# Is "Hawksmoor" by Peter Ackroyd a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Hawksmoor by Peter Ackroyd (Hamish Hamilton, 1985) is identified by: Hardcover in brown cloth/buckram, spine lettered in gilt; copyright page reads 'First published 1985' with a full number line ending in 1; original color-printed priced dust jacket. The UK Hamish Hamilton 1985 hardcover is the true first, preceding the US Harper & Row 1986 edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Hardcover in brown cloth/buckram, spine lettered in gilt; copyright page reads 'First published 1985' with a full number line ending in 1; original color-printed priced dust jacket
- Won the Whitbread Novel Award and the Guardian Fiction Prize
- Publisher imprint reads Hamish Hamilton
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Peter Ackroyd |
| Publisher | Hamish Hamilton |
| Year | 1985 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Hardcover in brown cloth/buckram, spine lettered in gilt; copyright page reads 'First published 1985' with a full number line ending in 1… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Hardcover in brown cloth/buckram, spine lettered in gilt; copyright page reads 'First published 1985' with a full number line ending in 1; original color-printed priced dust jacket. Won the Whitbread Novel Award and the Guardian Fiction Prize.

## Is this the true first?
The UK Hamish Hamilton 1985 hardcover is the true first, preceding the US Harper & Row 1986 edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later impressions raise the lowest number in the line above 1.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Hawksmoor* by Peter Ackroyd a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/hawksmoor
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.