Crazy Comes in Threes, by Elizabeth Barone
“Bad things always happen to Quinn in threes. First her mother gets involuntarily committed to the behavioral disorder unit of the hospital. Then Quinn moves in with her new college roommates, only to find out that they are each as different as night and day. But the worst is yet to come: if Quinn can’t support her eleven-year-old sister, Tara will go into the foster care system, and she will never see her again.
Quinn devises a plan. She brings Tara to the dorms, telling her resident assistant and the desk attendant that her little sister is only spending the night. At first no one notices that Tara never actually goes home, but after a few days, Quinn’s roommates get suspicious. Tara’s social worker could stop by their house at any time and take Tara away forever. Quinn has to choose between her dream of living the college life, or Tara’s safety.
Crazy Comes in Threes is a New Adult drama for twenty-somethings, and is the first novel in theComes in Threes series.” (via the author’s website)
The New Adult category seems to be populated with covers focused on romance. While I have no problem with romance, I do think this trend is giving the impression that all New Adult books center around steamy relationships, which is very much untrue. So when Ms. Barone contacted me about creating a new cover this book, I jumped at the chance to do something a little different for the category.
This particular story centers around the themes of sisterly bond and mental illness, and I wanted this cover to focus on the relationship between Quinn and Tara. If you look closely, you’ll also see a third figure, the shadow of a woman reaching out, her impact felt while not actually present. Quinn and Tara’s mother is committed for mental illness, and that moment is a turning point in Quinn’s life. It affects everything she does, every choice she makes, from that event and going forward with her life.
It was a nice change to do something outside the realms of speculative fiction, and I’m glad Ms. Barone contracted me for this cover. She was very pleased with the results, and so am I. :)
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