • 10 of 10 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of julia_ritchie

    julia_ritchie

    4 Stars Fantasy and SF book club 28/05/2003
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages Reduced prices

    Disadvantages Disadvantages Lack of stock consistency

    I have been a member of this bookclub for a number of years now have found it to be reasonable service and value for money. -- Joining & Commitment -- I joined the club through a friend who was already a member - the advantage of this is that the friend will receive approximately 2 free books when you join, which, if they are nice, they might split with you! Other alternatives for joining are the website or adverts in magazines etc. The internet offer seems to provide the best range of books though. The initial joining offer was exceptional value and at the start of my membership I was keen to ... more
  • 13 of 13 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of Wolf

    Wolf

    5 Stars Join the club 20/04/2001
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages Great choice, amazing prices

    Disadvantages Disadvantages You do have to comit to ordering every magazine

    I expect that many of you have heard of the idea of a book club or seen the glossy adverts in the magazines offering books for 6 books for 50p, send no money now and then free gifts on top! Then you see the conditions, you have to agree to have the dreaded "Editors Choice" if you don't order a book every 6 weeks and you have to commit to ordering at least 6 books. All these factors put people off, even if you are a serious sci-fi and fantasy fan (like me!) then having to order 6 from a blind list or worse having someone else’s choice forced on you is a nightmare. But since the bad mad ... more
  • 59 of 59 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of kelr101

    kelr101

    3 Stars Fantasy/Science Fiction Books 22/01/2004
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages Low Priced, Variety of Authors in that Genre

    Disadvantages Disadvantages Book Commitment, Editors Choice, Poor Delivery, Low Customer Service

    The Fantasy & Science Fiction Book Club (FSF) is an online and catalogue based book club, offering readers the chance to purchase Fantasy and Science Fiction books, at great savings against the recommended retail price (RRP). *Introductory Offer from FSF* I originally joined FSF in June 03, on the recommendation of a friend, and have purchased many books from the FSF website. I rarely use the catalogue to order from as I find it time consuming, and like to receive a confirmation of my order via the online ordering section. I was actually enticed, like so many before me, by the offer off: “Any ... more
  • 9 of 9 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of Gavin_t

    Gavin_t

    2 Stars Book Club mayhem 21/01/2003
    User doesn't recommend the product

    Advantages Advantages Good selection of books and cheaper

    Disadvantages Disadvantages Editor's choice

    I am an avid reader of Science fiction and Fantasy so this club definitely sounded ideal for me. All you have to do is sign up, order 4/5 books at an introductory prices and then purchase regularly from the catalogue, which is sent once every two months. Videos, special deals, collectables, were all on offer. Still interested then read on.......... Everything had been going right, so I really had nothing to complain about but when things went wrong then my perception was changed so much so I cancelled my subscription. To summarise, every so often the club will offer a signed plate by the ... more
  • 12 of 12 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of sanjurosama

    sanjurosama

    4 Stars Deals of Fantasy 16/12/2004
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages VERY good introductory deals

    Disadvantages Disadvantages obligatary ordering from each magazine

    I first discovered about this book club on the back of the Times TV guide (the Eye). The factor that attracted my attention was the stupidly good offer..... The advertisement claimed that for joining, you could purchase "The Witches Trilogy" , "The City Watch Trilogy" and "The Rincewind Trilogy" which each contain three of the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett with the added bonus of a (hardback) copy of "The Last Hero" (again by Pratchett). Pretty good value, I thought .... no Stupidly good value!!!! Then it hit me.... "whats the catch this time!" I thought. Finding no "must order bodyweight ... more
  • 18 of 19 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of huggycat

    huggycat

    2 Stars Don't be fooled...there's always a catch 18/03/2003
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages very good internet ordering service, and do not need credit card to become a member

    Disadvantages Disadvantages customer services take long time to respond to calls and emails.

    I joined the club via the net about 8 months ago. I liked the fact that you could order very easily over the web without having to make a payment up front, and there was no need for a credit card which is unfortunately the norm with this type of club, especially for me, who doesn't trust themself with such payment method! I was very pleased with my initial purchases, being a fan of star wars, Iain Banks and comic art. The selection of sci-fi books, DVD's, videos, graphic novels, special edition boxed sets was too good to be true.... You have to be careful to read between the lines, if you do ... more
  • 8 of 8 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of WickedWillow

    WickedWillow

    4 Stars Great for the cheap books. 09/11/2005
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages Wide selection of books and dvds on the website

    Disadvantages Disadvantages If you leave it too late to order a book every month they send you ones you dont want.

    I joined this book club about 4 months ago, i mainly did it for 5 books for 50p each offer. I wasnt really too bothered about having to buy a book every month because i read quite a bit, but the main problem is you have a certain amount of time in which to order your next book and if you dont order one by that date then they will send you the editors choice which is usually one to three books that come to about £20 plus delivery. Then there is the problem of having to pay £3 for a collection if you dont want the books. Its not all bad though. If you buy alot of books go for it, but make sure ... more
  • 14 of 14 Ciao users found the following review helpful
    Picture of snow_queen

    snow_queen

    3 Stars Scary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (ish) 23/01/2004
    User recommends the product

    Advantages Advantages Very good priced books, and a great introductory package

    Disadvantages Disadvantages Postage is quite high, there is a minimum membership

    An an avid Buffy fan, I joined the Fantasy and science fiction book club after a leaflet through the post, mainly for the introductory package, which, although there are different offers from time to time, was very good. I got lots of Buffy and Angel books at an unbelieavable price. It was less that 1/100th of their retail value. The price was made quite a lot higher by postage costs, which were around 4.00 (pounds sterling.) They offered a great range of titles from authors such as Tolkien, and from popular TV series' such as Dark angel and charmed. After the introductory package, I found the ... more
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