I read the American hardcover, from my local library, and it appears that the English versions may have different cover art. Who knows why that happens, but I assume its because the American affiliate of the British publisher thinks that a different cover may do better in the US? Not sure, but I don't think this cover is it, chief. If you click on the image you can get a better look at it. or click on the annotated detail below for even more complainin' It looks to me like they've either assumed that because this series sells so well that they don't need to try all that hard--and if that was the case, why not just go with the UK cover art? Okay maybe there is a rights thing or agreement that obligates the cover art to be different. Or, maybe because sales are good, whoever was in charge gave it to their teen (tween?) who is really, like, talented in art class? I mean, look at the flames... yeah, click right in there and take a look. They just wiggled the stylus around on their iPad. And the reflections on the crown? A crown that doesn't look anything like any crown described in the books, by the way. What? Is that the only reflective spot on this shinny metal object, and are those little bits of flame skipping across the front of the image too, or are those rust stains on a domed glass cover over the center part? What's that for? Jacket Design David Mann, images from Shutterstock, by the way. yes, i'm looking at you And why, you may ask, have I written an entire, long and rambling paragraph about the cover art? Simple: because it stinks. Its embarrassing. Do better Bloomsbury USA.
This book is shorter than the first two at 363 pages (including the backmatter*) so I worked through it pretty quickly, and just before I sat down to write this review, I checked at the library to see if they had the next volume, The Mask Falling, on the shelf, and they do, so I'll probably pick that up today. The Song Rising was pretty good, but perhaps not as good as the first two. It definitely moved the story forward, and there are a few good moments, but it did feel a bit like a connection between the beginning of the story and the end, if you know what I mean.
It didn't suck, or I wouldn't be going to get get book 4 later today**, but not great either. What did suck?The cover. Did I mention that? Look at it!
Maybe its fan art of the One Ring put together with clip art of a crown. Jacket designer is listed, but no artist is named, hmm. Is this an AI image? I can't get over it. They used Shutterstock; just do a search on Shutterstock for 'flaming ring' and you get a hundred images*** that look better than this.
* Backmatter includes a glossary and acknowledgments. The frontmatter includes some maps, a listing of the Mime Order, and a prelude.
** Update: I started this yesterday, on Saturday, and didn't make it to the library. Today is Sunday and by the time I finished what I was doing, the library is closed again, so maybe tomorrow.
*** My search turned up 47,000+ images, and most of the images on the first page were better that what they did here.
**** Yes, I know that a double asterisk is as far as you're supposed to go when using typographic symbols for footnotes. Depending on who you ask, you could go to a double asterisk before changing symbols.† Here is the list of what seems like the commonly accepted order:
Asterisk (*) - Shift-8
Double asterisk (**) - Shift-88
Dagger (†) - Option-T on Mac
Double dagger (‡) - Option-Shift-7 on Mac
Section mark (§) - Option-6 on Mac
Parallels (||) - Shift-Backslash-Backslash
Octothorpe (#) - Shift-3
Pilcrow (¶) - Option-7 on Mac
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