Country vs Country - The Hollows

(This one is ordered UK old, UK new, US until Black Magic Sanction then it's UK, US after)

Julie-Anne: I'm going to say here that I'm pretty much just going to be ignoring the old UK covers because they’re horrible. I've always hated them and actually have the US covers at home. I quite like the new UK covers, they're kind of similar to the US covers and don't have the gaudy, disgusting colours of the old UK ones. I think I'm going to go new UK on this one.
Danielle: Wow. The original UK covers are really something, aren't they! Sheesh. I never really cared for the US covers, though the first few weren't as bad as they later get. I like that Rachel has the charms hanging from her pocket. The new UK cover has really nice colours, and at least she isn't fully facing the camera. I think I'll go with the US here, but it's close.

J: Who is this on the UK cover? Been awhile since I read it, is it Rachel wearing a wig? Is it Ivy? It's not Ivy, her hair is shorter than this right? See what you've reduced me to mystery woman? I'm arguing with myself about your identity!! Anyway ... I choose US.
D: My first thought with the UK cover was Ivy. Though I feel like Rachel does wear a wig in this one (or one of them, at some point) so it's hard to say. I'm also going to choose US here, because of the full frontal on the UK, and because the US looks more ... witchy.

J: I have always loved this US cover, the boot and long coat are sexy as fuck! Although I do also like the background of the UK cover, but not that the model is full frontal. US again.
D: I don't know. I still don't like the old UK here, but I'm not loving the other two either. Both have qualities that I like, but I don't love either. I think I'll go with the US, because I love the statue in the background.

J: Oh! So the woman on The Good, The Bad and the Undead is Ivy? I never thought of her as having a bob, I always thought it was shorter like pixie style. Also, isn't she Asian? I like the UK cover but I always liked the dress on the US cover although I hated that it deviated away from the same style with the big banner for Harrison’s name. Saying that, I'm going with US. (I know I said I was going to ignore them but I always hated this old UK cover)
D: It's been so long since I've read these, but I feel kind of like that is how I pictured Ivy's hair. I can't remember for sure now. This was where I started disliking the US covers, because they changed at this book. I so dislike when publishers do that. Ivy looks like someone here that I can't place, and it's bothering me, since Ivy is Asian, and this girl ... isn't. I'll pick US, but I'll be honest, I don't hate the original UK cover here. I mean, it's definitely not Rachel, but the cover kind of makes me think of Trash Polka for some reason, and I think it's a really interesting style.

J: Who's the blonde woman? What the hell is with all these random women on the UK covers? I’m going with US again.
D: I was thinking the same thing. I can’t even try to guess who she is. Ohhhhh! Wait! Is she Ceri? She shows up in this book, doesn’t she? I’ll stick with US here though. Not much more to say about that.

J: And randomly, we have a different name for this book over here. When I first saw this book announced, it took me a while to find it. I don't understand why we have a different name, it's only this book. Again with the blonde chick, is it supposed to be red? But we've seen Rachel on other covers with actual red hair, is there a blonde chick that I can't remember? Know what? The UK covers make me ask too many questions! I'm still going US.
D: I'm thinking she must be Ceri, but why is she on the covers? I mean, she has a role in the books, but not enough to have several solos on covers. And what is with the name change? It's strange. I'm going to go with the girl on the original UK cover, and give that name two daggers down. US again, even though I really never liked these covers.

J: Oooh, the face on that UK cover! Why does she look so pissed? (Again, more questions!) And why is she smoking? The face looks way too photoshopped and fake. I always liked her outfit on the US cover, it's US again for me.
D: I'm not loving either UK cover, though I think I like the original cover better than the new. I'll go with US again too.

J: I love that the US has a wee gargoyle on it, and I love the moon behind Rachel. I do like the purple on the UK cover but I still don't like the model's pose or facial expression. US again.
D: Bis, right?! I liked him. I want to have a real gargoyle in my belfry. Of course, I'd need a belfry. US here, just because of Bis.

J: OK, how many models has there been for the UK covers? It seems like it changes all the time. And I'm obviously going US again, who wouldn't with that badass pose and the lightning. Love it.
D: I also am choo choo choosing US. The UK is full frontal, and it's just so plain. I don't love the US cover, but I like it better than the other.

