Posts Tagged: Art

Art

Cover Art for RED COUNTRY by Joe Abercrombie (US)

By Aidan Moher April 5th, 2012
RED COUNTRY by Joe Abercrombie

I like this new direction for the US editions of Abercrombie’s novels, even if I still prefer the UK covers. They’re well executed and take a familiar concept (dude with a sword), but inject some life into it. This will sit well along the trade paperback releases of Best Served Cold and The Heroes. So, good on Lauren Panepinto, art director at Orbit Books, for saving the series’ cover from their previous lows. I was hoping for something that would reflect the Western influence on the novel, like a pistol (do they exist yet in Abercrombie’s world?) or a dude with a mean handlebar moustache and a wide-brimmed hat, but, well, c’est la vie.

Panepinto’s brief thoughts on the cover:

I’m super excited to be able to continue our new US cover style from the trade paperbacks of The Heroes and Best Served Cold into the hardcover of Red Country. These have been the most epic photo shoots I’ve ever participated in, and Michael Frost and Gene Mollica have done an excellent job casting, styling, and producing fantastic images. The model for this shoot was particularly into the shoot, having been Pierce Brosnan’s Bond stunt double! Extra credit.

Last week, I gathered together everything we know about (A) Red Country into one handy post, so head there for a synopsis and some juicy analysis. And, if you’re into book trailers (for some reason…), you can find a short teaser for (A) Red Country at Fantasy Faction.

News

Cover Art for Luck of the Draw by Piers Anthony

By Aidan Moher March 31st, 2012
Luck of the Draw by Piers Anthony

A nice piece of cover art here from Julie Dillon, one of my favourite new artists. What’s worth noting, however, and the real reason I chose to post this cover, is that this is the first of Anthony’s Xanth series to be published since the death of Darrell K. Sweet, who had been with the series since the publication of its third volume, Castle Roogna, in 1979. This, of course, is of note to Wheel of Time fans who are eager to see the cover of the final volume, A Memory of Light, the first Wheel of Time novel to be released without a cover from Sweet. Dillon’s art captures Sweet’s style admirably while still having an identity of its own, which is great news for Xanth fans.

Art

Cover Art | The Inexplicables by Cherie Priest

By Aidan Moher March 16th, 2012
The Inexplicables by Cherie Priest

Yowza. Priest’s Clockwork Century novels have never lacked for attractive covers, but I think this one might take the cake. Instead of the traditional browns and greys that defined the previous covers, this time around we’re given a nice splash of blue and orange that really makes the whole image pop.

The art is by Cliff Nielsen, his first time working on the Clockwork Century novels (previous covers were painted by the equally awesome Jon Foster, and you might recognize him for the amazing covers he did for N.K. Jemisin’s The Inheritance Trilogy (like The Kingdom of Gods). I’m glad to see Nielsen getting even more exposure, he’s one of my favourite artists.

An a synopsis:

Rector “Wreck ‘em” Sherman was orphaned as a toddler in the Blight of 1863, but that was years ago. Wreck has grown up, and on his eighteenth birthday, he’ll be cast out out of the orphanage.

And Wreck’s problems aren’t merely about finding a home. He’s been quietly breaking the cardinal rule of any good drug dealer and dipping into his own supply of the sap he sells. He’s also pretty sure he’s being haunted by the ghost of a kid he used to know—Zeke Wilkes, who almost certainly died six months ago. Zeke would have every reason to pester Wreck, since Wreck got him inside the walled city of Seattle in the first place, and that was probably what killed him.Maybe it’s only a guilty conscience, but Wreck can’t take it anymore, so he sneaks over the wall.

The walled-off wasteland of Seattle is every bit as bad as he’d heard, chock-full of the hungry undead and utterly choked by the poisonous, inescapable yellow gas. And then there’s the monster. Rector’s pretty certain that whatever attacked him was not at all human—and not a rotter, either. Arms far too long. Posture all strange. Eyes all wild and faintly glowing gold and known to the locals as simply “The Inexplicables.”

In the process of tracking down these creatures, Rector comes across another incursion through the wall — just as bizarre but entirely attributable to human greed. It seems some outsiders have decided there’s gold to be found in the city and they’re willing to do whatever it takes to get a piece of the pie unless Rector and his posse have anything to do with it.

Much to my shame, I haven’t actually read any of the Clockwork Century novels, so I can’t really comment on the synopsis above. Hopefully you’ve found it enjoyable/interesting, though!

The Inexplicables is set for release on November 12th, 2012.