InterMix asked if I’d be willing to help unveil the new Nora Roberts covers for the digital release of the O’Hurley’s series.
The Donovans are being unveiled at Nora’s Facebook page while the Cordina’s Royal Family covers are being revealed at USA Today’s Happy Ever After blog. (Hi ladies!)
When I saw them, I got to thinking about how covers have changed, and how the covers for categories being re-released in digital format don’t resemble the original covers at all. They are so, so different. From what I have learned from different self-published authors who have designed their own covers, one of the focuses of a digital cover is that it’s legible and distinct at different sizes, including the tiny little tile that’s displayed on eInk readers when all the books are displayed on a shelf, for example. So the title and name must be clear - I don’t think anyone is missing that these are Nora’s books! What’s fascinating to me is that they do not show people at all. Have a look: the new covers are on the left, and the older Harlequin covers are on the right.
Here is the new and original cover art for Dance to the Piper [Amazon | BN]:
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that that isn’t dancing happening there on the right. And on the left, is that Lincoln Center?
Also, as an aside, I found this at the Tower Books site, and I’m not sure what the hell is going on in this cover art from Thorndike Press:
I think she’s dancing with an attack banana.
ETA: According to McVane on Twitter, that *might* be a picture of a traditional Korean dancer, though I have no idea if Korean dance plays a part in this book, or why the cover art is such an awkward and somewhat disturbing angle!
Here’s the new and original covers for Skin Deep [Amazon | BN]:
That doesn’t look…safe. On the right, I mean. Kissing on a bannister on a cliff overlooking LA? I think that’s LA. I think that’s LA on the left, too.
Only it appears she’s missing his mouth and aiming for his nose. Uh oh.
And finally, here is the cover for Without a Trace [Amazon | BN]
This is going to drive me nuts all week. Who does that guy on the right look like? Part Robert Stack part… someone else. As for the redesigned cover, I read three different plot descriptions but didn’t get a sense of where this book takes place. One review mentioned Casablanca, so perhaps that explains it.
To quote Winnie the Pooh, “Oh, bother.” The price for the digital re-releases appears to be $6.99 as of right now. I hope that price comes down, but I’m also not sticking my head in a large urn of honey and holding my breath until it does.
Have you read this series? What do you think of the new covers? Do you like the older ones, if only for the fabulous hairstyles (and pink jackets. I really like that pink jacket on the Skin Deep cover)?