# Is "Complicity" by Iain Banks a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Complicity by Iain Banks (Little, Brown, 1993) is identified by: Little, Brown UK hardcover; copyright page states first published in Great Britain in 1993 by Little, Brown with no later printing statements. UK Little, Brown hardcover (1993) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Little, Brown UK hardcover; copyright page states first published in Great Britain in 1993 by Little, Brown with no later printing statements
- Bound in black and cream boards, the spine designed and lettered in silver, with grey endpapers the front of which is pictorial
- 313 pages
- First-state dust jacket carries cover art by Peter Brown and the printed price on the flap, which should be present and unclipped on a collector's copy
- Publisher imprint reads Little, Brown
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Iain Banks |
| Publisher | Little, Brown |
| Year | 1993 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Little, Brown UK hardcover; copyright page states first published in Great Britain in 1993 by Little, Brown with no later printing… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Little, Brown UK hardcover; copyright page states first published in Great Britain in 1993 by Little, Brown with no later printing statements. Bound in black and cream boards, the spine designed and lettered in silver, with grey endpapers the front of which is pictorial; 313 pages. First-state dust jacket carries cover art by Peter Brown and the printed price on the flap, which should be present and unclipped on a collector's copy.

## Is this the true first?
UK Little, Brown hardcover (1993) is the true first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None notable.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Complicity* by Iain Banks a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/complicity
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.