4 Greg Bear first editions are documented on this shelf, from Blood Music (1985) to Darwin's Radio (1999) across 4 different publishers. Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Greg Bear title from later printings and book-club copies — the publisher and year to expect, the number-line or edition-statement conventions, and the tells that show up in online listings.
Identification only, per the house rule: no prices and no appraisals here. Checking a Greg Bear copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.
- Blood Music — 1985 · Arbor House, New YorkArbor House first edition states 'First Edition' on the copyright page with no later-printing indicators, and carries the printed price on the jacket flap. Expanded from Bear's Hugo- and Nebula-winning 1983 novelette. The US Arbor House hardcover (1985) is the true first, preceding the UK Gollancz edition (1986) and all paperback issues. The book club edition shows a rear-board gutter blindstamp, an unpriced 'Book Club Edition' jacket, and thinner boards; the Arbor House 'First Edition' statement is absent and the copyright page differs.
- Eon — 1985 · Bluejay Books, New YorkThe true first is identified by the statement 'First Bluejay printing: August 1985' on the copyright page. This dated printing statement is the single reliable point. There is no descending number line on the genuine first, so do not look for one. The jacket carries a printed price (copies are described as not price-clipped), but the price is a secondary indicator, not a defining point. Issued as a 'Bluejay…. The US Bluejay Books hardcover is the true first; the UK Gollancz edition follows. The Science Fiction Book Club printing lacks the 'First Bluejay printing' statement, carries a rear-board gutter blindstamp, and uses an unpriced 'Book Club Edition' jacket.
- Moving Mars — 1993 · Tor BooksTor Books hardcover, New York, with the copyright-page statement 'First edition: November 1993' and a complete descending number line ending in 1. Bound in quarter red cloth over purple paper-covered boards with gilt spine lettering; the priced pictorial dust jacket was designed by Carol Russo. The printed price should be present on the front flap of a first-state jacket. The US Tor 1993 hardcover is the true first; the UK Legend (1993) edition is a separate printing. Tor's 'First edition: November 1993' statement together with the full number line ending in 1 marks the true first printing. The Science Fiction Book Club edition has no price on the jacket, carries a blind-stamp (gutter code) on the rear board, lacks the Tor number line, and is typically thinner and lighter with cheaper boards.
- Darwin's Radio — 1999 · Del Rey / BallantineDel Rey (Ballantine Books) hardcover, first printing. Copyright page carries a stated 'First Edition' line together with a full number line counting down to 1. Priced dust jacket; publisher's boards. ISBN 0-345-42333-X. The US Del Rey/Ballantine 1999 hardcover is the true first edition. A separate UK HarperCollins edition appeared in 1999 and does not precede the US printing. (Novel won the Nebula Award for Best Novel presented in 2000 for 1999 publication.). The Science Fiction Book Club edition is distinguishable by an unpriced jacket, a blind-stamp depression (gutter dot) on the rear board, smaller bulk, and the absence of the Del Rey number line.
More Science Fiction shelves: Joe Haldeman, John Scalzi, Kim Stanley Robinson, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Mary Shelley, N. K. Jemisin.
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