Cover reveals for two awesome series-Emma Mills' WITCHHUNT and Laura Lam's SHADOWPLAY

Exciting news for two series that I really love-we have covers for the next books in the series!

First up is Emma Mills' Witchblood series-the final novel in the series, WitchHunt, has a cover.

I like the way all the covers in the series look together-pale face with bright eyes is a nice theme when done with different colours.


Blurb-contains mild spoilers for Witchlove

‘I know it’s selfish, but I don’t want you to go,’ Daniel said, a couple of minutes later.

I looked at him and smiled.

‘I’ll be fine, I will.’

‘You’d better be. I don’t know what I’d do without you. Those months I stupidly spent apart from you… they were torment for me,’ he said.

‘They were torment for me too.’

As the Christmas season is ripped apart by the news that Jess’ old friend Alex has been turned into a vicious killer, festivities are dropped, Jess returns to England and the hunt begins. But Alex isn’t the only one being hunted, for Mary has found a way to extinguish the entire bloodline of Malden witches, and it is Jess’s book of shadows that’s the key. As things hot up, Jess finds she must leave Daniel and the safety of Manchester in a final hunt for her nemesis, Mary. In a fight-off that only one of them can survive, loved ones will fall… daemons will rise… but who will survive?‘I know it’s selfish, but I don’t want you to go,’ Daniel said, a couple of minutes later.

I looked at him and smiled.

‘I’ll be fine, I will.’

‘You’d better be. I don’t know what I’d do without you. Those months I stupidly spent apart from you… they were torment for me,’ he said.

‘They were torment for me too.’

As the Christmas season is ripped apart by the news that Jess’ old friend Alex has been turned into a vicious killer, festivities are dropped, Jess returns to England and the hunt begins. But Alex isn’t the only one being hunted, for Mary has found a way to extinguish the entire bloodline of Malden witches, and it is Jess’s book of shadows that’s the key. As things hot up, Jess finds she must leave Daniel and the safety of Manchester in a final hunt for her nemesis, Mary. In a fight-off that only one of them can survive, loved ones will fall… daemons will rise… but who will survive?

Released 4 November 2013

Emma has a  website, twitter, goodreads, and Facebook.

 There's also a  giveaway to gain likes on Facebook. It's easy to enter, so go for it!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now for Laura Lam's Shadowplay.

Blurb: The circus lies behind Micah Grey in dust and ashes.

He and the white clown, Drystan, take refuge with the once-great
magician, Jasper Maske. When Maske agrees to teach them his trade, his embittered rival challenges them to a duel which could decide all of their fates. People also hunt both Micah and the person he was before the circus--the runaway daughter of a noble family. And Micah discovers there is magic and power in the world, far beyond the card tricks and illusions he's perfecting...
A tale of phantom wings, a clockwork hand, and the delicate unfurling of new love, Shadowplay continues Micah Grey’s extraordinary journey.


IT'S SO PRETTY. I like the little details on the cards and the makeup.
I really can't wait for this.

Laura has a blog, twitter, and facebook.

Guest Post-How Book Covers are Created by Levi Stack

While skimming over book covers on shelves or scrolling through them online, have you ever wondered how these works of art are created? How illustrators collaborate authors? How artists reinvent the heart and life of a story – only in a different medium? I’m writing to give you an inside look at that unique process. I was lucky enough to work side-by-side with my illustrator, Owen William Weber, so you’ll get to see firsthand what went into the artwork of my award-winning novel, The Silent Deal.

Here’s a summary to give you a feel for the story:

When Viktor and Romulus, two peasant boys in the Russian Empire, dig too deep into their town’s strange past, they awaken the wrath of a mysterious overlord. On a quest for answers (and survival), the blood brothers navigate gambling parlors, Gyspy camps, and dark forests full of wild animals and men alike. But can they escape the deathly experiments their foe is creating in Staryi Castle?

