# Is "Dead Water" by Ngaio Marsh a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Dead Water by Ngaio Marsh (Collins, 1964) is identified by: This copy is the UK Collins Crime Club edition, London 1964. True first is the US Little, Brown edition, Boston 1963, preceding the UK Collins Crime Club edition, London 1964, by one year (per the official Ngaio Marsh bibliography, which records Boston 1963 / London 1964).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- This copy is the UK Collins Crime Club edition, London 1964
- The true first is the US Little, Brown edition, Boston 1963, which preceded it by a year
- The twenty-third Roderick Alleyn novel
- A first-issue Collins jacket should retain its printed price on the front flap
- Publisher imprint reads Collins
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Ngaio Marsh |
| Publisher | Collins |
| Year | 1964 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | This copy is the UK Collins Crime Club edition, London 1964 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
This copy is the UK Collins Crime Club edition, London 1964. The true first is the US Little, Brown edition, Boston 1963, which preceded it by a year. The twenty-third Roderick Alleyn novel. A first-issue Collins jacket should retain its printed price on the front flap.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the US Little, Brown edition, Boston 1963, preceding the UK Collins Crime Club edition, London 1964, by one year (per the official Ngaio Marsh bibliography, which records Boston 1963 / London 1964).

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later printings and reprints follow their respective first editions; book-club issues carry no printed jacket price and often a blind stamp to the rear board.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Dead Water* by Ngaio Marsh a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/dead-water
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.