Or: why you should never judge a book by its cover, even when the cover is making some questionable life choices.
Five months ago, someone left me this comment on Goodreads:
“you read a lot of ugly books!! glad they’re bangers inside :)”
An actual Goodreads comment. On my actual reviews.
And honestly?
I haven’t stopped thinking about it. 😂
First of all, RUDE.
Second of all, you’re not entirely wrong.
Because apparently I have developed a very specific talent for finding books that look like they were designed during a power outage, have questionable font choices, questionable Photoshop decisions, and covers that make you wonder whether anyone involved has actually seen a book before.
And that’s what matters, people. I’m here for the fictional men, the magic, the questionable decisions, and the 2 AM reading sessions. Not necessarily the cover art.
So, in honor of that Goodreads comment, allow me to present:
The Ugly Books That Had No Business Being This Damn Good.
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The Winter King
C. L. Wilson · Weathermages of Mystral #1
A cold king, a political marriage, elemental magic, and the kind of fantasy romance that reminds me why I keep coming back to this genre. Sometimes the cover doesn’t need to sell me the book. The premise already did.
Read my review -
Lord of the Fading Lands
C. L. Wilson · Tairen Soul #1
Fae, magic, an epic fantasy romance, and a world worth getting lost in. Don’t let the cover distract you from the fact that there’s a whole fantasy obsession waiting inside.
Read my review -
Sealed with a Curse
Cecy Robson · Weird Girls #1
Because sometimes you need a little paranormal chaos in your reading life. And sometimes the best discoveries come from books you might have otherwise walked straight past.
Read my review -
Here Be Sexist Vampires
Suzanne Wright · Deep in Your Veins #1
I mean, the title alone deserves a moment of silence. Vampires? Sexism? Apparently we’re going to have some things to discuss. And yes, I’m absolutely coming along for the ride.
Read my review -
Dragon Actually
G. A. Aiken · Dragon Kin #1
Dragons. Attitude. Romance. Shenanigans. G.A. Aiken understands that sometimes your fantasy reading needs to be a little ridiculous in the very best possible way.
Read my review -
Feral Sins
Suzanne Wright · The Phoenix Pack #1
Shifters, possessive alpha energy, pack politics, and a romance that knows exactly what sort of book it wants to be. We are not here for subtlety. We are here for the wolves.
Read my review -
Hidden Legacy – The entire series
Ilona Andrews · Hidden Legacy #1–6
Listen. I will take every opportunity to tell you to read Ilona Andrews. Every. Single. One.
Magic, powerful families, Houston politics, dangerous Primes, ridiculously good worldbuilding, and romantic leads who have absolutely no business being this addictive.
This series is a personal forever favorite. If you haven’t met the Hidden Legacy crew yet, what are you even doing here?
Join the Horde White Hot review Wildfire review -
Bred by Fafnir
Penelope Mars · The Solar Breeding Agency #1
The title tells you exactly what you’re getting and the cover confirms it, loudly. Dragon alien, breeding agency, zero shame. Do I need to say more? I do not. It knows what it is and it delivers.
See it on Goodreads -
A Kingdom of Stars and Shadows
Holly Renee · Stars and Shadows #1
A fae prince, a betrothal that goes sideways, and enough tension to power a small city. The cover looks like a stock-photo sunset got into a fight with a font. The inside gave me a book boyfriend I still haven’t recovered from.
Read my review -
Choosing Theo
Victoria Aveline · The Clecanian Series #1
Kidnapped to an alien planet where the men outnumber the women and they are all, somehow, enormous and devoted. The cover is doing the absolute least. The book is doing the absolute most, and I was not okay by chapter ten.
See it on Goodreads -
Something to Curse About
Gayla Drummond · Discord Jones #2
A psychic private investigator, a city full of supernaturals, and a cover that looks like it was made in a free online editor in 2013 (because it probably was). Snarky, fast and fun, and the series only gets better from here.
See it on Goodreads -
Mythos Academy – The entire series
Jennifer Estep · Mythos Academy #1–6, starting with Touch of Frost
A boarding school for the descendants of mythological warriors, a girl who can read objects by touching them, and covers that scream “2011 YA paranormal” so hard it hurts. I ate every single one of these and I would do it again.
See it on Goodreads -
Knight
Kristen Ashley · Unfinished Hero #1
Kristen Ashley covers are a genre of their own and this one is a classic of the form. Inside: a dangerous, filthy-rich alpha who decides a woman is his and proceeds accordingly. Problematic? Deeply. Reread? Annually.
Read my review -
Immortal Coil
C.I. Black · Dragon Spirit #1
Dragons hiding in human bodies, an ancient feud, and a heroine who has no idea what she’s carrying. The cover looks like a screensaver. The story is a proper dragon romance with teeth, and I was invested embarrassingly fast.
See it on Goodreads -
Dragon Bound
Thea Harrison · Elder Races #1
A thief steals one penny from the oldest, richest, most dangerous dragon alive, and he comes to collect. The cover is peak shirtless-man-with-wings. The book is one of the best paranormal romances ever written and I will fight you on this.
Read my review -
Georgina Kincaid – The entire series
Richelle Mead · Georgina Kincaid #1–6, starting with Succubus Blues
A succubus who works in a bookstore and really, really doesn’t want to sleep with anyone she likes. The covers are early-2000s urban fantasy at its most cursed. The series made me cry in public more than once, which is a compliment.
Read my review -
Fever – The entire series
Karen Marie Moning · Fever #1–5, starting with Darkfever
Mac goes to Dublin to find out who killed her sister and finds the Fae, a book that could end the world, and Jericho Barrons. The covers have never once matched the energy of what’s inside. Barrons alone is worth the price of admission.
See it on Goodreads -
The Scribe
Elizabeth Hunter · Irin Chronicles #1
Angels, their half-human descendants, and a quiet, grieving scribe who finds a woman he shouldn’t be able to find. The cover is a stock photo and a font. The book is gorgeous, slow-burn, and far better written than it has any right to be.
See it on Goodreads -
The Fae Chronicles – The entire series
Amelia Hutchins · The Fae Chronicles, starting with Fighting Destiny
A witch, a Fae prince who is absolutely the villain for most of it, and a level of spice that should come with a warning label. The covers are Photoshop crimes, every one. The series is why I have trust issues and also why I have a type.
Read my review
The moral of this story?
Pretty covers are lovely. I adore them. I will absolutely buy a special edition because the sprayed edges made me weak.
But a gorgeous cover cannot save a mediocre story, and an ugly cover has never stopped me from falling headfirst into a five-star obsession.
Judge the book by its contents, darling. That’s where the real trouble lives.
And if you have any other books that look like questionable design experiments but turned out to be absolute masterpieces, PLEASE SEND THEM MY WAY.
Also if this post offends you, daddy chill. 💋
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