Do you see what I see?
Below are some book covers that look similar to me.
Sentinel by Jennifer Armentrout and Looking for Alaska by John Green are both sending up smoke signals. Although these covers are similar, their stories are not.
Even the titles of Golden by Jessi Kirby and Steal my Sunshine by Emily Gale sound like they're basking in the light.
The girls on the covers of Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver, The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder and Where it Began by Ann Redisch Stampler like to lie on the grass. (PS. It's almost always lie and not lay.)
The YA genre is rife with covers of girls in prom dresses. I'm getting lazy and am not going to name all of these. But this doesn't even scratch the surface of the madness. However, rarely does the heroine actually wear her cover dress.
Red appears to be the seasonal choice of attire. Or is it desire?
1) That City of Bones cover is one of the best movie tie ins that I've seen. I think I like it better than the original featuring Jace. (Although I do love Jace)
2) I like this cover of The Burning Sky MUCH better than the finalized version. Do you think it was changed because of its similarities to the TMI cover?
Did you know that Jennifer Rush, the author of Erased (and Altered), took the photo on the cover of Jennifer Armentrout's Frigid? I don't think it's the same abs model though.
Shhhhhh. If you don't tell, I won't. The characters on the covers of Perfect Scoundrels and Pantomime are good at keeping secrets.
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1) I know there's been a lot of discussion recently about book covers and gender, and I'm not going to go into all of that here. But, I think it's pretty clear that 95% of the books on this page were written for girls to enjoy.
2) Which of the covers on this page most appeals to you? Are any of them turnoffs?
3) Do you wish you looked as good in a a fancy dress as these YA heroines do?
1) I know there's been a lot of discussion recently about book covers and gender, and I'm not going to go into all of that here. But, I think it's pretty clear that 95% of the books on this page were written for girls to enjoy.
2) Which of the covers on this page most appeals to you? Are any of them turnoffs?
3) Do you wish you looked as good in a a fancy dress as these YA heroines do?
NOTE: I've been collecting images ever since people mentioned they wanted to see a Six Degrees of Separation post with covers (though this isn't exactly that), but it's nowhere near as cool as Heather @ The Flyleaf Review's The Doppelganger Effect (part II) from last week. Don't miss her awesome post and the creeeeppppppyyyyyy banner.
Heck yes, I wish I had those dresses to prance around in LOL. Ah, this post made me laugh though because picking out cover similarities is like my secret hobby. It's so interesting to really study them and think "Hey, I saw that before..." I have noticed they are moving out of the YA girls in dresses theme though, I haven't seen too many new books like that. Fun post!
ReplyDeleteAlise @ Readers In Wonderland
Good point! A lot of these are series that are ending (or have ended). I haven't seen as many new series with that design either. As pretty as those dresses are, I definitely hope covers are going in a different direction.
DeleteI'm so over the pretty dress covers although I do love the covers of Juliet Immortal and Everneath. You and Heather both have fun cover features. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteLoved Heather's post! I do like the dress covers *ducks* -- if they fit the book. But if there is NOWHERE in the story that the girl puts on a long flowy dress and stands on a rock, then I object!!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for stopping by! Jen @ YA Romantics
I agree with everything you said and I think most of these I'd just walk right by in a store since they're all so very similar. I hate the Sentinel cover though. It's just... So weird to have this cover where there's almost nothing going on and most of it is blank with a black background. It's not appealing to me at all. I like Everneath series' covers for instance. I do think most of the YA covers are for girls since boys in that age don't read that much. Maybe that's why they changed the Across the Universe covers. To appeal to boys? Idk. Hahaha. I think most of us would love to look as good as the girls on these covers ;-)
ReplyDeleteI do like the old cover of The Burning Sky so much more. I saw something about because it didn't fit the title? But I don't know. The new cover doesn't grab my attention. Still look forward to reading it though. I noticed a lot of sunglasses trend. And yeah, the pretty dress is WAY popular. Sometimes it works and sometimes it just doesn't fit at all. I love this post!
ReplyDeleteOH yes, the girls wearing dresses theme on covers lasted a very long time. And while gorgeous, it was always frustrating for me when those images pretty much had nothing to do with the story itself. I like when a cover/design reflects the events happening on the pages, isn't that the purpose? BUT, having been a designer and worked a lot with marketing teams, there are certain things that just sell better regardless of whether or not it relates to the book, and I'm guessing some of those things involve beautiful girls in beautiful dresses:) I know I'm a sucker for those covers, so it obviously works!
ReplyDeleteThe dress covers are annoying. Dresses are pretty, but if they're not relevant I don't see the point. I really like that City of Bones cover!
ReplyDeleteI love both your post and Heather's, especially because I've noticed these same similarities recently. Funnily enough, the sole reason I was so eager to read Steal My Sunshine was because its cover reminded me of Golden, which I loved. Great post, Lauren! :)
ReplyDeleteThat's hilarious, and so true! I can't tell most novels apart by their covers, if my latest browse through the library's YA section the other day was anything to go by.
ReplyDeleteI've seen a lot of posts like this lately. It must be bothering others as much as it is me. Is there no originality anymore?!? :P I am sooo over the girls in pretty dresses, ESPECIALLY when there's no occasion in the book where said girl actually WEARS a pretty dress. False advertising, man. :) Great post. I'll have to check out Heather's too.
ReplyDeleteFantastic post, L! You know I am a very visual person, so cover posts, especially covers that carry the same theme, always intrigue me! And thanks for the linkage back to mine:)
ReplyDeleteSentinel and looking for alaska do look exactly the same! I'm pretty much over the girl-in-dress phase. Those covers used to catch my eyes, but not anymore.
ReplyDelete