Cover Cliché: Faint-Hearted Femme

Sometimes, while browsing the virtual shelves on Amazon and Goodreads, I see jacket art that gives me a disconcerting sense of deja vu. I know I've not read the book, but I am equally certain I've seen its image somewhere before.

This phenomenon is what inspired Cover Clichés. Image recycling is fairly common as cover artists are often forced to work from a limited pool of stock images and copyright free material. The details vary cover to cover, but each boasts a certain similarity and I find comparing the finished designs quite interesting.

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The night holds no secrets for Sir Marcus Camberley now that he's free of the illness that threatened his life and there are no more vampires lurking in its shadows. So he's surprised to find himself in the middle of a small band of smugglers on Hampshire's quiet coastline. Even more surprising is the woman waiting to guide them on the beach. Mariah Dean is a no-nonsense, practically minded widow doing her best to help her neighbors and friends as best she can. Sex is the farthest thing from her mind until she runs into the talented lips of this strange gentleman. Seizing the opportunity, Mariah offers him one night in her bed. After all, if opportunity knocks, then it's only polite to answer the door. Of course, Mariah discovers to her chagrin that incredible sex can be rather addictive and gives rise to a whole new set of problems. Especially when her unexpected lover declares his intentions-and won't take "no" for an answer.

Lady Katherine Ellsworth lives a beautiful, dull country life in the midst of the Somerset moors. Her main concerns are country fayres and village intrigue. But when her cousin is murdered, Katherine soon learns that the killer has targeted her next. Walking upon the moors one day, she is attacked by a vicious man wielding a saber.

There is nothing for her to do but seek protection with her late cousin’s betrothed, Harold Rockfall, Duke of Highset. Harold Rockfall is a veteran of the wars in France, and has only returned to England to hunt his betrothed’s killer. But when he meets Katherine, he begins to wonder if he hadn’t picked the wrong cousin after all.

With the killer on the loose, Harry should be doing everything in his power to catch him. So why is it he never wants to leave Highwall Castle? Why is it he never wants to leave the intriguing and dangerous Lady Katherine Ellsworth?

An unfulfilled love.

A royal hunt that goes horribly wrong.

And an opportunity for a humble governess to save the man of her dreams and gain a royal title in the process.

Virginia Honeyfield has been the governess for Nicholas Willoughby, the Duke of Kent, for years. She's the only one who truly understands the shy, reticent Duke, and she stays on to become his administrator when they both come of age. Their love and attraction fails to come to fruition, though, because Virginia is a mere commoner.

But everything changes in the blink of an eye when Nicholas indulges in his favorite passion, hunting, and he's attacked by a wild boar. His injuries are severe, and suddenly circumstances dictate that Virginia is the only one who can come to his rescue.

Will she succeed? And will her efforts allow their longstanding love to be realized? Download this fast-moving Regency romance today and find out!

Tatiana Ashurst has a secret – one that she cannot afford to be known to Georgian English society. But Kit Vallentyn discovers her hidden ability to wield infinitely powerful magic… and saves her from inadvertently revealing it to everyone. Tatiana knows it is impossible for her to marry him. But how can she help herself from becoming fascinated by this handsome man, who seems to extend a spell over her more powerful than any she can conjure?

Kit is out for a wife. His instinct, however, is to go through the mere motions of searching, just to please his ambitious father who wants a big dowry from the marriage. But the one woman who he can’t get out of his mind is the twin sister of the one his father wants him to marry – the one who is plain, penniless, ineligible… and enchanting in more ways than one.

For Kit and Tatiana to weather the storm of their desires, they have to peel away the layers of all of their secrets, to discover the simple truth of their love.

The night Victoria Conrad runs away doesn’t turn out at all like she planned. After being accosted by two ruffians, she is rescued by the Earl of Carlisle’s coachmen and taken to his country house—only to discover she is his prisoner! The doors aren’t locked but the winter is severe, and she is prevented from walking to freedom by the snow. Horribly scarred from painful injuries, Alastair Saville returned from the war a broken and lonely man, the last heir to an earldom he doesn’t want. The previous earl and his son, Alastair’s uncle and cousin, perished aboard a ship lost in the channel, but it is the wrongful death of Alastair’s beloved sister that sets his misery afire and makes him seethe for revenge. Alastair kidnaps Victoria to prevent her marriage to Ellison Montgomery, heir to the Montgomery barony, whom he blames for his sister’s death. Alastair intends to bring the man to ruin through poverty and scandal, but once he has Victoria as his unwilling guest she ceases to serve as an anonymous tool in his quest for vengeance. She is vivacious, outspoken and alluring, and she brings light into Alastair’s shattered existence. But Alastair is a dying man, and has only these last few days to enjoy her company as he dreams about life as a man whole, and what might have been.

Angelica is a Dutch heiress on the run from a British Officer who has gone from would-be-lover to stalker. The mystery man who appears with an offer of escort from New York City to her home in Albany may not be exactly who he seems, but Angelica is desperate to escape. The journey they make upriver during the height of the Revolution is full of danger, for there are Indians, opposing armies and brigands along the way. The greatest danger, however, will be to her heart.

