- Get link
- Other Apps
So I was perusing Twitter one day last week and an author that I follow posed an interesting question. This author asked "what is the ONE KEY FACTOR that makes you decide to read a book?" I thought about it for a while and for me the thing that ultimately makes me read a book is the summary or synopsis. If it sounds like the type of story that I would enjoy, that is what makes me want to read it. What does this have to do with book covers you may ask? Well, while the summary is what makes me decide whether or not to read a book, the book cover is what gets my attention to pick it up in the first place. A standout and beautiful book cover is the shiny lure that attracts me before the description either hooks me or doesn't. Shortly after this Twitter encounter I started thinking about book covers that are some of my absolute favorites and I decided to make a quick top ten list. Now I want everyone to know going in that these aren't book covers that I necessarily think are "the best", "the greatest", or "the tops all-time". Listed here are book covers that captivated me and are still to this day my favorites. Please don't get upset if you don't see The Hobbit, LoTR, Narnia or any of the other giants in here. I limited my list to the years that I have been alive just so that I wouldn't have to include the classics as they are a given when it comes to the beauty of some of their covers. What I wanted to do with this list is share some cool covers that I hold in high regard for both their artistic style and also for how well they represent the actual story "between the covers". Anyway, here they are in descending order, my ten favorite SFF book covers:
10. THE GARDEN OF STONES (2013) by Mark T. Barnes: This is a book that totally exemplifies reading a book because the cover art just jumped out at me. Occasionally I will skim Netgalley in search of cool advance reader copies and I remember my eyes just going right to this cover in the midst of all the others. The cover artist Stephan Martiniere really did an unbelievable job here of capturing the brutal opening scene of the book which drops the reader right into a civil war between the various factions of races on the continent of Shrian. Love this cover and the book was fantastic as well. If you get a chance to read it, you should definitely check out all three books in Barnes' Echoes of Empire trilogy.
9. THE CHOSEN (1999) by Ricardo Pinto: I was working at Borders Books right around the time this book was released in hardcover. The section that I was tasked with maintaining coincidentally was the Fantasy/Science-Fiction section. I distinctly remember reaching into the box of stock and pulling this book out with my jaw agape as I stared at the cover. I immediately used my employee discount, bought it, and took it home that night. The cover artist for THE CHOSEN is Mark Harrison and he depicts beautifully the dark priests who are the antagonists of this great dark fantasy. Unfortunately this series, which is called The Stone Dance of the Chameleon, is currently out of print. Sad really because it is one of the more original fantasies that you will ever read and also involves gay main characters, which at the time was pretty bold and groundbreaking in the genre. An awesome cover though and one that will hopefully once again grace the shelves of bookstores.
8. CHILDREN OF THE SERPENT GATE (2005) by Sarah Ash: This is actually book three of The Tears of Artamon series by Sarah Ash but it is definitely my favorite cover of the trio. The serpent gate in the foreground with the erupting volcano in the background is such a vivid and cool image for this series finale. The cover artist for these books is Stephen Youll, a favorite of mine who has done so many great covers over the years. This is another series that is among my favorites and I highly recommend it for readers who are looking for a different setting in their fantasy read. This entire series takes place in an icy land with a definite Russian feel to it. Love the books and love the artwork just as much.
7. OTHERLAND MOUNTAIN OF BLACK GLASS (2000) by Tad Williams: Also book three of a series, this one being the third book in Tad's four volume Otherland series. All four covers are amazing and created by the great Michael Whelan. Michael is featured prominently on this list and for good reason, he's one of the best cover artists ever. Whelan captures the theme of this book perfectly with the depiction of the facing Sphinxes and the mysterious "bird woman" rising in between. The artwork is simply stunning and I just love everything about these covers. Tad's books always seem to have very good cover art and this one is no different.
6. BLACK SUN RISING (1992) by C.S. Friedman: This cover is for book one in Celia Friedman's Coldfire trilogy. Yet another stupendous cover by Michael Whelan which shows warrior priest Damien Vryce standing in front of a sinister-looking castle on the planet Erna, with the all-controlling force the fae surrounding him. This is another that I bought just because of the cover art and it blew me away when I first read it. A combination of SF, fantasy, and vampire fiction. And it is all combined extremely well into a fantastic and thrilling series. Definitely recommend reading the entire trilogy if you haven't yet as I believe it to be one of the best-written series in the genre. And the covers rock too, especially this one!