So you get the idea – this is an Old World story, stuffed with thieves and beggars all the way to the fortune-tellers and fire-jugglers of the Romani Gypsies. This is important to recognize because it’s essential to match the time period of the story to the appearance of the cover. If I had written a flashy modern story, I might have a pop art style cover, but because I wrote historical fiction, I wanted an older medium, and an oil painting seemed like the perfect choice.

This is where Owen William Weber came in. He’s an excellent painter, and after viewing his gallery, I immediately wanted him to do the cover art. Because the book deals so much with gambling, I requested the book’s cover resemble a king of spades playing card, with Viktor and Romulus, the two main characters, displayed as the king figures. Owen read my descriptions of the characters, and came back with several potential designs.

We agreed the fourth design was the most balanced, so Owen did a more detailed sketch, including attributes of both the characters. Romulus keeps a wolf as a pet, and carries blades throughout the story. Viktor is the son of a miner, and has to dig for buried items in certain scenes, hence the shovel. Both boys experiment with explosive weapons, as their enemy has banned firearms in their town.

I loved the sketch, but we both agreed that because Viktor and Romulus are serfs, their clothing needed to be rougher and less detailed. They also needed to look a bit younger. Owen carried out one more sketch, and this time it was perfect, save for the fact that we favored Romulus’ face from the first sketch.

The last step was for Owen to actually complete the oil painting. We agreed that rich reds and greens would give the book an older feel, so he handled the color scheme, and finished the work. After the typography was carried out, the cover art was finalized.

I hope you enjoyed this inside look at how a book cover is created! If you want to read The Silent Deal, it’s available on Amazon. Or if you want to learn more about me, check out my website, www.levistack.com. Happy reading!

Cover Reveal- Sweet Legacy by Tera Lynn Childs

The Medusa Girls by Tera Lynn Childs.
I have been meaning to read this series since...forever. Because updating Greek myths with kickass characters is totally up my street.  I saw Sweet Venom around ages ago. And now the second one, Sweet Shadows comes out within the month. And now we have a cover for Sweet Shadows.

I love the way all three covers go together-using the light similarly and the family resemblence between the girls is clear and as a series, it works really really well.

Sweet Venom came September 2012.
Sweet Shadows comes  March 2013
Sweet Legacy will come September 2013.

The concluding book in this kick-ass trilogy. Teenage descendants of Medusa, triplets Gretchen, Grace and Greer, face their toughest test yet as the mythological and the modern collide in a fast-paced urban fantasy adventure.

Author bio: Tera Lynn Childs is an award-winning and best-selling US author of teenage fiction. She holds a degree in Theatre from the University of Colorado and a Masters degree in Historic Preservation from Columbia University. Tera now spends her time blogging and writing wherever she can find a comfy chair and a steady stream of caffeinated beverages. Her first book with Templar Publishing, the mermaid romance Forgive My Fins, was published in 2011, with the follow-up, Fins are Forever, in 2012 and the concluding title, Just For Fins, coming in June 2013. Sweet Venom and Sweet Shadows are published in America by HarperCollins.
Tera tweets: @teralynnchilds

The Top Ten Covers of 2012

This has been a year of epic covers! This post most certainly hasn't caught them all, but they're the first I could think of!

Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter. The dress! And I really like the border, the way it has little Alice in Wonderland references like the card suits and general prettyness.

The American  cover of  Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin. I like the UK one for its simplicity, but this one has a beautiful dress and setting with the clouds and umbrella and text.

Cinder by Marrissa Meyer. The shoe is the recognisable bit of the Cinderella, and the metal skeleton in the leg is a little creepy, but subtly sets the tone for the premise of the book-cyborg Cinderella.

Harbinger by Sarah Wilson Ettienne. The red moon is interesting, the background is good, but the red ties it all together.

Incarnate by Jodi Meadows. I love the use of the lighting and the way they work together. And the butterfly mask is gorgeous.

Pure by Jennifer L Armentrout. Actually, all of the Covenent series (which I need to get reading some time!) I love the way the flowers seem to be made of light and smoke at the same time, apart from Elixir, which is water. So pretty!

