Well ... thanks. I guess I felt the figures are sorta comic-bookish and that it would be better for sales if they were more photo-realistic. It's a truism in the publishing industry that lots of folks really do judge a book, especially fiction, by its cover, whether they think they're too sophisticated to do that, or not. Also, though it's hard to see at this resolution, the figures are not very finished. They're pretty rough in fact. The man's left hand is transparent (almost nonexistent), and both figures' feet and legs are not very well rendered. I also feel I got a little heavy on the red channel. Of course, my excuse is that I needed to go to press, I felt I was running out of time, and I thought it was more important to get the book out than it was to get everything perfect. However, now I'm not so sure. I've had several critical remarks about the cover, mostly about the figures, and, ergo, figured if the cover were better, sales might be better -- which haven't been anything to brag about. Finally, the cover might not be entirely appropriate for the book. Although it is fantasy in the S&S vein, it is of a more serious nature than most novels in this genre. I won't go so far as to say it is more literary, though it may be, but parts of it are fairly serious in philosophy and tone, at least a little more than most. A cover that reflected that might have been better. Maybe. I don't think my readers have been getting exactly the book they thought they were getting, and, partly because of the cover, I think more serious readers are overlooking it who, perhaps, shouldn't be. Anyway ... I very much appreciate your vote of confidence all the same. I may even stop dissing myself about it for a while ... ;*)