5. THE MISTS OF AVALON (1983) by Marion Zimmer Bradley: Absolutely in my top 5 books of all-time and also one of my favorite book covers. Recently there has been a new cover released but that is blah in my opinion. This will always be the definitive front cover as created by cover artist Braldt Bralds. The image of Morgaine riding a white steed while holding the shimmering sword in front of her is a haunting image that really sets up the atmosphere of the book. A timeless image that should have never been replaced with the newer more-generic front cover art. I absolutely adore this artwork and it remains a favorite.
4. THE JACKAL OF NAR (1999) by John Marco: Book one of my favorite military fantasy series ever and one that sadly flies below the radar of many readers, The Tyrants and Kings series. The cover art for this book is incredible and also very telling when it comes to the overarching theme. Doug Beekman perfectly depicts the soot-covered industrial city of Nar as main character Richius Vantran looks on in the foreground with his men. The image is at once vibrant, ominous, grim, and beautiful. It's so hard to capture all of that in one piece of artwork but this one does it magnificently. If you love the Malazan books, I whole-heartedly recommend picking up this series and reading it. It doesn't get near enough the recognition that it deserves, and oh the artwork!
3. GARDENS OF THE MOON (1999) by Steven Erikson: This cover is for the 2005 reprint and was created by Steve Stone. This evening image of a dark tower with a single candle-lit window shrouded in a moonlight mist is so haunting. I'm a sucker for dark artwork like this, I think it takes me back to my boyhood Dracula's Castle days. Everyone knows how great this series is, so I won't bother to recommend it. It stands as one of the monumental works of fantasy alongside George RR Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. The updated covers are brilliant, this one being my favorite of the lot for its wonderful simplicity.
2. THE FADED SUN TRILOGY (1978-1980) by C.J. Cherryh: This attractive cover art by Michael Whelan is for the 2000 omnibus release of this tremendous series. The Faded Sun series is another one that is kind of under the radar with most people. Cherryh is definitely more known for her Foreigner series but this is an example of her best writing in my opinion. A brilliant science-fiction series with an Asian caste-system at its core, it is one of those series that is a must read as far as I'm concerned. This image of the Mri warriors watching a human colonist spacecraft as it lands on their planet is rendered in gorgeous detail.
And my favorite SFF book cover is.............................................
1. HYPERION (1990) by Dan Simmons: Without a doubt my favorite cover art of all-time and also my favorite science fiction book of all-time as well. The image of the menacing Shrike juxtaposed with the pilgrim boat as it makes its way across the surface of the planet Hyperion is breathtaking. It was actually nominated for the 1990 Hugo award for best original artwork but just fell short of taking home the prize. The cover artist for this glorious work of art is Garry Ruddell. I love the use of color and the sun shining through the metal blades of the Shrike's body. It's the perfect cover in every way and encapsulates the theme of the book as well as the series in its totality.
And that's it! I hope you enjoyed checking out my ten favorite SFF book covers. Like I said before, by no means is this a definitive list that should be regarded as gospel. It's just my own personal list and I'm sure you may disagree with many of them. But I hope that you at least found it interesting and maybe even got turned on to a book or series that you may not have known about until now. As always, thanks for reading!
10. THE GARDEN OF STONES (2013) by Mark T. Barnes: This is a book that totally exemplifies reading a book because the cover art just jumped out at me. Occasionally I will skim Netgalley in search of cool advance reader copies and I remember my eyes just going right to this cover in the midst of all the others. The cover artist Stephan Martiniere really did an unbelievable job here of capturing the brutal opening scene of the book which drops the reader right into a civil war between the various factions of races on the continent of Shrian. Love this cover and the book was fantastic as well. If you get a chance to read it, you should definitely check out all three books in Barnes' Echoes of Empire trilogy.
9. THE CHOSEN (1999) by Ricardo Pinto: I was working at Borders Books right around the time this book was released in hardcover. The section that I was tasked with maintaining coincidentally was the Fantasy/Science-Fiction section. I distinctly remember reaching into the box of stock and pulling this book out with my jaw agape as I stared at the cover. I immediately used my employee discount, bought it, and took it home that night. The cover artist for THE CHOSEN is Mark Harrison and he depicts beautifully the dark priests who are the antagonists of this great dark fantasy. Unfortunately this series, which is called The Stone Dance of the Chameleon, is currently out of print. Sad really because it is one of the more original fantasies that you will ever read and also involves gay main characters, which at the time was pretty bold and groundbreaking in the genre. An awesome cover though and one that will hopefully once again grace the shelves of bookstores.
8. CHILDREN OF THE SERPENT GATE (2005) by Sarah Ash: This is actually book three of The Tears of Artamon series by Sarah Ash but it is definitely my favorite cover of the trio. The serpent gate in the foreground with the erupting volcano in the background is such a vivid and cool image for this series finale. The cover artist for these books is Stephen Youll, a favorite of mine who has done so many great covers over the years. This is another series that is among my favorites and I highly recommend it for readers who are looking for a different setting in their fantasy read. This entire series takes place in an icy land with a definite Russian feel to it. Love the books and love the artwork just as much.
