COVERS: Chantress, Criminal, and Vengeance

One of the first things I notice about a book is it's cover, so I very much enjoy cover-hunting on Goodreads to see if I can find any covers that are new to me. These are a few of the ones I've come across:

         BLAZE                                 THE DIFFERENT GIRL

Awesome pink hair on the left. TDG cover is so odd...I don't really like it, but it does make me wonder about the story. 

 CHANTRESS                                  CRIMINAL

The Chantress cover reminds me of The Faerie Ring, but that's not a bad thing. I quite like the cover, especially the tagline and expressive font. And I love how there's a bullet shooting through the title on Criminal - it's dark, clean, and fascinating. 

            LEGEND                           VENGEANCE BOUND

 

The spray-painted effect change for Legend's cover looks great (and I'm glad they didn't change it too much). I love the sound of Vengeance Bound, but I wish the cover was a bit stronger. 

                  TIDES                          CHOSEN AT NIGHTFALL

I really like the cover for Tides, and how the two seem to reflect one another. And of course, I adore the lighting for Chosen at Nightfall.

Have you spotted any interesting covers?

Legend by Marie Lu

Legend (Legend #1)
by Marie LuRelease: November 29th, 2011Pages: 336 (hardcover)Publisher: Putnam JuvenileSource: Unsolicited from publisherSummary:

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.
From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death.....read more at Goodreads.

June is the hunter, and Day is the hunted. A military prodigy from the upper ranks, June has known no other life than the one she's had with her brother, Metias. A criminal mastermind from the slums, Day's constantly on the run. When June is charged with the task to capture Day - the only suspect in her brother's murder - she makes it her mission to succeed. But the more June submerses herself into the hunt for Day, the more secrets revolving around the Republic begin to surface...  
Utilizing a dual narrative in Legend, Lu gives readers two opposing extremes of the Republic through the perspectives of Day and June. Day's kindhearted nature and affinity for very dramatic escapes help make him an exciting character. He's no fool, and it's amusing to see how he keeps June on her toes. June's superior attitude is slightly off-putting in the beginning, but more likable aspects of her personality begin to slowly appear as the novel progresses, and I quickly found myself rooting for her as well. The closer Day and June came to finding answers, the harder I found it to set this story aside. Legend can be summed up into three words: thrilling, captivating, and spectacular. 
Highlights: Conspiracies, fight scenes, action, (likely improbable but still awesome) escapes, fast-paced writing, and plenty of twists and surprises to make up for the ones I discovered early on. The setting itself is intriguing, whether it's the slums or the richer districts. Characters came to life with every turn of the page, and a good deal of the relationships that were formed seemed authentic. I loved how much Day cared for his family, it made him even more endearing to me. 
Lowlights: June and Day can, at times, almost seem like the exact same person¹ when reading. Also, just a couple moments required a bit of suspension-of-disbelief in order for me to move past it. Rating:   

1 If it weren't for the very obvious differences in font/font color, I would've gotten confused during a couple points. There are some personality differences, but also a good deal of similarities too. However, this can be somewhat explained by something important that they have in common.

In My Mailbox 51

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For Review (From Amazon Vine/Publisher/Publicists):

Moonglass by Jessi Kirby

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

All You Desire by Kirsten Miller

Legend by Marie Lu (two copies)

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson

All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

Bought:

Siren by Tricia Rayburn (Review)

Heist Society by Ally Carter

Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Divergent by Veronica Roth (Review)

It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

From Tera Lynn Childs:

Splash Team kit for Fins Are Forever

(bookmarks/tattoos/pin)

From ABC Family:

Game Box to play Nine Paths to Chloe King

Bastet Charm for the Third Path

Thanks to Lauren, Amazon Vine, Penguin Group USA, Ksenia, Tera, and ABC Family :)

What did you get this week?