Top Five Book Cover Trends I Like

I really like the current trend of clever typography: covers where the title takes up most of the space, covers where the lettering interacts with other design elements, and so on.
I also like the use of silhouettes because they give me an idea of what’s going on in the book without forcing me to imagine the characters’ faces in a certain way. And also because silhouettes are simple and use a limited palette but they give a very cool effect.
Illustrated covers also catch my eye a lot. I’m not a fan of having to imagine characters in a certain way, but I appreciate a good whimsical illustrated cover, especially on Middle Grade books.
I’m a fan of historical novels so I adore vintage covers: covers done up in faded sepia tones, “old” fonts for the title, people in period-appropriate clothing… gimme!
Finally, I’m not a girly girl by any means but I have a soft spot for ballgowns, even when they’re a complete anachronism. They’re just so pretty!

Top Five Book Cover Trends I Dislike

I’m not a fan of using photos on the cover of books. Most times it feels like it’s just a stock image that could be used on any book and isn’t special at all. Photos won’t grab my attention. But if you put a photo on the cover, make sure it’s not…
Models who look nothing like the characters in the book. Seriously. Have someone who read the book and can tell you whether the protagonist is a blonde or a brunette, or I’ll be wondering who the hell those random people on the cover are. (And that’s if I pick up the book in the first place.)
Another pet peeve is the fake lens flare on a cover. It’s probably a big part of my dislike for contemporary YA. I have no idea where it came from but I’d like it if it could go back the way it came.
It seems like a very basic things, but there are some covers in which I’m not sure of the order of the words in the title because they’re written in a strange, “artistic” way. Or covers in which one or more words are significantly smaller, and when I look at the cover from afar I can only read half of the title and it makes no sense at all.
Lastly, what I really can’t stand is crappy self-published covers. I understand not everyone is an artist, but if your title is eye-watering yellow on a turquoise sky that’s been oversaturated with thirty different Photoshop filters, I’ll never pick up the book. Ever.

Which cover trends do you like and dislike?

Ren