A Million Suns by Beth Revis. The space/stars/nebula/whatever the technical term for it is. And the colours. I'm also guessing that the girl and boy in the spacehship are important too.

What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang. For a book that's about two girls in one body, this is infinitely clever-the two girls in one shape.

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. I don't know why, but it's strangely nice to look at.

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman. The detail in that picture! And the dragon!


There was also a big thing about racism on YA covers. I've noticed this with a couple of books, but never really thought about it. There is a very well worded piece on this that can be found here though!

Once again-what would be on your list of favourite covers this year?

Cover to Cover USUK & Through a Series- Soul Screamers

Someone said that they wanted to see more cover features....so, random person...here you are!

Today, I'll be looking at both the American and English versions of covers in Rachel Vincent's series, Soul Screamers. US on the left, UK on the right.

     
My Soul To Take (2009)
The red and black cover makes it seem a bit vampire-y, despite the book being about banshees. The UK cover raises questions as to why she's screaming, and the paler colour scheme makes it stand out. UK WIN. (Non-cover related note, the review, I thought I posted. I obviously didn't....Come back for that!)


     
My Soul to Save (2009)
Both have a bluer emphasis, but the black and white "other colour" (I don't know what to call it!) remains clear. I don't really like the model in the US version. Maybe it's her, or maybe it's the photographer. I don't like it. DRAW

    
My Soul to Keep (2010)
I don't understand the use of the flower. Well, I haven't read the book, but as someone looking on it, I don't get it.  US WIN

     
My Soul to Steal (2010)
The US cover just screams VAMPIRE! WHY?  The smoky effects look good though. I also don't understand the use of the butterfly, but as I prefer butteflies to lowers, UK WIN.

  
If I Die (2011)
What happened to the title? Random change in titles...unless the rest of the series is If I *insert action*. Which, apparently it isn't. Right. I like the US version here, with a huge touch of magic coming from the girl. Oh, and it diverged from the formula of same accent colour... interesting.  US WIN.

SERIES
I love the idea of keeping the accent colours the same throughout, but with a pale or dark main part. The US drew the prettier font, and the UK got the readable one.   This one is definitely a well deserved draw.

Cover to Cover- Battle Royale around the World

Before we get going, just like to say, I'm part of Spinebreakers now! An online book club with pretty much everything? Definately my kind of thing. This'll be fun....


Another installment of Cover to Cover. And this time, it's the Around the World type, where I take one book with editions that have different covers depending on where you are, then decide what book edtion I'd rather have.  And this time, I'm doing it for Battle Royale by Koushun Takami, one of my favourite ever books.

Picture heavy.

Cover to Cover- The Fairy Edition

This is somewhat late.....the new blogger thinks it's so smart, or I'm so stupid, that it needs to repair my already perfect HTML. Which totally messes it up. Took me ages to get it to work. And then it didn't save....what happened to the autosave? Another twenty minutes re-writing it. Almost wanted to give up.

 But Cover to Cover is back. And like last time, it's books from a specific genre and compared. And it's fairies, a semi--common feature in YA. And because I've read absolutely none of these books, I can simply give my opinions on the covers and not be influenced by the book. And so, on to the feature...
((Picture heavy))

Mouth-watering Mondays (1)

Mouth-Watering Monday is a meme hosted by Brittany at Nice Girls Read Books. Its designed to take the guilt out of judging a book by its cover.

This week...
Crossed by Ally Condie
Though I've not read Matched, I love the symbolism of the girl breaking out from her bubble prison, and also the way the covers are sequenced to tell a miniture story just by looking at them.
Drink Slay Love by Sarah Beth Durst
I like the obvious parody of Eat Pray Love, but the cover seems funny- its not often you get someone drinking blood out of a bottle with a straw.
Fallen by Lauren Kate
That is one beautiful dress. I also like the way she seems to be crying, even though I don't think it really fit the heroine of the book. The main reason is because of the dress though.

What other beautiful covers are there?