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Post by dem on Jun 20, 2008 5:45:15 GMT
Andrew Jolly - Lie Down In Me (Nel, July 1972) For all I know, the Daily Telegraph reviewer was deadly accurate and Lie Down In Me "may well be one of the greatest pieces of literature of our time", but it ain't so much to get excited about if the cover's anything to go by. A NEL novel entitled Lie Down In Me with no tits on the cover? Was Peter Haining on holiday or something? It's outrageous!
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Post by jkdunham on Jun 22, 2008 1:28:19 GMT
A NEL novel entitled Lie Down In Me with no tits on the cover? Was Peter Haining on holiday or something? It's outrageous! Have you seen the cover for Intimate Strangers (NEL, 1974), Dem? Talk about "This image violates our terms of use"... Apparently the phrase, "Sex sells", only applied to titles. As far as cover photos were concerned, what the public really went for was brown cardigans. Perhaps we could have a thread for 'Covers that try really hard to be exciting'? NEL published a series of chess-themed mysteries by Adam Hall (Elleston Trevor) featuring Hugo Bishop. Now chess presents no end of fascinating intellectual challenges to the enthusiast, I'm sure, but it's not exactly the most visual of games. Hats off then to the New English Library art department for coming up with covers featuring chess pieces being menaced by cats and snakes or, in the case of Rooks Gambit (below), hung by the neck until they're... inanimate. And how about this stomach-churning slice of ultra-violence... |
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Post by dem on Jun 22, 2008 14:22:48 GMT
Thanks for sharing, s! Did you pay more for Intimate Strangers than The Ghoul? How about this one. I adored the film, very high on atmosphere, even found parts of it frightening. So, with plenty of eye-catching stills to choose from, how comes they decided on this coma-inducer for the cover of the novelisation? |
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Post by Calenture on Jun 22, 2008 16:02:47 GMT
Note the scantily-clad female chained to the pillars of the subterranean dungeon. Note the high Shakespearean brow of the devil doctor himself, the narrowed cat-green eyes peering through fumes as they rise from a row of brightly coloured test tubes. Note the black-clad figues as they hurry through dim, fog-thick alleyways, and the tall, sombre shape of Nayland Smith, revolver gripped firmly in hand. ...All depressingly conspicuous by their absence.  |
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Post by dem on Jun 22, 2008 17:51:12 GMT
Rosemary Anne Lauder & Michael Williams - Strange Stories From Devon (Bossiney, 1982) Utilizing ultra-sensitive state of the art US military software, the authors managed to capture this chilling shot of the Black Dog Of Barnstable, fresh from devouring it's meal of human flesh.
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Post by jkdunham on Jun 23, 2008 0:34:20 GMT
So, with plenty of eye-catching stills to choose from, how comes they decided on this coma-inducer for the cover of the novelisation? They should have gone with an action shot of Watson having his pea squashed. Here's another one for you;  NEL, 1973Tense... thrilling... suspenseful... just three adjectives that couldn't really be applied to this cover. Did you pay more for Intimate Strangers than The Ghoul? I'll swap you for a copy of Agro, Dem. |
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Post by pulphack on Jun 27, 2008 23:35:53 GMT
Those Adam Hall covers are class - no, really, i love 'em. go on, MAKE chess threatening...
a bit unfair to include the Sax Rohmer - i really like that painting, though it would be more appropriate for Ernest Bramah or Robert VanGullik, i suppose. and Intimate Strangers - it might be NEL, but it shows they knew their markets - it was an oldies series so they have a staid cover with the two leads from the TV - you'd spot that in Woolies on pension day. sound commercial sense, if unexciting.
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Post by nightreader on Jul 5, 2008 16:13:28 GMT
Couldn't help wondering if this could be a contender...  The Undead - Vampire Masterpieces. Ed. by James Dickie (Neville Spearman 1971) |
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Post by sean on Jul 5, 2008 16:45:54 GMT
I quite like that one, actually!
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Post by H_P_Saucecraft on Jul 9, 2008 18:41:09 GMT
Is this better for you? ;D  |
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Post by severance on May 31, 2011 18:43:50 GMT
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Post by andydecker on May 31, 2011 19:01:02 GMT
I think this is a joke cover.  No sober editor ... um, well ... nah, can´t be. |
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Post by Craig Herbertson on Oct 6, 2011 10:02:31 GMT
How can you put the word 'sexy' in a front cover and end up with this?  |
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Post by valdemar on Apr 20, 2012 10:23:57 GMT
I have just seen that shonky cover for 'The Hound Of The Baskervilles' above. Now, I'm not keen on dogs, but the one on the cover is one that wouldn't harm a fly. He's probably [or was, depending how old the book is], called something like 'Billy', and is/was daft as a brush. ''There it is, Holmes! The hound!'' ''Calm down, Watson, we're safe here - look, he's just run through that stinking pool of stagnant water, rolled in that big pile of bovine excrement, and is now micturating on the trunk of a sorbus aucuparia, and will then roll in his own feculence, yap wildly at that bit of rock, and run away, having frightened himself in so doing''... |
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Post by pulphack on Apr 24, 2012 6:48:21 GMT
that sounds horribly familair - you've seen me walking my dog and yelling at her before stopping off for the Bob Martins shampoo on the way home, then...
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No sober editor ... um, well ... nah, can´t be.