Is My Copy of Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, Book 1) a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first is the US trade hardcover, Entangled: Red Tower Books, 2 May 2023 (ISBN 9781649374042), black paper-covered boards in a pictorial dust jacket
• The decisive point is the copyright-page number line: a first printing runs complete to 1
• This title reprinted hard and fast, and the trade is full of later printings correctly catalogued off the line — dealers list "first edition, 4th printing as indicated by the sequence 10 9 8 7 6 5 4," plus 10th, 11th and 14th printings, all of them 2023 and all of them not firsts
• Two common claims need correcting
• Sprayed edges are NOT decisive
• First-printing copies are documented with black sprayed edges stenciled with white dragons to the fore-edge, and later printings are reported with plain white edges, so spraying is an early-printing indicator only — it does not by itself establish the first printing, and the number line governs

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
4. Verify this is the US 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?

US precedes: Red Tower Books (Entangled) is the originating publisher and the 2 May 2023 US hardcover is the true first. There is no original-language or foreign precedence question — the book is American and English-language. Piatkus (Little, Brown UK) issued the UK editions in 2023, collected as the first UK; sources consulted did not agree on the exact Piatkus release date, so no day-level UK claim is made here. UK variants in the trade include a Waterstones exclusive (ISBN 9780349441573, black boards, gilt spine titling, map endpapers, stencilled edges on all three sides) and a 2024 Piatkus paperback (9780349437019) — "first thus" only.P-040242

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club edition documented. The confusion on this title comes from retailer and special editions rather than clubs, and several are actively mis-catalogued as firsts. The Limited/Holiday Special Edition (ISBN 9781649376169, 2023) is a different edition with new pictorial endpapers, black sprayed edges, gilt spine and two exclusive Xaden-POV bonus chapters — one dealer listing consulted offered it as "first edition overall," which it is not. Also distinct: the 2024 Limited Edition softcover (ISBN 9781649377371) with bonus content and sprayed edging. Reprint tells for the trade hardcover remain the number line and remainder marks.P-040243

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, Book 1) a first edition?

A first edition of Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, Book 1) by Rebecca Yarros (Red Tower Books / Entangled Publishing) is identified by: True first is the US trade hardcover, Entangled: Red Tower Books, 2 May 2023 (ISBN 9781649374042), black paper-covered boards in a pictorial dust jacket.

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

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). US precedes: Red Tower Books (Entangled) is the originating publisher and the 2 May 2023 US hardcover is the true first.

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

No book-club edition documented. The confusion on this title comes from retailer and special editions rather than clubs, and several are actively mis-catalogued as firsts. The Limited/Holiday Special Edition (ISBN 9781649376169, 2023) is a different edition with new pictorial endpapers, black sprayed edges, gilt spine and two exclusive Xaden-POV bonus chapters — one dealer listing consulted offered it as "first edition overall," which it is not.

I have a first edition of Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, Book 1) — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.