Synopsis:
Summer 1553: A time of danger and deceit. Brendan Prescott, an orphan, is reared in the household of the powerful Dudley family. Brought to court, he finds himself sent on an illicit mission to the King’s brilliant but enigmatic sister, Princess Elizabeth. But Brendan is soon compelled to work as a double agent by Elizabeth’s protector, William Cecil—who promises in exchange to help him unravel the secret of his own mysterious past.
A dark plot swirls around Elizabeth's quest to unravel the truth about the ominous disappearance of her seriously ill brother, King Edward VI. With Elizabeth's lady-in-waiting at his side, Brendan plunges into a ruthless gambit of half-truths, lies, and murder. Filled with the intrigue and pageantry of Tudor England, THE TUDOR SECRET is the first book in the Elizabeth's Spymaster series.
So what are you thoughts on the US (LHS) and UK (RHS) covers? Which would entice you to pick the book up? And what about initials vs full name?
If you have read it, how well do the covers match the story?
The cover on the left (using he author's initials) looks too much like a romance novel -- it's beautiful, but misleading.
ReplyDeleteThe cover on the right (with the author's full name) is more evocative of a crime/intrigue novel. I like it has the subtitle 'Elizabeth's Spymaster,' except it's placement directly above the author's name makes it look as if the author is Elizabeth's spymaster...
Yes, the UK cover on amazon has the wording at the top of the cover. I got this one from the author's website. I haven't seen the book for myself to know which is correct.
ReplyDeleteKaren - I agree completely with Paul. The cover on the left really does look too much like a romance novel. I prefer the one on the right.
ReplyDeleteI like both covers, artistically and design speaking, they are both good and have thought put into them (and production values). However, one could argue with fairness that both of them are "of a type" and not that original. My daughter has a lot of tudor novels with covers exactly like these two!
ReplyDeleteI don't know if one could call authors such as Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir (when writing tudor fiction) "romance" - probably not - but their covers, for example, are very like the one on the left.
best wishes
Maxine.
Paul has already explained why the first won´t appeal to crime fans.
ReplyDeleteI like the one to the right very much, perhaps especially because it reminds me of S.J. Bolton´s Sacrifice - a book I loved. (The cover with the golden ring). So I would pick that one up and check what was about.