Winners: The random winners today are:Christine - Dirty Sexy Knitting by Christie Ridgway
Maritza - Immortal Outlaw by Lisa Hendrix
Congrats! Please send me your addresses at nalinisinghwrites AT gmail DOT com.
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Only a couple more days to go until Branded By Fire officially hits the shelves!
Fellow writer Jaci Burton posted about Branded yesterday - here's a snippet from her blog:
This book was powerful, hot, sexy, and filled with all sorts of changeling goodness...Every new book opens up this world even more to give us a glimpse into amazing worlds, incredible worldbuilding and characters you can’t help but fall in love with.And look, Romance Junkies just gave it a Blue Ribbon Favorite Award!
Today's cyber-launch party giveaways are a copy of Immortal Outlaw by Lisa Hendri
x and a copy of Dirty, Sexy Knitting by Christie Ridgway.Entry rules are the same as Monday. Leave your answer to the day's burning question and you're in. If you bring a friend or tell others about the party, I'll give you an extra entry.
Onto today's burning question: How much to covers affect your book-buying? What are some of your favorite covers--recent or otherwise?
65 comments :
Um, *scuffs toe sheepishly* covers can be my sole reason for buying. One of my very favorite covers of all time (poster, please?!) is from Anya Bast's The Chosen Sin. Yum. And I must confess to being very weak for a good Nathan Kamp cover - I bought Catherine Spangler's latest, Touched by Light, solely because of the NK cover, then tracked down and read the two previous books in that series so I could read them in order...
Unfortunately the cover does have a lot to do with it. If a cover looks good than it catches my eye, so then I'll take a closer look. If I don't like the looks of a cover, I usually pass it up. Love the cover of Jory Strong's Ghostland, your covers, Kresley Cole's, and Gena Showalter's Lords of the Underworld series, those tattoos are so sexy.
I love covers, and if one catches my eye I almost always end up buying that book. Kensington Brava usually puts out some really sexy covers, I love Shannon McKenna's and Cynthia Eden's in particular
I find covers nice, but they didn't affect me. I buy a book, because the story is interesting me.
If I went by covers, I would have missed a lot of good books in the past.
So it's sometimes nice to look at, but the cover didn't tell, if the book is good or bad.
I dont buy a book because of its cover. But a eye catching cover does sometimes make me pick up the book to see what its about. Then I might buy it.
bacchus76 at myself dot com
Covers really don't effect my choices when buying. Some covers do however catch my eye and causes me to pick up the book. One cover that I think is awesome and the book isn't out yet, is Meljean Brook's Demon Forged. Shayla Black's covers are some of my faves too.
Covers do play a part when it comes to book buying. I won't buy a book just because of the cover, but I do often times read the back cover blurb because of an eye-catching cover.
If I buy a book, the decision is usually based on recommendations and reviews. I don't really care what the cover looks like as long as the text is promising.
If I'm browing for romance books:
As much as I love seeing beefcake, if it's too blatantly sexual on the cover I won't buy it. There's probably a psychological embarrassment reason behind this. For example, your "Caressed by Ice" cover is not, in my opinion, too blatantly sexual.
If I'm browsing for other books:
I've bought a few novels only for their beautiful covers. Michelle West's book "The Broken Crown" is my best example of this. =)
Book covers have influenced me to purchase books because they look interesting or really hot! My favorite cover so far is Maya Bank's Sweet Persuasion.
I will definitely look at a book with a really cool cover or catchy title, and skip books if the cover looks too boring or cutesy, but I always read the back before buying! There are a couple that I know I've looked at 4 or 5 times because the cover is so intriguing, but the story just isn't there.
Every once in a while though, I find a book with the same cover picture as a book I already have, and I can never pass up at least checking it out :-)
A good cover is different for each individual. A cover that catches my eye may cause me to pause and read the book blurb, but the book buying power comes from the author and the blurb – no matter how ugly, embarrassing, or sexually explicit the cover. I’ve read some great authors with excellent story telling abilities, wickedly sensual romance and off the chart plot lines, but I wouldn’t be caught in public with the book because of the cheesy cover. These, I usually read at home – not in the airport.
Recent good covers – all of Larissa Ione’s Demonica series covers, Gena Showalter’s Lords of the Underworld, and Jacquelyn Frank’s Nightwalker and Shadowdwellers series.
The cover will catch my attention if I am browsing at a store...enough so that I will read the blurb and consider buying. But it does have to backed up by the story potential.
I already have Dirty Sexy Knitting so put me up for the other, please.
Hey anyone having a hard time accessing Nalini's website? For some reason I can't get on.
bookcovers: Well its more like I wanna HIDE or rip off the cover if its a bodice ripper but other than that I can't say anything in particular affects my buying a book by an author I like.
