If we are honest with ourselves we all have to admit that we often judge a book by it's cover - in the very literal senses.
Certainly for me, a book cover will help me decide if I want to read the blurb of a book. Last week I was researching the best price of a book and I saw the paperback edition and surprised they were the same book, they were so different. This got me thinking of the drastic cover changes which happen between the hardback edition and the paperback. The book community goes into uproar when series change covers - and often rightly so - but I have rarely seen people complain about the hardback-paperback cover changes!
Today I thought I would share a few which I have noticed.
Synopsis from Goodreads
The comical, fantastical, romantical, (not) entirely true story of Lady Jane Grey. In My Lady Jane, coauthors Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows have created a one-of-a-kind fantasy in the tradition of The Princess Bride, featuring a reluctant king, an even more reluctant queen, a noble steed, and only a passing resemblance to actual history—because sometimes history needs a little help.
At sixteen, Lady Jane Grey is about to be married off to a stranger and caught up in a conspiracy to rob her cousin, King Edward, of his throne. But those trifling problems aren’t for Jane to worry about. Jane is about to become the Queen of England.
At sixteen, Lady Jane Grey is about to be married off to a stranger and caught up in a conspiracy to rob her cousin, King Edward, of his throne. But those trifling problems aren’t for Jane to worry about. Jane is about to become the Queen of England.
Cover Comparison
These two editions of My Lady Jane in my opinion give two completely different 'vibes'. I haven't read this book yet so all I have to go off is the blurb and the covers. The hardback (left) gives me the impression that this is a historical novel with lots of political intrigue but also expresses the humorous side of the story. While the paperback (right) reminds me more of the 'My Story' collection, some of which I read in primary school, and the cover in general makes it look like it aimed at a younger audience - not Young Adult's as it's marketed as. So, for me the hardback edition is the clear winner for me, i wish they had kept it for the paperback edition too.
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Synopsis from Goodreads
It was the kind of August day that hinted at monsoons, and the year was 1774, though not for very much longer.
Sixteen-year-old Nix Song is a time-traveller. She, her father and their crew of time refugees travel the world aboard The Temptation, a glorious pirate ship stuffed with treasures both typical and mythical. Old maps allow Nix and her father to navigate not just to distant lands, but distant times - although a map will only take you somewhere once. And Nix's father is only interested in one time, and one place: Honolulu 1868. A time before Nix was born, and her mother was alive. Something that puts Nix's existence rather dangerously in question...
Nix has grown used to her father's obsession, but only because she's convinced it can't work. But then a map falls into her father's lap that changes everything. And when Nix refuses to help, her father threatens to maroon Kashmir, her only friend (and perhaps, only love) in a time where Nix will never be able to find him. And if Nix has learned one thing, it's that losing the person you love is a torment that no one can withstand. Nix must work out what she wants, who she is, and where she really belongs before time runs out on her forever.
Cover Comparison
Again this is another book I haven't got around to reading yet, mainly because I really want the hardback editions but don't want to pay hardback prices. Overall, my main issue with the paperback (right) is that compared to the simple but dramatic hardback edition (left), it feels too busy. I don't hate the paperback but it don't give the same classy feel of the hardback cover.
Sixteen-year-old Nix Song is a time-traveller. She, her father and their crew of time refugees travel the world aboard The Temptation, a glorious pirate ship stuffed with treasures both typical and mythical. Old maps allow Nix and her father to navigate not just to distant lands, but distant times - although a map will only take you somewhere once. And Nix's father is only interested in one time, and one place: Honolulu 1868. A time before Nix was born, and her mother was alive. Something that puts Nix's existence rather dangerously in question...
Nix has grown used to her father's obsession, but only because she's convinced it can't work. But then a map falls into her father's lap that changes everything. And when Nix refuses to help, her father threatens to maroon Kashmir, her only friend (and perhaps, only love) in a time where Nix will never be able to find him. And if Nix has learned one thing, it's that losing the person you love is a torment that no one can withstand. Nix must work out what she wants, who she is, and where she really belongs before time runs out on her forever.
Cover Comparison
Again this is another book I haven't got around to reading yet, mainly because I really want the hardback editions but don't want to pay hardback prices. Overall, my main issue with the paperback (right) is that compared to the simple but dramatic hardback edition (left), it feels too busy. I don't hate the paperback but it don't give the same classy feel of the hardback cover.
