CONVERSATION: Misleading Cover Art
Janine: In our recent joint review of Helen Hoang’s The Heart Principle, Jayne and I expressed our dismay over the way the book is marketed, and over missold books more generally:
Jayne: I also feel that in my opinion, this is more a women’s fiction book albeit one with strong romantic threads. There is a lot of the book told from Quan’s POV but for me, the book still focused more on Anna.
Janine: Agreed. Anna’s personal issues were foregrounded and her relationship with Quan was, if not in the background, in mid-ground. And I think I would have appreciated the book more had I expected women’s fiction.
Jayne: There have been a lot of books released in the past year or two that I felt needed either a different blurb or a different cover so that readers would know more of what to expect from them. I don’t think mismatching does a book any favors.
Janine: Books with illustrated covers are selling and everyone is jumping on that bandwagon, so I think we readers have to adapt by letting go of our expectations that the genre, subgenre, or tone will match the cover style. Otherwise, we will experience constant whiplash.
In this case, though, it’s particularly egregious since it’s not only the cover that’s misleading but also the tone and genre of the author’s earlier books. For an author to change genres and tones with no indication whatsoever–no corresponding change in the style of cover art or classification and no announcement from her or her publisher–goes beyond doing a disservice to the book and starts to feel like an attempt to pull a fast one. I didn’t pay for the book since I read an ARC but if I had spent hard-earned money to buy a romance I would be incensed.
Jayne: I’m glad that I had your impression of it in my mind when I started reading as yes, it doesn’t read like a romance.
Jayne, you mentioned that you felt this way about other books released in the last couple of years. Can you name some of them?
Jayne: One is a book I read earlier this year That Thing about Bollywood by Supriya Kelkar. Because that cover just screams “acrimonious parental separation and emotionally upset younger sibling.” Crazy Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams lost me early on so I didn’t make it to the point where the heroine’s family puts enormous pressure on her to donate a solid organ (kidney) to the dear old dad who had totally ignored her existence for years after he learned about it.
The heroine in Simmer Down by Sarah Smith annoyed the heck out of me by starting up childish pranks with the hero (between their businesses), lecturing her sick mother on the very things she herself kept secret (opening up about problems). After an initially fun start, You Lucky Dog by Julia London delved into her issues with her demanding family and his efforts to help his autistic brother then both heroine and hero turned self centered about a subplot conflict that lightly touched them both.
Janine: Emily Henry’s Beach Read and Beth O’Leary’s The Road Trip are two that stand out for me. The former had the broke heroine moving into a house that had served as her father and his mistress’s love nest when he cheated on her cancer-patient mother, and the latter was even darker. I about split my belly laughing at Jennie’s description of it:
Spoiler: Show
What about you, readers? Have you ever been mis-sold a book? How frustrating do you find this kind of thing? Do you think this is happening more than it used to? And what is the best example you’ve seen of a misclassified book?
Illustrated covers of romance novels are particular betes-noires of mine because, in addition to being misleading, I believe they are pathing women away from the frank enjoyment of the hot cover models traditionally associated with romance novels (yes, I’m a shameless ogler—those guys know why they’re there). Two particularly egregious recent examples:
https://www.amazon.com/Hot-Under-Collar-Andie-Christopher-ebook/dp/B08N6SGDF2/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=3QOW9VZQY2030&dchild=1&keywords=andie+j.+christopher+hot+under+his+collar&qid=1631200825&sprefix=andie+j.+&sr=8-3
HOT UNDER HIS COLLAR by Andie J. Christopher: I love a good “after putting up an arduous fight against temptation, priest betrays his vow of celibacy” romance—but, tell me, does anything about this cover say there’s spiritual or sexual angst ahead? I mean, I only had to take one look at the cover of Sierra Simone’s PRIEST (the ne plus ultra of priest romances—and priest-romance covers—mho) and I was like, “Come to mama!” I knew there was going to be so much spiritual agonizing and hot sexy-times ahead. Nothing about that Christopher cover does anything for me. (Plus, that $10.99 price for an ebook—are they joking?) I think the best review I’ve seen for HOT UNDER HIS COLLAR read in part, “Forget it—this is basically fix-it fan-fic for Fleabag.”
