Jen TwimomReview: A Widow’s Charm by Caitlyn Paxson
https://twimom227.com/2026/03/review-a-widows-charm-by-caitlyn-paxson.html
#RatingA #Reviews #Romance #SciFiOrFantasyFiction #CaitlynPaxson #DelReyBooks #JenReview #standalone
Michael WhelanDRAGONQUEST (1978)
Acrylic on Masonite - 20" X 30"
The primary menace to the planet Pern is "Thread," a corrosive and devastating alien life form which falls from the Red Star and burrows its way into the soil, destroying all life and making the soil unusable. Only the dragons who are able to burn the Thread out of the sky can save the inhabitants. 1/3
#sciencefiction #illustration #annemccaffrey #pern #dragon #delreybooks
THE MANY-COLORED LAND (1982)
Acrylic
I loved Julian May’s “Pliocene Exile” series, but I never felt like I did the books justice. I remember struggling to come up with dramatic concepts for this, but Del Rey didn’t go for them. 1/3
#sciencefiction #illustration #julianmay #plioceneexile #delreybooks
DAUGHTER OF REGALS (1983)
Acrylic on Illustration Board - 31” x 21”
A problem in choosing the image for this cover was that the heroine is consistently portrayed as being drab and uninteresting. Yet uninteresting is the last thing a book cover should be! 1/4
THE NONBORN KING (1983)
Mixed media on Watercolor Board - 28” x 18”
Once or twice a year, for a change of pace, I work in watercolors as I did here.
A number of paintings I’ve done—including SNOWFALL and SWORDS AND ICE MAGIC—began with an overall wash of color and maybe some background elements painted in acrylic. After that layer had dried and set, I’d paint over that with gouache—which allows for excellent detail rendering. 1/4
JOHN CARTER OF MARS (1979)
Acrylic - 22” x 28”
I’ve had a special fondness for The Martian Tales by Edgar Rice Burroughs even since I first read them in my early teens. This was the last of 11 covers, so it seemed fitting to have John Carter and Dejah Thoris ride off into the sunset. 1/3
#sciencefiction #illustration #edgarriceburroughs #johncarter #barsoom #delreybooks
A SPELL FOR CHAMELEON (1978)
Acrylic on Illustration Board - 30" x 20"
Most readers will remember my work with Piers Anthony on the Incarnations of Immortality, but covers for a couple of Xanth novels came first. 1/3
#fantasy #illustration #piersanthony #xanth #bookcover #delreybooks
BLACK STAR RISING (1984)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 30" x 22"
My first cover for Frederik Pohl came with this satirical, post-apocalyptic space opera. 1/3
DRAGONSDAWN (1987)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 25” x 36”
This was the first cover in the Dragonriders of Pern series to feature the beloved fire lizards and I really enjoyed painting them. 1/5
#sciencefiction #illustration #bookcover #pern #annemccaffrey #delreybooks
THE CHESSMEN OF MARS (1979)
Acrylic - 20” x 25”
“As Gahan entered his square, U-dor leaped toward him with drawn sword with such fury as might have overborne a less skilled and powerful swordsman.” 1/4
#sciencefiction #illustration #edgarriceburroughs #johncarter #barsoom #delreybooks
