# Is "Velocity" by Dean Koontz a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Velocity by Dean Koontz (Bantam, 2005) is identified by: First edition, first printing, Bantam, New York, 2005 (ISBN 978-0-553-80415-7), in a priced dust jacket. Bantam US trade hardcover (2005) is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, first printing, Bantam, New York, 2005 (ISBN 978-0-553-80415-7), in a priced dust jacket
- The copyright page states A Bantam Book / June 2005 and carries the full number line ending in 1 (base record: BVG 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1); a true first-printing jacket retains its printed price on the flap (present, not clipped, on an unclipped copy)
- Publisher imprint reads Bantam
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Dean Koontz |
| Publisher | Bantam |
| Year | 2005 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, first printing, Bantam, New York, 2005 (ISBN 978-0-553-80415-7), in a priced dust jacket |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition, first printing, Bantam, New York, 2005 (ISBN 978-0-553-80415-7), in a priced dust jacket. The copyright page states A Bantam Book / June 2005 and carries the full number line ending in 1 (base record: BVG 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1); a true first-printing jacket retains its printed price on the flap (present, not clipped, on an unclipped copy).

## Is this the true first?
Bantam US trade hardcover (2005) is the true first. Two Charnel House signed limited editions followed: 300 signed/numbered copies bound and slipcased in white brocade Japanese silk with black stamping, and 26 signed/lettered copies hand-bound in chocolate-brown Morocco with brass gears embedded in the front board and housed in a handmade traycase. These limiteds are later than, and distinct from, the trade first printing.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The Bantam book-club edition lacks the number line and the printed jacket price and is slightly smaller than the trade edition; the priced, number-lined trade hardcover is the collectible first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Velocity* by Dean Koontz a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/velocity
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.