12 Days of Best Covers of 2013: Day #1

For this new seasonal end of year list, the first book cover that I pick is the second novel in the Night’s Masque series by Anne Lyle, published by Angry Robot Books. Anne’s first novel, The Alchemist of Souls, was one of my first Angry Robot reads last year and it got me hooked on to reading more of the publisher’s output. The cover for that novel too was rather excellent and that success was repeated for the second book in the series.

And the first comics cover that I pick is the first issue of Brian Wood’s Star Wars from Dark Horse Comics. As a life-long fan of the entire setting, it is one of the best covers I’ve seen to date and its what got me started on really reading again all the different Star Wars comics, regardless of where in the setting they are set. And it also gave me a good solid taste for the kind of books that Dark Horse puts out each month.

So without further ado, hit the break to see both the covers in all their glory! The full list of all these covers is available here.

The Merchant of Dreams by Anne Lyle

Cover Art by Larry Rostant at Artist Partners

Why: Female lead in a historical fantasy set in the times of Elizabethan England. Strong, confident pose. No sexualisation. The pose itself says: don’t mess with me. I’m partial to such great covers and Larry Rostant is one of the finest artists in the industry.

Helpful links:

• Publisher’s Link
• Review: The Alchemist of Souls
• Review: The Merchant of Dreams
• Author Interview: Anne Lyle
• Guest Post: Anne Lyle on Names

Star Wars #1 by Brian Wood and Carlos D’Anda

Cover Art by Alex Ross.

Why: The style kind of evokes a very classic Star Wars feel for me, from the days of the original trilogy with Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa. And Alex Ross is a mind-blowing comics cover artist.

Helpful links:

• Review: #1
• Review: #2
• Review: #3-5
• Review: #6-8