Back in the early days of The Book Designer, Joel Friedlander used to do monthly book cover design awards. It’s been a while since those days, but we’ve decided to resurrect the series (on a quarterly basis for now) to bring attention to some amazing book cover designs.
We’ll be presenting six book covers each quarter, three fiction and three nonfiction. The authors and designers of these books should be proud to be featured here, among some stiff competition. Here’s what’s inside this edition of the Book Cover Design Awards:
Here are the book cover design award winners:
Nonfiction Book Cover Design Awards Winners
Ascending the Spiral: A Journey from the Lies We Buy to the Dreams We Live by Aja J. Arc
From the back cover:
Do you find yourself wondering: Is this really all there is to life?
How about dreaming of possibilities that appear far out of reach?
Deep down, do you just Know that you were meant for more than this?
If so, you’ve found the book you have been looking for. Or rather, the book found you.
As Aja J. Arc takes you on a journey of (re)discovery, she’ll remind you of everything you already Know and empower you to follow your own unique Truth until you find everything you’ve been looking for in an unexpected place.
This book invites you to:
- See through the illusions of the so-called “objective reality” by exposing the lies and the mechanisms keeping it in place;
- Recognize the true essence of who you are by getting intimately acquainted with everything that you’re not;
- Break free from the ideas and behaviors keeping you stuck by trusting your inner Knowing as you explore the unfamiliar;
- Let go of harmful mental and emotional patterns by replacing your limitations with empowering beliefs and practices;
- Follow your Truth by embracing every bit of your uniqueness, because that allows you to give the Gift of You to this world and
- Live the Dream by consciously creating the Life you were truly meant for.
And, because a book cannot change your life unless you take action on what you’ve read, you’ll also get 9 action-oriented games and practices to instantly change reality.
Your Dreams have been waiting for you long enough—it’s time to start living them!
What this one got right:
An obvious choice for this book cover would have been a very obvious spiral design. But the cover designer went in a different direction: a subtly twisting tree. The color palette is also wonderful, using complementary shades of blue and orange.
Go Vibrant!: … Notes & Anecdotes on Loving and Living the Joie de VIVre by Vivian Shapiro
From the back cover:
Are you ready to break free from the monotony of life and experience true vibrancy?
Go Vibrant! by Vivian Shapiro is a must-read book for anyone seeking a more joyful and fulfilling existence. With humor, emotion, and years of real-life experience, Shapiro takes readers on a delightful journey to her universe, where seven stars offer magical insights into living a vibrant life by design.
Through personal stories and a paradigm shift for creative consciousness, Shapiro empowers readers to chase their desires and find the joy and vibrancy within their lives. This book is a powerful reminder that no one can define you but you, and that you have the power to create a remarkable life.
In Go Vibrant!, you will discover:
- The tools to find your personal power to change and live life on purpose
- Seven magical stars that can help you create a joyful and vibrant life
- How to achieve vibrancy at any age and hold space for your own state of being
Don’t miss out on this fascinating journey in Shapiro’s universe. Unwrap the gift of vibrancy and discover the secrets to a life worth living.
Grab a copy of Go Vibrant! now and start creating the change you desire for yourself!
What this one got right:
A vibrant title calls for vibrant colors on the book’s cover! The bright, painted technique accented with faux gold foil to make the text stand out gives the potential reader an immediate taste of the tone and style of the book.
Sync Your Mood With Food: A Comprehensive Recipe Guide For Women To Balance Hormones And Feel Fabulous Again By Improving Mood, Sleep And Overall Health by Elizabeth McLaughlin
From the back cover:
In Sync Your Mood With Food, Elizabeth McLaughlin, CNP, offers a comprehensive and easy to follow guide on how to manage your mood through healthy eating habits. McLaughlin also provides an expert point of view on everything you need to know to take control of your hormone health with quick and healthy recipes.
Like many other women, you may be experiencing one or more symptoms of hormone imbalance. All too often we ignore these symptoms and hope it will be better ‘next month’. What you may not understand is how important nutrition can improve those symptoms! This book is every woman’s guide to understanding their body without the scientific lingo, detailing how to eat properly to nourish your body for optimal hormone health.
In this book you will learn:
- To understand your menstrual cycle and the different hormones.
- How to eat to nourish your hormones at any age.
- How sleep, movement and the environment impact your hormonal health.
