Notice this one lately?

Have you seen other glossy or sugary lips lately? Share in the comments. I like the first two here better than the second two, which read WAY more along the lines of books for the 30 something ladies rather than teen reads.

Vivian Vande Velde. She’s an author that I never heard of before beginning my job, but now I’ve seen her popping up more and more. She’s written a variety of books, but a number of them are known for their horror or creep factor, and she’s also been writing strong fantasy for quite a while. Her newest, Cloaked in Red, comes out in October and is a series of short stories playing off “Little Red Riding Hood.”

Vande Velde’s been publishing for a couple of decades now, so why don’t we take a little walk down cover-memory lane?

1985 brought us A Hidden Magic. It’s a bit dated, but I still see the fantasy elements to this one being easily sellable today.

Dragon’s Bait came out in 1992. Again, it’s a bit dated, but I suspect that the dragon is always appealing. But is that a guy or a girl on the cover? Does it matter? Here are a couple other takes of this one:

I like the original, as well as the one on the left. The one on the right looks a little too bare for me.

Companions of the Night came to us in 1995. I think the girl on the cover looks like she might have some other issues — she’s a little too pasty looking. Maybe she’s one of the companions? Here’s a few variations of this cover, too:

I think I like the middle best! It reminds me a bit of Drew Barrymore ala E.T. The other two are straight up creepy.

This one gives me the chills a little, and I don’t think it’s from the ghostly creature — I mean, why is that kid wearing a red beanie? Alas, A Coming Evil (which I suppose doesn’t refer to the painful monochromatic outfit) came to us in 1998. Let me tell you how relieved I am to offer this, though:

This title has to do with the Nazis, so I like that that element is more present. Also, the main character is a girl. Monochrome man on top doesn’t fit that image for me (and totally unrelated, but this character meets a ghost named Lisette — the same name of the ghost Rebecca meets in Paula Morris’s Ruined. Now I must investigate this name in relation to spirits!).

In 1999, we were reminded that we should Never Trust a Dead Man. The trend I kind of see in all of her covers — and perhaps it’s a factor of the times — is that they are geared to younger readers. I actually don’t mind this cover at all, save for the bit dated font. I like that it’s a boy on the lead, and he’s not a hunky beefcake. He’s normal. I do like the coloring (orange! foreboding!) in this re-cover:

I like his sullen, sullen eyes. Kind of.

Now if this isn’t reminiscent of a well-known Caroline B. Cooney title, I don’t know what is:

This whole “holding something in our hands” trend has been going on for a while, it seems. I don’t particularly like how tiny the photo is in comparison to the massive hands in this one. I mean, would anyone REALLY hold a photo like that? Do people have photos that tiny in comparison to their hands? Maybe I have small hands. Alison, Who Went Away came to us in 2001.

Heir Apparent, published in 2002, might be Vande Velde’s most well-known novel. I love this cover: it’s clearly a fantasy and the colors and design make it quite timeless. The only other cover I’ve seen for it is a slightly modified one:

Both work for me.

Witch Dreams came to us in 2005. This cover works for me, too. I like that the girl isn’t a typically pretty girl and there’s enough going on to make it clear to a reader this is a fantasy setting. The half coin adds a bit of a mystery element, as well.

This might be one of my favorite covers, period. Remembering Raquel, published in 2007, has no problem standing out on a shelf. The red, black, and white elements work well and there’s intrigue built in. There are few all red covers to compete with this one. My only qualm is that I don’t have an idea of the genre of this title — something most of Vande Velde’s other titles have had easily in their cover art.

1997 brought us one of Vande Velde’s short story collections, Curses, Inc. Can I just tell you how amazing the old school computer is? The black cat? The witch? I love this cover, though without doubt, the computer dates this book. Never fear. It’s been redone:

There’s still a computer, but it’s definitely not as dated. Fear is apparent. Technology’s a scary, scary thing.

Finally, let me leave you with the cover for Cloaked in Red. As much as I am against people-on-covers, this one works quite well:

The only downside is when I have a patron come asking for the book with a girl in a red cloak, this won’t be my first thought. These will be.