I confess that I judge books by their covers all the time. For Instance, if I see one or more cool looking starships or mechs on a cover, I’m going to judge that book worthy of closer look. I will click on the description or, if it’s a dead tree version, flip it to read the blurbs on the back. If what I read intrigues me, I will investigate further by reading a page or three. Conversely, there are certain covers that will repel my interest like spying a turd in a punch bowl.
The EMPEROR has noted some of the more egregious examples of the latter sort.
And speaking of covers, if you’ve missed the post, you can check out the preliminary sketches of my book covers HERE.