J: Weird Ivy again. The US covers really seem to be more action based and seem more like Rachel than any of the UK covers. US again.
D: I do like this US cover. I do also like that they show her being witchy on the covers. Makes them more appealing.

J: Why is Rachel (or Ivy) always posed so seductively and sexy in the UK covers? I just don't like it. I like the US cover but it's first we've seen a full frontal and I don't think it looks like Rachel. Not a huge fan of either but I'm going with US because it's an action shot.
D: The US cover looks like a blonde girl. The reappearance of Ceri? I don't love either cover, but I'll choose US, just because she's far enough away that her face isn't super clear.

J: So we have the same image here for both covers just zoomed out and more background on the US one. I haven't read this far in the series yet so I'm going to guess the guy is Trent? I like this image, I'm going with US because it's the zoomed out view and you can see those awesome boots.
D: I assumed it was Trent the first time I saw this cover too. I also haven't read far enough into the series to know if it's him or not either. I don't like the full frontal, but the cover is cool. I'll go with US as well.

J: Again, same image but different backgrounds. For some reason they've changed the position of the guy and US has white while we have black. I don't get the reasoning behind that, if you're using the same image why not just make the cover the same? I'm actually going UK with this one purely because I prefer the black over the white.
D:I also prefer the black to the white here. I'm assuming that's Trent in the background again. The UK cover actually reminds me of the US Dead Witch Walking cover. Kind of like it went back to where it all began. I mean, really, there isn't anything really all that much the same, but it's what I thought of right away. I'll pick the UK cover as well.

Julie-Anne: I enjoy this series but I've fell behind. I think I lost a little love for it after we lost Kisten (loved him). Overall, I think US had the better covers - and UK tried twice! I much prefer the second set of UK covers over the first set but I'm glad I have the US covers ... even if it costs me more money in shipping to get them.
Danielle: I also lost interest in this series after Kist. I've read up to Black Magic Sanction. I keep thinking I'll get back to them, but I really lost interest after For A Few Demons More/The Outlaw Demon Wails. I didn't like the writing, I thought Rachel was far too whiney, and I just ... couldn't. A friend talked me into keeping going, and I'll admit I enjoyed Black Magic Sanction a lot more than the few before it, but I still never did get back to them. Maybe some day.

Country vs Country - Divergent

This one goes- UK adut, UK YA, US

Danielle:I actually like all of these covers. I liked the US covers right away, and I can honestly say I like the UK covers. I think it's really interesting that there are adult and YA covers in the UK. I like all three, but I really love the colours in the UK YA cover. I liked it the least at first, but the more I look at it, the more I like it, so I think I'll choose that one.
Julie-Anne: I have the UK YA ones but I like all these, sadly the ones I own are my least favourite of the three covers here. I really like the US one, I like that the symbol takes up most of the cover and the rest of the cover is plain enough to not steal focus but also not too plain at the same time - like the Goldilocks of book covers. Saying that, I think the adult UK one is my favourite - I seem to like black book covers, not much of a shocker to those that know me.

D: Again with the liking of all three. At first glance, I liked the adult UK version best. I love the tree, and how it looks like it's in fog (Scottish mist!) with the moonlight behind it. I do love the colours of the UK YA cover, and the leaves, but I think I'll pick UK Adult here.
J: Same here, I like all three again and again, the YA UK is my least favourite. Although not because it's not pretty, I think it's visually stunning but I do seem to prefer plainer covers. Since all the covers seem to follow the same theme, I think my comments on the first book are pretty much the same for here. I like the large symbol on the US cover and the fact that that means it has more detail to it. But I love the black, plainness of the UK adult cover so I think I have to choose that as my favourite again.

D: Allegiant was my very least favourite book in this series, and I also didn't like the cover much. I don't like the design much on the UK Adult, though I still like the design on the whole, and I definitely like it better than the US cover. I don't love the UK YA cover either, but I think I like it better than the other two. Disappointing book, disappointing covers. I'll choose UK YA.
J: Not loving the colour of the US cover here and this seems to be the first cover that the symbols don't match on US and UK adult, although the wave at the bottom is in keeping with the wave symbol on the US cover. And again, my favourite has to be UK adult.