This is a must read cookbook and health guide for every woman. McLaughlin shares scientific based knowledge to empower women in managing their hormone health. Start understanding hormone balance with these quick and easy recipes today!
What this one got right:
When many people are having food- or dietary-related health issues, it can feel like a heavy weight. This book’s white background and sparse graphics give a feeling of lightness, which is potentially very appealing to its target audience!
Fiction Book Cover Design Awards Winners
The Meyet: Blood Birth: An Urban Fantasy Vampire Thriller by M.G. Alves, Jr.
From the back cover:
Vampires are real. And now Cat’s one of them.
After being turned, Cat wakes as a blood-starved Meyet with no recollection of her mortal life. Her sire claims she’s his own, but that’s not the only confusing aspect of her dark new reality. There are the ancient traditions and culture of the seven cursed lineages of Meyet.
Then there’s the Bloodline, the ruling council that keeps all Meyet in line.
To make matters worse, each new Meyet develops a unique firesign or special ability. Cat’s firesign is truly terrifying and is so strong, it catches the attention of the Pale One, an ancient being who even the Bloodline fears.
With the Pale One after her, Cat doesn’t know if she can trust her own sire. Who truly has her best interests at heart and how is she to control her growing supernatural power?
If she’s not careful, her quest for answers will get her killed…again. Or worse.
If you love horror thrillers or stories where the main character is a vampire, look no further. With its unique lore and mysterious cast of characters, The Meyet: Blood Birth will definitely slake your thirst for YA vampire fiction.
What this one got right:
Vampire novels have been popular for years (Dracula was the O.G. of course, but Anne Rice really put them on the map in pop culture), and there are tons of tropes out there. Bats are the most common animal associated with vampires, so the crow here is a nice deviation from that.
The Amorphan Effect: A Coming of Age Science Fiction Adventure by K.E. Brungardt
From the back cover:
She’s the only known shapeshifter, but she’s not the only one with secrets.
Jessi is about to embark on a two-week journey to a far-off planet to become an exchange student at an alien university. She couldn’t be more thrilled. But seconds before departing, her mother tasks her with finding out the truth of how Jessi’s brother died on the exact same starship years before.
During the trip, Jessi discovers she can shapeshift, an impossibility in all of explored space. Is this new ability somehow connected to her brother? She also has sentient hair that can telepathically speak with her and perform many other tasks. It has an attitude, too.
Her hair and shapeshifting abilities will definitely be an asset during her investigation–as long as she’s able to keep them hidden from the humans and aliens onboard. When she uncovers a deadly conspiracy though, she’ll need help. But who among the passengers can she trust?
With only two weeks until the journey concludes, will she be able to solve her brother’s mysterious death? Considering the danger onboard, will she even survive the voyage at all?
If you’re looking for your next incredible new syfy read, check out The Amorphan Effect. Featuring an unsettling mystery, a shapeshifter in space, and an evil plot, this YA coming of age story has you covered. It even has a cat-like alien race that controls space travel.
What this one got right:
Hard sci-fi books often include spaceships on their cover, but more often than not they’re out in deep space. Showing this one taking off from a planet is a nice change, as is including a person in the foreground. Plus, the typography is excellent.
The Covid Murders: Another American Health Policy Detective Story by Greg Vigdor
From the back cover:
The Covid Murders: Another American Health Policy Detective Story is a novel exploring what is wrong with American health care and how to fix it. The second in the Irv Tinsley Health Policy Detective series, it picks up where the acclaimed The Theory of Irv: An American Health Policy Detective Story left off.
Like the first book, The Covid Murders is a fictional and page turning medical detective story, this time exploring a mysterious death in a hospital in suburban Nashville, Tennessee. But like the first, it also connects this entertaining tale simply and understandably to the very real problems of American health care policy. It explains what has gone wrong with our system historically and now, including the great impact of our recent national experience with the Covid pandemic.
Readers will discover an entertaining way to access the complex issues of American health policy and politics- and be better prepared for the coming battle over what comes next in the battle for control over American health care. Grab your copy today!
What this one got right:
This cover has a dark and gritty look to it that fits in well with the other books in the series. It’s also a bit unexpected for a health care industry novel series, as they often have much cleaner covers. That makes it stand out among its competition.
Check back each quarter for The Book Designer’s Book Cover Design Awards! And if you’re curious about what criteria we’re using to select the best book covers, check out this article by Joel Friedlander on Book Cover Success and Failure Explained.
