That Looks…Familiar

Don’t judge a book by its cover. Not exactly the easiest thing to follow through on. Let’s be honest, we all do it! That being said, thanks to my Kindle I don’t really pay attention to cover art that much anymore. Think about it. Even if I reach for the book I’m reading multiple times a day, all I’m seeing is my plain black Kindle case. Nothing special, no bells, no whistles. However, every now and again I’ll be browsing through romance book lists on Goodreads, and I’ll see something that looks a tad familiar.

This is Clash: A Legal Affairs Story by Sawyer Bennett. I’ve seen it pop up a few times on a couple of different Goodreads lists. It’s about 2 people who initially hate each other, but have enough sexual tension that they come together for some physical exertion between the sheets. I have not read this book. I don’t know if I ever will. Every time I go to download it I experience a moment of hesitancy, and eventually turn away to look at another book on the list. Because you see, every time I see this book cover, I don’t see Clash. Instead I see this:

This is Therapist by Jaden Wilkes. I hated this book. It made me want to hurl my Kindle against a wall, and wash my eyes out with soap due to the sickening sex scenes contained within its pages. Sure, the image might be reversed, but it’s basically the same image, and it’s a trend I’ve started to notice with more and more romance novels: cover art borrowing/stealing. I don’t know which book came out first, but all I know is that whenever I see another book with this image on the cover, I am reminded of the terrible experience I had reading Therapist, and I turn away from it. And this isn’t the only example. Let’s look at a few more shall we?

Catch My Breath by Lynn Montagano and Yield: A Legal Affairs Story by Sawyer Bennett. Looks like the same models from the first example.

A Forever Kind of Guy by Barbara Meyers and Secondhand Heart by Kristen Strassel.

Legally Tied by Chelsea Dorsette and More Than a Fling by Amber Nation.

So what point am I trying to make with this collage of photos? Be careful when you choose your cover art! Don’t use something that’s already out there, because even if it seems like the most beautiful photo ever, you never know when you might be drudging up terrible memories of previous novels containing sociopathic sexual deviants. Good God I hated that book. And what about all of you lovely people? Have you ever noticed two different books with the same cover art?