I have somewhat the same reaction to seeing the manuscript I write being put inside a cover.
This is even more true when the book is in translation.
There is much, 'Can that possibly be . . . ?' going on in my head.
Here is The Spymaster's Lady. It's in Russian once again, and they seem to have given me a new cover.
Lovely covers, both of them.
Yeah! Russian Romance industry.
The Mystery of a Courtesan
(I must say I find the translation intriguing. It is probably not as exciting in the original.)
British secret service did not manage to catch the mysterious Annick Villiers nicknamed fox, which is easily transforms from a naive young provincial aristocrat in a brilliant, from the seductive courtesan in the boy-bum ...
Or:
Британским секретным службам никак не удается поймать таинственную Анник Вильерс по прозвищу Лисенок, которая легко перевоплощается из наивной молодой провинциалки в блестящую аристократку, из соблазнительной куртизанки в мальчишку-бродягу…
ETA: My name is smaller on this cover. Can I obsess about this? It seems a small obsession and it's all in an alphabet I can't read.
The French cover has appeared, though not on Amazon.fr.
I do not have a copy of this French translation.
Alas.
Alas.
I am awaiting it eagerly.
So here is the French cover.
I have said -- actually I have said this somewhat often -- that I do not understand marketing.
Let me now just add that I really do not understand French marketing.
Here's the first Russian cover. Rather nice.
My college Russian is exceedingly rusty, but I think the blurb is something like this:
ReplyDeleteThe British secret service are unable to capture the elusive Annique Villiers, who effortlessly transforms herself from a naive young countrywoman into an aristocrat and from a seductive courtesan into a boyish hobo.
The French cover is a hoot. I expect him to start singing Gigi any minute!
@ Annie --
ReplyDeleteOh. Thank you so much. Hobo. Right.
I will say that Louis Jourdan is not precisely my image of Grey . . .
The French cover's on Decitre.fr, so it should appear on Amazon.fr in a couple of days (Amazon rents Decitre's database). There's no blurb yet, but that should appear soon too.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, the J'ai Lu covers range from bad to horrid (though actually it's better than ten years ago) :/ Is it me or is the suit not historically accurate?
@ snakeling
ReplyDeleteI am not filled with horror at the clothing, but it is just a tad hair off. Nothing you'd get het up about if you weren't a stickler for authenticity.
The hat on the cover is anywhere from early Victorian to modern. Authentic 1803 wear would have a wider brim, sometimes upturned, and a taller crown. (There was another, more compact hat of the time with a much lower crown and very narrow brim. A completely different outline.)
I can't see details of the coat itself on the cover. The color is ok. Deepest black had not yet become THE standard for men's wear, but it was certainly worn.
The flounce of the exposed shirt at collar and cuffs does strike me as odd indeed.
Folks wore neck and cuff ruffles clean through the period -- see pictures of Robespierre in the 1790s -- but the ruffles of 1790 were plain-edged and made of simple cloth. Fine, looped, delicate lace as we see on the cover would be a decade and more disappeared in 1803.
And, because the cover guy is wearing that fall of lace at his neck, he's NOT wearing the signature cravat of the Regency gentleman, with the many loops round the neck and tie at the front.
Sacre bleu, that J'ai Lu cover! The lace!! The lip gloss!! The artfully-plucked brow! Should be interesting (appalling, perhaps) to see what else is lost in translation....
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, my copy of the U.S. trade edition arrived in the mail yesterday. SQUEE!! Its gorgeousness is undeniable!
@ Elisa --
ReplyDeleteThe Trade PB is very pretty, isn't it? I feel exactly as if I have done something clever, which is a pleasant feeling.
The French fellow seems to be sneering. I don't know what to make of this.
Oh, I just loved the hint of Forbidden Rose at the end of the new TPB. The last line made me shiver. And Hawker was just so perfect! June 1st can't come soon enough. BTW the cover is just so so pretty and I love the way the new book is taller and thinner.
ReplyDeleteHi Anon --
ReplyDeleteI'm glad Hawker seems to be working out. It's HARD to write a character young when you've already written him grown.
This is the reason folks write from early chronology to late. Because it is easier.
I wish somebody'd told me that.
Phew, I guess I dodged a bullet with my J'ai Lu cover. But I would say one thing, yours is certainly attention getting. No way I'm passing that cover without a double take.
ReplyDeleteHi Sherry ---
ReplyDeleteYou have been very lucky in your French cover. It is LOVELY.
fyi -- it's at
http://www.amazon.fr/Arrangements-priv%C3%A9s-Sherry-Thomas/dp/2290014168/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273771725&sr=1-1
if anyone wants to see how a cover should be done. Your first US cover for PA was just as sophisticted and beautiful.
*le sigh*