I don't choose any book y it's cover; I usually buy my books after reading previews, reviews and recommendations from frieds. But i ahve to say the covers now compared to the ones from years ago are all much more appealing, so I wouldn't even try to pick a favorite
Covers o affect my buying yes, but only in the sense that an in teresting vcover will have me reading the blurb at the back of the book. If the blurb doesn't do it for me, then just too bad. But an eye-catching cover (such as Kelly Armstrong's Canadian trade re-release of the Women of the Otherworld book) will have me pick up a book much faster (although in Armstrong's case, I've already read the series).
Erm, it's possible that I've bought books solely for the cover. Well, perhaps not solely for they had interesting synopses as well, however, I don't think I would have actually purchased them had it not been for the covers. Three that come to mind are Sally Gardner's I, Coriander, Stephen Hunt's The Court of the Air and Carla Kelly's Marrying the Captain(for the colours). Also, there are some books that I decided not to buy because I didn't like the covers. However, covers don't keep me from reading books though they may get bumped lower on my TBR list if I dislike them. Other covers I really like are Kristen Britain's Green Rider, Julie E. Czerneda's A Thousand Words For Stranger, Julie E. Czerneda's Survival and Georgia Evans' Bloody Good.
Oops, forgot to mention I already have Lisa Hendrix' Immortal Outlaw. Loved it!
I love the covers of the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by JR Ward. Sexy covers and fantastic stories too.
Chris - I haven't even read The Chosen Sin, but I've seen the cover and...YUM!
A cover may attract my attention, but the premise of the book (and the reviews it has garnered) have to hold my attention before I will add it to my TBR list. The thing that bugs me is when the covers are the complete opposite of the book. Eloisa James' Pleasure to Pleasure is a good example. I was dying to read the book...and rapt that the heroine was way curvy. However, the cover model could have been on a catwalk... I loved the book so I completely ignore the cover :)
Favourite covers...I don't know. I do like the cover of Branded By FIre though :)
I don't care for covers that are too explicit in image. I think your covers are just the right amount of sexiness. I like the most brightly colored covers, because they draw the eyes and are a lot easier to find when browsing shelves. For example, My Sunshine by Catherine Anderson.
I admit, I judge books by their covers all the time. I can't help it - who can, really? We're all influenced by colour, design, shape, etc subconciously, if not conciously, even if we don't belive we are.
Hmm...usually I prefer the covers to be without the half-naked men on the front, cause then I feel comfortable reading them in public, but some books are so damn good *cough* Psy/changeling series *cough* that I really wouldn't care what was on the cover.
I bought 'Urban Shaman' without knowing what it was about simply because I liked the cover, and I got lucky cause it was really good! But I have gotten others which I wish I hadn't, as well.
Covers definitely draw me in if I've never heard of a title. But by the same token, if I know the author or have heard good things, a bad cover isn't going to matter in the least. I think of it like 'branding' for any other product. If you try the 'pretty-looking' one and hate it, you've learned your lesson. And if you have old stand-bys, you're not going to care what it looks like on the outside.
My favorite covers are fantastical illustrations done by Kinuko Craft (check out Patricia McKillip's novels for good examples). Romance covers are some of my least favorite in the business...I'm ashamed to carry them around in public, actually!
celialarsen(at)gmail(dot)com
Without a doubt, SJ Day's Eve of Darkness series has the best cover. It's fresh and innovative...if I haven't read her book before, I would have snapped it up anyways. But usually, I tend to shy away from covers with very embarrassing covers. I would just buy it in ebook version.
I do have to admit that a cover can influence my purchasing a book. If the cover is eye-catching...it draws me to it and then I pick it up and if the backcover blurb grabs my attention...then into the cart it goes.
Some covers I have really loved are Adrian Phoenix's A Rush of Wings and Larissa Ione's Demonica series. Actually, there are just tons that have grabbed my attention.
Happy Fourth of July everyone.
Only 2 more days!! I can't wait!
Okay covers always influence me, hey that's why I picked up Slave to Sensation!
some of my favorites are from Patricia Briggs books, Yasmine Galenorns books, Alyssa Days books, so on and so forth, and of course Nalini's books!
when I'm buying eBooks, the covers don't make a difference. When I'm buying books in print format covers definitely play a huge part if I am purchasing books especially for a new-to-me author. If it is a favourite author then I like the covers of any books in a series to match. I hate covers that are cartoonish e.g the UK editions of Julia Quinns' Bridgerton series - I absolutely hate them and wouldn't buy those particular editions.
One of my favourite covers is the cover for Elizabeth Vaughans' Warprize.