Another really crazy example of a truly misleading cover is this one for Lexi Blake’s TAGGART FAMILY VALUES:
https://www.amazon.com/Taggart-Family-Values-Lexi-Blake-ebook/dp/B0927SP445/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=lexi+blake+taggart+family+values&qid=1631201588&sr=8-1
The cover seems to imply that the book is going to be a cute series of vignettes about trying to keep the romance alive when you’re raising your kids, but the book is actually a collection of short stories from Blake’s long-running Masters & Mercenaries series which are romantic-suspense stories with an emphasis on bdsm. In fact, if you take a peek inside the book (go ahead, I’ll wait), you’ll see the first story takes place in a bdsm club and starts with the hero considering spending the night with not one but two subs! I can just imagine the reaction of someone buying this book thinking it’s going to be an amusing take on modern family life and then reading a scene featuring handcuffs and floggers! Talk about false advertising.
/Dismounting soapbox now.
Rant alert, beware.
Constable on the Hill, by Nicholas Rhea, “a perfect feel-good read from one of Britan’s best-loved authors”. Charming cover art includes stone houses, smoke from a chimney, meandering sheep, tufts of grass, and that quote. Story includes the constable ignoring a colleague beating a dog in an adjacent room and a homeless starving dog being ill treated instead of helped. Oooh, and each time I see it advertised on BookBub I want to complain loudly.
And then there is The Summer Before the War, with an illustrated bicyclist on the cover. Appears breezy and fun. Unfortunately before the war ran crashed into the war and included many of the heartbreaks of war. I didn’t choose this book for the breezy cover, I chose it because I so enjoyed another book by the author that I didn’t pause to glance at reviews.
@LML: I read your warning about the Rhea book and was grateful because – yeah, no mention of that in the description.
I also read and enjoyed “The Summer Before the War.” The title kind of gave me a hint that things would get dark but yes, you’re correct that the charming-ish cover doesn’t match the content.
@Jayne, for years I read mysteries exclusively and learned that Amazon reviews are riddled with dead giveaways. I completely stopped reading their reviews and forget that if I’m after a book that wasn’t reviewed here or SBTB I must look at the reviews.
I don’t deny that The Summer Before the War was well written. It was a problem of my expecting halcyon days followed by speedy going-off-to-war romance, tears and kisses goodbye at the train station, The End. What I got was desperation and sorrow.
People make fun of what I read all the damn time but there is more than enough desperation and sorrow in reality. My spirit can’t take more in fiction.
@LML: Agreed. And this is why I usually avoid books with the word “heartbreaking” in the blurb or title. I realize they are popular and some readers enjoy a good cathartic cry over them but nope, not for me. And animal cruelty rules something straight out.
@Jayne & @LML: I get completely distracted if animals are introduced in a book and then suddenly forgotten. I read a dark romance where a woman who had a cat was abducted by a mafia boss—and there was no more mention of the cat! Who was feeding him or cleaning out the litter box? I couldn’t focus on the story because I was worried about the fictional cat! In another book, a woman was being kept in an isolated house on an island; there was a watch dog in the house, but there was never any mention of how the dog was fed, etc. Then, about 3/4 of the way through the book, a casual reference was made to the dog’s automatic feeder. Yeah, that would have been nice-to-know information earlier in the book if you want me to concentrate on what’s happening in the story! And don’t get me started on Georges Simenon’s AT THE WHITE HORSE INN, where a poor dog is chained up in the yard and, when something unexpected happens to the staff, no one remembers to give her food or water.
Simenon actually points this out as an example of how distracted everyone is. No, just no!
TL;DR: Writers, if you introduce an animal into a story, please treat them humanely and keep track of where they are—or else, just don’t include pets at all.
@DiscoDollyDeb: Didn’t some author lecture or write about this in advice to other authors? Never leave readers dangling when it comes to the welfare of animals?
This is my first time posting on DA, so here goes…. To me, ELEANOR OLIPHANT IS COMPLETELY FINE was a classic bait and switch. Adorned with a cute illustrated cover, it was advertised as funny, charming, romantic, and quirky, and there were elements of each of those things in the book. However, it told the story of an alcoholic, lonely, suicidal woman with limited social skills who was the victim of abuse and trauma. There were scenes which were truly difficult to read. I was put off by the discrepancy between the way the book was promoted and the actual content, as was my book club. Yet the book has been very popular, so perhaps other people were not bothered?
