Cover Love: That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston

cover love 

In a YA world where covers can get a little same-y, the cover for Johnston's newest is an exciting departure from the norm.  It reminds me of a softer, prettier version of the covers for V.E. Schwab's A Darker Shade of Magic and co.  Similar woodcut style, like the kind of art you'd see in old Viking barrows.  Or minimalist screenprinting.  Or stylized tarot cards.  The colors are beautiful (I hope the gold is shiny!) and I love the contrast between the branching tree and branching...subway line?  Plus the DNA sequences on each side, little details you don't notice at first.  It's a blend of old-world style and modern tech that's perfect for this alternate universe story.  Plus the text art is way more interesting than the same old brush art.   Goodreads

Who Wore it Better, Covers: The Sin Eater's Daughter vs Long May She Reign

who wore it better             book covers

Books have so many options when they dress for their big debut, but sometimes, they end up wearing very similar styles.  In the vein of all my favorite trashy Hollywood magazines... 

who wore it better?  

the sin eater's daughter by Melinda Salisbury VS long may she reign by Rhiannon Thomas 

c.j.'s vote 

I mean, honestly, I literally thought LMSR was part of the TSED series until I later saw it was by an entirely different person.  Clearly ornate glass bottles were in this season, because both these books made it the focal point of their accessories.  TSED accented its bottle with a swirly blood-girl and surrounding filigree cabachon, while LMSR went for a simpler accent of fairy tale castle, smoke, rope, and a splash of bright blue backdrop.  Both went for tiny top author name and large bottom title in slightly curly, fantasy-ish serif allcaps.  However, they chose different color palletes.  TSED went with summery green and gold with a splash of eye-catching red as a focal piece, while LMSR opted for a cool winter blue color scheme with subtle silver and grey-purple accents.

It's a tough call.  TSED's color scheme and accents give it a look like ancient Chinese jade-and-gold ornnamentation, which is lovely, while LMSR is more typical with its French Cinderella fairy tale glamour.  The TSED title text is also much bolder, while LMSR would have looked better if they made the title bigger and let it overlap the snake-rope-things; I hate that it just looks crowded  now.  On the other hand, I prefer LMSR's grungey background and stark contrast, while that blurred background on TSED looks kind of photoshopped.  And I can't stop it catching my eye and bothering me.  I think I have to go with LMSR purely because I'm a sucker for sparkly dreamy blue, but it's a sliver of a victory.

the winner:  long may she reign

Which cover wins?  Are there similar covers you think did it better?  

Who wore it better?

The Sin Eater's Daughter

Long May She Reign

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Top Ten Tuesday: Some authors who are just as amazing as their books, and a few I want to meet

top ten tuesday                authors

Hosted by The Broke and Bookish.  

Want to help support your broke blogger so she can host more giveaways and give swankier prizes?  Click the book covers.  If you like the book and choose to purchase it from Amazon, a little bit of the proceeds goes to Sarcasm & Lemons!   

Meeting authors is the best! I could also make a list of authors who turned out to be kind of terrible, but I don't want to be catty or spoil your opinion of anyone...    

c.j.'s selections                         ten ten ten
one		Met: a bunch of times  Susan is one of the most amazing authors and humans. Every time I've met her, she's been incredibly sweet, kind, funny, and down-to-earth. She cares so much about her fans and doing right by them. She actually talks to people while she's signing. I have one copy of her books that she basically decorated.  And she's got great stories.
two		Met: at a BEA signing  Leigh is awesome. Her line was for Six of Crows and it was absolutely huge, but she still took the time to smile, chat, and get a photo.  She was really sweet and vibrant.
three		Met: at a signing before Confusion  Victoria is totally funny, sweet, stylish, and just the right amount of devious.  Think about her tweets. That's basically how she is in real life. She stayed late to finish signing for people, and didn't even laugh at me when I ran into an entire stack of baskets.
four		Met: at a BEA signing and a bookstore signing  I know there's a lot of controversy about All the Crooked Saints. I won't give Maggie a pass for that. But I do love her as a human. She's hysterical and incredibly brilliant, with a self-deprecating charm that's impossible to resist. She has the funniest stories, and she's devoted to her fans. She stayed until the store closed and basically kicked her out so that she could sign everyone's books without rushing them through. And I saw the EVO, and it's kickass.
five		Met: two different times at BEAs  Adam is charming, sweet, and OMG tall.  Like, taller than he even looks in photos.  For such an imposing presence, he's totally laid back and down-to-earth.  He seemed to genuinely love talking to fans, and just comes off as so sincere and lovely.
six		Met: two different times at BEAs  Jennifer and I had chatted before the first BEA because I'd done a painting based on ATBP, and she actually remembered me and hugged me. Um, total celebrity moment. She's lovely and sweet and put together, and seems like she'd be the coolest aunt (shut up and let me dream).
seven		Want to meet  Roshani is one of those authors you just know would be fun to party with.  She's got that hint of mischief and a definitely Slytherin streak.  Plus, her books are totally gorgeous and I want to gush about makeup with her (and try not to be embarassing about admiring her hair, because OMG it's beautiful).
eight		Want to meet  JJ seems like a total understated badass. She knows a frightening amount about linguistics and she's friends with Roshani, so you know they get up to some shenanigans.  I'd love to be snarky with her and listen to all her brilliance, even though probably I'd just stare and gush over Wintersong.
nine		Want to meet  Pierce is high on my to-meet list and not just because he's swoony-looking, okay? (Seriously, the fangirling before last year's BookCon was kind of insane.)  His Red Rising trilogy is one of my all-time favorites, and I sort of just want to bask in his awesomeness.  I really hope he's not actually a douchebag because that would break my heart.
ten		Want to meet  Even before I read THUG or even knew much about it, I followed Angie on twitter.  She has the kind of vivid presence and dry wit that makes it obvious why THUG has done so well. She also just seems fun and funny and quirky (Oreo battles and Tupac, yes please) and she's such a fabulous advocate for social justice and teens.

Your turn!  Who have you met and who are you dying to meet?