30 books that you can totally judge by their covers

Everless – Sara Holland

Sara Holland’s Everless is proof that you can write a book that provides serious commentary on society and dazzles readers just by sitting on the shelf. And it’s difficult not to be taken in by the book’s cover, which features an hourglass with a city of sand inside of it (and a staircase of sand winding down to the bottom).

But despite its gorgeous outer layer, Holland’s novel explores some of the less attractive qualities of humanity inside of her book. Everless takes place in a kingdom where people trade time as currency. And though we technically do the same thing outside of the realm of fiction, Holland’s story hyperbolizes it to the point of being gruesome.

The residents of Sempera don’t merely give away time as payment – instead, the time is literally extracted from their blood and bound to their iron. The rich can extend their own lifetimes for as long as they wish, and the poor are often forced to accept early endings. Given this, it’s no wonder our main character, Jules, is reluctant to return to the place.

But return she does, and Jules soon realizes that she’s in more danger than ever before. And the choices she makes to remove herself from this danger could determine the fate of an entire society of people.