Henrietta Hawksley walks hesitantly to the cliff edge, staring down into the pitch dark cold sea and it’s crashing waves…could this be the answer to her predicament, a long leap off the edge into the murkiness below? Left pregnant by the scandalous Lord John Pembury, her character and good name and more importantly that of her fathers the Rev. Robert Hawksley soon to be in disrepair…this appeared to be Henrietta’s only escape, until she falls into the arms of The Duke of Templeton - William Pembury. Will Henrietta’s life change for the better and be saved from scandal, will she finish that deliberate walk to the cliff edge…or does she favour a different path? Find out what happens in this delightful clean regency romance read, that gives you the real comfort and warmth of an exquisite candlelit feast...

To save her true love, she must sacrifice her own heart.

Tessa Ryder's Gift, which allows her to take the form of anyone she touches, was invaluable to the British Army's secret Omega Group. The Peninsula War is over, the Omegas are disbanded, but she's learned of a plot to exterminate them—and free Napoleon.

Desperate to warn Sebastian Montague, one of the few remaining Omegas, Tessa takes on the guise of his ex-mistress. It's the only way she can face the man she loved. The man whose memory of her was telepathically wiped—at her request.

Sebastian knows a lie when he sees one, and it doesn't take long to strip the disguise of the unfamiliar woman he believes is his assassin. But before he can use his formidable Gift for illusion to wring the truth from her, bullets fly and they are both on the run.

Surrounded by traitors and spies, Tessa and Sebastian fight to thwart the scheme to plunge England back into the darkness of war. And, as their powerful attraction brings them closer and closer, Tessa fights to protect the man she still loves more than life—by keeping the secret of their shared history buried deep in her heart.

India Black uses her wit and wiles as both a madam and a spy, proving she’s the best there is when it comes to undercover work…

Drawn into intrigue by her lover Philip Barrett, India finds herself being used as a pawn to help him steal a valuable jewel. Turning the tables, she proves that India Black answers to no man, no matter how attractive he may be…

Determined to help her impoverished family, Elizabeth Canham accepts a position at Burndale Academy, an isolated girl's school filled with secrets and shadows. There she meets mysterious widower Griffin Fairfax, a man dogged by dark rumours, a man who both frightens and fascinates her.

But Beth has secrets of her own, nightmares that haunt her and fears that follow her into the light of day when a woman is found dead in the nearby woods—the victim of a brutal murder… a murder that bears terrifying similarity to others. Then Beth discovers that all the victims were intimately connected to Griffin. Beth’s past has taught her to be wary, but her heart tells her that Griffin cannot be the charming, seductive killer stalking the night, stealing women’s hearts…and lives.

Judith has the perfect present for Stephen—herself. Will he accept, or decline her gift?

Lady Judith Gresham had been in love with Stephen, Viscount Pelham for years.

Stephen eleven years her elder, treated her purely as one of his sisters friends; he was too old in years and deeds for such a young innocent. As his sister, was now happily married, there was no longer any reason to see her.

Even to himself he wouldn't admit he missed her.

So when his sister and her new husband decided to have a Christmas house party, and illness causes them to beg to use his home, he agreed. Even when he heard Judith was to be one of the guests he wasn't really worried, he would keep to himself, enjoy Maria Mallins, his long married mistress, and treat Judith with distant benevolence.

However Judith and his sister had other ideas.

It’s almost as if my burning rage has taken over. I must seek revenge…

Now in America, Mary begins to successful set her plans into motion. She enlists the help of two unlikely friends, Matthew and Simone to help her concoct a recipe for revenge. But along the way Mary feels her integrity fading, she now lies and deceives her closest friend Ana on a regular basis. Even worse, her plan of revenge involves hurting innocent people.

Mary is beginning to realize that the thin line of revenge and justice is a difficult one to walk unscathed.

How far is Mary really willing to go in the name of redemption?

Don’t miss out on the Fires’ Crossroad the second book of the False Redemption Series by Laura Fletcher. If you like strong female protagonists, deadly consequences and hopes of redemption then this book will have you turning the pages all night long.

Marie lives happily in Sobernburg Castle with her beloved husband, Michel Adler, a tremendous achievement for a woman who was once the 'Wandering Harlot'. The happy couple longs for a family, but when Michel is called to battle against the rebellious Hussites, they have to put those dreams on hold until, if they're lucky, Michel returns home.

Soon after his departure, Marie is thrilled to find she is already with child, but this bright news is quickly tarnished by anxiety for her husband's return. News of him trickles in: first that he's been knighted for his exemplary courage in battle . . . and then that he disappeared without a trace during a grisly massacre and is presumed dead. Pregnant and alone, Marie's place in the world is once again precarious. Unwilling to abandon the hope that her husband has somehow survived, Marie escapes form the castle and takes to the road once more to find Michel and save her family.

In this sequel to The Wandering Harlot, bestselling author Iny Lorentz transports readers to a richly rendered fifteenth-century Germany, where courage and true love conquer all.

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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.