Identification points are listed only where two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 21 Oct 2026.
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Collins published the novel for its Crime Club in November 1966, before Dodd, Mead's New York edition of 1967, so the Collins hardback is the true first. It has 256 pages and was published at 18s. The binding is red, lettered in gilt; one dealer calls it paper-covered boards rather than cloth. The first edition jacket was designed by Kenneth Farnhill. Later Collins impressions and book club issues say so on the reverse of the title page, so a first carries no reprint or book club line.
Read the full guide to Collins first editions, decade by decade, and check your copy's copyright page against it. Our number line decoder reads the printing from the row of numbers.
We have not yet confirmed the issue points that tell this first impression from later ones. Until we do, compare your copy's title page and copyright page with the publisher, place and year above: any later printing or edition statement means it is not this one.
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Collins, London, in 1966, in hardback.
Points of issue are listed only where at least two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 21 October 2026. Reviewed by Harriet Ellis; read how we check facts.
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Read the guide →7 min readTo identify a first edition, check that your copy is the first printing of the first edition. Read the copyright …
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