Queen of Shadows cover reveal

You've probably already seen it around the web, but if you haven't THE QUEEN OF SHADOWS (Throne of Glass #4) COVER IS HERE, IT'S HERE, IT'S HERE:

US cover

 

UK cover

It's final, I have a new favourite cover. 

Sarah discusses a few details on the cover and what they mean on her livejournal blog. We've enumerated them below! (Beware!! Some Heir of Fire spoilers ahead!)

Does the sword have any significance?

Yes, and no. The sword on the cover doesn’t actually appear on the book. Just like how Aelin doesn’t have silver hair and gray skin (lol), the sword, along with the outfit, is an artistic interpretation. We considered using exact renderings of one of the two swords Aelin wields in Queen of Shadows (Goldryn and Damaris), but upon studying the comp images I dug up (and comparing them to some others I had on my Pinterest page), neither had that Murder Princess vibe that we were going for. So—yes: Aelin wields a badass sword in the book—it just doesn’t look like that one on the cover. (Which is totally fine by me, because LOOK AT THAT SWORDDDD!)

Does Aelin wear that armor/outfit in the book?

Sort of. Like the sword, this is an interpretation of what she wears. If you’ve read The Assassin’s Blade, you might remember Aelin/Celaena receiving a pretty badass/nifty/useful suit from Arobynn. And that suit may or may not make an appearance in QOS. ;)

Did she get a haircut? 

Yep. At the end of HOF (spoiler alert! Avert your eyes!), Aelin’s hair gets cut short during her battle with the Valg princes. So much of this cover is just a gorgeous/fierce interpretation of the book, but the hair length is the only thing that’s 100% accurate!

Is that Manon's cloak?

Haha, no. Smart guess, but no. We tried a few different cloak colors, but none of them really fit that gorgeous, bloody background as well as the maroon. (What I find eternally funny is that—aside from the gray skin—the Celaena/Aelin depicted on these covers is kinda how I picture Manon: silver hair, red cloak, otherworldly fierceness.)

When will we see the dress on the book?

Soon, hopefully! I haven’t even seen it yet, so I’m just as eager as you are! Aelin’s "big" dress in QOS is perhaps my favorite of all of them so far, and I’m dying to see how the illustrator interprets it!

You keep calling her Aelin, does that mean…….?

Yep. The last line of HOF solidified the switch from Celaena to Aelin. You guys might have noticed that when I pin images on the TOG Pinterest board, I’ll still label some images with Celaena and some with Aelin—and that usually is because those images will represent the various parts of her history and who she is. And looking at the QOS cover, I feel like that shift in her character is subtly reflected, too.

Sarah just loves teasing us, doesn't she? Sarah [angrily shakes fist] stop teasing us!

What do you guys think about the cover and these extra juicy details? Has it become your new favourite too?