Book Cover Critiques

Today's post is going to be something I've never done before!!! 

My younger sister chose five book covers from my bookshelves for me to study and do cover critiques on! 

Basically, this is an exercise I do to help me with my own cover designing skills. I love a good book cover almost as much as I love reading what's inside the cover! <3 So I thought I'd take you along on my cover critiquing process

Before I move on, I feel like I should have a disclaimer of sorts. First, I'm not a pro so I don't know what professionals look for. But-- I do know which covers are my favorites and which covers I can find areas where I would improve if I were to be the one designing said cover. Second, my intentions for this post are to improve my own eye for quality design as well as point out small details in cover design so it can be appreciated. If there is an area in the cover that I would have changed, that doesn't mean its not someone else's favorite part of the cover... in other words, these are just my humble opinions. XD 

(Also, feel free to laugh at the way I describe these. Let just say I took an art appreciation class... so I'm coming from it as an artist. And I've decided that artists are weird, so, yeah.) 

Star ratings chart:

⭑ = Needs more than five large improvements to the cover design.

⭑⭑ = It's just okay for me. It could be a lot worse though.

⭑⭑⭑ = Great cover design with a couple small things that would only bug a perfectionist (me).

⭑⭑⭑⭑ = Absolutely love the cover-- but just one thing.

⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑ = No improvements and all the heart eyes!

A Daring Venture by Elizabeth Camden 

Cover Design Personal Star Rating: ⭑⭑⭑

What I loved/observed: I love the golden color theme. The velvety feel to the paper. The raised title and author name really add to the quality for me. I love how in the distance we see a bridge (matching the bridge on the back cover). The main subject to this cover is the back of the girls head. She (assuming to be the main character) is looking out, a pose that's whimsical. To what she's looking at, the viewer doesn't see. Her shoulders are blurred which creates a soft feel so that the wording can be sharp in contrast. 

A hair clip catches my eye. It's jews, along with her earring and lacy dress/or blouse gives me the impression that she is not poor. The use of font is good. Two fonts used, one swirly, and an another easy to read. The curves in the font also repeat through the image such as her curly hairstyle. Having repeating forms helps with the flow and cohesiveness of the overall design.

Where I see room for cover design improvements: (1) I feel she is enlarged too much for this cover. Parts of her face and top of her head are cut off and I'd have liked to see more of where she is looking to. She is blocking most of the view of the bridge. (2) The title is slightly off center to the left. But then again, it seems to level out since her head is off center to the right. (3) I don't like how the decoration in the left corner runs into her head. It's hard to see in that picture, but there is a line that overlaps on top of her image. 

Did the cover reflect the story inside: I have not read this book yet, so I don't know.

What vibe I get from this cover: Golden/Sepia. Lacy/Elegant. 

Heart on the Line by Karen Witemeyer

Cover Design Personal Star Rating: ⭑⭑⭑⭑1/2

What I loved/observed: *heart eyes* I love this cover! I love the different woods which helps set the mood for a western atmosphere. I love the fact that we can clearly tell the main character's job as a telegraph operator by the props and the look on her face is telling of her character. Each detail complements the story inside. From the title (which is raised #quality!!) to the small dots and dashes swirled behind the title. And the window shows a scene that is consistent with the back cover image. Another thing I love is the spine! The image used at the top is the same character in a different pose. And the back cover is equally amazing!

Where I see room for cover design improvements: No where... except I'd like to have seen the title slightly larger and the author name slightly smaller. But that's being very nitpicky! 

Did the cover reflect the story inside: Yesss! The room is perfect for how I envisioned it. Such a good book, btw!

What vibe I get from this cover: Western/Rustic. Charming/Intriguing.

A Distant Melody by Sarah Sundin

Cover Design Personal Star Rating: ⭑⭑⭑⭑

What I loved/observed: This cover y'all! It shows the characters and setting so well! Very solemn and heart wrenching. I love the colors of the sky, how it is so light as the backdrop... *almost* creating a silhouette. The title and author name are clear and leave no room for miscommunication. Our eyes are drawn to the center where the two main characters are. We also see the small image of a bull on the plane (which goes with the story). I nice touch! The wording is not raised, but the cover is smooth and soft. I also love how the colors of the font are alternating. Black on the light sky and light cream on the dark bottom half of the cover. That really balances the picture visually and it's easy to read. Lastly, I like how the spine uses a different picture!

Where I see room for cover design improvements: In my mind, the small "Wings of Glory Book One" with the little symbol on the left is too small. The large font above it seems to engulf it, so I'd want to see it bigger than it is. Lastly, very picky here: The space in the margins at the very top above the title has more than the lower space between the author name and edge. To fix this, just raise the title a 1/4 inch. 

Did the cover reflect the story inside: YES! 

What vibe I get from this cover: World War II

Where Two Hearts Meet: 

Cover Design Personal Star Rating: ⭑⭑⭑

What I loved/observed: I love the color blue in this cover! I love how the characters is exactly how I pictured. and I love the overall by the beach vibe. (Also, the blue in the title and the blue behind the author name is glossy!)

Where I see room for cover design improvements: This is both bad and good: the simplicity. The cover is divided into two sections with two images and a simple divider that doubles as a clear spot to put the author name. I personally really like this style and it's been a huge inspiration for my own designs... but, it has a tendency to feel two simple. Not quite "elementary" but it feels less professional to me. There is a fine line between too simple and too fancy. Also, I feel like the bottom image could use a filter to make it feel warmer to match the above image. The lower image looks like it came from someone's camera roll. Other than that, not much besides the font treatment, I would have liked to see some different layouts. Oh, one more thing. On the back cover, it is plan blue with a very slight image of a lighthouse beneath the blue. The blue really dominates and I have to really look for the lighthouse to be able to see it.

Did the cover reflect the story inside: Yes and no. The character matches really well. But a lot of the book was about food, and I would have expected there to be some hint of that on the cover. Maybe the lower picture be a baking scene, or have her be dressed in an apron holding a whisk, idk! Something to hint at her being a chef.

What vibe I get from this cover: Genuine/Small-town. Summer/Soft.

Love Finds You in Sundance Wyoming by Miralee Ferrell

Cover Design Personal Star Rating: ⭑⭑⭑⭑

What I loved/observed: This cover y'all! The old fashioned western feel makes me just want to jump inside this book and ride horses alongside Angel (the main character)! I love the glossy title somewhat similar to the book above. I like how we see some repeating colors, that stand out from the dry landscape. Overall, it's just so perfect for this story! 

Where I see room for cover design improvements: I wouldn't change much at all!!  ... Just a couple colors. I would make the wording be only 1-3 colors. Right now, the between all the fonts, we have about 5 different colors. It's hard to tell from the picture, but "In" is black, "Sundance" matches her hat, "Wyoming" is light brown, "Can love convince a tomboy to live like a lady" is dark brown, and the author name is in white. I would change everything to dark brown or black except for "Sundance" and the author name. To me, this would make things feel more put together and cohesive. (Also, while we are on the topic of colors, I'd change her bandana color from pink to a dark blue or forest green). 

Did the cover reflect the story inside: Yess! I love that she's holding the gun over her shoulders like that. Definitely a pose that matches the book! 

What vibe I get from this cover: Western/Adventure. Wide open spaces! 

Well, what did you think of this post?? Was it cool to read these cover critiques or do book covers not really excite you much? Do you want to read more posts like this? If so, comment below with a book cover that you'd like me to do another post on!

Many Blessings,

Brooklyne Elysse