Covers that catch my eye can help me to purchase a read.
I may pick up a book because of the cover, but then I'll read the synopsis on the back of the book, and if it doesn't appeal to me, I won't buy it. However, there have been times I bought a book, read it, and, if it had a pretty cover, hung onto it even if I didn't like the book. A recent book which I though had a lovely cover was The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan. I also adore the cover for Sharon Shinn's Summers at Castle Auburn; luckily both books are also really good!
I´m addicted to impressions. - So cover`s have, of course, an influence of me. But more in the way of become attentive to an new author or book. Up to date I wouldn`t buy a book only why the cover looks good.
(I`m heald of this mistake:-). - Unfortunately there are much too many books, whose cover deviates completely from the content.).
If I see it neutral, than there`re many good covers on the book market.
Of your covers I like "Slave to Sentation" (the cat eye`s of the model) and "Blaze of Memory" (the motion in the picture).
~Eva
P.S.: I do not participate in the drawing.
Covers tend to be important if I am browsing. For me I tend to get more cuaght up in the darker books with almost gothic covers but flashy things also have away to get my attention. My fave cover of the Psy/Change books is Mine to Pocess. However if it is a book that is not by Nalini Singh it would have to be my Legend of Drizz't collection 1 book. Its all purpley with a hot drow on it.
I do have a weakness for covers, but I would never buy a book cos of them. A great cover makes me pick up the book, a bad cove makes me walk past it.
Bad covers would be most fantasy covers in Finnish, oh the Harry Potter ones are horrific. Dunno how anyone can pick up the.
Great covers, so many, but I did get a little obsessed with Sea Lord by Virginia Kantra recently
A cover I like or catches my attention can get me to pick up a book, but I don't buy just by cover, will still read blurb and/or excerpt and then decide.
A cover sort of has to speak to me. I bought books because the cover spoke to me, usually it works very good that way. For example the books from Michelle Bardsley, the covers are funny and the books I've read so far are also very funny.
Btw, I received my copy of Branded by Fire yesterday, it was the perfect birthday gift. In between making cake I am reading it today.
Great covers make me look twice and if the blurb is interesting I'll buy the book!
I like your covers, and any cover with Nathan Camp...
Nice covers may catch my eye but the story is the primary reason for buying a book.
I must admit sometimes a cover will put me off buying a book unless someone I trust has reccommended it to me before I've seen it. The oens that do turn me off buying are the cutesy cartoony ones for romances (I can't get past the childishness of them).
However I have also been known to buy a book because the cover attracted my attention enough to make me read the blurb. Hot men or interesting amalgam pics of animals and people are most likely to be the ones that catch my eye.
I will read the synopsis of a book because of a cover, if it draws my attention. But I wouldn't buy a book just because of a cover.
Covers don't affect me too much...it is the first impression of a book, yes, but never enough to make me buy or not. A good cover is the first thing that draws me in, but then I'll read the synopsis and if that sounds good, the first page. A cover that I don't like will have more of an effect, because I might not make it to reading the back cover. I really like some of the covers on JR Ward's BDB books. Also,
Oops, not sure what I was planning to say with the also!
The cover can be a reson why I buy it or don't buy the book. Even it is sounds interesting. I hate it the most when a face takes up the whole cover. oohh, when there is a couple on the cover and the woman has blood hair and the guy has black - when in the book the woman is a red head and the the guy a blond. I hate that just a much. Its then you realize who every came up with the cover, never really read the book.
(would like immortal outlaws)
Covers are important, but now always the deciding factor of whether or not a purchase a book. Sometimes, I buy the hot covers, sometimes the silly covers, and sometimes ones that appeal to the funny and cartoony side of me.
I find I like to read in order, so I have been known to purchase all of a set at one time.
My favorite covers are Jocelynn Drake's Dark Day Series or Kim Harrison's Hollows Series. I love paranormal/urban fantasy!
Dottie :)
Covers do not influence me but there are some I really do like. "Breaking Dawn" from Stephenie Meyer for example. I don´t know who created it but it´s great. The cover of "The Shadow of the wind" is amazing, too. I like it, when they are creative. No matter if they are painted of photographed.
Back in the day, a cover used to affect what I would, or rather wouldn't, read. Now I choose books based on reviews and word-of-mouth.
But my favorite covers recently have been from the Larissa Ione Demonica series. Gorgeous!
A cover doesn't make me buy, but it can make me pick the book up and see what it is all about. My favorite covers include Touched by Light and Mercury's War. Lora Leigh's Breed books have some very good covers.
