Contemporary Romance Color of the Year: So Much Blue. So Much.

By / / Books & Literature / 3 minutes of reading


I’m BACK!

It took me awhile to do this last one because, well, you’ll see.

But if you’re just arriving here at the mayhem, welcome!

I’ve been taking a really thorough look at the Contemporary Romance Colors that are most prevalent on covers this year and attempt to identify what is the CR-COTY, the Contemporary Romance Color of the Year. 

We’ve talked about Green. 

A collection of green contemporary covers on a background of green grass and trees

A LOT of Contemporary Green Romance, and debates about whether something is green or blue – very fun.

And as I mentioned in the first post about my color obsession, there are color schemes that are so closely tied to one genre, like Suspense is Blue and Gold.

An array of six thrillers all with covers featuring blue photographs of night skies with yellow windows and yellow text for the title and /or author. at the top it says Suspense is blue and yellow

And then we looked at Peach and Pink! 

A pink and peach background with six books with peach and pink covers.

Six more covers with peach backgrounds mostly contemporary romance Perfect Fit - Claire Gilmore The Deepest End of Love - Lisina Coney Crash Landing - Annie McQuaid Is She Really Going Out with Him? - Sophie Cousens Love Points to You - Alice Lin The Perfect Rom-Com - Melissa Ferguson

Ok, hold on to your eyeballs. Maybe warm up your fingers to prepare for this scroll. Because the color for this edition is Blue.

Hooo, boy, is it BLUE.

Cash Delgado is Living the Dream by Tehlor Kay Mejia A cobalt blue background of a very stylish bar with two people having a drink. One character is wearing a light yellow sweater with patterns with curly hair pulled up, and the other character has short hair and a white t-shirt The Usual Family Mayhem by Helenkay Dimon - two grey haired women in purple aprons are mixing something in a bowl while one holds a bottle with a poison logo of skull and crossbones. Two people with sunglasses on are leaning into the room to spy on the bakers. The color scheme is blue, grey, puple, and pink and yellow but the background is entirely blue

I Do with You - Lauren Landish A blue background with two hands toasting with champagne coupes. and the title in white Jewel Me Twice - Charish Reid A blue slanted background with an illustration of a white man in a tux holding a diamond. Across the way is a black woman with short hair and a stunning green dress with a big slit up the side, and they are holding a big diamond necklace

Love You a Latke - Amanda Elliot A blue cityscape background with snow, with two illustrated people kissing against a lamp post. One has short hair and is wearing a beige trench coat, and the other has a auburn ponytail and a blue coat with a beige scarf. Meet me in a Mile - Elizabeth Hrib It's SO BLUE. It's all blue with a sketch of a cityscape with two people running away from each other - one has a blonde ponytail and pink shorts with blue sneakers and a blue top, and the other has blonde hair and black shorts and a light blue tshirt and light blue shoes

Miranda in Retrograde - Lauren Layne A blue background with stars and building rooftops rendered in various shades of blue. the title is in yellow. There is a person with high heels, blue pants, and a pink top and a telescope. Across on another rooftop is a person with shorthair, yellow pants and a blue tshirt painting on an easel Near Misses and Cowboy Kisses by Katrina Emmel A dark blue sky with white stars with two people alongside a covered wagon and a campsite

One on One - Jamie Harrow A blue background with a gym floor, with two illustrated people playing basketball. One is wearing blue pants and a yellow top and has long brown hair, and one has a clipboard and basketball in one hand, wearing blue pant and a grey sweatshirt The Ride of Her Life - Jennifer Dugan A blue background with two illustrated people, one with long brown hair, a cowboy hat, and a lasso, wearing coveralls. The other has blonde hair in a long braid, a green dress and white cowboy boots

Sounds Like a Plan by Pamela Samuels Young - Dwayne Alexander Smith A blue city scene with palm trees, and two illustrated people. One is wearing a blue suit and open shirt holding a gun. The other has hair up, sunglases, a slinky red tank dress and a gun in a thigh holster The Christmas You Found Me - Sarah Morgenthaler A blue path leading to a blue inn and a blue sky with three people in puffy coats in blue, green, and pink. There are two Christmas trees on either side.

