# Is "Quantum" by Patricia Cornwell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Quantum by Patricia Cornwell (Thomas & Mercer, 2019) is identified by: Thomas & Mercer (Amazon Publishing imprint) hardcover, ISBN 9781542094061, published September/October 2019. US Thomas & Mercer is the true first; first Captain Calli Chase novel, outside the Scarpetta series.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Thomas & Mercer (Amazon Publishing imprint) hardcover, ISBN 9781542094061, published September/October 2019
- Amazon-imprint titles do not carry a conventional stated-edition line or number line, so first-printing status is identified by imprint and ISBN rather than by traditional points of issue
- Publisher imprint reads Thomas & Mercer
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Patricia Cornwell |
| Publisher | Thomas & Mercer |
| Year | 2019 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Thomas & Mercer (Amazon Publishing imprint) hardcover, ISBN 9781542094061, published… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Thomas & Mercer (Amazon Publishing imprint) hardcover, ISBN 9781542094061, published September/October 2019. Amazon-imprint titles do not carry a conventional stated-edition line or number line, so first-printing status is identified by imprint and ISBN rather than by traditional points of issue.

## Is this the true first?
US Thomas & Mercer is the true first; first Captain Calli Chase novel, outside the Scarpetta series.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition; issued directly through the Amazon Publishing ecosystem.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Quantum* by Patricia Cornwell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/quantum
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.