Philip Reeve Series
Frida Kosofsky
The old covers were better, I think. These covers don't do justice to the epic creations enclosed inside them; apart from the one for "Predator's Gold", it makes the world of Mortal Engines seem like a trashy sci-fi world. WHICH IT ISN'T!
TBH, I don't particularly like them (although I'm not the target demographic...) but hopefully they will attract new readers!
I'm happy to stick with my much loved original David Frankland cover editions :)
They seem to be dividing opinion pretty neatly. I should point out that I have no say in cover designs. It does seem that they appeal to boys, which is good. My fear, however, is that they will appeal to nobody else...
Sorry, Stefan, but I think "Hungry City" sounds like a knock off Hunger Games - and Mortal Engines is far superior to those ! I'm not sure why they aren't sticking to 'Mortal Engines', which I love for the complexity of the words, makes you ask questions and "Predator Cities" simply doesn't. Again, not a fan of the new covers - that's not how I envisioned those scenes!!! - but, again, not the demographic as a mid-30 woman !! Little sad that they are aiming for a demographic at all. I read Mortal Engines to my class of 10yr olds and several of the girls went out and bought the series after. Surely a good book transcends demographics ?
One thing, I got VERY excited when I saw the Predator Cities box above, because I thought I maybe had missed a book or series... alas, I'll just have to do a re-read over the summer hols !! Roll on Fever Crumb 4 !!!
I prefer the adult edition ones with just the text on the front. The stalkers look a bit too shiny and prop-like, and I'd prefer being able to imagine the characters myself (I presume that's Wren and Theo on the A Darkling Plain cover?). I like the general theme of them though, Predator's Gold is probably my favourite of these.
I much prefer the original editions, which are some of the greatest covers I've ever seen. They really captured the tone of the series within - the cover of Mortal Engines, for example, is muddy and grimy and rusty-red, and the art style itself is smudged and jagged at the edges.
These look like the kind of CGI things you get when you google "desktop background."
This is Xbox-style artwork. The Predator Cities banner across the top really reinforces this idea, and there's nothing here to suggest the strong element of grrl power in the books. Not the the worst covers I've ever seen, but definitely very...meh. Here's my review of A Web of Air:
-review-web-of-air-2010-by-philip.html
I've already expelled my thoughts into the ether on this matter, but I thought I'd do it publically: I can appreciate that teh new covers will bring the books to a whole new audience (something which is very good), but I personally, as an artist and a reader, prefer the first eds because I feel they capture the series perfectly and are absolutely lovely to look at.
They've clearly been designed with boys in mind, and the artwork and the layout is obviously heavily influenced by gaming. They basically look like something my nephew would play on XBox. Which is great when it comes to targeting teenage boys, who are supposedly the hardest to reach when it comes to books, but not so great for encouraging girls to pick them up. Whereas the previous covers were pretty gender-neutral in terms of appeal, I would have thought. The new covers are very hard-sci-fi, rather than having the quirky steampunk fantasy feel than the older covers did.
I certainly think the older covers had much more crossover appeal in terms of attracting adults as well as younger readers. I've got to admit that as a woman in my 30s, I probably wouldn't pay much attention to books with these covers, whereas the previous covers caught my eye. (I do appreciate I'm not really the target audience though, of course!)
I like these. But I'm a 20 year old female who enjoys video games as much as books, so I quess that's why I'm okay with them. The title could have stayed the same though. And I'm from the U.S., so maybe the new art here will be decent.
I enjoy these covers, but I do enjoy the originals as well. It all differs on your tastes in art and i figure these will definitely get Sci-Fi readers interested in the series. @Phillip I understand your fear, but when I started your series 3 years ago i was only 15 and the covers really make no difference because you really can't judge these books by their covers.
Well, if they're going to draw more readers in then that's great! It's quite a different aesthetic. Not my cup of tea but then I am a 21 year old female. I still love the original editions I grew up with.
I quite like the one for Predator's Gold, but I'm not so keen on the CG models they've used for the other ones... They don't seem to have rendered the faces very well. Still, if they attract a bunch of new readers, then it's all for the best. Predator Cities does roll off the tongue a little easier, too.
