WORST Book Cover Art

Do you have a really abominably painfully ugly book cover to nominate? Something so bad that you feel a need to put a post-it note over it while reading what is inside to keep from cringeing? Please feel free to add to the list.

PLEASE NOTE: Nominations should be considered only on the Cover Art--the outside packaging. Not to what is inside. Remember, authors rarely get to influence their cover art choice and bad covers are usually not their fault. (There are different lists for criticizing the insides. This is not one of them.) Ugly cover art only, please!

Again, this Listopia list refers only to the outside packaging! Not to the book inside.

Let's try to be nice about self-published books. But publishers that can afford to hire professional artists are fair game.
201

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3.43 avg rating — 98 ratings
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202

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3.85 avg rating — 24,597 ratings
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203

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4.05 avg rating — 592,171 ratings
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203

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3.77 avg rating — 51,673 ratings
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205

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2.88 avg rating — 8 ratings
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206

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liked it 3.00 avg rating — 2 ratings
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207

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4.07 avg rating — 2,138,710 ratings
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208

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4.38 avg rating — 189 ratings
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209

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3.58 avg rating — 574 ratings
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209

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4.07 avg rating — 29 ratings
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209

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3.68 avg rating — 813 ratings
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209

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4.05 avg rating — 1,190,179 ratings
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213

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4.23 avg rating — 100 ratings
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214

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3.71 avg rating — 62 ratings
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214

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4.01 avg rating — 7,368 ratings
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216

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3.62 avg rating — 811,069 ratings
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216

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2.73 avg rating — 11 ratings
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218

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4.47 avg rating — 51 ratings
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219

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0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings
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220

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3.71 avg rating — 3,381 ratings
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221

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3.44 avg rating — 18 ratings
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222

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3.62 avg rating — 52 ratings
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223

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3.61 avg rating — 95 ratings
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224

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3.63 avg rating — 5,581 ratings
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225

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3.75 avg rating — 16 ratings
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226

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4.24 avg rating — 30,304 ratings
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226

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3.97 avg rating — 320 ratings
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226

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3.89 avg rating — 9,374 ratings
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226

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3.96 avg rating — 75,614 ratings
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226

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3.75 avg rating — 8,398 ratings
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226

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3.83 avg rating — 343,139 ratings
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226

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3.86 avg rating — 95,940 ratings
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226

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3.87 avg rating — 6,481 ratings
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226

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4.08 avg rating — 137 ratings
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226

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4.11 avg rating — 170,914 ratings
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236

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3.89 avg rating — 796 ratings
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236

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3.85 avg rating — 1,908 ratings
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236

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4.22 avg rating — 604 ratings
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236

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3.66 avg rating — 37,147 ratings
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236

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3.73 avg rating — 11 ratings
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236

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3.86 avg rating — 16,915 ratings
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236

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1.42 avg rating — 50 ratings
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236

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3.72 avg rating — 31,160 ratings
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236

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4.40 avg rating — 55 ratings
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236

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3.94 avg rating — 334,073 ratings
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236

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4.17 avg rating — 29,446 ratings
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247

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4.08 avg rating — 12 ratings
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247

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4.08 avg rating — 2,874 ratings
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247

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3.47 avg rating — 219 ratings
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247

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4.12 avg rating — 389 ratings
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247

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3.61 avg rating — 2,193 ratings
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247

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 82 ratings
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247

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3.69 avg rating — 41,820 ratings
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247

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4.22 avg rating — 1,981,603 ratings
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247

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4.59 avg rating — 75 ratings
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247

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3.86 avg rating — 182,044 ratings
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247

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3.56 avg rating — 1,333 ratings
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258

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3.91 avg rating — 74,036 ratings
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258

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3.20 avg rating — 10 ratings
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258

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4.36 avg rating — 21,940 ratings
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258

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4.11 avg rating — 83,018 ratings
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258

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4.38 avg rating — 390,924 ratings
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258

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4.30 avg rating — 16,138 ratings
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258

by
it was ok 2.00 avg rating — 1 rating
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258

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3.75 avg rating — 1,216,732 ratings
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258

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4.04 avg rating — 115,082 ratings
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258

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liked it 3.00 avg rating — 11 ratings
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268

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0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings
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268

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4.42 avg rating — 1,005,671 ratings
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268

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4.10 avg rating — 31,826 ratings
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268

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3.94 avg rating — 41,973 ratings
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268

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3.81 avg rating — 370,387 ratings
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268

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3.55 avg rating — 10,654 ratings
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268

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3.56 avg rating — 2,803 ratings
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268

by
4.08 avg rating — 119,871 ratings
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268

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4.03 avg rating — 122,914 ratings
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277

