I was reading the blurb on the back and finding it strange that even though I hadn't read the book the blurb sounded very familiar. Then it struck me, Piatkus (in the UK) had sent me their edition of the book a couple of weeks earlier! Here's the cover for the UK edition...
I will be reading this tale of exorcism very soon (maybe next week) but, in the meantime, I thought it would be fun to run the two covers past you guys and see what you thought of them both. Which one do you find easiest on the eye? If you were going to order this book online, which cover would you go for? Or are you just thinking, "Meh, typical Urban Fantasy cover..."
Comments please! :o)
18 comments:
They're both pretty typical urban fantasyish, but I find the UK one less so. I'd choose it over the US cover.
The first one's laughably bad: leather-clad woman - check, tramp stamp - check, brandishing weapon - check, ominous hazy man in the background - check.
Publishers seriously cannot be commissioning this art, I think it's all spit out by some computer program gone horribly wrong.
The UK cover's bad, but it worlds better than the US version.
The UK one has far more appeal. As RedEyedGhost has pointed out, the first is laughably bad. The tattoo on her back, the skimpy outfit, even the menacing face is so cliche. Also it is cast in shades of orange and red which I feel is always very bright and confrontational.
The UK one on the otherhand is a tiny bit more subtle and the cooler blue colour is mellow and dark, inviting you to look closer.
Thanks for sharing these. It is interesting how the two countries have taken these approaches.
I'd have to say that I think they are both pretty poor but as I'd be less ashamed to be seen reading the UK cover it'd have to be that one.
The US one is really bad, i'd be ashamed to be seen with it, unless i'm a 15yo highschool girl (i'm a 31yo man).
The UK one is really boring and dull, but as nobody would really pay attention to it, at least i won't be ashamed to be seen with it.
Ohhh whatever happened to don't judge a book by it's cover, I'm sure that none of us are that shallow that we would decide what to read based purely on it's skin. lol.
Anyhoo, yes neither of the covers are particularly great but I think it shows a lot about British mentality in that even our book jackets are "reserved", whereas the American ones are much more brash, in your face and scream... "Yes, I read paranormal romance/urban fantasy but I'm not ashamed of it!"
Take the one that's on fire and using her ass as a sheath. The book is about circus performers?
Both are poor. US one is typical urban fantasy. UK one is featureless.
I agree with ediFanoB. But to choose one, I would pick the UK version. It's the better out of the two.
If I didn't know a thing about this book and I had seen it at the store with either one of these covers, I would pass them both up.
I am going to be a bit different and say I prefer the US cover. Both are fairly generic covers for urban fantasy that both scream sex. At least the US one screams sex and violence. Plus if you don't look too carefully it almost has a whole James Bond thing going for it.
Ooooo. A female James Bond? I know it must have been done before, but I'd really be interested in reading it.
Cover differences between countries is fascinating. Sometimes you wonder if they are the same book - even the blurb can be vastly different.
I am intrigued by what Orbit is doing with their authors - they use the same cover for US and UK, but with subtle differences. Sometimes a slightly brighter colour, or the title is larger or a different. Definitely the UK ones seem a tad more subdued. (Check out, say, the books of Russell Kirkpatrick on Amazon.co.uk and on Amazon.com to see what I mean.)
I like the cool blue's and blacks of the UK cover, but although i'd normally pick a UK over US in this case i'm going with the US it feels better for the title of the book.
They're both awful and give no indication of the contents, but at least the UK one doesn't look like it came out of a photocopier.
Thanks for commenting everyone! I'm still not sure what cover I would go for but I do know that I wouldn't read the US one on a packed commuter train!
Reserved? Yes I am. :o)
UK cover?Generic romance/chick-lit book,if I had to judge from the cover.
US cover?Paranormal romance novel,with at least one "shifter/vampire/vampire hunter/angel/demon tortured bad boy inexplicably drawn to the heroine" character and a mandatory number of pages detailing sex and/or the heroine's frustration at not getting it.
And no,I would not be caught carrying either in public.My masculinity's too fragile:)
Honestly, I probably would go for the US cover. I mean, the UK cover really doesn't do anything for, especially with a title of Speak of the Devil. The UK cover makes it look more like a YA angst fest than something that would be UF/PNR.
After reading the comments, I have to ask, why would people be embarrassed to be caught with a book with an....interesting...cover? More often than not, the cover doesn't really depict the book and is done up by people who haven't read the story (just a blurb).
If anything, I love the more flamboyant covers because they are conversation starters. Who knows, I may be able to convert someone to the UF/PNR side because a cover drew them to what I was reading.
Either way, if you don't like a cover, get a book jacket, but please please don't judge a book by its cover. I personally love this series and there is barely, if any, sex in them. The Tramp Stamp has been seen more and more lately, but that's the marketing dept, not the author's influence.
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