7. OTHERLAND MOUNTAIN OF BLACK GLASS (2000) by Tad Williams: Also book three of a series, this one being the third book in Tad's four volume Otherland series. All four covers are amazing and created by the great Michael Whelan. Michael is featured prominently on this list and for good reason, he's one of the best cover artists ever. Whelan captures the theme of this book perfectly with the depiction of the facing Sphinxes and the mysterious "bird woman" rising in between. The artwork is simply stunning and I just love everything about these covers. Tad's books always seem to have very good cover art and this one is no different.
6. BLACK SUN RISING (1992) by C.S. Friedman: This cover is for book one in Celia Friedman's Coldfire trilogy. Yet another stupendous cover by Michael Whelan which shows warrior priest Damien Vryce standing in front of a sinister-looking castle on the planet Erna, with the all-controlling force the fae surrounding him. This is another that I bought just because of the cover art and it blew me away when I first read it. A combination of SF, fantasy, and vampire fiction. And it is all combined extremely well into a fantastic and thrilling series. Definitely recommend reading the entire trilogy if you haven't yet as I believe it to be one of the best-written series in the genre. And the covers rock too, especially this one!
5. THE MISTS OF AVALON (1983) by Marion Zimmer Bradley: Absolutely in my top 5 books of all-time and also one of my favorite book covers. Recently there has been a new cover released but that is blah in my opinion. This will always be the definitive front cover as created by cover artist Braldt Bralds. The image of Morgaine riding a white steed while holding the shimmering sword in front of her is a haunting image that really sets up the atmosphere of the book. A timeless image that should have never been replaced with the newer more-generic front cover art. I absolutely adore this artwork and it remains a favorite.
4. THE JACKAL OF NAR (1999) by John Marco: Book one of my favorite military fantasy series ever and one that sadly flies below the radar of many readers, The Tyrants and Kings series. The cover art for this book is incredible and also very telling when it comes to the overarching theme. Doug Beekman perfectly depicts the soot-covered industrial city of Nar as main character Richius Vantran looks on in the foreground with his men. The image is at once vibrant, ominous, grim, and beautiful. It's so hard to capture all of that in one piece of artwork but this one does it magnificently. If you love the Malazan books, I whole-heartedly recommend picking up this series and reading it. It doesn't get near enough the recognition that it deserves, and oh the artwork!
3. GARDENS OF THE MOON (1999) by Steven Erikson: This cover is for the 2005 reprint and was created by Steve Stone. This evening image of a dark tower with a single candle-lit window shrouded in a moonlight mist is so haunting. I'm a sucker for dark artwork like this, I think it takes me back to my boyhood Dracula's Castle days. Everyone knows how great this series is, so I won't bother to recommend it. It stands as one of the monumental works of fantasy alongside George RR Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. The updated covers are brilliant, this one being my favorite of the lot for its wonderful simplicity.
2. THE FADED SUN TRILOGY (1978-1980) by C.J. Cherryh: This attractive cover art by Michael Whelan is for the 2000 omnibus release of this tremendous series. The Faded Sun series is another one that is kind of under the radar with most people. Cherryh is definitely more known for her Foreigner series but this is an example of her best writing in my opinion. A brilliant science-fiction series with an Asian caste-system at its core, it is one of those series that is a must read as far as I'm concerned. This image of the Mri warriors watching a human colonist spacecraft as it lands on their planet is rendered in gorgeous detail.
And my favorite SFF book cover is.............................................
1. HYPERION (1990) by Dan Simmons: Without a doubt my favorite cover art of all-time and also my favorite science fiction book of all-time as well. The image of the menacing Shrike juxtaposed with the pilgrim boat as it makes its way across the surface of the planet Hyperion is breathtaking. It was actually nominated for the 1990 Hugo award for best original artwork but just fell short of taking home the prize. The cover artist for this glorious work of art is Garry Ruddell. I love the use of color and the sun shining through the metal blades of the Shrike's body. It's the perfect cover in every way and encapsulates the theme of the book as well as the series in its totality.
And that's it! I hope you enjoyed checking out my ten favorite SFF book covers. Like I said before, by no means is this a definitive list that should be regarded as gospel. It's just my own personal list and I'm sure you may disagree with many of them. But I hope that you at least found it interesting and maybe even got turned on to a book or series that you may not have known about until now. As always, thanks for reading!
Comments
Post a Comment