Is My Dark Gods a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first printing is identified by the Viking copyright-page statement "First published in 1985 by Viking Penguin Inc." with no later-printing notice
• Per the standard publisher guide, Viking states "First published by Viking in [year]" on firsts and, in the 1980s, added a number row to later printings only — so on this title the presence of a number row is a reprint tell rather than a first-printing point
• The book is a hardcover of 259 pages in a pictorial dust jacket with cover art by Neil Stewart and the price present at the front flap
• ISBN 0-670-80590-4, LCCN 85-3190
• Contents are the four novellas "Children of the Kingdom," "Petey," "Black Man with a Horn" and "Nadelman's God."

How Viking marked a first edition

• From about 1937 onward: first printings state "First published by The Viking Press in [year]" or "Published by The Viking Press in [year]" with no later-printing notice; later printings were noted, and from the 1980s a n…

Full Viking first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Verify this is the British true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
6. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

The census claim is confirmed: Viking, New York, 1985 (published July 1985) is the true first, and it precedes all British issues. The first US paperback was Bantam, July 1986, and the first British edition was a Pan Books paperback dated 1986–87 in the sources consulted — no UK hardcover first is documented, so the Viking hardcover is the only first hardcover state. Later small-press issues, including the Chiroptera Press edition, are "first thus."

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club printing of Dark Gods is documented in the sources consulted; the general period tells apply if one is encountered — blind stamp impressed on the rear board near the spine, a jacket with no price at the front flap, and a smaller trim on thinner paper. The commoner confusion is format rather than club: the 1986 Bantam paperback and the Pan UK paperback are routinely offered as "first editions" of their format and are reprints of the Viking text.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Dark Gods a first edition?

A first edition of Dark Gods by T. E. D. Klein (Viking) is identified by: The first printing is identified by the Viking copyright-page statement "First published in 1985 by Viking Penguin Inc." with no later-printing notice.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The census claim is confirmed: Viking, New York, 1985 (published July 1985) is the true first, and it precedes all British issues.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No book-club printing of Dark Gods is documented in the sources consulted; the general period tells apply if one is encountered — blind stamp impressed on the rear board near the spine, a jacket with no price at the front flap, and a smaller trim on thinner paper. The commoner confusion is format rather than club: the 1986 Bantam paperback and the Pan UK paperback are routinely offered as "first editions" of their format and are reprints of the Viking text.

I have a first edition of Dark Gods — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.