# Is "Isle of the Dead" by Roger Zelazny a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Isle of the Dead by Roger Zelazny (Ace, 1969) is identified by: Ace paperback original, 1969, carrying the Ace catalog number 37465, with wrapper art by Leo and Diane Dillon; issued in the original Ace Science Fiction Specials series. US Ace paperback original (Ace 37465) is the true first edition, published 1969; the Rapp & Whiting UK hardcover followed in 1970 and reprints the Ace text.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Ace paperback original, 1969, carrying the Ace catalog number 37465, with wrapper art by Leo and Diane Dillon; issued in the original Ace Science Fiction Specials series
- Nebula nominee for Best Novel
- As a wrappered original there is no number line; identify the true first by the 37465 catalog number, the priced first-printing wrappers, and the absence of any later-printing statement
- Publisher imprint reads Ace
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Roger Zelazny |
| Publisher | Ace |
| Year | 1969 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Ace paperback original, 1969, carrying the Ace catalog number 37465, with wrapper art by Leo and Diane Dillon; issued in the original Ace… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Ace paperback original, 1969, carrying the Ace catalog number 37465, with wrapper art by Leo and Diane Dillon; issued in the original Ace Science Fiction Specials series. Nebula nominee for Best Novel. As a wrappered original there is no number line; identify the true first by the 37465 catalog number, the priced first-printing wrappers, and the absence of any later-printing statement.

## Is this the true first?
US Ace paperback original (Ace 37465) is the true first edition, published 1969; the Rapp & Whiting UK hardcover followed in 1970 and reprints the Ace text.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition. Distinguish the true first from later Ace reissues, which carry different catalog numbers and, in one case, a Dean Ellis cover rather than the Dillon wrapper art.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Isle of the Dead* by Roger Zelazny a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/isle-of-the-dead
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.