# Is "The Tides of Lust (later 'Equinox')" by Samuel R. Delany a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Tides of Lust (later 'Equinox') by Samuel R. Delany (Lancer Books, 1973) is identified by: Lancer Books mass-market paperback original (Delany's first explicitly sexual novel). US Lancer paperback original (1973) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Lancer Books mass-market paperback original (Delany's first explicitly sexual novel)
- No hardcover or earlier printing precedes it, so the paperback is the true first
- Genuinely scarce: Lancer collapsed at about the time of publication, so distribution was limited and few copies survive
- Publisher imprint reads Lancer Books
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Samuel R. Delany |
| Publisher | Lancer Books |
| Year | 1973 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Lancer Books mass-market paperback original (Delany's first explicitly sexual novel) |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Lancer Books mass-market paperback original (Delany's first explicitly sexual novel). No hardcover or earlier printing precedes it, so the paperback is the true first. Genuinely scarce: Lancer collapsed at about the time of publication, so distribution was limited and few copies survive.

## Is this the true first?
US Lancer paperback original (1973) is the true first. A UK edition followed from Savoy Books in 1980 — most of that Savoy printing was seized and destroyed by authorities (the affair contributed to legal trouble for Savoy's David Britton), making it separately scarce but still later than Lancer. The book was subsequently reissued under Delany's preferred title 'Equinox' by Masquerade Books in 1994.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
None; as a paperback original there is no book-club issue. Distinguish the 1973 Lancer PBO from the later Savoy (1980) and Masquerade/'Equinox' (1994) reissues.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Tides of Lust (later 'Equinox')* by Samuel R. Delany a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-tides-of-lust-later-equinox
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.