Is My In a Glass Darkly (containing 'Carmilla') a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition in three volumes (three-decker), post octavo, in original cloth, with half-titles as issued
• The story distribution given in the prior draft was wrong: Volume I contains the first three stories, 'Green Tea,' 'The Familiar,' and 'Mr Justice Harbottle.' The long novella 'The Room in the Dragon Volant' and the novella 'Carmilla' occupy the remaining two volumes, with 'Carmilla' appearing in the final volume
• Placing 'Mr Justice Harbottle' in Volume II is incorrect

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. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. 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.
5. 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?

The 1872 three-volume Bentley set is the first book appearance of 'Carmilla,' which had earlier been serialized in The Dark Blue in 1871 and 1872. The 1884 single-volume New Edition is a later first thus, not the first.P-016934

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Any one-volume printing, including the 1884 Bentley New Edition, is not the first. Collate for the complete three-volume set with the correct story distribution and matching half-titles; mixed-set rebinds are common, so confirm the volumes belong together.P-016935

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of In a Glass Darkly (containing 'Carmilla') a first edition?

A first edition of In a Glass Darkly (containing 'Carmilla') by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu (Richard Bentley and Son) is identified by: First edition in three volumes (three-decker), post octavo, in original cloth, with half-titles as issued.

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

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The 1872 three-volume Bentley set is the first book appearance of 'Carmilla,' which had earlier been serialized in The Dark Blue in 1871 and 1872.

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

Any one-volume printing, including the 1884 Bentley New Edition, is not the first. Collate for the complete three-volume set with the correct story distribution and matching half-titles; mixed-set rebinds are common, so confirm the volumes belong together.

I have a first edition of In a Glass Darkly (containing 'Carmilla') — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

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.