dodger

[Jan Van Quirm]

Looks interesting but - no dolphins or cannibals

[Who's Wee Dug]

That USA cover is going to pee off some of the fans over there and leave them feeling they have got the short end of the shity stick once again.

[LilMaibe]

Covers of books are rather proverbially irrelevant, are they not?

Well, covers are what is to draw attention to the book. A bad cover can hinder sales as well as a good cover increase them. As WWD said, the americans might feel cheated for their cover (though YMMV) and I don't want to imagine what the german cover will look like.
That said, I posted the newest german covers somewhere. Go have a look at them. And then tell me: If you would have never heard of Discworld or Terry Pratchett and you'd see those standing in the shelf at your bookshop, would you think the text inside is any good?

[raptornx01]

not with most of the covers we got. though i liked the design of the Gonne on the cover of Men At Arms (even if it is a bit of a spoiler) and the Night Watch cover was perfect for the tone. the rest......

[Paranye]

Oh I'm sure you're right, good or bad covers probably do affect sales figures! I just don't care about them myself. I pick books based on recommendations, usually, or reputation, so covers just aren't something I've ever really paid much attention to unless they're either amazingly wonderful or gouge-out-my-eyes ugly. And when it comes to Terry Pratchett books I wouldn't care if the cover was a complete monstrosity and only five people read the book - just so long as I'm one of the five

[Tonyblack]

I also don't have a real problem with covers. Actually, I'd rather a cover had less rather than more and no depiction of the characters. I'd rather decide for myself what the characters look like.

[Paranye]

I also don't have a real problem with covers. Actually, I'd rather a cover had less rather than more and no depiction of the characters. I'd rather decide for myself what the characters look like.

Ooh yes, I had forgotten about that! Covers showing too many characters from the book can be a little annoying - especially when you go back to check after reading the book and think "did the artist even READ this?". Kidby does a fabulous job with character art though, I can't think of a time when I've found his ideas of how the characters look disagreeable.

[ladyramkin]

Didnt much like Nation and massively disappointed with Snuff, so ripping off Dickens is probably going to annoy me anyway.
That wont stop me buying it, of course

[LilMaibe]

Didnt much like Nation and massively disappointed with Snuff, so ripping off Dickens is probably going to annoy me anyway.
That wont stop me buying it, of course

Library first?

[ladyramkin]

Probably library first is a good idea.

[Who's Wee Dug]

I also don't have a real problem with covers. Actually, I'd rather a cover had less rather than more and no depiction of the characters. I'd rather decide for myself what the characters look like.

Ooh yes, I had forgotten about that! Covers showing too many characters from the book can be a little annoying - especially when you go back to check after reading the book and think "did the artist even READ this?". Kidby does a fabulous job with character art though, I can't think of a time when I've found his ideas of how the characters look disagreeable.

I did like the Josh Kirby covers though, there were as you say busy with sometimes more characters from the book than you could shake a stick at , loved them.

[Catch-up]

Don't much care about the covers one way or the other, as long as I get to read the story.

Didnt much like Nation and massively disappointed with Snuff, so ripping off Dickens is probably going to annoy me anyway.
That wont stop me buying it, of course

Hi Sylvia!

[ladyramkin]

Hi you!!! How are you all?

[Thales of Miletus]

I'm not sure about this cover. Seems to fall into a gap between Disc And non-Disc covers. I.e. the shadows of the figures in the foreground are wearing top hats, while the shadowy figures in the background have fedoras on.

[RJH]

Friday the 13th = More Dodger News, we have a little synopsis of the book thanks to Lynsey:

Dodger is a tosher – a sewer scavenger living in the squalor of Dickensian London.
Everyone who is nobody knows Dodger. Anyone who is anybody doesn’t.
But when he rescues a young girl from a beating, suddenly everybody wants to know him.
And Dodger’s tale of skulduggery, dark plans and even darker deeds begins . . .