# Is "The Five Red Herrings (US: Suspicious Characters)" by Dorothy L. Sayers a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Five Red Herrings (US: Suspicious Characters) by Dorothy L. Sayers (Victor Gollancz, 1931) is identified by: UK Gollancz 1931 is the true first, published March 1931 (sixth Wimsey novel). UK Gollancz 1931 is the true first; the US Brewer, Warren & Putnam edition appeared under the variant title Suspicious Characters.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK Gollancz 1931 is the true first, published March 1931 (sixth Wimsey novel)
- US edition published as Suspicious Characters by Brewer, Warren & Putnam, New York, 1931
- Publisher imprint reads Victor Gollancz
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Dorothy L. Sayers |
| Publisher | Victor Gollancz |
| Year | 1931 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | UK Gollancz 1931 is the true first, published March 1931 (sixth Wimsey novel) |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
UK Gollancz 1931 is the true first, published March 1931 (sixth Wimsey novel). US edition published as Suspicious Characters by Brewer, Warren & Putnam, New York, 1931.

## Is this the true first?
UK Gollancz 1931 is the true first; the US Brewer, Warren & Putnam edition appeared under the variant title Suspicious Characters.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Reprints follow the 1931 first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Five Red Herrings (US: Suspicious Characters)* by Dorothy L. Sayers a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-five-red-herrings-us-suspicious-characters
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.