I don’t know about you, but I often tend to buy books based on their cover. I’m not sure why I think that a great cover equals a great story, but my mind does seem to make the connection. Don’t judge a book by its cover? Well… I kinda do.
Anyway, I thought it’d be neat if I made a nice list with some of the book covers that I love, both from books that I own, and books that I want to own just because they look pretty (it does take serious commitment to not buy all the books). It’s a bit biased towards newer books, simply because they’re more present in my mind, and this list is in no way set in stone. Like, I will probably think of new books to add or change by next week. But, ah well. 🤷♀️
The Hobbit – J. R. R. Tolkien
This actually is my all-time favorite book cover. And after weighing the costs against my desire, I finally purchased this edition a couple of months ago. I’m glad I did, ‘caus I’m extremely in love with it. ❤️ I love the illustration of the Lonely Mountain, as it’s both simple, with minimal color, and yet just… beautiful. And, while it’s not part of the cover, the illustrations inside also make me happy every time I look at them. So, I’d say that was money well spent. And the story is excellent too, of course.
Dance of Despair – Kara S. Weaver
I’ve been a fan of the design of Crown of Conspiracy (the first book) as well, but I love the addition of red in Dance of Despair (and the addition of Talnovar). The colors are so vibrant; I just love the shade of blue, the detail on the sword, and the crown with some blood on it. And the almost visible faces of Shal and Tal. It’s just honestly a great design, absolutely stunning. It’s also quickly become one of my new favorite book series (see, a great cover does equal a great story!).
READ MY REVIEW OF DANCE OF DESPAIR HERE
The Girl and The Stars – Mark Lawrence
It’s a very different cover from the other two, but it’s just as beautiful. I actually bought the hardback just because I loved the cover so much (am I superficial?). The dark, mysterious vibe, with the gold lettering, and the minimal white details showing off Yaz and the stars.⭐ Amazing.
READ MY REVIEW OF THE GIRL AND THE STARS HERE
The Threshing – Tim Grahl
I don’t own the physical copy of this book, unfortunately. Just the ebook, where the cover is sadly in black and white. 😔 But I think the colors on this cover are amazing. And I love the profile of the head, which gives it a bit of a sci-fi vibe, and the red really pops against the background.
READ MY REVIEW OF THE THRESHING HERE
The Liveship Traders Trilogy – Robin Hobb
This trilogy has several editions, and while I think the typography one also looks great, I fell in love with this edition. They’re colorful, with some lovely, detailed illustrations, and there’s still enough white-space to give it a calm feel. And I like how the spines pop from my bookcase. I was sad when they didn’t have this edition, where I usually order my books, but thankfully, they were on stock on Amazon. Now I just need the time to actually read the books.
Kingdom of Souls – Rena Barron
One more for the bought but not read category. I saw this book a couple of times on Bookstagram, and I knew I had to have it. It’s very different from any other book in my bookcase, with it’s nice, soft, brown color. And I do love it when a character is displayed on the cover. It gives me a small taste of who the story will be about, and what they’re gonna be like.
The Poppy War – R. F. Kuang
This is again a book I first saw on Bookstagram, and again I bought it because of the cover. And also because the story seemed interesting. I do read the blurbs before I buy, you know. 😜 But still, mostly the cover. I like the calmness of the white background, with the vibrant popping color of the title, and the black line-art. It makes the aesthetic heart in me quite happy. And I will read it. Someday.
Blood & Honey – Shelby Mahurin
So, while the cover is pretty similar to Serpent and Dove (which I just finished reading a few days ago; so great!), I do like the colors on Blood & Honey better. I like the popping, red color and the details of the honey to it. It’s just noticeable and makes me want to buy it. Restraint is tough guys. 😂
These Violent Delights – Chloe Gong
So, I’ve recently read a review on a blog that made me sure that this is a book I will love. I already fell in love with the dark cover, with its flowers and the font, and I’m pretty sure I’ll fall in love with the story too. And just look at the detail on the sword and the golden dragon! 😍 So, I’m anxiously awaiting the release (gotta pick carefully what you’ll buy, right?).
House of Earth and Blood – Sarah J. Maas
This book pretty much dominated my Instagram feed when it came out, and for good reason. It looks freaking gorgeous. ❤️ It’s just such a beautiful color, together with the drawing of the face… absolutely stunning. I’m not gonna lie; I’ve been contemplating buying it for months now, but I know I can’t buy anything less than the hardback to get the full pretty cover experience. While it’s not that expensive, it ain’t cheap either. So, waiting ’till Christmas, I suppose.
Legendborn – Tracy Deonn
I love the colors on this one and the depiction of the character on the cover. It just gives the book some character (lame pun, I know). But it’s instantly clear that the story involves magic and a girl protagonist; I just like it that you don’t have to guess. It makes me curious to know more about her, and what kind of power she has.
Star Daughter – Shveta Thakrar
What’s not to love about this book cover? The yellow pops, giving it a real starry vibe, sci-fi vibe. And the character looks very fierce, which I love. It’s similar to the Girl and the Stars, with the black and the yellow-gold, which is always a great color combo. But Stardaughter has more detail for the character, so it’s clearer who she is, and what she looks like. It’s another book I’d love to buy at some point. Christmas can’t come soon enough. 😜
Lobizona – Romina Garber
And last but not least, I like the illustration on Lobizona a lot. It’s less realistic than some of the other covers, but I like this drawing style a lot as well. The weird little plant monsters make me wonder what the story is about, and the girl does look rather unimpressed. So I imagine she’s quite the badass.
What are your favorite book covers?
So these are a couple of books that have a cover that I love, and I am fortunate to own quite a couple of them. For the rest of them, I’ll just keep pining until I got enough cash to buy them all.
What are some covers that you love? Have you ever bought a book based on the cover?