(Long time fan, first time commenter here. At the risk of sounding creepy and obsessive, I have loved everything of yours that I've ever read.)
Thanks for all your comments, everybody! It's been very interesting to read other people's reactions to these. Sorry I haven't had time to reply individually.
Azvolrien. I'd agree that Predator's Gold is far better than the others - and it looked better still before they slapped that strange blue and white strap across the top to make it look even more like a computer game.
Joanne, I do fear you're right about them lacking appeal to girls, but we shall see. This is the first time there have been figures on the covers (or at least figures large enough for us to make out their faces) and although they're not very good faces, at least half of them are girls, so perhaps that will make a difference.
During a reading lesson on the importance of a good cover, I brought my class of 10yr olds onto this page and had a GREAT discussion ! I guess the publishers are bang on demographically because all my boys, bar one, preferred these covers, stating many of the reasons covered above ( my class are smart cookies !) The girls were a bit more 'meh' about them, and the 'Predator Cities' vs 'Mortal Engines' was pretty evenly split.
As I say, it was a really good discussion, hooking the children far better because it was something they were actually interested in - I just wish HMI had been around to see it !
I definitely prefer the older covers. They were quite plain- simple which I prefer. I think these illustrations take away the great uniqueness of the brilliant content.
Oh well- I suppose this is the future!
i'm only 13 so you probably wont listen, but i think the old covers were better. these look a bit too photoshopy if you get my meaning. also i am not so keen on the idea of showing stalkers on the covers as i liked how could picture them in your own mind. i like the new title though.
I read the first two books when I was 10 or 11 and I can safely say that I wouldn't have if these would have been the covers.
First of all, they look very digital. Like they've been rendered in a computer program rather than painted by an artist.
Second of all, they lack the steampunk feel of the originals, they come off as some sort of bad sci-fi video game.
Third of all I think it's stupid to show the characters on the covers, it dampens the imagination. Cover art should be limited to structures, vehicles and animals.
i'm a boy, I love philip's books but the covers are really bad, the others looked a lot more interesting, now they look tatty and horrid. I also love terry Pratchett, i started reading his books when i was 9, and it does matter on how they look!
Sad to say it, but I think these new covers are really awful. I don't like the new series name, although I do think it's a good move, particularly thinking about the younger readers.
Unfortunately, those CG covers look cheap. The cloudy series tab at the top speaks nothing of the tone or content of the books and the whole thing feels a bit cheapened.
A boy above mentioned how he felt disappointed they are dictating the look of the stalkers. So true.
Does it not seem obvious to stick a well crafted image of A MOVING CITY on the front? I enjoyed the original covers, as well as those ones with the pretty art behind a flappy door/cover/thing.
I'm sorry. I love these books more than any others. I'm now reading Scriveners Moon and am enjoying it, but these new covers look like a poorly made PC game that is only sold on pound land. They look terrible, I wouldn't have read them in a million years with covers like that. Id hate to have started reading this amazing series thinking that the stalkers look like gold plated ravers from the 90's. What made you agree to this change and swapping the name from Mortal Engines to Predator cities is also a terrible move. All I can hope is that there is more books to come. I love the series but am dis-heartened that you let you beloved series become a trashy sci-fi novel.
Thanks for your comments Edward. Speaking personally, I agree with you: I am deeply unhappy with these covers and I rather like your description of these Stalkers as 'gold-plated ravers from the '90s'. However, since you ask 'What made you agree to this change?' I have to stress that I had no say in it (or only a very minimal say: on the original version of the Mortal Engines cover Shrike had EVEN MORE SALIVA and the figures on ADP were even worse). If I had had my way the books would have stuck with the David Wyatt covers (the artwork from which is what I use on this site), but without the fragile outer covers which made those versions so easy to damage and so hard for bookshops to put stickers on.
As an 11 year old boy I'm very disapointed. The new covers look cheap and worthless and the stalkers are nothing like I imagined them to be. The limpet ( I have to suppose ) is really just a fail and the tracks on London are way too small and all together I hate the new covers if I had been buying them now I would have not cast them a second glance and predator cities is not as good by far to mortal engines so a no from me on the new covers.
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