Danielle: This was a series that I love love loved the first book of. It just gripped me from page one. I loved the unique-ness of it. I liked book two quite a lot, but didn't love it, and I pretty much hated book three. The UK covers are all really nice here, and I chose a UK cover for all three, even though I really liked the first two US covers.
Julie-Anne: I liked this series until the last book and then I thought it was a bit "Ugh" (funnily enough I feel the same about the Hunger Games trilogy, maybe it's a trilogy thing?) I definitely preferred the adult UK books over the other two and then the US come 2nd. To any readers that may be wondering about the UK adult and YA covers, this is just based on what I found online - I didn't know we had different covers until I was searching for this post and discovered the adult ones.

Country vs Country - Delirium

Danielle: I really like the UK cover here. It's a tad on the boring side, I'll admit, but I kind of like that. The US cover is pretty, but I really dislike faces on covers (Broken record much?) So I'll choose UK here.
Julie-Anne: The UK cover is the one that I looked at first, it caught my eye more than the US. But ... are these YA? Cause the UK cover doesn't look YA. I agree that it's kind of boring but I don't like that the US cover is, like, 60% face. I also like that the UK has the title and author name separated.

D: Again, I like the simplicity of the UK cover. The colours are nice in the US, but again ... faaaces! I'll choose UK.
J: Slightly less face on the US one, maybe down to ... what, 40/45%? The colour scheme is very pretty but I prefer the overall look of the UK one.

D: Again with the simplicity, and the pretty. I like this cover. I do like that the US covers seem to all be the same model. That's always nice for consistency. I still have to go with the UK cover here.
J: And the facial % has gone back up again to about 60% again. I agree with the consistency, I like cover consistency but the US cover just doesn't sell to me. I like the plain and simple covers and this series is no different, UK for me.

Danielle: This was another one of those series' that grabbed me at page one, and kept me going all the way through. I read all three of these in one weekend. Couldn't put them down. Lauren Oliver is a really great story teller. Her other book, Before I Fall kept me interested too. The UK covers here are all really pretty. The US are nice too, but not as nice as US.
Julie-Anne: I haven't read this series but it's been on my TBR for a while now. I hadn't seen any covers so I'm glad I like the ones I'd be getting if end up buying the actual book as opposed to kindle. I have definitely noticed a trend in what type of cover I like from doing these posts. Plain and simple for the win!

Confessions of a Virgin Sex Columnist! by Kay Marie

My name is Skylar Quinn. I just moved to New York with my best friend Bridget, and I have a confession. Well, more than one. Okay, quite a few really. Fine, here goes!

Confession #1: I'm a sex columnist. Hold on, that's not really the confession. You see, I'm sort of a virgin ... sex columnist.

Confession #2: I'm kind of in love with Bridget's older brother, Oliver. No, I was. No, I am. Wait, was? Am? Crap.

Confession #3: I've been avoiding Oliver for four years. Or I was until today, because he just moved in. Yes, you read that correctly. He's my new roommate. So that night we've both been pretending never happened, well, we might not be able to keep it a secret any longer.

And trust me, this is only the beginning.

So this was a very generic chick lit type book. The heroine, Skylar, is very annoying about her virginity, - she makes this big deal out of still being a virgin when she's only 22 - she's also annoying about alluding to her and Oliver's past but never saying what happened (which turns out to be no big deal, by the way). I mean, I get that the author was trying to do with the "secret past" but Skylar mentioned it a lot and it really did start to drag.

The story was your basic girl likes boy, boy hurts girls feelings, girl avoids boy, girl can't avoid boy any more, girl denies feelings for boy, boy hints at feelings for girl, girl gets confused by feelings. I've read a few books like this and it sort of explains why I don't read a lot of chick lit books. I thought this one might be a bit different going by the title - I expected funny situations and maybe even for Skylar to not be afraid of her virginity.

If you like typical romance stories then you'll probably like this, for someone like me that was hoping for something a little different from the typical romance - I'd suggest you leave it alone.


Book Depository: Confessions of a Virgin Sex Columnist!
Amazon UK: Confessions of a Virgin Sex Columnist!