A Winter Wish by Emily Stone! A blue cover! Are you shocked? Two Christmas trees and holiday booths in the background with a blue bottom and a blue sky. Two illustrated people are decorating trees facing away from each other. One has brown wavy hair and a pink sweater and the other has short brown hair and a red scarf. Wish I Were Here - Melissa Warner Two people standing back to back in front of a building rendered entirely in blue with green leaves

Book of the Month by Jennifer Probst A blue sky and beach with a blue striped lighthouse and horses on the shore The Rule Book - Sarah Adams A blue background with a cityscape, yellow sand and a palm tree. Two faceless illustrated people are leaning against it. One has long brown hair and a pink jacket, and the other has a football uniform on

Enemies to Lovers by Laura Jane Williams A blue background with a blue pool with two illustrated people one wearing a bikini pushing the other into a pool. The Fake Wedding Project by Pippa Grant - a blue background with illustrartions of engagemetn rings in white and blue scattered over the background

It's all Sun and Games three people jumping into water but the only background is a wash of light blue. A Kiss in the Dark by Suzanne Enoch A blue background of bubble images with a postit with a red lipstick kiss and a ruby necklace

A Legend in the Baking by Jamie Wesley - A blue background with two people at a counter top. One has brown skin and long hair in braids and the other has medium brown skin is wearing an apron and icing a cupcake Like Cats & Dogs by Lizzie Shane - a blue background with a whisk and rolling pin scattered at the top, and two peopel standing back to back wearing red aprons. There's a grey dog and an orange cat

Mistletoe Season anthology - a blue background with a lamppost and two people kissing behind it. My Mother's Ridiculous Rules for Dating by PHilip William Stover - a man in a yellow shirt and rainbow socks is holding a very long list against a blue background that looks like brooklyn

Only for the Holidays - Abiola Bello Two illustrated people stand on either side of a rail fence, one wearing denim and boots and the other in a pair of thigh high boots and an overcoat. She appears to be taking a selfie Paging Dr Hart by Dr Melissa Dymond - A blue background with a heart rate line across the middle forming a heart over two illustrated people, one with red hair, a medical coat, and a purple skirt, and the other in a white medical coat and dark pants and shoes

Snowed in. Catherine Walsh Two people fighting wind wearing identical jackets and pants with yellow suitcases. In the background is a triangular shaped cabin against a blue background sky Text Book Romance - Kristen Bailey - a blue background with a tiny illustration of a woman sitting with her laptop atop the letter X in Text. And a figure in blue shirt and brown pants is biking and looking up

So blue was popular, huh?

The reason it took me so long to format this post is that I Kept finding MORE BLUE BOOKS. 

Seriously. I log into NetGalley and it’s blue blue everywhere.

So why blue? What does blue mean within color theory?

Blue is associated with the sky, and the sea, and is “associated with pen spaces, freedom, intuition, imagination, inspiration, and sensitivity. Blue also represents meanings of depth, trust, loyalty, sincerity, wisdom, confidence, stability, faith, and intelligence,” according to SuperColor.com.

Shades of blue also represent tranquility and resting, and can visually make a space look or feel cool.

Dark blue tends to represent knowledge, power, or depth. It can also be very elegant when paired with gold or brass in interior decorating. Light blue, on the other hand, can be “baby blue,” and tends to signify peace and serenity.

Photographer Eric Kim wrote my favorite description of blue:

Blue is a “cool” color; generally cool to the touch. We go to the beach, and we enjoy the blue skies, and the blue water. My theory is that we love the color blue as human beings, because we need water to survive.

A few sites have said that blue is the most popular “favorite color,” but I can’t find any studies that support that with, you know, actual factual evidence and numbers and a sample size.

Adobe mentioned that blue was an expensive color in the Renaissance:

During the Renaissance, blue paints were still made using crushed blue azurite. The rarity of the mineral made blue a color of enormous value. Blue color paints were more expensive than gold, and paintings of the wealthy featured blue to assert status. This period was when blue was most associated with affluence.

Meanwhile, “blue collar” refers to jobs in trades or manual labor, and dates back to 1924.

So: cool, royalty (“royal blue”)or power if it’s dark blue, and serenity and peace if it’s light blue. You can “have the blues,” or be feeling sad, or you can be “true blue,” or loyal to a fault.

What could this mean for romance covers?  Many of the meanings for blue in various shades would support romance character traits.

But my theory is that blue is deployed so much in Contemporary romance relates to the idea of “blue” as a signifier of rest, maybe vacations at the beach, and the tranquility of the sky. I think the color is used in part to signal that this book will be like a vacation, a tranquil escape with a happy ending.

And, look, I love blue a lot but even I think there are too many blue covers in Contemporary romance right now!

What do you think blue conveys for Contemporary Romance? What other similar covers have you spotted?

And which do you prefer so far? Is it time to vote?

What do you think is the Contemporary Romance Color of the Year? 





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About The Author

Avatar of Krista Sullivan
Krista Sullivan, who writes about politics, health, business, and finance for Hermes News, is a lifelong news junkie. She spent her childhood reading the newspaper from front to back every day and developed an interest in politics at a young age. After graduating from college, Krista worked as a reporter for several local newspapers before moving to Hermes News in 2015. She has been covering the economy since then and enjoys writing about new developments in the field.

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