# Is "Gallows View" by Peter Robinson a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Gallows View by Peter Robinson (Viking / Penguin Books Canada, 1987) is identified by: True first is the Canadian hardcover issued under the Viking imprint of Penguin Books Canada, 1987 — Robinson's debut and the first Inspector Banks novel. The 1987 Canadian Viking/Penguin hardcover is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first is the Canadian hardcover issued under the Viking imprint of Penguin Books Canada, 1987 — Robinson's debut and the first Inspector Banks novel
- Identify it by the price stated in British pounds at the lower right of the dust-jacket flap and the Canadian Cataloguing in Publication data on the title-page verso
- Bound in quarter green cloth with yellow spine lettering over yellow boards, with a full-page black-and-white map at the rear
- Publisher imprint reads Viking / Penguin Books Canada
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Peter Robinson |
| Publisher | Viking / Penguin Books Canada |
| Year | 1987 |
| True first | Canadian edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | True first is the Canadian hardcover issued under the Viking imprint of Penguin Books Canada, 1987 — Robinson's debut and the first… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
True first is the Canadian hardcover issued under the Viking imprint of Penguin Books Canada, 1987 — Robinson's debut and the first Inspector Banks novel. Identify it by the price stated in British pounds at the lower right of the dust-jacket flap and the Canadian Cataloguing in Publication data on the title-page verso. Bound in quarter green cloth with yellow spine lettering over yellow boards, with a full-page black-and-white map at the rear.

## Is this the true first?
The 1987 Canadian Viking/Penguin hardcover is the true first. Robinson was Canadian and the book appeared in Canada before the UK and US editions, so the Canadian original has priority; later UK and US editions are first-thus.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
UK and US editions and any later printings are not the true first. The earlier record's claim of a 'Canadian Penguin paperback original' is incorrect — the priority issue is the Viking hardcover described above.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Gallows View* by Peter Robinson a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/gallows-view
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.