16 Peter Straub first editions are documented on this shelf, from Marriages (1973) to A Dark Matter (2010) across 10 different publishers. Each linked guide gives the points of issue that separate a true first printing of that Peter Straub 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 Peter Straub copy in hand? Type the title into the First-Edition Checker or photograph the copyright page with Snap & Sort.
- Marriages — 1973 · André DeutschTrue first: André Deutsch, London, 1973. The US edition, Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, New York, 1973, states First American Edition 1973 on the copyright page, wording that house reserved for books first published abroad. Straub's first novel, following his poetry collections. The André Deutsch London edition is the true first; the record's attribution to Cape was wrong. The US Coward, McCann & Geoghegan edition is explicitly marked First American Edition, confirming prior UK publication. Club tells: no printed jacket price and cheaper binding; a genuine US first carries the First American Edition statement.
- Julia — 1975 · Coward, McCann & GeogheganTrue first: Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, New York, 1975. First printings from this house carry no later-printing notice on the copyright page; the publisher did not use a number line in this period. Straub's first supernatural novel, filmed as Full Circle (also released as The Haunting of Julia). The record had this backwards: the US Coward, McCann & Geoghegan edition of October 1975 is the true first, and the Jonathan Cape London edition followed in February 1976 as the first UK edition only. Club tells: no printed jacket price and typically a blind stamp or smaller format; genuine firsts show the 1975 Coward, McCann & Geoghegan imprint.
- If You Could See Me Now — 1977 · Jonathan CapeJonathan Cape (UK) first edition, June 1977; copyright page reads First published 1977 with no later printings noted. The US edition (Coward, McCann and Geoghegan, also June 1977) carries no statement of later printings on a true first. The Cape UK and Coward, McCann and Geoghegan US editions appeared essentially simultaneously in June 1977; no reliable source establishes clear precedence, and both are collected as firsts in their markets. Book club editions lack a printed price on the jacket flap and may carry a blind stamp or small dot on the lower rear board.
- Ghost Story — 1979 · Coward, McCann & GeogheganUS Coward, McCann & Geoghegan hardcover, 1979. Coward-McCann firsts of this period are identified by the absence of any later-printing statement on the copyright page rather than by a printed number line, so a true first shows no added printing notice. The dust jacket carries its printed price on the front flap. The US Coward, McCann & Geoghegan edition (1979) is the true first and precedes the UK Jonathan Cape edition (a reversal from Straub's earlier UK-first titles). Underwood-Miller later issued a signed limited edition, which is a first thus rather than the true first. Book-club editions are smaller and lighter, lack the printed jacket price, and typically carry a blind-stamp on the rear board. Confirm a first by the priced jacket and the absence of any later-printing statement.
- Shadowland — 1980 · Coward, McCann & GeogheganUS Coward, McCann & Geoghegan hardcover, 1980 (the title appears on the book as 'Shadow Land,' two words). The first is identified by the absence of any later-printing statement on the copyright page; Coward-McCann did not consistently print a stated 'First American Edition' line for this title. The dust jacket is priced 12.the printed price on the front flap. Boards are blue cloth-backed with silver spine lettering. The US Coward, McCann & Geoghegan edition is the true first; the UK Collins edition is the UK first. A Dark Harvest signed, numbered limited edition is the prized deluxe state and a first thus. Book-club editions lack the printed 12.the printed price jacket price, are smaller and lighter, and may carry a board blind-stamp. The priced jacket plus absence of a later-printing statement confirms a first.
- Floating Dragon — 1982 · Underwood-MillerThe true first is the Underwood-Miller signed limited edition, published November 1982: 500 numbered copies signed on a special limitation leaf by Straub and by the artists Leo and Diane Dillon. The G. P. Putnam's Sons trade edition followed in February 1983 with its printed jacket price. The Underwood-Miller signed limited (November 1982) is the true first; the February 1983 Putnam edition is the first trade edition (a first thus), and is commonly mis-catalogued as the first. Any book-club concern applies only to the Putnam trade edition (smaller, lighter, lacks the printed jacket price). There is no book-club edition of the Underwood-Miller limited.
- Koko — 1988 · E. P. Dutton / Seymour LawrenceFirst printing has the copyright-page first-edition statement and a complete number line that includes the 1 (sequence 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2). First-state dust jacket priced as issued on the front flap. Won the 1989 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel. US Dutton 1988 is the true first; UK Viking 1988 is a separate edition. Verify the US copyright-page first-printing state. The book-club edition has a rear-board blind-stamp, no jacket price, and lacks the full number line. Confirm the 1 in the line and the priced jacket.
