Cover Characteristics: Book Covers featuring Gargoyles

 
 
I've never really given a whole lot of thought to gargoyles. They can be kind of creepy and ugly, but they can also be kind of intimidating and beautiful.

They do seem to be gaining popularity in fantasy books though as a paranormal creature. They also seem to be on a surprising number of book covers. I thought this would be a hard topic, but it turned out to be rather easy.

I don't really have a whole lot to say about gargoyles though? So here are the covers!

Cover Characteristics is a weekly meme hosted at Sugar & Snark. This week’s topic is:

Books Covers featuring Gargoyles

 
Of Shadow and Stone by Michelle Muto | books, reading, book covers
Spellfinder by Carmen Caine | books, reading, book covers
Vampires: The World of Shadows Illustrated by Various Authors | books, reading, book covers
Stone Guardian by Danielle Monsch | books, reading, book covers
Black on Black by J.C. Andrijeski | books, reading, book covers
Briarcliff by Lorraine Beaumont | books, reading, book covers
Gargoyle Knight by William Massa | books, reading, book covers
Accidental Alchemist by Gigi Pandian | books, reading, book covers
Stonecast by Anton Strout | books, reading, book covers
Four Roads Cross by Max Gladstone | books, reading, book covers
 

Pin the Collage!


 

Four Roads Cross by Max Gladstone

 
Four Roads Cross by Max Gladstone | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

Ok I’m not 100% sure that’s a gargoyle, but it appears to possibly be made of stone, and it’s got the weird face and wings, so I’m going with it.

 

The Spellmason Chronicles by Anton Strout

 
Alchemystic by Anton Strout | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
Stonecast by Anton Strout | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
Incarnate by Anton Strout | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

I really like the way the gargoyle looks in these, part man but still part stone.

 

Accidental Alchemist by Gigi Pandian

 
Accidental Alchemist by Gigi Pandian | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

This is a fun, graphic-y cover.

 

Gargoyle Knight by William Massa

 
Gargoyle Knight by William Massa | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

This one is interesting with how it shows the two sides of his face.

 

Briarcliff by Lorraine Beaumont

 
Briarcliff by Lorraine Beaumont | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

He looks so menacing but also so attractive, which I’m pretty sure is the point since it’s a paranormal romance. I also just love his wings.

 

Black on Black by J.C. Andrijeski

 
Black on Black by J.C. Andrijeski | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

This one is attention-getting because it’s so bright, and it gives me a mysterious vibe.

 

Entwined Realms Series by Danielle Monsch

 
Stone Guardian by Danielle Monsch | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
Stone Embrace by Danielle Monsch | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

I know this is similar to the other one above, but I couldn’t choose between the two. I like the human-gargoyle crossover, and I especially like that he’s got the city and the moon behind him while crouching on a ledge, like a true gargoyle statue.

 

Vampires: The World of Shadows Illustrated by Various Authors

 
Vampires: The World of Shadows Illustrated by Various Authors | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

This one is true artwork, and it’s beautiful!

 

Spellfinder by Carmen Caine

 
Spellfinder by Carmen Caine | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

I like this one for how kick-butt, urban fantasy it looks.

 

My Favorite:
Of Shadow and Stone by Michelle Muto

 
Of Shadow and Stone by Michelle Muto | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

This one is just a really gorgeous image. With the statues roaring and the girl’s hair blowing back, they looks so formidable, and then you have the contrast with the moon and the awesome font. I just love it.

 

And One That Cracked Me Up…

 
Gargoyles in the Attic by Autumn Dawn | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 

I also just wanted to share this one because when I was a kid, I read a lot of those Animal Ark books, and they all had titles like Kittens in the Kitchen, Pony on the Porch, Puppies in the Pantry, etc. So when I saw Gargoyles in the Attic, the first thing I thought of was how much more interesting my childhood would have been if this had been one of the books in that series 😛

 
 
 
 

Talk to me!

Which book cover with gargoyles is YOUR favorite?

Book Covers featuring Gargoyles | books, reading, book covers, cover love, gargoyles
 
 
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Your Thoughts

 

11 thoughts on “Cover Characteristics: Book Covers featuring Gargoyles

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  1. Daniela Ark

    My favorite is also Of Shadow and Stone but. a close runner-up is Gargoyle Knight. The double sided face is just imposing. It woulds be perfect for a beauty and the beast retellingI have a crush on this beastly already. 🙂

    1. Kristen Burns

      Haha I should’ve guess you’d like that one 😛 Then again, I do have a thing for the bloodthirsty paranormal creatures too. A gargoyle would make for an interesting Beauty and the Beast retelling! I’ve never read a retelling of that story since they’re all about werewolves -_-

  2. Greg

    I like this topic. We need more creatures to find. 🙂 And there’s something about gargoyles, I don’t know… I just like ’em. I agree with your favorite LOL. It’s really no contest- that is just an awesome cover. I also like The Accidental Alchemist, and Four Roads Cross is good as well (the gargoyle in that one has a different look, and I like it).

    Stone Embrace is nice with the girl in the foreground and the gargoyle outside, I like the window and the purplish sky. But yeah- Shadows and Stone is amazing.

    1. Kristen Burns

      I’m down with more creatures as cover topics 😛 That’s what I read about anyway, and you can find some really interesting artwork and covers. Shadows and Stone really is just a great cover! The girl and gargoyle look so fierce. And yeah, I like the depictions of the gargoyles on the others you mentioned.

  3. Bookworm Brandee

    I like gargoyles, both on covers and as characters. 🙂 I have several of these books simply because I was drawn to the cover. *ha* I like seeing how authors do gargoyles differently. Kim Harrison has gargoyles in her Hollows series and they provide protection but also can provide aid doing things like riding ley lines. And I just finished listening to a book that had gargoyles, in human form, as protectors.
    Nice picks this week!

    1. Kristen Burns

      You always have the books I use on my more urban-fantasy-esque cover posts, and I’m always so jealous, haha, because I want them too. I haven’t read about gargoyles yet, but I have four or five books on my kindle waiting for me! Including Stone Guardian, which was on my list. And I’ll check out the Kim Harrison series you mentioned. I love seeing how authors do all different creatures, so I’m looking forward to gargoyles!

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