This past spring my publisher, Revell, gave me the delightful but very challenging choice of picking from two different designs. A first for all the novels I’ve written. Usually I have just one cover to admire, not two! There were elements of each cover that I loved as both are very striking and fit the story well.
That said, I chose this cover for several reasons…
Our heroine is standing in a field of blooming heather which suits the Scottish setting. I like that you can’t see her face, just her form, as it leaves room for the imagination.
Her garments are so 1715! The way she is clutching her sumptuous gown is very telling. Though she outranks our hero as far as the British peerage & precedence is concerned, her first inclination upon meeting him is to curtsy which certainly tells you something about him!
There’s a sense of movement in this design as if the wind is blowing. The rose & thistle images are a lovely echo of the title. Most importantly, this cover best suits the novel itself.
Those autumnal tones are striking though I’m more drawn to blues & purples like the heather surrounding her. But those more subtle colors may not pop like this russet/orange/gold. And I find it intriguing that her bodice strings are dangling. She is on the run so that small detail fits, too!
Another reading friend noticed that her thumb is smudged with dirt, a delightful, true-to-life detail! Somehow that escaped me entirely.
I may share the ‘almost cover’ soon so you’ll understand this delightful, difficult choice. Truly, beauty is in the eye of the beholder & so are book covers! Whatever the novel’s wrapping, I love this novel & count it among the favorites of the 14 published with Revell. I hope you love it, too!
RELEASING JANUARY 3rd, 2023!
PREORDER:
*e-copies, audio, & large print to come