I’m a big fan of the Study series by Maria V. Snyder and I just found out that the books are going to be marked toward the YA audience! These are awesome fantasy books, if you haven’t read them you should.
The series consists of three books Poison Study, Magic Study and Fire Study. Here are the original covers for the series:
Here are the two new YA covers:
So, if you hadn’t read the series yet, would the new covers factor favorably into your decision to pick them up?
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The new ones are definitely beautiful with the all flowing swirls and vibrant colors. What’s the different between the first two sets though? The middle one looks YA as well and the top one adult?
I like the trade paperback covers. (I’ve already read the series and can’t wait for Storm Glass.) They’re what I’m used to, although I can see how the new covers might attract YA readers. Although I think Alea is right: the hardcover covers are pretty YA-ish too; the first cover of Poison Study I saw was the original, and I’m not sure that the trade paperback would have attracted my attention.
Although I must say, the British adult versions have my favorite covers.
the first set it the paperback series.
the second is the hardcover. i’m not sure why they don’t have a hardcover for Firestudy yet??
I love the first set, I would likely pick it up more than the YA covered ones.
I would probably be more likely to read them with the YA covers. I like the covers themselves better (they’re more interesting), but having read the novels I don’t think they fit with the feeling of the world. The new covers look too polished and happy, almost fluffy. Besides, Yelena doesn’t look like that!
I like the first set & the last set best for whatever reason(s).
I didn't realise the new covers were supposed to be more YA-I just liked that they cost less when I saw one last week or so because I've been meaning to start reading those books for so long. Knowing that, though, I can see how they 'fit' YA better.
I’ve been hankering after this series ever since I saw the first set of covers (the paperbacks), particularly that first one. The architecture and the light is just awesome. *sighs*
I like the new covers, but for me they’re less attractive than the original paperbacks.
Paperback before Hardcover, that’s weird? Someone said one of those was a foreign edition right? Well anywho knowing nothing about the books, those new YA covers have a place in my heart!
Nooo! Well, not really no! But I have had these books on my wishlist for ages, but haven’t been spending money on books so I can pay for my house (ha) and they aren’t in the library, but I LOVE the original covers and if they repackage them for YA I might lose out on getting the original covers. Argh!
I’m going to have to rush out to the store now. Ha!
yeah… the hard covers might be a foreign edition. I got the images off of the author’s website, so I’m not for sure.
i really like the YA covers, but I’m a sucker for bright and shiny things!
The YA covers make me want to read the books….
They are more attractive and look nicer to me.
I definitely prefer the first three covers. I’m a “guy”, so take my response with a grain of salt.
I like the sense of intrigue and setting posed by the first three covers. The second set of covers still has a bit of setting, but is bringing the focus down to the character a bit more. The third set is just plain ‘wrong’ to me…but sadly it seems to be the direction that a lot of cover art is going lately.
While I don’t mind a cover having a character portrayed on it, I definitely prefer NOT seeing too many details (particularly a photo realistic view of a face) as it detracts from my own imaginative perceptions while reading the book (and sometimes suggests the author may be lazy in character description because the character has already been “described” so well on the cover).
I am also annoyed at covers that are ~80% just a face. Even a pretty face surrounded by pretty (and yet nondescript) imagery. In these cases, the cover doesn’t suggest any sort of plot, drama, intrigue or anything. All it says is that there’s going to be a pretty girl in the book. Big deal.
There’s the old adage “Don’t Judge a Book By Its Cover”…and yet, the cover is often what gets a person to pick the book off the shelf and want to know more.
With the flood of “face photo” covers on the shelf these days, I tend to ignore any book with a large prominent face on the cover…unless it’s a biography.
The older five make the books look kind of like historical fiction, and I don't read much of that unless it's about royalty. The two new YA covers, however, would catch my eye, since they do look like they are young, fresh, and involve magic & fantasy. Sadly, sometimes I do judge books by their covers.
I would probably be more likely to buy the books with the YA covers.
To me, the first set looks very fantasy-ish, which can be a good thing, except that lately I’ve been reading more fiction — urban fantasy — sci-fi stuff.
The third set looks more modern.
I’m more drawn to the first three older covers. I doubt I’d pick up the new YA ones (if I saw them in a bookstore) to even see what they’re about. I would the older ones though.
I love love love this series! I want Maria to write another book for the series! I could honestly care less about the covers… Haha.
~Meredith
The first three covers are better. More classic looking. It appeals to a wide range of readers.
I like the first set more but i’d pick it up whichever because these books are fantabulous. I read them at the bigenning of the year and they have become a fave. I can’t wait for her next book to come out.
i think they definately would make me read them more and they do! i love the new covers. the vibrancy of the colors makes it more exciting and the half of the girl’s face makes it mysterious
Most definitely! Lots of people recommend this series and if I saw these in the YA section, I’d definitely pick one up.
Yes…but if all you had to go on was the cover, would you pick it up? You say you’d pick it up because lots of people recommend the series…what if you’d never heard of the series. Would the new covers entice you?
For me, the “new” covers seem too much like a lot of the other “new” covers I’m seeing in the YA section lately. I like to “mix it up” in my reading and look for unique ideas and styles. Instead, the market seems to flood us with tons of “sameness”, most of which is bland and uninspired.
Again, it could be because I’m male, but I’m not seeing what’s so enticing about having book after book with a cover showing the face of one of the characters. I’m even somewhat annoyed at the “gap catalog” posed covers.
Seeing it done once on Uglies is one thing (and I liked it when I first saw it there…though that probably wasn’t the first in recent history). But now it seems that at least a third of the new YA fiction has some sort of head shot. I still don’t love (but I much prefer) the headless representations shown in series like Gossip Girl. Even then, I’m not keen on the covers that are close up and just the character…I much prefer those that are posed with some sort of thematic action.
To each their own I guess. And since I’m not necessarily the demographic (even though I’ll surely buy these), my opinion doesn’t matter as much to those making the decisions.
And yes, I’m likely exaggerating by saying 1/3 of new YA fiction covers are just a head shot or close-up body shot…but it still seems to have become the norm and I’m not a big fan.
Just to clarify:
The second set of covers shown (almost full body, with head) are the covers from the original US hardcover release. the reason there’s no version of Fire Study with that set is because there was no hardcover of Fire Study. The Hardcovers were released before the paperbacks. (Interesting tidbit: it’s two different models. Tough to tell, huh?) I have the ARCs for both these books from BEA and those are the covers shown.
The first set of covers (head/face hidden) was from a paperback re-release. This occurred AFTER the original hardcover release. The series was “re-branded” to match the cover of the third, paperback original Fire Study. A similar re-branding occurred with the paperback of my first novel when the rest of the series went to paperback originals.
The new, YA covers do not seem to me to have the same sense of otherworldliness. But that’s just me.
The first set is by far my favorite… These have been on my wishlist forever, though, so I’d be happy with whatever copy I wound up with.
I love this series, too. I think all of the covers are great. I’m partial to the first set because those are the ones I have on my shelf. The YA ones are definitely eye catching, though.
It’s amazing how much of a difference a new cover can make. I’d pick them up!