# Is "Death at the Bar" by Ngaio Marsh a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Death at the Bar by Ngaio Marsh (Collins, 1940) is identified by: UK Collins (The Crime Club) 1940 first edition, the ninth Roderick Alleyn novel, issued in orange cloth lettered in black on the spine, in a pictorial dust jacket that should retain its printed price. The UK Collins Crime Club edition (1940) is the true first; the US Little, Brown edition also appeared in 1940 and follows the Collins printing.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK Collins (The Crime Club) 1940 first edition, the ninth Roderick Alleyn novel, issued in orange cloth lettered in black on the spine, in a pictorial dust jacket that should retain its printed price
- The US first edition was published by Little, Brown, Boston, in 1940 and carries a stated first-edition notice
- Publisher imprint reads Collins
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ngaio Marsh |
| Publisher | Collins |
| Year | 1940 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | UK Collins (The Crime Club) 1940 first edition, the ninth Roderick Alleyn novel, issued… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
UK Collins (The Crime Club) 1940 first edition, the ninth Roderick Alleyn novel, issued in orange cloth lettered in black on the spine, in a pictorial dust jacket that should retain its printed price. The US first edition was published by Little, Brown, Boston, in 1940 and carries a stated first-edition notice.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Collins Crime Club edition (1940) is the true first; the US Little, Brown edition also appeared in 1940 and follows the Collins printing. Standard collector references list the first publication as London and Boston, 1940.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Collins reprints and reissues follow the 1940 first; the orange cloth with black spine lettering and the priced Crime Club jacket identify the UK first, while the US first is identified by the Little, Brown first-edition statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Death at the Bar* by Ngaio Marsh a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/death-at-the-bar
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.