# Is "Fool's Fate (Tawny Man 3)" by Robin Hobb a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Fool's Fate (Tawny Man 3) by Robin Hobb (Voyager / HarperCollins, 2003) is identified by: True first is the UK Voyager (HarperCollins) hardcover, London 2003, with the full number line ending in 1 on the copyright page. The UK Voyager hardcover is the true first, preceding the 2004 US Bantam Spectra edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the UK Voyager (HarperCollins) hardcover, London 2003, with the full number line ending in 1 on the copyright page
- The first-state dust jacket bears the cover art by John Howe, and the printed UK cover price should be present and unclipped on the front flap
- Concludes the Tawny Man trilogy; the US Bantam edition followed in 2004
- Publisher imprint reads Voyager / HarperCollins
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Robin Hobb |
| Publisher | Voyager / HarperCollins |
| Year | 2003 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the UK Voyager (HarperCollins) hardcover, London 2003, with the full number line ending in 1 on the copyright page |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
True first is the UK Voyager (HarperCollins) hardcover, London 2003, with the full number line ending in 1 on the copyright page. The first-state dust jacket bears the cover art by John Howe, and the printed UK cover price should be present and unclipped on the front flap. Concludes the Tawny Man trilogy; the US Bantam edition followed in 2004.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Voyager hardcover is the true first, preceding the 2004 US Bantam Spectra edition. Confirm the Voyager copyright-page number line runs down to 1 and the John Howe jacket price is unclipped.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Voyager printings show a truncated number line that no longer reaches 1; the US Bantam edition is a separate, later setting and not the true first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Fool's Fate (Tawny Man 3)* by Robin Hobb a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/fools-fate-tawny-man-3
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.