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Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Cover Story: The Last Queen by C W Gortner

Following on from the Why I Love post that C W Gortner wrote for us a couple of days ago, we thought it would be fun to have a look at a few of the covers from The Last Queen.

Hardcover



Newly released paperback




Australian Paperback



Italian cover



To see other covers from around the world, check out the Books page at cwgortner.com.


Which is your favourite?
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9 comments:

  1. BlodeueddMay 6, 2009 at 4:49 PM

    Yay, I love to watch covers :D so pretty

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  2. SerenaMay 6, 2009 at 6:40 PM

    I love the australian paperback cover...the u.s. one is awful.

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  3. BurtonReview May 6, 2009 at 6:44 PM

    I also like the Australia one. The US one just doesn't seem to do the work justice. I think it is too modern.

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  4. Jen - devourer of booksMay 6, 2009 at 7:50 PM

    I prefer the US hardback cover, it looks like an actual portrait (whether it is really of Juana or not I don't know). Plus I love the way it is staged, she looks forthcoming and mysterious at the same time, it works well for a woman so steeped in rumor. The paperback covers don't do anything for me at all and the Italian cover's boob shot is getting a bit cliche for historical fiction.

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  5. The BookwormMay 6, 2009 at 9:38 PM

    I think I like the first one best.
    http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/

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  6. teabirdMay 6, 2009 at 9:47 PM

    Hardcover, definitely!

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  7. C.W. GortnerMay 6, 2009 at 11:24 PM

    Cover art is such an interesting and subjective part of the publishing process. Authors often have little say in what finally ends up on the cover; but I admit, I really like the US hardcover, too. However, I also understand that it doesn't have as wide an appeal as the new US cover for the paperback, which is designed to capture an audience that might see the hc image as too "literary." A lot of time and effort goes into cover design, but again, tastes vary and so it's quite difficult to remain impartial.

    Thanks so much, Marg, for this peek into how different publishers envision and market THE LAST QUEEN.

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  8. MargMay 9, 2009 at 12:48 AM

    You are welcome CW! It is interesting to look at other covers around the world

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  9. Teddy RoseMay 11, 2009 at 6:50 AM

    C.W. That's so funny that you should say "new US cover for the paperback, which is designed to capture an audience that might see the hc image as too "literary."

    I thought Harlequin Romance when I saw that cover. It's too bad they feel the need to "dumb down" to the general U.S. audience.

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