- Houses Without Doors — 1990 · DuttonDutton US first edition, 1990 (ISBN 0-525-24924-9); first printing has a full number line on the copyright page. Bound in cloth-backed boards and issued in a first-issue pictorial dust jacket that should retain its printed front-flap price. A collection of thirteen pieces of psychological horror and dark fiction, including the Blue Rose-cycle tales Blue Rose and The Juniper Tree along with Mrs. God; the volume…. US Dutton true first; the UK edition (Collins) followed later. Book-club printings follow the Dutton first and typically lack the full number line and the flap price; the priced first-issue jacket over cloth-backed boards distinguishes the trade first.
- Mystery — 1990 · E.P. DuttonDutton US first edition, ISBN 0-525-24818-8: copyright page states First Edition with the full number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1. Bound in blue and black cloth lettered in silver, with green and red foil decoration to the spine; jacket art by Paul Bacon. Second book of the loosely linked Blue Rose trilogy, between Koko and The Throat. US Dutton is the true first; the UK edition followed from Grafton the same year. Book club editions lack the stated First Edition and number line and lack the jacket flap price, and may carry a blind stamp on the rear board.
- The Throat — 1993 · DuttonFirst printing has the copyright-page first-edition statement and a full number line including the 1; first-state jacket priced as issued. Quarter cloth over boards, gilt spine lettering. Won the 1993 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel. Third of the Blue Rose books. US Dutton 1993 is the true first. UK editions and the Borderlands Press signed limited (350 copies) are separate issues. The book-club edition alters the number line so the 1 is absent and lacks the priced jacket; a rear-board blind-stamp is typically present. Confirm the full line plus priced jacket.
- The Hellfire Club — 1996 · Random HouseRandom House US first edition: copyright page states First Edition with a number line beginning at 2 (Random House house style retains the 2 on first printings; the First Edition slug is dropped on later printings). US Random House is the true first; a UK HarperCollins edition appeared the same year. Book club editions lack the number line and the jacket flap price and may have a blind stamp on the rear board.
- Mr. X — 1999 · Random HouseRandom House US first edition, published 20 July 1999. The copyright page states 'FIRST EDITION' together with a number line beginning at 2 (2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9), which is Random House house style of the period for a true first printing rather than a full line ending in 1. The trade dust jacket carries the printed price on the front flap. US Random House is the true first. Book club editions lack the number line and the jacket flap price and may have a blind stamp on the rear board.
- Magic Terror — 2000 · Random HouseRandom House (New York) US first edition, 2000, of this collection of seven tales; ISBN 9780375503931. The copyright page states First Edition and carries the Random House printer's key in the house's split-even/odd form, reading 2 4 6 8 9 7 5 3, with both the stated line and the low number 3 present on a true first printing. Issued in boards with dust jacket; the first-state jacket should retain its printed…. The US Random House hardcover is the true first edition; the UK HarperCollins edition followed in 2001. A book-club edition exists and is distinguished from the trade first by the absence of the stated First Edition and full number line on the copyright page, a blind stamp or dot on the rear board, and lighter, thinner binding; verify the Random House printer's key 2 4 6 8 9 7 5 3.
- lost boy lost girl — 2003 · Random HouseRandom House US first edition, 2003: the copyright page states 'First Edition' accompanied by a number line whose lowest digit is 2 (Random House house style, in which a first printing reads down to 2 rather than 1). The title is styled in lowercase on the first edition. Issued in cloth in a pictorial dust jacket that on a first-issue copy retains the printed price to the flap. US Random House, 2003, is the true first. Book-club editions lack the 'First Edition' number line and the flap price, and may carry a blind stamp to the rear board.
- In the Night Room — 2004 · Random HouseRandom House US first edition, published October 2004: copyright page states First Edition with a number line beginning at 2, per Random House house style. Sequel to lost boy lost girl; Bram Stoker Award winner. US Random House is the true first. Book club editions lack the number line and the jacket flap price and may have a blind stamp on the rear board.
- A Dark Matter — 2010 · DoubledayDoubleday hardcover, February 2010; the first printing carries First Edition with a complete number line on the copyright page, jacket priced as issued. Won the Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel for 2010. The US Doubleday 2010 trade hardcover is the true first edition of A Dark Matter. Subterranean Press separately published The Skylark in 2010, which is not a renamed limited of this book but an earlier, substantially longer draft of the same work that Straub chose to preserve as a distinct text. The UK Orion/Weidenfeld & Nicolson 2010 edition is a separate edition. Later printings drop the lower digits from the number line. Confirm the First Edition statement and complete number line on the copyright page.
More Fantasy & Horror shelves: Ramsey Campbell, Richard Bachman (Stephen King), Richard Laymon, Richard Matheson, Robert Aickman, Robert Bloch.
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