Synopsis from Goodreads
No one expects a princess to be brutal. And Lada Dragwyla likes it that way.
Ever since she and her brother were abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman sultan’s courts, Lada has known that ruthlessness is the key to survival. For the lineage that makes her and her brother special also makes them targets.
Lada hones her skills as a warrior as she nurtures plans to wreak revenge on the empire that holds her captive. Then she and Radu meet the sultan’s son, Mehmed, and everything changes. Now Mehmed unwittingly stands between Lada and Radu as they transform from siblings to rivals, and the ties of love and loyalty that bind them together are stretched to breaking point.
The first of an epic new trilogy starring the ultimate anti-princess who does not have a gentle heart. Lada knows how to wield a sword, and she'll stop at nothing to keep herself and her brother alive.
Cover Comparison
I was drawn to this book purely because of the hardback cover (left). I think that these cover's in my eyes represent who I was expecting the main character was going to be - if that makes sense. The hardback - is beautiful - gives me the impression that this story was going to follow a feminine woman, (represented by the purple petals) who had a kick-ass dark side (represented by the spear). However, the paperback gives a completely different -but more accurate - impression of the main character. I think the paperback portrays her as slightly more warrior focused and heartless character.
Ever since she and her brother were abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman sultan’s courts, Lada has known that ruthlessness is the key to survival. For the lineage that makes her and her brother special also makes them targets.
Lada hones her skills as a warrior as she nurtures plans to wreak revenge on the empire that holds her captive. Then she and Radu meet the sultan’s son, Mehmed, and everything changes. Now Mehmed unwittingly stands between Lada and Radu as they transform from siblings to rivals, and the ties of love and loyalty that bind them together are stretched to breaking point.
The first of an epic new trilogy starring the ultimate anti-princess who does not have a gentle heart. Lada knows how to wield a sword, and she'll stop at nothing to keep herself and her brother alive.
Cover Comparison
I was drawn to this book purely because of the hardback cover (left). I think that these cover's in my eyes represent who I was expecting the main character was going to be - if that makes sense. The hardback - is beautiful - gives me the impression that this story was going to follow a feminine woman, (represented by the purple petals) who had a kick-ass dark side (represented by the spear). However, the paperback gives a completely different -but more accurate - impression of the main character. I think the paperback portrays her as slightly more warrior focused and heartless character.
Synopsis from Goodreads
Seventeen-year-old Emily likes her life the way it is: doting parents, good friends, good school in a safe neighborhood. Sure, she's curious about her biological father—the one who chose life in a motorcycle club, the Reign of Terror, over being a parent—but that doesn't mean she wants to be a part of his world. But when a reluctant visit turns to an extended summer vacation among relatives she never knew she had, one thing becomes clear: nothing is what it seems. Not the club, not her secret-keeping father and not Oz, a guy with suck-me-in blue eyes who can help her understand them both.
Oz wants one thing: to join the Reign of Terror. They're the good guys. They protect people. They're…family. And while Emily—the gorgeous and sheltered daughter of the club's most respected member—is in town, he's gonna prove it to her. So when her father asks him to keep her safe from a rival club with a score to settle, Oz knows it's his shot at his dream. What he doesn't count on is that Emily just might turn that dream upside down.
No one wants them to be together. But sometimes the right person is the one you least expect, and the road you fear the most is the one that leads you home.
Oz wants one thing: to join the Reign of Terror. They're the good guys. They protect people. They're…family. And while Emily—the gorgeous and sheltered daughter of the club's most respected member—is in town, he's gonna prove it to her. So when her father asks him to keep her safe from a rival club with a score to settle, Oz knows it's his shot at his dream. What he doesn't count on is that Emily just might turn that dream upside down.
No one wants them to be together. But sometimes the right person is the one you least expect, and the road you fear the most is the one that leads you home.
Cover Comparison
This book is what inspired this post, it's not so much that these two covers give such contrasting impressions, but rather that one is so generic while the other so pretty. I researched this book purely due to being drawn to the hardback cover (left), as I loved the colours and the bold font. Also, now that I have read the blurb, I also feel that it slightly more descriptive of the storyline with the motorbike? I has shocked when I saw the paperback cover (right) - had to do a double check that it was in fact the same book - this could be the cover for 1000's of contemporary romance novels, I would have completely dismissed the book if that had been the cover I'd seen.
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