Who among us has not been lured by a gorgeous cover only to find the contents between the covers lacking? Who among us has not had this happen multiple times?
Is it just me? It might be me.
Honestly, I admire covers for what they are. Covers. I do not at all judge my books by them. Not anymore. Maybe it's a function of my age, which we will not discuss, but the fact is I had to navigate a number of cover trends that left much to be desired. Covers were not how one picked a book. For several years, books sported single, solid color covers with contrasting title colors that would never pass a usability test today. Then someone got bold and started putting racing stripes on covers! In clashing colors that made your teeth vibrate just to look at them. (Look, y'all, it was the 70s and I was a kid, but I was THAT kid, reading stuff well above grade level and yikes those covers sucked.)
Anyway. Long story slightly shorter: I have cover trauma resulting in serious trust issues. I am eternally grateful that recent cover trend history has tended toward artistic endeavors with an eye for conscious design. Covers are a thing to behold now. I love that. Still don't trust 'em. It's back cover copy for me. I expect back cover copy to convey genre and a hint about the story. If it hits my particular 'might be yum' buttons, I'll crack the cover and scan the first page. I'll know right away whether the story and the author are going to work for me. If the cover is pretty? Bonus. But yeah.
You kids get off my lawn.
