Cover Clichés: The Windswept Glance

Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see an image that gives me an oddly disconcerting sense of deja vu. I could swear I've never read the book, but I know I've seen the jacket image somewhere before.

This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Images are often recycled because cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. That said, I find comparing their finished designs quite interesting.  

 ═══════════════════════════ ❧  ═══════════════════════════

One girl. One chance. One destiny.

In the village of Martindale, hundreds of miles north of the new English capital of Windsor, sixteen-year-old Silver Blackthorne takes the Reckoning. This coming-of- age test not only decides her place in society – Elite, Member, Inter or Trog – but also determines that Silver is to become an Offering for King Victor.

But these are uncertain times and no one really knows what happens to the teenagers who disappear into Windsor Castle. Is being an Offering the privilege everyone assumes it to be, or do the walls of the castle have something to hide? Trapped in a maze of ancient corridors, Silver finds herself in a warped world of suspicion where it is difficult to know who to trust and who to fear. The one thing Silver does know is that she must find a way out . . . The heart-stopping first book in a new trilogy by UK author Kerry Wilkinson, Reckoning is the story of one girl's determination to escape the whims of a cruel king, and what she must do to survive against all odds.

Aurora Keys has dreamed of the Vanderlind Castle ever since she was a little girl. But the fiercely private Vanderlinds keep the massive structure strictly off limits to visitors. Until one night, the wealthy family throws a party—not just a small soiree, but a huge black-tie affair. No one from the town of Tiburon, Ohio, is invited—not even the mayor. But Aurora’s best friend, Blossom, has a foolproof plan for the two of them to sneak in.

At first, everything goes smoothly: the girls enter the castle undetected, and there is free champagne. But then the handsome Jessie Vanderlind sweeps Aurora into his arms, crushing her to his chest and whispering, “I knew you’d come back to me.”

Aurora understands it is a case of mistaken identity, but she feels connected to him somehow. And the boy is so beautiful, she believes she would be happy if he never let her go.

Once Jessie realizes he is mistaken, his smile quickly changes to a scowl. “You must leave,” he tells her in a low, urgent voice. “Immediately. Come! I’ll find a way to get you out.”

Unbeknownst to Aurora and Blossom, they have snuck into the home of one of the most prestigious vampire families in the world, and it is doubtful the two young women will ever be allowed to leave. Aurora’s resemblance to Jessie Vanderlind’s lost love just may be the only thing keeping them alive.

Seventeen-year-old Taylor Gray moves to Sterling Island to get over her dead boyfriend. Mom's cool with letting her crash on the couch, but Taylor needs to get a job before the lights are cut off again. When the tall, dark and crazy Raine Tsunami offers her a position at his thriving ghost tour business, she figures it's an easy way to make some cash. Taylor isn't afraid of ghosts--that crap is as fake as her mom's boob job. She loves their adventures on the historic island, especially the secret places he shows her when the crowds go home. So what if all the ghost stories are just legends? When Taylor comes face to face with a ghost and Raine crosses the line between friend and boyfriend--Taylor's new life collides with her haunted past. If murdered people end up as ghosts, then that someone she was trying to forget is probably trying to find her.

"This is who I am. I am no longer the simple girl hidden behind the safety of a make-believe forest. I am the story. I am the tall tale . . . I am the witch."

Raised by an old fortune-teller within the dark veil of the Bavarian Black Forest, Rune has learned two valuable lessons: only take from the forest that which you can use, and never, never look anyone in the eye in the village. For something terrible happened in the forest long ago... and now, the whispers of a long-dead mother with a vengeful secret have come haunting.

Forced to flee all she has ever known, Rune soon learns of a legacy she is bound to--one that is drenched in fear, witchcraft and murder--a birthright that stretches beyond the grave to the trees where Rune is no longer safe.

When eighteen-year-old Irene Adler meets her new neighbor, the gorgeous, brilliant, and arrogant Sherlock Holmes, she never expects him to be the one to make her feel like life is worth living again. Ever since her sister's death, she's been addicted to risk-taking as a way to deal with her depression, and Sherlock quickly becomes the biggest risk she's ever taken.

Locked is the story of a broken girl and the genius who gives her life back to her. It's the story of a witty asshole who's never known love, and the girl who shows him what love means. It's the story of an unexpected connection, two people who save each other, and the importance of seeing the goodness underneath.

Fifteen-year-old Raleigh Harmon finally conquers her worst fear—by trespassing—and can't wait to tell her best friend, a smart-mouthed physics genius girl named Drew Levinson.

Only Drew’s gone. Really gone.

Everybody says Drew ran away. But that only skyrockets Raleigh’s suspicions. Drew Levinson is the least impulsive person she knows.

Armed with her rock hammer, an encyclopedic knowledge of city criminal codes, and a stubborn streak wide as the Chesapeake Bay, Raleigh scours her hometown for clues. But not even the cops are on her side. 

Was Drew meeting somebody in secret? Escaping her loony parents?

Or is Raleigh’s hunch dead-on: her best friend didn’t choose to leave.