@Becky, I agree with you that the story didn’t match the cover. Sometimes I wonder if the person applying adjectives to a novel’s marketing text has read the book or merely had it described to them.
@D3, your comment about being distracted when an author puts an animal in a story and then forgets about it made me happy because I have the same quibble. I’m trying to read and the back of my mind is calling out “Hey! what about the dog?!” I read a short series earlier this year and the author changed the name of the dog between one book and another.
@LML: Re dog name changing. I recall an AAR review of a book during which, over the course of our hero riding his horse down a street, not only did the horse’s color change but he was gelded.
@Becky: Welcome Becky! Yeow – I have been thinking about trying that book but thank you for telling me the heroine’s background as that’s the kind of thing I’m trying to avoid these days.
@Everyone: I just finished a book where the cat’s name was “Rambo,” but suddenly mid-book became (for a chapter) “Romeo.” The hero was sleeping in the heroine’s guest bedroom and when she went to check on him, the line read, “Romeo was on the bed with him,” and I had a lot of thoughts—primarily, did this book suddenly become an MMF? Lol. The next chapter, the cat was back to being “Rambo.” Hello, Editor!
@Jayne: Yes, that book actually got a grade of F-, with the minus for the treatment of the poor horse. He started out the book as a stallion but a only a few pages later was a gelding. One of my favorite reviews ever.
@DiscoDollyDeb: OMG, that cover for TAGGART FAMILY VALUES is absurd for a series about mercenaries. Also, my brain is not computing the mismatch between mercenaries and values, which is almost as weird. The whole point of being a mercenary is that you sell your killing services to the party who pays you the most, without regard for anything but, well, mercenary greed. I feel like the definition of that word is lost on half of Romancelandia. And yes, an erotic romance should have something at least slightly suggestive on its cover.
@Jayne et. al.: So with you all on animal cruelty (not a pet owner here, but when I went vegetarian 31 years ago it was for that reason). Linda Howard had a book (AFTER THE NIGHT) where several members or associates of the hero’s family wanted to ride the heroine out of town and one day she finds a dead (possibly mutilated, I can’t remember) cat on her doorstep. I was horrified. In the end, we learn that the cat was already dead when the hero’s sister found it, before she left its corpse in front of the heroine’s door. But does the sister start therapy at the end of the book? Apologize to the heroine? No, and no again. I couldn’t get over that.
@Becky: Welcome, Becky! I
I loved ELEANOR OLIPHANT IS COMPLETELY FINE at the time (not as much in hindsight) because I found it healing (not cathartic though, it isn’t that) but I think it helped a lot that the person who first recommended it (to me and some other friends) reads a lot of stuff that isn’t sweetness and light. My expectations were set by that and also by the fact Reese Witherspoon chose it for her book club (she doesn’t go for purely fun books either). I liked the combination of humor, quirkiness, and darkness because it fit with the way the book slowly peeled back the layers of Eleanor’s character, first showing us her surface and then revealing what’s underneath. It was also a book that’s easy to spoil so I think the publisher’s marketing department was trying to be cagey about the contents. But yes, absolutely, the cover was misleading and I can see how upsetting that might be to an unsuspecting reader.
@DiscoDollyDeb: Romeo is a much more catlike name than Rambo, IMO.
@Susan/DC: Do you have a link?
@Janine: I’ll add the link (only the review now shows as just an “F”) – https://allaboutromance.com/book-review/to-tame-a-renegade/ but read to the end and yes, it had a minus at one point just for the poor horse!
@Janine: @DiscoDollyDeb: Romeo is a much more catlike name than Rambo, IMO. Depends on the cat. We had a feral tom who adopted us that we named Mongo after the Blazing Saddles character. Big head, no neck, wide shoulders, bow-legged. Physically intimidating but the sweetest cat ever. He died a couple years ago and I miss him so much.
But agree about animals in books. If you’re going to add one, better make sure they’re taken care of, even if your editor wants to cut that bit. And I don’t like illustrated covers in general. They all imply lightweight content to me.
@Sandra: “Mongo only pawn in game of life.” Okay, you knew someone had to say it. ☺
Don’t mess with me about animal characters, people. I will get ugly about it.
I know some who says that while at home, their cat is a sweetie. But at the dreaded v-e-t, the vet and staff have to basically don welders gloves to handle said sweetie who has turned into Berserker Cat.
@Sandra: Good point, there are cats of all stripes. And calico patterns…