It’s time to appreciate category romance covers again! For this edition of Covers of the Week, we’re focusing on Harlequin publishing in the 1980s. Over the years, Harlequin romance covers utilized a stable of in-house artists. This made for a unified consistency in the covers. However, sometimes they seemed as if they all looked alike. Fortunately, there were artists talented enough to make their paintings stand out.
In the early days, covers were just painted, mostly with acrylic, but some illustrators used watercolor, like Will Davies. Eventually, photography and digital imaging would be implemented, but that was mostly later in the 1990s.
For the week of Monday, November 22, 2021, to Sunday, November 28, 2021 (boy, did November fly by, or what?), let’s look upon these passionate category romance covers from Harlequin.
Moon Lady, Jane Donnelly, Harlequin, 1984, Frank Kalan cover art
Reluctant Relative, Jessica Steele, Harlequin, 1983, Will Davies cover art
The Folly Of Loving, Catherine George, Harlequin, 1986, Len Goldberg cover art
Second to None, Rita Clay Estrada, Harlequin, 1989, Ron Lesser cover art
