Cover Characteristics: Book Covers featuring Mermaids/Mermen

 
 

When I was a kid, there were only two things I constantly pretended to be, and one of them was a mermaid. I used to spread my parents’ blue comforter out on their floor and drag myself around on it, pretend it was the ocean. In our little pool, and even in my grandparents’ hot tub, I’d pretend I was, well, essentially a mermaid veterinarian, helping all the injured sea creatures. I don’t really know why I wanted to be a mermaid so badly considering I’m not that big a fan of the ocean (it’s so big and scary!), but I did.

Even as an adult though, the idea of merfolk is a fun one. And since it is #Mermay on Twitter (as I’m posting this), this just seemed like the perfect topic for a book cover post!


Mer-Charmer by Amy Bearce
Bride of the Sea by Emma Hamm
Soul of a Merman by Alana Ankh
The Merman by Carl-Johan Vallgren
Into the Gray by Margaret Killjoy
The Merman and the Barbarian Pirate by Kay Berrisford
Mermaid: A Twist on the Classic Tale by Carolyn Turgeon
The Rising by Terra Harmony
Silver Light by J.R Rain & Matthew S. Cox
Water & Blood by B. Kristin McMichael
 

Pin the Collage!


 

Water & Blood by B. Kristin McMichael

Water & Blood by B. Kristin McMichael | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

The pink and purple colors make this one really stand out.

 

Silver Light by J.R Rain & Matthew S. Cox

Silver Light by J.R Rain & Matthew S. Cox | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

I love the use of font on this one and how the mermaid’s tail kind of overlaps it. And I love the way the tail looks in general, so big and flippery.

 

The Rising by Terra Harmony

The Rising by Terra Harmony | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

This one is just so pretty with that big moon and all the blue!

 

Mermaid: A Twist on the Classic Tale by Carolyn Turgeon

Mermaid: A Twist on the Classic Tale by Carolyn Turgeon | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

This one is just a tail, but the red sky against all the blue-green looks so beautiful!

 

The Merman and the Barbarian Pirate by Kay Berrisford

The Merman and the Barbarian Pirate by Kay Berrisford | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

This is just totally my kind of cover! I love seeing the characters interact, and they both look kind of curious about the other or maybe just smitten.

 

Into the Gray by Margaret Killjoy

Into the Gray by Margaret Killjoy | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

I feel like I keep talking about colors a lot, but the colors in this one are so beautiful too! And the artwork, including the way its laid out with with the tail and hair and everything, is beautiful.

 

The Merman by Carl-Johan Vallgren

The Merman by Carl-Johan Vallgren | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

The colors! (Someone please stop me!) But really, the teal and purple, and the scales, it’s all kind of understated, but I love it.

 

Soul of a Merman by Alana Ankh

Soul of a Merman by Alana Ankh | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

This is another great one with artwork of the characters. Plus there’s a cute dolphin in the background đŸ˜›

 

Bride of the Sea by Emma Hamm

Bride of the Sea by Emma Hamm | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

More pretty artwork, and I like how the mermaid is lurking in the water with the guy in the boat nearby plus a big ship in the background.

 

Mer-Charmer by Amy Bearce

Mer-Charmer by Amy Bearce | reading, books, book covers, cover love, merfolk, mermaids, mermen
 

I think this one is my favorite. The artwork is just gorgeous! And it all looks so magical, and it’s got the mermaids in the background. It’s also well-done overall with good font choice/placement and everything.

 
 
 
 

Talk to me!

Which book cover featuring mermaids/mermen is your favorite?

Book Covers featuring Mermaids/Mermen | reading, books, book covers, cover love, mermaids, mermen
 
 
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Your Thoughts

 

43 thoughts on “Cover Characteristics: Book Covers featuring Mermaids/Mermen

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  1. Greg

    Give me all of the merfolk lol. The Rising is probably my favorite although Mer-Charmer is a VERY close 2nd. Both are amazing. That big moon and just the layout of The rising. After that Silverlight is probably my next favorite.

    1. Kristen Burns

      Merfolk are awesome! Although it has been a LONG time since I’ve read a book about them. I need to fix that soon. All of those are such great covers. I love Silver Light is kind of… different though. I couldn’t figure out how to explain it!

  2. Kathy

    I also pretended to be mermaids with my friends at the local pool! XD Honestly, the best part about learning dolphin kicks in swim class was that I got to swim like an actual mermaid. But my love for them never translated into a love for mermaid books for some reason. These are so pretty, though! Into the Gray is probably my favourite.

    1. Kristen Burns

      Ahhh I love how many of us pretended to be mermaids lol. I haven’t read many mer books, but idk why. I do like reading about them. Glad you like these covers! That one is gorgeous!