I don't buy covers, but they definitely play a part in whether I want to know more about the book or not. Some recent favorites:
Shiloh Walker: Fragile
Michele Hauf: The Highwayman
Diana Rowland: Mark of the Demon
Jessa Slade: Seduced by Shadows
Rob Thurman: Deathwish
It's not what's on the front that counts for me..though I can appreciate a hunky bod : ) but the back...what's written by the publisher and if it's something that peaks my interest (such as CbI which was the first book I read in the Psy/Changling series) then I'm all over it. And if that book hooks me in...I'm at the bookstore the very next day getting the rest of the series.
I just love your books. Can't wait to get this added to my collection. Have the whole series. Keep up the good work.
Covers do have some influence on what I buy. Alot of the time I will scan over the books and if one catches my eye I will pick it up and look at it. One example is your Angels' Blood book. That book caught my eye in Walmart with that platinum blonde on the cover and the colors. It is one of my favorite covers becasue it just stands out.
Where can I post comments on Branded by Fire? I got the book, read it and desperately need to comment somewhere!
Thanks guys.
I won't buy a book solely based on a cover. However, when I look through my TBR pile, the ones with the most eye-catching covers tend to get read first. The covers I am attracted to...I like my eye-candy. If there's any part of a man bared on the cover, it attracts my attention. Examples include yours, Jacquelyn Frank's, and Gena Showalter's.
Sometimes a cover, usually one where there's a hot guy on it (lol), jumps into my hands at the bookstore. I still, though, go home and find an excerpt to make sure it's something I'd like before buying. I can't say I've ever bought a book based solely on that.
I don't pay much attention to the covers. I buy by author or recommendation.
I don't usually buy books because of the cover. It's the blurb that gets my attention. Having said that, I do love the look of a gorgeous cover. I usually love covers in Fantasy books -- they're usually my favorite.
A recent cover that I just thought was gorgeous and not Fantasy -- the cover of Don't Tempt Me by Loretta Chase, a historical romance. They're not usually my favorite covers, but I liked this one. :)
Hi! Covers mean a lot to me, I've been known to buy a book just for its covers. One of my favourite 'new' cover is one of Sheila Roberts' book called Love in Bloom
I will pick up a book to see what it is about if it has a nice cover but the cover doesn't influence my decision to buy a book.
I will not buy a book just from the cover but I will pick one from the local library.
The latest one I picked included: ViH, Dead until Dark (by Charlaine Harris), HeartMate (by Robin D. Owen).
:) As sad as it is to say...I buy books all the time for the cover!! :) The hotter the cover....sometimes it's directly in my basket! :)
One of my current favorite covers is "Flat-Out Sex" by Erin McCarthy. Ooh la la!
rachie2004 AT yahoo DOT com
LOVE covers! I've definetly been known to buy a book...just this weekend I bought the new Lora Leigh book "Wild Card" b/c of the yummy cover. Her books are good, but i Hadn't tried her contemporaries yet...but it's def. in my TBR pile now! :)
lyoness2009 @ Hot Mail (dot) COM
I usually go to a bookstore with a certain purchase in mind (like I will be next week ^_^). A good cover catches my eye and that is why I splurge on books. Covers tend to be my weakness for unplanned book buying.
I don't think I have a favorite cover per say, but I am only attracted to covers with models on them. I much prefer seeing someone and wondering who that character is than some abstract photo.
Chris, I love Nathan Kamp's covers for Karen Marie Moning's Highlander series!
Kajri - a spoiler thread will be open soon where you can discuss Branded. Also, Katherine at the fan forum (link on the contact page of my website) will be setting up a spoiler discussion over there, too. :)
I love this question. Yes, covers do matter, however, it isn't a deal breaker for me at the cash register if I know the book is going to rock.
Sometimes, I am embarassed by the cover of the book I am reading when I am enjoying coffee and my favorite hangout. I am desperately looking for a cool book cover for paperbacks.
I love the cover of "Lover Avenged", "Slave to Sensation", "Seduced at Midnight", and "Dead and Gone".
I have to say that I don't do much buying at stores, so I don't really look at covers. I get my books via recommendations from friends and buy them online. With that, if I am at a bookstore and a book has a really "cheesy" cover, I don't get it - I'll buy on line!!
I really like the covers from Larissa Ione's Demonica series - HOT!!! but not cheesy!
Thanks Nalini, I will look for that...btw I got a bone to pick with you with regard to you know who and the new you know who and not who it should be...lol.
If you got that, I'll be amazed....
I wish covers didn't affect my book buying, but they do...
I find the nekkid dudes on many of today's bks off-putting. Sometimes they look more like porn than rom novels. It's often a nice view, but I don't really want to be seen reading the books.
Fave covers: Nora Robert's Circle Trilogy; Bet Me; Jacquelyn Frank's books; Angel's Blood.
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