08 March 2011

Cover Art Coverage: 10 new titles!

     

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
 

(Click to enlarge)

Description:

A modern-day thriller about Rory, an American high-school student who enrolls at a London boarding school for her junior year. Soon after her arrival, a series of murders begins to take place across the city—on the exact dates and in the exact style of Jack the Ripper. Rory’s ties to the killer bring her in contact with a secret paranormal branch of the British police, as they attempt to stop the mysterious killer.

  • Series: Shades of London #1
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link

  

 


No Author Comments

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

The Book Depository I love how this evokes so much of the story with just a few key elements:  the English fog, the haunting Jack Ripper in the background, and Rory curled up and vulnerable on the grass.  Love this! Ambiance, ambiance, ambiance, this cover just drips with menace and ghostly threats.  The production quality is a bit too crisp (which looks a little “homemade”), but that doesn’t detract from the overall effect. 
Previous Covers in This Series

N/A

     
The Darkest Surrender by Gena Showalter
 

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Description:

The Lords of the Underworld return in this enthralling tale of an immortal warrior determined to win and the beautiful seductress he can’t resist.


Possessed by the demon of Defeat, Strider cannot lose a challenge without suffering unimaginable pain. For him, nothing stands in the way of victory. Until Kaia, an enchanting Harpy, tempts him to the razor’s edge of surrender.


Known among her people as The Disappointment, Kaia must bring home the gold in the Harpy Games or die. Strider is a distraction she can’t afford because he as an agenda of his own – steal first prize, an ancient godly artifact, before the winner can be named. But as the competition heats up, only one prize will matter – the love neither had thought possible…

  • Series: Lords of the Underworld #8
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link

  

 


No Author Comments

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Not available for pre-order Not my favorite.  I think it’s the colors that are a miss with the blue lettering clashing with the sunset colors.  Still better than most PNR covers Just when I was about to complain about another tribal tattoo, I realized it was a butterfly.  They’re all butterflies!  I’m not familiar with this series, but I’m going to read it just to find out what inspires these beefcakes to go so dainty with their tribal choices…
Previous Covers in This Series

     
The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab
 

(Click to enlarge)

Description:

The Near Witch is only an old story told to frighten children.

If the wind calls at night, you must not listen. The wind is lonely, and always looking for company.

And there are no strangers in the town of Near.

These are the truths that Lexi has heard all her life.

But when an actual stranger—a boy who seems to fade like smoke—appears outside her home on the moor at night, she knows that at least one of these sayings is no longer true.

The next night, the children of Near start disappearing from their beds, and the mysterious boy falls under suspicion. Still, he insists on helping Lexi search for them. Something tells her she can trust him.

As the hunt for the children intensifies, so does Lexi’s need to know—about the witch that just might be more than a bedtime story, about the wind that seems to speak through the walls at night, and about the history of this nameless boy.

Part fairy tale, part love story, Victoria Schwab’s debut novel is entirely original yet achingly familiar: a song you heard long ago, a whisper carried by the wind, and a dream you won’t soon forget.

  • Series: N/A
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link
  • Publisher: Hyperion Books CH
  • Release Date: August 2nd 2011
  • Source: The Elevensies

  

 


I have heard whispers that the pretty swirling things will be glossy and the rest matte, to make you go oooooooooh.”– Victoria Schwab

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs down

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

The Book Depository I just don’t love these overly washed out YA covers that we’ve been seeing recently.  I get that they’re going for ghostly, but I just get blah. Completely over exposed, I agree, but I like the details of her lace dress and the sheers she presses against enough to compensate. 
Previous Covers in This Series

N/A

     
Touch of Frost by Jennifer Estep
 

(Click to enlarge)

Touch of Frost (Mythos Academy, #1)

Description:

My name is Gwen Frost, and I go to Mythos Acad­emy — a school of myths, magic and war­rior whiz kids, where even the lowli­est geek knows how to chop off somebody’s head with a sword and Logan Quinn, the hottest Spar­tan guy in school, also hap­pens to be the deadliest.

