The Eyes of Darkness by Leigh Nichols (Pocket, 1981)
First edition of the thriller novel by Dean Koontz, published by Pocket Books in 1981 under the pen name Leigh Nichols. From the back:
It is a year since Tina Evans lost her little boy Danny in a tragic accident … a year since she began the process of forgetting, of trying to go on. But today this shocking message appeared on the blackboard in Danny’s room:
NOT DEAD HELP ME
Was it someone’s grim joke? The tangible evidence of her own tormented unconscious? Or something … more?
The font used by cover designer Cathy Carucci is some phototype version from the De Vinne/Romana genre. It’s neither Hawthorn, PLINC’s Romana, Headliners’ neo-Romana, nor ITC Bernase Roman. Denver (a.k.a. De Vinne Serial) and Basta Display come close, but aren’t a match either (and also are unlikely candidates, as their availability was chiefly limited to Western Europe). My best bet is Devinne Black as carried by Lettergraphics. Unfortunately I have only a limited sample to compare against. If you want to approximate this style with digital fonts, I strongly recommend Roslindale which is available in variable font format.
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The first printing of this paperback edition came with a die cut, revealing the eye printed on the first page of the interior. You can see that the crop is slightly different in each of the shown copies.
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1 Comment on “The Eyes of Darkness by Leigh Nichols (Pocket, 1981)”
Devinne Black by Lettergraphics seems to be the same typeface as Devinne Extra Bold Agency. The latter is shown in Castcraft’s 1978 catalog, alongside the lighter Devinne Bold Ext Agency and the wider Devinne Extra Bold Ext Agency. All three styles include two forms for R; one firmly footed on the baseline, the other one pinching through it – as seen on the book cover.