Friday Face-Off: Favorite Fantasy Cover
Welcome to The Friday Face-Off, a weekly meme created by Books by Proxy! Each Friday, we will pit cover against cover while also taking the opportunity to showcase gorgeous artwork and feature some of our favorite book covers. If you want to join the fun, simply choose a book each Friday that fits that week’s predetermined theme, post and compare two or more different covers available for that book, then name your favorite. A list of future weeks’ themes are available at Lynn’s Book Blog.
This week’s theme is:
“Simples”
~ a cover featuring A FAVORITE FANTASY COVER
Mogsy’s Pick:
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
I’m glad for the easy topic this week, because it means a chance for me to feature a great book as well as many of its beautiful covers I’ve always admired!
While The Lies of Locke Lamora has many editions, today’s theme wants us to focus on our favorites, hence I’ve chosen to put forth only the best ones for the face-off:
From left to right:
Spectra (2006) – Bantam Spectra (2007) – Subterranean Press (2007)
Gollancz (2006) – Gollancz PB (2007) – Gollancz 10th Year Anniversary Ed (2016)
Finnish Edition (2007) – Swedish Edition (2007) – Polish Edition (2007)
French Edition A (2013) – French Edition B (2013) – Italian Edition (2007)
Thai Edition (2017) – Romanian Edition (2011) – Bulgarian Edition (2008)
Winner:
Well, this book was certainly blessed by the cover gods. Even after the culling, we have more than a dozen strong contenders. It was extremely difficult to choose this week, but at the end of the day I’m going to have to go with the Gollancz paperback, as this has always been the one closest to my impressions of what the world of Gentleman Bastard and Camorr should look and feel like.
But what do you think? Which one is your favorite?
The BiblioSanctum 
I also like the spectra 2006 and French edition b
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The French B is great, I spent some time contemplating that one too 🙂
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Do we know who the artist is? I’ve been looking ;_;
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I like the French B, but it looks YA and too fun. The Bulgarian is nice, but so assassin like
Maybe I have to go with yours
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Isn’t it interesting how they can come across so differently? You’re right, the French B (which I love) does look kind of YA, or even MG-like.
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I didn’t even know about this book
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I think unless you read a lot of epic fantasy, it might not be very well known in mainstream 🙂
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I very nearly did these covers too – and only because I love that green cover that you’ve chosen. I just love that cover. Out of the others that I’ve not seen before the French is fun and I also quite like the Thai cover but the green one gets me every time.
Lynn 😀
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The green cover is indeed quite lovely – and it’s so rare for covers to use that shade too!
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I love the Swedish edition!
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I also looked at that one for a long, long time – it’s so magical!
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I really like the Subterranean Press (2007) cover! 🙂
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It’s a gorgeous cover, I love the symmetry in it!
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Great choice! There are so many good covers, so I have to choose two favorites, the Sub Press and the Swedish editions. I guess I love all the color and detail😊
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I agree! They’re a bit too cheery and bright for the tone of this book, but I do love the colors!
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I think mine is a tie between the one you chose and Spectra’s 2006 edition. They both are just gorgeous and you’re right, give off that proper feel of where I’d believe they’d actually be.
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Spectra 2006 is very nice too, I just wish the letters weren’t so big, haha! I wanted to enjoy more of the artwork 🙂
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Totally fair point!
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The two Gollancz editions (2006 and 2007) are my favorites because the design offers a clear suggestion of Venice, the city Camorr takes its inspiration from, the intriguing background to Locke’s adventures . 🙂
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Yeah, I enjoy the Venetian feel – though the silhouettes of the birds in the Gollancz 2006 edition always makes me think of snow 🙂
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I think my favourites the one that you picked (the green really makes it stand out) but I also really like the ones posted either side of it too.
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I like those two as well – simple with limited color, but oh so elegant too!
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I love a good fantasy city, specially a gritty one. The Subterranean Press cover is one that I like a lot- and I kinda like the Italian edition too. Maybe even the French one?
Cool covers all around though 🙂
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Yeah I love gritty fantasies, and that’s why I chose the one I did – I think it fits Camorr the most. Though I really like the ones you mentioned too, even though they are too colorful for the setting! Aesthetically they are gorgeous!
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Yes, that one! Great choice!
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Yay, happy you think so too! 😀
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So many contenders! But I agree, your pick is definitely the most befitting of the actual content. I also rather like the Finnish edition; besides the overly large font that distracts from the image, I like the sparkling city lights in the background. 😉
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I LOVE the Finnish cover too – surprised not more people have pointed it out. It’s probably my second favorite 🙂
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i hadn’t realized there were so many different (and fantastic!!) international covers of this book! and now i want prints of them as posters on my wall . . .
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Totally! A lot of these would make excellent posters!
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My favourite fantasy novel to this day and that’s the edition I have too! Excellent pick! 😀
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Awesome! I only have the Kindle edition of this one, I really should pick up a hard keeper copy, because I agree, this is an amazing book!
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A lot of good versions here. I think I’ve always been partial to the original Gollancz version, I just love purple I guess lol.
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I have to choose the Spectra cover, simply because it’s “my” cover and gives me all the good feelings when I see it. 🙂
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Oh wow, there are a lot of great covers for this one! Good choice 😀 I think I like Bantam Spectra (2007) and French Edition B (2013) best!
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Great choice!
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