But lately, things have been weird, even for Mythos. First, mean girl Jas­mine Ash­ton was mur­dered in the Library of Antiq­ui­ties. Then, some­one stole the Bowl of Tears, a mag­i­cal arti­fact that can be used to bring about the sec­ond Chaos War. You know, death, destruc­tion and lots of other bad, bad things. Freaky stuff like this goes on all the time at Mythos, but I’m deter­mined to find out who killed Jas­mine and why – espe­cially since I should have been the one who died …

  • Series: Mythos Academy #1
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link
  • Publisher: Kensington
  • Release Date: July 26th 2011
  • Source: Jennifer Estep

  

 


“Pretty cool, huh? Are you ready for July yet? I am. ;-)” – Jennifer Estep

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs down

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs down

The Book Depository Sounds great, but it’s hard not to be disappointed when Estep’s UF series covers are so incredible.  The font especially just looks like an old Mary Stewart cover to me.  Holy crap, this is Jennifer Estep?  I suppose it’s not fair to give a thumbs down just because I’m used to something different from her books, but this cover is pretty forgettable all on it’s own.  Can’t wait to read the story, though…
Previous Covers in This Series

N/A

     
Wicked Pretty Things: 13 Dark Faerie Romances
 

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9781849019354

Description:

13 Tales of Twisted Faeries on the Dark Side. These are dirty, sticky and sweet stories with a Melissa Marr-ish slant, beautifully crafted and filled with alluring romance, heart-stopping danger, magic, and dark intrigue. These are modern, urban, 'tattooed' stories, not retellings of fairy tales, about beautiful, dangerous fey, or fairies and the mortals who hunger for them.

Here's the full line up: Francesca Lia Block, Brenna Yovanoff, Lesley Livingston, Jessica Verday, Rachel Caine, Seanan McGuire, Jackson Pearce, Martin Millar, Lisa Mantchev, Sophie Jordan, Tera Lynn Childs, Karen Mahoney, and Sharon Ashwood.

  • Series: N/A
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link
  • Publisher: Constable & Robinson / Running Press
  • Release Date: September 22, 2011
  • Source: Tez Says

  

 


“I will just let this beautiful cover speak for itself. :)I can't believe I have a story in an anthology alongside Francesca Lia Block… *dies*” – Karen Mahoney

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs down

The Book Depository Finally a good anthology cover after a recent slew of so-so ones.  Can’t tell if the pixelization is deliberate or just poor image quality.  Either way this is as pretty and wicked as the title. I like the model’s crystalized appearance, but the rose looks like a pale, generic center piece.  Maybe it’s the picture quality, hope the real thing comes together better.
Previous Covers in This Series

N/A

 

     

Must Love Lycans by Michelle Bardsley
 

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Description:
N/A
 
  • Series: Broken Heart Vampire #8
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link

  

 

No Author Comments

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

The Book Depository We don’t see too many chick-lit style covers featuring a solo guy.  Rarer still do they ever look more than cute.  Well done. I agree, making this fun and cartoony is a nice spin on the “shirtless man” cover. 
Previous Covers in This Series


Cross Your Heart (Broken Heart Vampires,  #7)

     
A Werewolf in the North Woods by Vicki Lewis Thompson
 

Description:
N/A
 
  • Series: Wild About You # 2
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link

  

 


No Author Comments

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs down

Not available for pre-order Very cute.  Reminds me of the intro for that movie Troop Beverly Hills This one is cute, but a little unbalanced.  I felt like WEREWOLF IN MANHATTAN subtly drew the eye to the cover model, where as in this one the fire fights for attention.  A tweak of composition is in order…
Previous Covers in This Series

     
Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
 

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Description:
N/A
 
  • Series: Castor Chronicles #3 
  • Artist: David Caplan
  • Goodreads: Link
  • Publisher: Little, Brown
  • Release Date: Oct 18th 2011
  • Source: Hollywood Crush

  

 


No Author Comments

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Not available for pre-order Wasn’t the gate the original concept for book 2?  The font is as beautiful as ever and I like the gold color choice. Well done, cohesive with the series and yet lovely in it’s own right. I don’t know if I will ever be able to tell these books apart by title, so it’s a good thing they’re color coded…
Previous Covers in This Series

Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles, #1)Beautiful Darkness (Caster Chronicles, #2)

     
Roil by Trent Jamieson 

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Description:

Shale is in trouble - the creature-filled darkness known as the Roil is expanding, consuming the land, swallowing cities whole. Where once there were 12 metropolises, now only 4 remain.


