BITTERBLUE, Kristen Cashore

This is a beautiful book with gorgeous design. The jacket cover is fairly generic-YA-fantasy, but hidden inside are some of my favourite bits of design in this whole scrapbook.

… Wait, did I say the inside of this book was gorgeous? What I meant was most of it is. Once you get past the two whole pages of endorsements for the earlier books in the trilogy, the second of which is verso to the half title page. Not the best start.

The half title is standard: the typeface is the same as was used for the title on the cover, and it’s nice and clean alone on the page (if not the spread – ugh).

THERE IT IS. This title page is beautifully presented. The title typeface is repeated, and the author name is likewise identical to the one on the jacket cover. The key motif will be repeated throughout the book. The crown represents a central theme of the narrative. The ornate paisley background almost looks like elaborate endpaper stock, and makes the page burst with movement.

The part titles are lushly illustrated, with the part number and name set in a box identical to that used in the title page. The illustrations on these pages are all different, all covering the full two-page spread. The woodcut look of the artwork is appropriate to the time period in which the story is set.

The key reappears at each chapter heading. The key motif is a good recurring symbol to use, as the plot of the book is full of secrets and mysteries.

All in all, and except for the hideous misstep with the endorsements, this book has been beautifully designed. I am interested to see how the paperback looks, and whether the rich illustrations are retained or not. 

Samples collected: 20 June 2012