  3. Tizzy Brown

    Perfect post for Mermay. These covers are all so beautiful. I need more mermaid fiction in my life! They’ve always fascinated me, ever since The Little Mermaid came out.

  4. Evelina @ AvalinahsBooks

    Ah, I adore that featured image of yours đŸ™‚ I love the seaside. I think you would make a good mermaid đŸ˜€ I don’t even know why đŸ˜€ and hey, maybe if you WERE one, the ocean wouldn’t be scary anymore. LOL

    Mermaid by Carolyn Turgeon has an amazing looking cover!

    1. Kristen Burns

      It’s such a great picture, right? And I specifically chose it because it matches my blog colors (which I chose based on the beach!) lol. I feel oddly complimented that you think I’d make a good mermaid đŸ˜›

  5. Angela

    The Little Mermaid is totally my favorite Disney princess, so I love this post! I just got two mermaid-themed books out of the library, so perfect timing!

  6. Lola

    I am not a fan of the ocean, but I always liked the idea of mermaids. My little mermaid was always my favorite Disney movie and I also remember another mermaid movie I liked to watch as a kid. And while mermaid’s are some of my favorite paranormal creatures, I actually haven’t read that many books about them.

    There are so many awesome mermaid covers out there! You picked a great selection of covers for this post. Most of these I hadn’t heard of before, but i do know The Rising. I even read it or actually tried to read it as it was a DNF for em sadly, but the cover is great. Mer-Charmer is probably my favorite of these, the colors are so pretty on the cover. The Mermaid cover is also great, with how it’s only the tail. And The merman and the barbarian pirate is such a neat cover too with how you see both the characters . And I like how Bride of the Sea shows both the above and beneath water point of view.

    Some of my favorite mermaid covers I seen recently included Claimed by Mila Young and Kellie McAllen’s The Siren series. Oh and How to be a Mermaid by Erin Hayes has a great cover too and it’s a great book too.

    1. Kristen Burns

      Yeah, the ocean is scary. But mermaids are awesome đŸ˜‰ Tbh, I haven’t read many books about them either though. It’s been a while, I kind of want to read one soon!

      Bummer that The Rising was a DNF for you. I haven’t read any of these, but I grabbed The Merman and the Barbarian Pirate on sale for $.99 recently. It sounds fun. Having just the tail can be a fun way of doing the cover, but I definitely love getting to actually see the characters! And yes, the half underwater, half above view is always interesting!

      I almost used the Claimed one! And ooh, I hadn’t even seen the McAllen ones, those are totally my kinda covers too!

    1. Kristen Burns

      Into the Gray has such gorgeous art! Mermaid is great too.

      I mean, kelpies are pretty different lol, but they’re awesome too! I’ve actually read that one, I’ll go check out your review đŸ™‚

  7. Brittany

    I think I like Bride of the Sea best! And all the covers do have really good colors! I would have said the same thing for every one ?

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  9. Olivia Roach

    I absolutely love this post! I am a huge fan of mermaids and mermen and sirens. I have been since I watched Ariel when I was like, 4 xD I have bookmarked this page and one day, I am so going to read through them all. Thanks so much for composing this list!!

    1. Kristen Burns

      Mermaids are so interesting! I haven’t actually read any of these myself, but I do have a ecopy of The Merman and the Barbarian Pirate I’m looking forward to!

  10. Wren

    mer-creatures are amazing. When I was little I wanted a mermaid/man tail so badly, I had so many dreams I was in the ocean, and I loved the Little Mermaid! Honestly it might sound silly, but when I go to the beach I always have to close my eyes in the water, and just for a moment, pretend I am a mer-creature. đŸ™‚

  11. Bookworm Brandee

    I think it’s a tie between Mer-Charmer and Bride of the Sea for me. But they’re all pretty fantastic. I think you’re right with the colors. They make the covers eye-catching. Those color combinations just work. đŸ™‚ Nice picks!

  12. Becky

    I definitely think Mer-Charmer is my favourite too! Such beautiful artwork and I’m going to go find out what the book is about now because I really would love it on my shelves haha. Into the Gray also looks great!

    Uptown Oracle

  13. Daniela Ark

    ohhh LOVE mermaids! but they were like dragons for me until very recently. I use to love them just in movies. But after I read To Kill a Kingdom I kinda like them in book too now! mermaids covers and art in general ARE SO PRETTY!!! I have tonsa them in pinterest đŸ™‚ my fav of your list is the bride! ohh so scary! đŸ™‚

    1. Kristen Burns

      Yay, soon you will be converted into a full paranormal creature lover! I actually haven’t read that many books about mermaids, but yes, their covers are gorgeous!