Monday, March 28, 2011

Cover Crazy (16): The House of Dead Maids

Cover Crazy is a weekly meme hosted by Tawni at The Book Worms where a beautiful cover is featured each week for all of us to admire. I am going to use my Cover Crazy posts as an opportunity to review a book cover I love or review any cover (even the ones I don't love) from a book I've read. This week's Cover Crazy is for:  

The House of Dead Maids by Clare B. Dunkle



Ho-lee-crap! Does the publisher want to give me nightmares? Because that’s exactly what this cover does! 

Where are her eyes?? AAaahh! There are a few things that never fail to make me squirm, and doing things to eyes is one of them. I’m totally cool when eye colors are changed or even given slit cat-like pupils. I actually like that. 

But sticking things in eyeballs or, worse, removing them completely freaks me out. I just keep going back and harping on the question: Where are her eyes?! Why aren’t they in her head where they belong? I had the horrifying need to read this book and find out the answers to these questions.

Tearing myself away from the horror of her absent eyeballs, I see the title of the book: The House of Dead Maids. Well, ok then. She’s probably dead. Impressed with my observational skills? I know, I know. The way she fades into the background was another clue I picked up on as well. Now I want to know why she died, and if she lost her eyeballs before or after she died. 

Seriously though, can you get scarier than a ghost with gaping eye holes? This cover alone leaves me quaking and turning on every single light in the house. Add in the spooky trees in the background and the atmosphere-rich coloring of stormy, dreary grays and I don’t know how I managed to read this book without a brown paper bag cover!

(For the sake of full disclosure, I did put the book face down on my nightstand when I wasn’t reading. Could you imagine waking up in the middle of the night, turning over and seeing that cover??)

Then there’s the blurb: “Dark and Beautiful, literary and lovely.” Well, all of that is entirely true about the story, but yikes! I don’t know if I’d call that cover beautiful or lovely. More like chilling, haunting, and terrifying! All words that also apply to the amazing story. 

The only thing I don’t really like about this cover is the title font. It seems just a little too pretty to me. I would want something scary. Maybe a font that drips or somehow fades like ghostly smoke. Maybe something like the Supernatural font. 


This book was so deliciously good (you can read all about how much I loved this book in my The House of Dead Maids review), even for a huge wimp like me. The cover compliments the story very well.

What do you think about this cover?
Do you like it? Dislike it? 
Does it make you want to read the book?

Interested in covers? 
Be sure to check out another Cover Crazy post by Gina from My Precious.
 


Want to cleanse your palate with a pretty cover?
More of my Cover Crazy posts

18 comments:

  1. I ended up giggling my way through this post despite the terrifying cover. It totally scared me off reading this book; also the fact that "dead" is in the title. I'm not sure I'd even want to sleep in the same room as the cover, even if it was facedown.

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  2. The cover creeps me out too! I am a big scaredy cat. But I do like that it is different from most of YA covers :)

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  3. I think this is a great cover - it truly creeped me out the first time I saw it! I would definitely place it face down on my nightstand too!!

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  4. This cover is FREAKY! *hides from the evil eyes of doom*

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  5. Wow! I'm with you I just keep getting sucked into the emptiness of where her eyes should be. I wonder if her eyes are gone because she saw something she wasn't supposed to. I want to read this book now and find out all the mystery this cover presents. Nice choice for this week !

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  6. Oh my gosh! I scroll down and see these gaping eye holes staring at me!! I'd be freaked to even pick up this book, I'd definitely be putting my hand over that cover and averting my eyes.
    I like your mention of Supernatural though ;D

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  7. I probably shouldn't laugh at your discomfort, but you made me giggle throughout the whole post. That being said, that girl is SPOOKY. She's giving me the creeps, even though I've scrolled down the page because I know she's still there, not staring at me!

    I wouldn't do any harm to the book if I were you. I'm sure she'll come out of her cover-prison and make you very sorry. She certainly looks like she wants out. *shivers*

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  8. I like the imagery of the cover, but the font looks a bit tetchy. I'm totally with you...adding the Supernatural font (which I adore) would heighten its appeal. Fab feature! :)

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  9. I agree! The whole no eyes thing TOTALLY creeps me out!

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  10. "No!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Is what I'd say if I saw this cover in the middle of the night on my coffee table. Horrifying!

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  11. This cover is creepy but intriguing! I like the whole dark and beautiful thing going on. Really good choice!

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  12. What I like best about this cover is that it's different. It's creepy and not all that pretty. It really stands out. I admire a cover that takes risks.

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  13. That cover is so creeeeepy!!
    Like seriously, I wouldn't like to meet that cover on a dark alley.
    *shivers*

    And that makes it sort of cool. *grins*

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  14. Bookworm1858, LOL! It is so scary! At least it’s a short book, so you only have to look at that cover for so long. The book was so good though. I want to own a copy, but maybe I’ll have to hide it instead of displaying it on my shelves. :P

    Nic, Ha, yes, no pretty dresses here! It really does stand out.

    Leanna, It is such an effective cover. Glad to see I’m not alone with having to put it face down!

    A Backwards Story, LOL! It’s terrifying!

    Gina, I hope you do read this book! I loved it. Of course, I’m not giving you even a hint about what happened to her :)

    Laura, LOL! Sorry! See, I’d want to put my hand over it too, but I don’t want to touch it! I <3 Supernatural. Team Dean *swoons*

    Celine, Oh no, laugh as much as you’d like :D Oh my gosh you just totally freaked me out! I pictured her crawling out a la The Ring where the girl climbed out of the tv and was doing that whole twitchy movement thing that scares me like nothing else. AAAAHHH!!

    Melissa, If I had better photoshop skills I’d try to make a version with the Supernatural font. It’s such a great, spooky font.

    Natalie, Yes! EEEKK!

    Lazy Girl, LMAO!! I’d be totally freaked out!

    Vy, Thanks! The book is equally dark and beautiful. The cover and story complement one another really well.
    Alison, This cover would definitely catch my eye if it was on a shelf with a bunch of other current YA books. Much as I love the pretty dress trend, they do tend to blend together after a while.

    Alex, Haha, nooooo I want her to stay on the cover far, far away from me! I’ll definitely have to buy a hardcover version so I can remove the jacket while I’m reading it :)

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  15. lmao!!! Omg...you are too funny. I can't stop laughing because you keep saying "Where are her eyes!" And that you put the book face down on your nightstand. My stomach hurts and I have tears in my eyes.

    The supernatural font would have been better. I'm checking out your review...btw...have you seen trailer? If you think the cover is scary! I can't even think about it. It creeped me out bad. lol!

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  16. I've totally done the face down thing too! I have a book with a hockey mask on the cover that I have to put face down for that very reason.

    I kind of like the quirky font. It reminds me of wrought iron around a graveyard or something. But the eyes, oh yes. CRAZY CREEPY.

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  17. This one totally creeps me out. The hollowed eyes give me the chills.

    Reading Lark's Cover Crazy

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  18. Julie, Haha, I’m glad I made you laugh! :P I have seen the trailer! When she says that line about “Someone sleeping in my beeedd” I get chills!

    Logan, LOL, ok good thing you put covers down too. I think I remember that hockey mask cover and, yeah, I’d be putting that one face down too. I do get a graveyard feel from the font. I guess it does kind of work in that way.

    Andrea, Right? Those hollowed eyes are freaky!

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