# Is "Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy 1)" by Robin Hobb a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy 1) by Robin Hobb (Bantam Spectra, 1995) is identified by: First novel under the Robin Hobb pen name (Hobb is Megan Lindholm). The US Bantam Spectra paperback original (May 1995) is the true first; the UK Voyager hardcover (August 1995) is the first hardcover but not the first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First novel under the Robin Hobb pen name (Hobb is Megan Lindholm)
- US Bantam Spectra trade paperback original, May 1995, with number line running to 1
- The UK hardcover from HarperCollins' newly launched Voyager imprint followed about three months later, in 1995
- Publisher imprint reads Bantam Spectra
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robin Hobb |
| Publisher | Bantam Spectra |
| Year | 1995 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First novel under the Robin Hobb pen name (Hobb is Megan Lindholm) |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First novel under the Robin Hobb pen name (Hobb is Megan Lindholm). US Bantam Spectra trade paperback original, May 1995, with number line running to 1. The UK hardcover from HarperCollins' newly launched Voyager imprint followed about three months later, in 1995.

## Is this the true first?
The US Bantam Spectra paperback original (May 1995) is the true first; the UK Voyager hardcover (August 1995) is the first hardcover but not the first edition. A paperback original preceding any hardcover is an unusual and frequently misunderstood point on this title.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The UK Voyager hardcover, though desirable as the first hardcover, postdates the US paperback by roughly three months. Later printings and the many reissue and anniversary editions are distinct.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy 1)* by Robin Hobb a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/assassins-apprentice-the-farseer-trilogy-1
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.