|
First I wanted to answer no, not the cover. Than I thought of all the covers that look outdated today. Lots of 80' hardbacks have covers that give their age away. So the cover seems to be something you will take in if even you might do so unconsciously.
Also the importance of covers is afflicted by the genre of the book. If it is a thriller or a romance book, the cover is important. Covers convey the intent/content, blood stains screaming "murder!", hard muscles and cleavage shouting "hot bodys, hot love" and the oh-so-healthy-orange and green colors of the diet books telling you "you will look good, when you take me with you".
Before the story comes into play for making a decision, JSWolf is right when he says, the blurb is the next milestone.
The story is important for further sales.
This only applies to modern fiction. Classics I'd think have their own rules. If it's a classic the cover is not as important as the quality of the binding, the paper and the allover beauty of the book.
|