Quote:
Originally Posted by Katsunami
I'm kicking this thread with the only reason of saying: "I think I'm right."
This can't be a coincidence. I've bought 15 books in the last few weeks, most of them fantasy and some science fiction, and they were all written in the 80's. While going through them to set the metadata and split omnibuses, I obviously also found the old covers.
1980's: Tacky, nerdy, cheesy
Current: Either dark and gritty, or modern and serious.
Every... single... one.
For example, Barbara Hambly's covers.
80's style
Current style
Patricia C. Wrede:
Shadow Magic: 80's (OMG, this one is tacky) vs. Current
The Raven Ring: 80's vs. Current
This change goes for ALL of her books, as well as the ones by Patricia C. Wrede. I've seen that even the Dungeons and Dragons e-books and new editions are getting new, non-nerdy covers.
There are some books that, going by the 80's cover, I wouldn't even have bought... |
What's so tacky about the 80's Shadow Magic cover, I rather liked it
For most of your examples, I don't think that it's so much that they are darker, but rather they are simpler and less costly.