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3.98 avg rating — 86,410 ratings
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277

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4.55 avg rating — 834,614 ratings
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277

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4.17 avg rating — 44,881 ratings
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277

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3.69 avg rating — 32 ratings
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277

by
3.75 avg rating — 4 ratings
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277

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3.94 avg rating — 67,646 ratings
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277

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3.97 avg rating — 151,796 ratings
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284

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 29,898 ratings
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284

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4.05 avg rating — 1,452 ratings
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284

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3.98 avg rating — 63,328 ratings
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284

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4.01 avg rating — 171,619 ratings
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288

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3.96 avg rating — 7,679 ratings
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288

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4.51 avg rating — 55 ratings
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288

by
3.89 avg rating — 8,687 ratings
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288

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 24,342 ratings
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288

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3.95 avg rating — 324,549 ratings
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288

by
3.85 avg rating — 242 ratings
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288

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4.09 avg rating — 900,919 ratings
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288

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1.60 avg rating — 96 ratings
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288

by
3.45 avg rating — 38 ratings
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297

by
3.28 avg rating — 2,164 ratings
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297

by
3.71 avg rating — 219,248 ratings
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297

by
4.04 avg rating — 22,494 ratings
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297

by
3.72 avg rating — 13,201 ratings
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506 books · 230 voters · list created January 26th, 2011 by MB (What she read) (votes) .
16 likes · 
Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.


MB (What she read) 8718 books
119 friends
Nina 995 books
54 friends
Brad 2673 books
705 friends
A 3805 books
1097 friends
Kimberly 2004 books
281 friends
Rachel 415 books
56 friends
Zuzana 728 books
110 friends
Cindi 2318 books
62 friends

More voters…


Comments Showing 1-13 of 13 (13 new)

dateUp arrow    newest »

message 1: by A (new)

A Dude! I love The Dark Divine's cover! :) I just won't vote for it, hehe.


MB (What she read) No problem, our tastes are subjective. It'll be interesting to see what gets the most votes.

I'm going to add a lot more when I have a chance to think about it.

Frankly, I look at this as constructive criticism for publishers. Ha!


message 3: by A (new)

A Don't get me started on indie publisher covers. It's like they're not even trying.

Notable exception: Flux Books, of which there is already one on this list (imho just meh but not the WORST I've seen!) I loooove the cover for Mahoney's Iron Witch.

I'll be back to vote (and abstain from voting) some more!


message 4: by Cindi (new)

Cindi I especially hate when they just put a bulging body with no head showing...it's too embarrassing to read them in public. It says, "Who cares about brains or personality...I only care about animal physicality!" What an insult to the author and the readers!!!!


MB (What she read) Oh, me too, Cindi! That is a style I dislike. For some reason the older style of romance covers that was popular a few years ago with a woman's legs and shoes didn't bother me as much. But chopping off the head/s is just annoying.

Subliminally, I feel like I'm being told to 'check my brain at the door' while reading.


Therealbadkitty All of the newer Nightshade covers are awful. The orginals are so beautiful why did they change it?!


message 7: by [deleted user] (new)

Cindi wrote: "I especially hate when they just put a bulging body with no head showing...it's too embarrassing to read them in public. It says, "Who cares about brains or personality...I only care about animal p..."

I agree!


message 8: by Lu (new)

Lu I vote for any cover with a shirtless dude and little else on the cover...then again I don't think I've ever read a book like that. Not my genre :D


MB (What she read) Lu wrote: "I vote for any cover with a shirtless dude and little else on the cover...then again I don't think I've ever read a book like that. Not my genre :D"

I hate those covers too. Unfortunately, they must sell well.


message 10: by Jan (last edited May 07, 2021 10:40PM) (new)

Jan All these covers are beautiful. I will not comment that somebody thinks ugly book cover art is possible. To each their own, but these are evocative covers that take me places. Anyone who thinks they're ugly is missing out on magical dreams.


message 11: by Ketutar (new)

Ketutar Jensen Jan wrote: "All these covers are beautiful. I will not comment that somebody thinks ugly book cover art is possible. To each their own, but these are evocative covers that take me places. Anyone who thinks the..."
It's very nice of you to think everything is beautiful, but you are pretty unique with that opinion.
I'd rather let the book take me places.


message 12: by Ketutar (new)

Ketutar Jensen Laura The Life of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Donald Zochert
WHY THE HECK DID THEY USE THE TV SERIES THAT HAS PRACTICALLY NOTHING TO DO WITH LAURA INGALLS WILDER!!!??!?!?


message 13: by Ketutar (new)

Ketutar Jensen Yes, one could fill up this list with self published and the "Chinese" classic covers where they have just whacked on some image that may or may not be some way associated with the story itself...


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