Country vs Country - Guild Hunter

Danielle: I saw these covers and knew I had to comment on them. The UK covers are some of my favourite that I've ever seen. These covers alone make me want to read this series. I love everything about it. UK is a definite huge win for me here!
Julie-Anne: I think I saw these covers in Waterstones before and loved them, there's really no contest between UK and US here. I don't like the typeface on the US one and just what is the woman looking at so intensely? She looks kinda confused. UK for sure.

D: I don't love this UK cover as much as I did the first one, but I still love it a million times more than the US cover. I love the purple.
J: I agree that the purple isn't as good, it doesn't stand out as much as the first one but the cover is still very pretty. I really like the typeface for the UK books. The chick on the US one has some tight clothes on! I thought it was just her trousers but her top is very tight as well. They don't look comfortable, of course neither does the position she's crouched in atop what looks to be a very high perch. Again, UK for me.

D: Again, I love the colour of the the UK cover, even if I don't love the wings. The US cover is all right here. I don't love it, and I'm not sure it would draw me in. The UK would for sure.
J: Wow, that US one is bad! She looks too fake. The blue on the UK is still a bit washed out looking compared to the first book - that red really popped and, even though they're all similar in theme, I'm not liking the paler colours as much but I still prefer the UK one over the US.

D: Still finding no love for the US covers, but still loving the UK. The colours is really pretty, and these wings are really pretty too.
J: The wings on the UK are intriguing me, I need to see what these books are all about. The US cover is very cheesy and the typeface really comes across as 80s action movie. UK again, no question.

D: Getting back to loving the wings. I like that just the wings are purple, instead of the whole cover. I still love when the whole cover is coloured, but this is really pretty too. The US is nice, but a little too "fantasy" looking for me, and since I'm not a fantasy reader, I think I would likely pass by it in the store.
J: As much as this UK is another paler cover, I think the colour of the wings makes it pretty. The US covers seem to be getting worse. Obviously wings are a theme since they have them on both UK and US covers (of course, the titles should clue me in on that too). I agree about the fantasy look, the US covers are ones I would definitely look over in a book shop if not actively avoid. UK again.

D: The wings on the UK cover are so unique and interesting. I love them. The colour on the US is pretty, and the girl is pretty in a very Barbie-doll way, but still not a big draw for me. Definitely UK.
J: Oooh, I like the red wings on the UK cover, they really pop. And hey, tight clothes wearing chick is back! She still looks uncomfortable. Obviously going with UK again on this one.

D: More interesting and beautiful wings here again. I love that they seem to have spikes on them as well. The colour is gorgeous, the wings are gorgeous. Love it. The US is just very blah to me. Perhaps if I didn't see it next to the UK, I would have liked it. It still isn't enough to draw me in.
J: The US one looks really cartoony this time, what's up with that? And the UK cover is a little different from the others, there seems to be more body this time. And I agree that the wings are very pretty. Going to be UK again.

D: This is the US cover I like best in this series, though I still love the UK more. I am really fan of the wings on these covers, and this one is no exception. UK for me.
J: As annoying as I find cover changes, this new US cover is much nicer than the rest of the series. But ... I still prefer the UK cover.

Danielle: This is a series I have never read. The UK covers make me want to look them up and see if they're something I would be interested in. The US covers do not. At all. Based on the US covers, this is a series that I would have to have had highly recommended to me before I'd try them at all. The UK covers are amazing.
Julie-Anne: I've not read this series but I want to read it. Those UK covers are very intriguing and they definitely make me want to pick them up. UK covers are gorgeous and definitely a clear winner.

The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent

Sixteen-year-old Nina Kane should be worrying about her immortal soul, but she's too busy trying to actually survive. Her town's population has been decimated by soul-consuming demons, and souls are in short supply. Watching over her younger sister, Mellie, and scraping together food and money are all that matters. The two of them are a family. They gave up on their deadbeat mom a long time ago.

When Nina discovers that Mellie is keeping a secret that threatens their very existence, she'll do anything to protect her. Because in New Temperance, sins are prosecuted as crimes by the brutal Church and its army of black-robed exorcists. And Mellie's sin has put her in serious trouble.

To keep them both alive, Nina will need to trust Finn, a fugitive with deep green eyes who has already saved her life once and who might just be an exorcist. But what kind of exorcist wears a hoodie?

Wanted by the Church and hunted by dark forces, Nina knows she can't survive on her own. She needs Finn and his group of rogue friends just as much as they need her.

