Sometimes you want to wait for reviews before you commit.

Did you all already know that Diana Wynne Jones’ last book has been completed by her sister Ursula?

I didn’t know that till I saw this post over at Charlotte’s Library.

So, yeah, ISLANDS OF CHALDEA.

This is the UK cover on the left and the US cover on the right. Which do you prefer? Normally when there is a choice between the UK / US covers of a book, I wind up preferring the US cover, so as far as that goes I guess I am just another sheep following the herd.

BUT this time I really prefer the UK cover by kind of a lot. Curious, but there it is.

So who plans to rush out and buy this DWJ + Ursula Jones book? And who plans to wait for reviews?

I personally can’t help but be suspicious when a *family member* is asked to complete an unfinished work by a well-known author. I can’t help but feel it might have been a better idea for the publisher to ask someone who is already known to write with a kinda-sorta similar style to do the job of completing the work. For DWJ, I would have thought of Francis Hardinge. I have seen a DWJ-Hardinge comparison more than once, and given the one book by Hardinge that I’ve read (FLYTRAP), I agree.

And if Hardinge wasn’t interested, I bet I could come up with other authors if I tried. Um. Nina Kiriki Hoffman?

Anyway! I’ll be watching reviews with interest.