I've been pretty blessed by the cover fairies recently -There was the one for Kept For Her Baby which looked like this.
This one made some great bookmarks that everyone has loved when I've sent them out.
There was the lovely one for Mistresses Shackled By Rubies - even if she does seem to be shackled with pearls rather than rubies in this picture.
And then there is the brand-new 3 in 1 By Request Claimed by
the Sicilian, which I've already said I really love. And as I've just got my hands on the book, I have to say it looks even better in reality.
Just this week, I was shown the article in Romance Magazine which has the cover of my July book - The Good Greek Wife? to illustrate it, and I was thrilled.
Thanks to Amazon, I can show you what that one looks like now .
It's really caught some of the atmosphere of the book. That bed is an important part of the story - and not just because of the obvious. And the fact that you can see the sea through the window picks up a central thread of the plot too.
I can see this one on some new bookmarks soon . . .
But I'll have to admit that I'm not particularly keen on the cover art for The Konstantos Marriage Demand. The characters are as I described them ( believe me, that isn't always the case!). Sadie's dress is just right. The scene is exactly where I set it It's intense enough in their fierce concentration on each other. But . . . I just can't get on with it.
Anne McAllister and Michelle Reid don't agree with me. They both tell me they like it fine and what am I fussing about? So it must just be personal preference.
Or perhaps it's the fact that this picture makes Sadie look scarily like my mother when she was young and considering the way this scene develops that's perhaps not the best thought to have in my head.
But it did make me wonder what you feel about the covers these days. Some of them have changed, some remain the same. The new designs - for Romance, Medicals, By request etc have been out for a while now. I've heard that there may be further re-vamps coming up but that has yet to be confirmed.
So what do you think of the designs we have now?And how much does the cover affect you choice of a book - to buy or ot to buy? Just wondering.
10 comments:
Kate - I think the covers are SO important. I often read a book and go back and look at the cover art and say - what? I read a book by Amy Andrews recently where they appeared to have ignored the description of the female lead and that really annoyed me. Titles can be annoying too, when they really don't reflect the sotry behind the book. Am I beginning to sound like a complete pernickety witch? On the other hand, the cover of Natalie Anderson's latest made me pick it off the shelf and buy it without ever looking at the back blurb. Incidentally, I read somewhere that yellow covered books sell really well? Seems strange, but wonder if it's true?
When it comes to my M&B I'm a author and blurb girl, the first time I take notice of the cover is in a checkout line while I'm waiting to buy the books ;)
Hi Kate - I saw Mistresses Shackled by Rubies on the shelf at Tesco yesterday and was drawn to it instantly. It's a lovely cover, so much so that it's now sitting on my bedside table waiting to be read. Have a good Sunday. Love Caroline x
Hello Susan - really - yellow covers? Hmm. . .I just checked my bookshelves for the books I bought recently - blue,white (a lot of white - and really a lot of blue) . . .pink . .
I'm finding it hard to find a book with a yellow cover. I don't have many - except for some Japanese translations and of course the 12 POint Guide. I remember that once upon a time M&B put out the Romance line in a yellow cover design - it clearly wasn't terribly successful as it didn;t stay around for long. Mind you it was a screamingly acid yellow!
You have me intrigued now - I shall be looking for yellow covers all over!
I agree Lacey - I grab a book because of the name of the author - particularly for M&B .
But sometimes an intriguing cover will have me picking a book off the shelf. Then the back blurb has to make me want to keep it in my hand.
But it's interesting how covers that are so much the same can sometimes really work and at others totally not.
Hello Mrs Hartin!
Yes I saw Mistresses out in Tesco this week too - it does look such a classy cover. I sometimes wonder if it looks like a Historical title.
Hope you enjoy my part in it when you read it. I know I got a lot of mail from readers of Her Secret Bridegroom. Vincenzo was very popular
Covers do attract me and entice me to purchase the book. I understand that authors have little say over how the covers are done, but since authors are neither artists nor photographers, I can also understand how it is hard to get the latter to picture just what an author would like. There are bound to be times when an author is delighted when seeing a new cover for their book and other times when they are disappointed. I hope you are delighted most of the times.
Kate. your books were always favorites of mine and I look forward to many more.You have a lot of celebrating to do since 1984 and I also have some but in a different way. That was the year I had a stroke and was not suppose to live. I have truly enjoyed the past 25 years and so glad I had a second chance. susan L.
Kate - I'm joining this a wee bit late sailing through your blog. Nice blog btw. I have left comments on the HQ blog about covers and titles.
However, there is nothing worse, for the reader, than a couple who bear little or no resemblance to what the author has written. The creative effort an author invests in their characters is appreciated by the reader and they 'see' the characters in their mind. The cover can throw the reader out of the story.
I'd like the covers and titles to have a wee bit more class. Carina, the online publishing part of HQ have put on their site new covers for the launch in June. They are stunning. I'm wondering if it might give you a 'heads up' on what may be coming to a book near you!
Christine Carmichael. (stalker lol)
I knew that I'd seen one recently! It's a "wee cracker" as my granny would say.
Anna Campbell's My Reckless Surrender - gorgeous yellow cover
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