ASHES Gets a New Look–and SHADOWS, revealed!
As I mentioned last week, yesterday Mundie Moms hosted an exclusive cover reveal for both the new ASHES paperback (coming in August) and SHADOWS (due out 9/25/12). The lead-up was great fun–lots of tweeting, FBing, excited fans–and now I get to share these covers with the whole wide world.
Be interested in what you think, too.
You remember the post I did about a month ago comparing the various treatments ASHES has gotten overseas? Well, take a peek at the old ASHES look
and now compare it to the new look ASHES will assume in paperback
and, finally, SHADOWS.
I'll be honest. My first response was a Scooby-Doo uh-wuh? I'd grown very attached to my creepy-weird, gender neutral original cover. The new look felt . . . whoa, wait a second. I LIKED being creepy-weird, you know? But I DO remember that when I first that original cover, I'd been a little concerned about the lack of color. As it turned out, that was a legitimate concern. With the all-black/gray tones, the book got lost and easily overlooked. *I* missed it once because it was the last one on the shelf and, literally, in shadows/overshadowed by books on either side. So the addition of a little bit of color for that eye-pop is important from a purely grab-your-attention sense.
Most fans like the new direction. They really respond to the colors, like the air of mystery. Many, however, prefer the older, starker look. Both camps feel that each cover tells a different kind or piece of the story.
So what do you think? Does the new look speak to you? What kind of story does it promise? Are you intrigued? Indifferent? Turned off? What qualities in a cover appeal to you?/span>
newest »
They look fantastic! I like the swirly smoke and the colors make them really stand out! Also, the vertical title will make people stop and go *head tilt* SO excited for the release of Shadows, you evil cliffy queen! :D
Heh. Evil is my day job ;-) Glad you like them, Liz!
Woohoo! I definitely prefer the new cover. Can't wait until Shadows hits shelves!
I love the new cover! It looks great! I'm reading ashes right now and can't wait for shadows. :)
Kaci and April, I'm glad to hear it! Cover changes are always dicey.
Kaci wrote: "I love the new cover! It looks great! I'm reading ashes right now and can't wait for shadows. :)"So stupid me...see above--or below. I'm on my phone. :P
April wrote: "Woohoo! I definitely prefer the new cover. Can't wait until Shadows hits shelves!"April, as with Kacey...I was clueless. So see my comment above. :P
Gawd, you's think I'd get Kaci's name right in my second reply. Sorry. It's been a long day.
I like both covers. The new one will definately pop and grab more people's attention. Lots of people judge books by covers. I love the first ASHES cover now. I am ashamed to say that I only had enough money to buy one book when I first saw it. So I picked up the cheaper and more colorful of the two books I was debating on.Jeff Hirsch's The Eleventh Plague. The very next pay day I went out and bought ASHES. I just couldn't get the blurb out of my head. It was stuck in there so hard I had a hard time enjoying The Eleventh Plague (which was great) because I kept thinking that ASHES book sounds amazing. Glad I went back and bought it.
Ilsa wrote: "Gawd, you's think I'd get Kaci's name right in my second reply. Sorry. It's been a long day."That's ok. Kaci is kinda just a nickname anyway. :)
Ilsa wrote: "Gawd, you's think I'd get Kaci's name right in my second reply. Sorry. It's been a long day."Yeah, but . . . :
Some writer ;-)
Glad you did, Lori :-) So much for not judging a book by its cover but what's between the boards ;-) But who doesn't reach for something pretty?But I love the first cover, too. Think of it this way: it's a collector's item!
Yeah.I definately learned my lesson NOT to do that any more. There we several other books that make me go by blurb and reviews alone now.
See, and this is what we lose if we do away with physical books and the venues in which we can hold them in our hands, leaf through, pick and choose what we want to preview as opposed to having someone else decide what we can and can't see.
I prefer the English cover for Ashes, to be honest.But im so glad Shadows has a cover, so excited to read it! :)
Katherine wrote: "I prefer the English cover for Ashes, to be honest..."Yes, Quercus did a great job, didn't they? I really love those sepia tones--AND I know what the English SHADOWS cover looks like, too ;-) VERY beautiful.
Nice cover! This seems to be the new thing with cover designs; they're always being changed. It's like with Delirium and Pandemonium.
I really loved the old cover, but i think the new one is great too! i seriously cannot wait until "Shadows"! You're such an awesome author.
Alein wrote: "Nice cover! This seems to be the new thing with cover designs; they're always being changed. It's like with Delirium and Pandemonium."LOL. Yeah, I think it's a marketing thing. But I'm just happy the book's out there. :-)
Gabby wrote: "I really loved the old cover, but i think the new one is great too! i seriously cannot wait until "Shadows"! You're such an awesome author."I ADORE the old cover, but I do like the colors for SHADOWS. The old cover unfortunately disappeared into bookshelves because of all that black and gray. I think the idea is to have that pop of color. Anyway, glad you like it!
