# Is "The Dark Labyrinth" by Lawrence Durrell a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Dark Labyrinth by Lawrence Durrell (Ace Books, 1958) is identified by: First edition under this title: Ace Books paperback, London, 1958. The true first appearance of the work is Cefalu (Editions Poetry London, 1947).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition under this title: Ace Books paperback, London, 1958
- The novel was originally published as Cefalu by Editions Poetry London in 1947; the retitled text first appeared in this 1958 Ace paperback
- The first hardcover under the Dark Labyrinth title was the Faber and Faber edition of 1961
- Publisher imprint reads Ace Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Lawrence Durrell |
| Publisher | Ace Books |
| Year | 1958 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition under this title: Ace Books paperback, London, 1958 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition under this title: Ace Books paperback, London, 1958. The novel was originally published as Cefalu by Editions Poetry London in 1947; the retitled text first appeared in this 1958 Ace paperback. The first hardcover under the Dark Labyrinth title was the Faber and Faber edition of 1961.

## Is this the true first?
The true first appearance of the work is Cefalu (Editions Poetry London, 1947). Under the new title, the Ace Books paperback of 1958 is first thus, the Faber hardcover of 1961 is the first hardcover thus, and the US E. P. Dutton hardcover followed in 1962.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Retitled reissue of an earlier novel rather than a new work; no book-club edition is the point of issue.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Dark Labyrinth* by Lawrence Durrell a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-dark-labyrinth
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.