Jenna's Christmas Wish by Debra Parmley - Book Trailer

I make no comments or opinions about the book since I have not read it. What I write is about the trailer only.

This is a rare one: a light, sweet book trailer: Jenna's Christmas Wish by Debra Parmley

I can't complain about much here. In under a minute, we know the setting, the main characters, the plot and what gets in the way of our hero and heroine's happily ever after.

The score is appropriately jingly and the video clips pull together to make a tight little film.

As you know, I like to see the book cover at the beginning and end. Here, it's just at the end.

Typo: Put's should be Puts.

All in all, the trailer does a nice job.

The Guardian by M.J. Kobernus - Book Trailer

I make no comments or opinions about the book since I have not read it. What I write is about the trailer only.

The book trailer for The Guardian by M. J. Kobernus illustrates both some features I like in book trailers, and some I don't.

First the good news. It's thematically consistent with its images, color palette and fonts. The score is pitch perfect for the subject matter. The creator makes fantastic use of existing Amazon reviews, and in communicating through the captions. We get a cover image in the beginning, and while I like to see a cover image again at the end, we do get the title in bold at the end, and also the author's name in bold on a single slide.

The bad news: I'm not a fan of the special effects of the jiggly credit slide with the ink disintegrating off the page. That in combination with the captions leads me to think this is a documentary on the History Channel about lost ancient civilization rather than fiction.

However, on the whole does it all work in piquing my interest in the book?

Absolutely!

The Treasonous by Rachael Ritchey - Book Trailer

I make no comments or opinions about the book since I have not read it. What I write is about the trailer only.

The book trailer for The Treasonous by Rachael Ritchey has the making of my favorite flavor.

The video is book-ended by the cover image with the author's name visible. The video is made up a still images rather than action clips. The score is just right - dark, not overly dramatic.

I don't care for all the vertical images, however, with the black spaces on the sides. One has a find a way to format all the slides horizontally for a seamless flow.

There may be a tad too much to read, but here I quibble. The captions actually do a good job of outlining the plot and in asking the story question.

Pontifex Maximus by Damian North - Book Trailer

I make no comments or opinions about the book since I have not read it. What I write is about the trailer only.

This trailer is fun in how it straddles the fine line between creating dramatic suspense and being a parody of a movie trailer.

It is successful, in spite of the "cheese factor" in asking the story question through an array of similarly themed images underpinned by a dark cinematic score. I like how care was taken matching up the effective captions with the music.

My main critique is that the author's name is not easy to find. It's there at the final credits, though I had to pause the video to see it. My advice to those making book trailers is to ALWAYS bookend your video with an image of your cover with your name visible.

Or even have a single slide with the author's name.

The Graham Saga by Anna Belfrage - Book Trailer

I make no comments or opinions about the book since I have not read it. What I write is about the trailer only.

Live action rather than image-based book trailers can certainly work and be effective. This trailer for The Graham Sage by Anna Belfrage is an example where it does work.

The footage of the couple is without dialogue (always wise) and is just out-of-focus enough for us to fill in our own ideas of who these people are. The scenery is evocative and the score is fraught with tension.

The simple captions tell the story well - if maybe including some spoilers - and make us care about what happens to these two.

That's the whole idea of a book trailer, to spark enough of an interest to make us want to read the book(s).

Naupaka Blooming by J. L. Eck - Book Trailer

I make no comments or opinions about the book since I have not read it. What I write is about the trailer only.

Listen to me. All of you. Stop with the male baritone voice over. The book trailer for Naupaka Blooming was made silly with it.

Otherwise, I know right away what this book is about. I understand the setting and I know "the story question." The slides are fine and the duration is sufficient to get the information across.  Good job showing the book cover at the end of the trailer.

But the "IN A WORLD ..." voice over from movie trailers, which became running joke, has also rendered this book trailer into a near-parody.

I can envision a Hawaiian girl's voice as a first-person narrator, giving the trailer a more direct connection to the book. "We weren't supposed to fall in love. But we did ..."

   

Sedahlia by Cynthia D. Toliver - Book Trailer

I make no comments or opinions about the book since I have not read it. What I write is about the trailer only.

What a soft, sweet book trailer this is for Sedahlia, by Cynthia D. Toliver.

The theme, color palette, and typeface are all consistent throughout, the piano score fits, and the duration is just right.

I would have added a clear image of the book cover, however, to make a potential customer's search more successful.