When I read a story the first thing I look at is the cover. But I used to put a book back down if I didn't find the cover very enticing. I was wondering what you first noticed, did you ever look at the front and make a snap judgment and perhaps not read the book because of that? Or was there something else that made you not read a book that you might have found very interesting?
I do make snap judgements based on the cover but I never let that put me off, I always read the back as well to see what the book is about before I decide...unless it's a Terry Pratchett book, I never bother finding out what they're about because so far everything he has written has been awesome!