This is the last of my cover posts for awhile, but I figured Urban Fantasy would end it on a nice round note. As I mentioned in last week’s post on covers, Urban Fantasies tend to have a specific type. Normally the main character in an urban setting, with art that attempts to paint a picture of what happens in the book. For this post I picked out covers that I loved in the genre… but at the same time, followed the general ‘standard.’
So here we go:
Wrong Side of Dead (Pre-Order) by Kelly Meding and Kindling the Moon by Jenn Bennett
Spider’s Revenge by Jennifer Estep and Death Magic by Eileen Wilks
Urban Shaman by C.E. Murphy and Unholy Ghosts by Stacia Kane
The Awakening by L.A. Banks and Dead Beat by Jim Butcher
For all of these covers, even without knowing the author/the books themselves, I think: Urban Fantasy. Part of that is training, it’s what I’m using to seeing for this genre, but part of it is the feel they create. In a lot of these you get the sense of a ‘city/urban’ backdrop. The characters are dressed in modern clothes, there’s a feel of magic about the covers.
So tell me, do you think genres should have a set look? Do you like knowing what you’re reaching for before you even pick it up? Or would you like to see more variety when it comes to covers?
Covers totally talk to me. I have picked up many books based on their covers, especially urban fantasy (my favorite genre to read). They always have that gritty, dark, comic-book-like look to them, bringing to mind shadowed alleys and things that go bump in the night. Makes the adrenaline flow, even before you crack the spin!
I love that UF books have a look. Sure they say that you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover – but when it really is a book you’re judging, I prefer to have some clue as to what’s inside!
I’m notorious for judging a book by its cover. I know I’m not supposed to, but… -innocent whistle- Even with eBooks… I can’t resist a good cover. Thanks for stopping by!
When I’m waltzing around a bookstore or browsing Amazon, it’s covers that grab my attention. If it *looks* interesting, then I read the back or jacket flap for the description. But I do honestly believe that the cover is a very large part of whether or not a book sells! For example, I had never heard of “Clockwork Angel”, until seeing it on Shelfari, but seeing the cover sold me by about 80%. Reading the description picked up the rest of the slack, and I bought it.
Hi Wendy. Ooh, I love the cover for Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare! But exactly, when we’re wandering through a sea of books… something has to stick out and make the reader pick one up. And with a hundred books sitting on a shelf, I just can’t read all of the back cover blurbs.