Loved, loved, LOVED this book. Great start to a (hopefully) new and long series from Rachel Vincent. Vincent created a .... I don't know if it falls under post apocalyptic or dystopian, I'm not good at differentiating between the two although I'm leaning more to post-apocalyptic for this one.

This world, to me, is scary ass because it's run purely by religion and it seems like everything is a sin and the punishments aren't small or insignificant. I mean, these church types burn people on TV for small misdeeds.

This is a world where demons consumed too many souls and now if you want to have a baby, there has to be a soul for it which means either a family member had to be willing to die for the baby or the baby dies. There's a list but I'm unclear about this list at this stage, you have to be lucky enough for a soul to be on the list when the baby is born or the baby dies. Basically, there are no free souls for people because of the demons, they possess people and they consume them slowly until they look like the demon they are inside. The church has exorcists to deal with them but then Nina meets a guy that says he's an exorcist but he certainly doesn't deal with demons the same way the church exorcists do. Nina starts to question everything and therefore must escape the town.

I really can't express my love for this book properly. I'm a huge fan of Rachel Vincent's writings and this new book is no different, I can't wait to read more from this world.


The Book Depository: The Stars Never Rise
Amazon UK: The Stars Never Rise

Dark Avenging Angel by Catherine Cavendish

Don't hurt Jane. You may live to regret it.

Bullied by her abusive father, Jane always felt different. Then the lonely child found a friend in a mysterious dark lady who offers her protection - a lady she calls her "angel". But that protection carries a terrible price, one to be paid with the souls of those Jane chooses to suffer a hideous and eternal fate.

When Jane refuses to name another victim, the angel reveals her most terrifying side. Payment must be made in full - one way or the other.

Release Date 4th August2015

I've never read anything from this author before but if this book is anything to go by, I'd definitely read more. This was quite dark and horrific.

Cavendish has made a really freaky world here with bad bad guys and a likeable (if also slightly pathetic) leading woman. I mean, I understand that she's been ridiculed by her father her whole life and pretty much walked over by most people because of that but, even knowing this back story, I found it hard to feel anything strong toward her.

It didn't put me off the story as a whole though, if I really didn't like her I would have DNF'd it fairly quickly. But I didn't and I'm glad I didn't because the story was unique and interesting.


Amazon UK: Dark Avenging Angel

Pre-order announcement - Driven by Kelley Armstrong

Subterranean Press have just announced a new Kelley Armstrong Otherworld book to be released in January 2016. It is available for pre-order through their wesbite.


The following description includes spoilers if you are not up to date with the current Otherworld backstory

Subterranean Press is pleased to present a long Otherworld novella by Kelley Armstrong, featuring a number of full-color illustrations by Xaviere Daumarie. The Trade Hardcover of Driven will feature a full-color dust jacket as well as four full-color interior illustrations. The Signed Limited Edition will have a completely different dust jacket, full-color endsheets, and two additional full-color illustrations not in the Trade. If you own a copy of the limited edition of Forsaken, please mention your number to match when checking out.

Cains are known for being big, brutish and not-too-bright. The mutt clan embodies all the supernatural world's worst stereotypes about werewolves. But not even the Cains deserve to be hunted down and skinned like animals.

When young Davis Cain comes to the Pack for help, Alpha Elena Michaels can't refuse him. It isn't about morality or justice. It's about not letting anyone think they can do this to werewolves and get away with it.

But Elena is also dealing with the Pack's homegrown monster — Malcolm Danvers, onetime enforcer, full-time psycho. Malcolm is now under Elena's control, as part of the most difficult decision she's had to make as leader. But if she has to let Malcolm in, she's going to make full use of him ... and the best person to catch monsters is one who knows exactly how they think.

As with all past Kelley releases from Subterranean Press, it is available in both Trade and Limited Edition - if you've ordered limited before, you can request the same number after ordering.

COVER REVEAL - Blackmailed by the Hero by Julie Particka

The lovely Ms Particka has another Gone Hollywood books coming out, the first book in the series was Tempting Her Fake Fiancé and this book follows Evan's sister (Vicky) and his best friend. We sort of, kind of, partially met Vicky in the first book.

(Please note that the tagline is NOT correct on this)

Release Date 11th August 2015

Other covers in the series: