Do you love true crime? Or maybe a better (and more difficult) question is... do you know anyone who doesn't like true crime? We've become a society obsessed with murder, mysteries, whodunnits, and twisted tales of torment.
What does that say about us? Who knows, but I'm living for it. I recently tried the Hunt A Killer subscription box and it's... really cool. I'm not even just trying to shill a product here, this box is SO. FREAKING. COOL and I could not wait to write up thist post for you all. It will make you feel like an actual detective with a completely interactive experience as you explore case documents and a selection of physical and digital evidence.
So here's the nutshell: Each case spans across an entire season of 6 boxes, one per month, so 6 months of unfolding the entire case. Subscriptions are $25 a month or you can contact Hunt A Killer if you want to lock in a lower rate and purchase the entire season (all 6 boxes) all at once.
I started with the first two boxes of season 5, which covers the case of a pharmacist who was murdered on the night of his high school reunion.
We put the kids to bed, huddled together in our bonus room/office/hangout cave, put the World Series on in the background (I don't give a gust of rat's flatulence about the World Series, so that's Matt's area) and prepared to dig in. Dewey waited patiently nearby, hoping the box contained something for him.
As you can see, Dewey was utterly disappointed at the lack of toys and/or dog treats in the box. I, on the other hand, got really excited to see what was inside!
Each box in the season contains a checklist of everything inside so you can double check to make sure that you have all of the items.
This first box contained a notebook for jotting down clues and ideas as well as a booklet for getting you started with the whole thing.
There was a big thick folder full of memos, witness statements, newspaper clippings, and other documents of importance.
Want to give it a try? Click the banner above!
The fictional town of Chestnut Falls, IL was created specifically for this mystery, and the first box contained a giant map with points of interest labeled on it to give you a more visual representation of where things happened as you uncover more details about the murder.
The yearbook excerpt contained club photos, senior photos with quotes, and an autograph page. We were so determined to learn all of the names and pore over every single caption, quote, and handwritten autograph looking for hints or something that seemed fishy.
... we got kind of into it.
Everything in the box is so tangible, including this personalized koozy from the class reunion. Matt was a little obsessed with this. "I bet there's blood or some kind of body fluid in it. Or hair! Is there hair inside? A fingernail? Hey, do we have a microscope..."
The little black light was fun to try to uncover things that aren't immediately visible to the naked eye...
There was a snippet from a newspaper printed on actual newsprint, and the attention to detail is so on point that the flip side contained cut-off portions of irrelevant articles, just like it would be if you had snipped it from a real newspaper.
In addition to the items in your box, you are also given access to a website with additional info to use when unraveling the details of the case. New passwords are included with each box to unlock new files.
After making lots of notes and being sure of at least one suspect that we could rule out, we moved on to Box #2...
Ooh, actual evidence bags! In addition to the obvious fun stuff, Box 2 contained another folder with an autopsy report, more witness statements, photographs, and other newspaper cutouts. There was also a full color program from the class reunion.
Not related to the murder case, you get a fun little collectible enamel pin in each box (the HAK logo pin was in the first box, and the zombie pin was in the second)
As with the first box, we pored over every letter of information given trying to uncover possible motives or invalidate alibis.
Ooh, so one of the suspects takes a benzo? Is this a legit scrip?! Who is Dr. Foster?!
More tangible get-your-hands-dirty pieces of evidence like photos (fun to figure out who all the people are in the background, and if they matter...) and handwritten high school love letters on pretty stationery.
I was totally impressed with the quality of all of the photos. The amount of thought that went into the writing, planning, and creation of this box is mind-blowing. I've really never experienced a subscription box quite like it. Seriously, this would make an awesome gift for yourself or for your friends who love true crime. It would be fun to dive into a box or two on a date night, with friends, or heck, even by yourself with a glass of wine as your trusty sidekick.
Do you want to try Hunt A Killer for yourself? Click here!
We were sent trial boxes of Hunt A Killer to try out and share with all of you. We will receive a small compensation if you sign up using our links to HAK in the post above. Thank you for your support!
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