Is My Postmortem a First Edition?

The points of issue

• US Scribner's first edition: copyright page dated 1990 with the full number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
• Quarter black cloth over red paper-covered boards, gilt spine lettering; first-issue jacket with the printed price on the front flap

How Charles Scribner's Sons marked a first edition

• After 1973 the letter code was abandoned in favor of a descending number line ending in 1.

Full Charles Scribner's Sons first-edition guide →

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?

Cornwell's debut and the first Kay Scarpetta novel; won the 1991 Edgar Award for Best First Novel. The recognized true first edition is the US Charles Scribner's Sons printing (US publication preceded the UK). A UK Macdonald (London) edition also appeared in 1990 in a small printing and is highly sought, but the earlier claim that the UK edition is the 'true first' is contested and not the standard view; both editions are scarce in the first printing.P-024094

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club edition lacks the full number line to 1 and the priced flap, is on lighter bulked paper, and often shows a blind-stamped dot or depression on the rear board.P-024095

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Postmortem a first edition?

A first edition of Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell (Charles Scribner's Sons) is identified by: US Scribner's first edition: copyright page dated 1990 with the full number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1.

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). Cornwell's debut and the first Kay Scarpetta novel; won the 1991 Edgar Award for Best First Novel.

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

Book-club edition lacks the full number line to 1 and the priced flap, is on lighter bulked paper, and often shows a blind-stamped dot or depression on the rear board.

I have a first edition of Postmortem — 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.