Books, Beautiful Books

I love to read. That should be no surprise. There is nothing like sitting down or snuggling in bed with a good book. I read a lot. I usually have two books going at once, one downstairs and one upstairs. But along with reading good books, I also really love finding books that look beautiful. I love well-conceived and drawn cover art, and for hardcovers, if the book underneath that nice dust jacket is also pretty, I am a truly happy girl.

I have gotten four books recently that fall under the category of pretty to look at (one I know is a wonderful read. The others are new.) The books are:

Here is the dust jacket art for the four. Credits go to Michael Whelan for the “Dragonsbane” cover, Todd Lockwood for “Antiquity Grey” and “The Dark Thorn”, and Nate Taylor for “Sometimes the Magic Works.”

Here are the embossed hard covers under the dust jackets. Simple but symbolic of the story within the pages. Things like this make a plain old cover look special.

Here are the spines of the books which I think would look just lovely sitting on a bookshelf without dust jackets.

Do you look under the dust jackets of your books? And do you sometimes smile with pleasure when you see a particularly pretty book?

Note: All four of these books were produced by Grim Oak Press. They always do beautiful work. Many of their books are special editions, numbered, lettered, signed, etc. Some are a bit pricey, but worth it. I have backed a few of their Kickstarters (Antiquity Grey was the latest), and bought other books from them. I recommend Shawn and his company. That is an unsolicited endorsement. I just like the books they produce.

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Want something new to add to your 2022 reading lists? Might I suggest one of my books? I have written science fiction, fantasy, and urban fantasy stories. There are novels, novellas, and shorter pieces to fit everyone’s reading time. There are even some free stories, both here on the site and in other places. You can go here to find out more about the books I have published. They are available on Amazon, Smashwords, and most ebook retailers. Thank You!