It's up to a drug addict, an old man and a woman bent on revenge to try to save their city - and the world.
File Under: Fantasy [ End Of The World | The Darkness Approaches | Addiction | On The Edge ]

  • Publisher: Angry Robot
  • Release Date: Aug 31, 2011
  • Source: Trentonomicon

  

 


“Welcome to the Roil. That’s Margaret Penn, and behind her the city of Tate. Thanks to Angelo Rinaldi for bringing it alive. I don’t get excited about a lot of things, but when someone takes a bit of your world and draws it, well, it’s kinda magical...this cover is a cracker. Thanks, Angelo. Right, well, I better get back to reading through the Roil MS. Like I’ve said before, it’ has a hell of a cover to live up to.”– Trent Jamieson

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

The Book Depository Apart from the trendiest font ever (please stop using it everyone), I love that the city background was so fully detailed.  And a girl can’t go wrong with a shotgun. Love!  I’m a big fan of the more comic book style, this looks awesome.
Previous Covers in This Series

N/A

     
Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning
 

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Shadowfever

And the stepback

image

Description:

“Evil is a completely different creature, Mac. Evil is bad that believes it’s good.”
MacKayla Lane was just a child when she and her sister, Alina, were given up for adoption and banished from Ireland forever.

Twenty years later, Alina is dead and Mac has returned to the country that expelled them to hunt her sister’s murderer. But after discovering that she descends from a bloodline both gifted and cursed, Mac is plunged into a secret history: an ancient conflict between humans and immortals who have lived concealed among us for thousands of years.

What follows is a shocking chain of events with devastating consequences, and now Mac struggles to cope with grief while continuing her mission to acquire and control the Sinsar Dubh—a book of dark, forbidden magic scribed by the mythical Unseelie King, containing the power to create and destroy worlds.

In an epic battle between humans and Fae, the hunter becomes the hunted when the Sinsar Dubh turns on Mac and begins mowing a deadly path through those she loves.
Who can she turn to? Who can she trust? Who is the woman haunting her dreams? More important, who is Mac herself and what is the destiny she glimpses in the black and crimson designs of an ancient tarot card?
From the luxury of the Lord Master’s penthouse to the sordid depths of an Unseelie nightclub, from the erotic bed of her lover to the terrifying bed of the Unseelie King, Mac’s journey will force her to face the truth of her exile, and to make a choice that will either save the world . . . or destroy it.

  • Series: Fever #5
  • Artist: N/A
  • Goodreads: Link

  

 


“… I wondered how Random House could possibly make a paperback out of the unusual acetate and board cover style they used for the hardcover. They told me not to worry—they had an idea. Did they ever!  I just received my first copy of the mass market paperback cover and it’s breathtaking.  Printed on foil, which gives the entire cover a unique foiled sheen, I think it might just be even more beautiful than the hardcover. I never would have believed I’d say that. The stepback is straight out of the White Mansion, dreamy and haunting. We see Black Mac more clearly on this cover, with dark hair, dressed in grunge leather and red silk, still not facing the camera because she’s not liking what she sees in the mirror and has no desire for anyone to look too deep into her eyes.  She knows what’s behind them now.  I find it fascinating that Random House changed her tattoo in the most intriguing way. I wonder if they think they’re encouraging me. Egging me on. Daring me to take it where it seems to want to go. Because it sure looks to me like the tips of Mac’s wings are starting to….well, unfurl.– Karen Marie Moning

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Abigail’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

Julia’s Thoughts: Thumbs up

The Book Depository What a slut.  She’ll just do any cover at this point. She looks better here than on some of the others that she flaunts in my face, but it still hurts every time she cheats on ATUF Don’t be catty, Abigail, jealous people always use the “s” word.  I love the wing tatts, lady, you look fabulous!  The stepback is awesome, too, it has a very Japanese flavor.  It reminds me of one of my favorite children’s book, Thrump-o-moto, and it proves that her hair blows both ways…
Previous Covers in This Series & the Hardcover

 

And our picks for Best & Worst…

Best

Worst

Name of the Star

image

6931344

51I9LOkog L

Which are your Best and Worst?

5 comments:

  1. Great post! The Near Witch is a pretty cover =)
    Gena Showalter covers are always hot ones!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hmmm...I wonder if I should check out the Lords of the Underworld Series 8)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I like the new Gena Showalter cover but I think the 2 covers for her Alien Huntress series are my favorite.


    Stephanie G
    Paranormal Haven

    ReplyDelete
  4. Books, Mariya, & PH - It looks like I have some Gena Showalter homework to do, yum!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I just picked up Gena's series and I'm looking forward to starting them. I didn't realize the tattoos were butterflies until Julia pointed it out :)

    ReplyDelete

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