Stone and Spark is the first book in the Raleigh Harmon mystery series introducing the girl who will become a forensic geologist and FBI agent—provided she survives the high school years.

The Double Down series continues with two stories that explore the very different realities of Karen Richard’s life. The common prologue springboards two talented authors into alternate realities – two stories, two authors, one book.

In John R. Little’s Secrets, Karen Richardson can occasionally stop time. She is free to move around while others are frozen in time. She finds the hidden truths of those around her, including her new friend, Bobby Jersey, who may not be all that he seems. At first it seemed fun, powerful, exhilarating, but in the end Karen’s power may cost her everything she’s ever cared about.

In Mark Allan Gunnells’ Outcast, Karen Richardson is a college freshman dealing with a non-existent social life, a difficult roommate…and the power of telekinesis. As her powers grow, Karen begins to lose control. Her new friend Bobby Jersey offers his assistance. But is he somebody that Karen can trust, or will her abilities destroy everything and everyone she knows and loves.

Moving to my stepfather’s English country mansion sounded so promising. But the Arnaud Manor is neglected and unwelcoming, and I get the feeling it isn’t exactly uninhabited. Something wants to hurt us—especially my litter sister, Tabby.

Okay, so I might be a little sensitive lately. My parents act oblivious to me, my old life is far away in San Francisco, and the gorgeous guy I just met tells me terrible stories about the infamous Madame Arnaud who lived here long ago, and about missing children and vengeful spirits. The kind of stories that are impossible to believe—until you’re living in one of them, fighting to protect everyone you love…

My name is Sinna Reardon. I suppose deep down I'd like to believe God exists. But he doesn’t, not since the war. Most days I’m okay with that. Jacob calls me a pessimist, but I’m a realist. How can I believe when a place like Rehabilitation and a regime like the Elite exist, dictating our every move?

If God were so great, he’d do something. But he hasn’t. We’re forgotten. And that scares me, because it means I might have to do something myself…

Sinna has spent her life walking a fine line between breaking the rules and obeying them to a fault. In a Godless world where science and logic reign supreme and people are punished for Believing, are friendship and love reasons enough to abandon unbelief? Enough to put her faith in something bigger than herself?

Kristyl Barnette's life was finally coming together. In Clearwater, she found the reason why she could hear people's thoughts and make objects move. She found friends to stand by her. And, in Owen Marsh, she even found someone she could love.

But one spell changed everything.

Thrust into an alternate reality, Kristyl must navigate a new past and different relationships, all while keeping the secret only she and Crystal Jamison know: In their attempt to find a powerful stone for the circle of witches to anchor to, they altered the present.

Owen barely looks at her. She's forced to act like she's friends with the circle and to pretend she's been dating Fox Holloway for years. And to make matters worse, the quartz stone she retrieved from the past might not be the source of pure energy the circle hoped for. There's a darkness to it Kristyl doesn't trust.

Now people are dying mysteriously, and Kristyl must form new alliances with old friends in order to prevent more deaths--and to save the circle from destruction.

Power comes at a price. Will Kristyl be able to pay it before it's too late?

A lone female agent finds herself abandoned in enemy territory in this riveting espionage thriller"

Having completed her mission to silence an agency defector, CIA operative Cassie Bradbury finds herself cut adrift in Moscow with no documents, no tickets and no identification. Hot on her trail are the Kremlin, the Russian Mafia and Sean Ravensdale, the disgraced ex-CIA agent who has been sent to track her down. Realizing that she has been set up and is now expendable, Cassie will need all her courage and resourcefulness to outwit her pursuers and stay alive long enough to exact revenge on the man who recruited her, who trained her who betrayed her.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Reconstructing Amelia comes a fast-paced teen series where one girl learns that in a world of intrigue, betrayal, and deeply buried secrets, it is vital to trust your instincts.

It all starts with a text: Please, Wylie, I need your help. Wylie hasn’t heard from Cassie in over a week, not since their last fight. But that doesn’t matter. Cassie’s in trouble, so Wylie decides to do what she has done so many times before: save her best friend from herself.

This time it’s different, though. Instead of telling Wylie where she is, Cassie sends cryptic clues. And instead of having Wylie come by herself, Jasper shows up saying Cassie sent him to help. Trusting the guy who sent Cassie off the rails doesn’t feel right, but Wylie has no choice but to ignore her gut instinct and go with him.

But figuring out where Cassie is goes from difficult to dangerous, fast. As Wylie and Jasper head farther and farther north into the dense woods of Maine, Wylie struggles to control her growing sense that something is really wrong. What isn’t Cassie telling them? And could finding her be only the beginning?

In this breakneck tale, New York Times bestselling author Kimberly McCreight brilliantly chronicles a fateful journey that begins with a single decision—and ends up changing everything.

═══════════════════════════ ❧  ═══════════════════════════

Which cover strikes your fancy and why? What colors draw your eye? Do you think the image appropriate next to the jacket description? Leave your comments below!

Have you seen this image elsewhere? Shoot me an email or leave a comment and let me know.