# Is "Clive Barker's Books of Blood, Volume 5" by Clive Barker a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Clive Barker's Books of Blood, Volume 5 by Clive Barker (Sphere Books, 1985) is identified by: Sphere paperback original, London, 1985. The 1985 Sphere paperback original is the true first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Sphere paperback original, London, 1985
- First printing shows the 1985 Sphere first-edition statement with no later-printing notice
- Sphere reprinted in 1987
- Published in the US retitled In the Flesh
- Publisher imprint reads Sphere Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Clive Barker |
| Publisher | Sphere Books |
| Year | 1985 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Sphere paperback original, London, 1985 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Sphere paperback original, London, 1985. First printing shows the 1985 Sphere first-edition statement with no later-printing notice; Sphere reprinted in 1987. Published in the US retitled In the Flesh.

## Is this the true first?
The 1985 Sphere paperback original is the true first edition. Weidenfeld & Nicolson issued a UK hardcover the same year (with a 200-copy signed and boxed limited issue). The US Poseidon hardcover, retitled In the Flesh, followed in 1986, and a Scream/Press signed limited in 1988.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A Doubleday book club hardcover of In the Flesh appeared in 1987; club copies lack the Poseidon trade edition's tells. Later Sphere printings and the 1991 Macdonald hardcover are not firsts.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Clive Barker's Books of Blood, Volume 5* by Clive Barker a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/clive-barkers-books-of-blood-volume-5
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.