New LE: Tales of Mystery and Imagination

New LE for Poe's Tales of Mystery and Imagination coming 31st October at 4pm.

https://www.foliosociety.com/tales-of-mystery-and-imagination-sign-up?om_campaig...

I think I will be sticking with my Harry Clarke edition.

>1 assemblyman:
I was too slow by seconds!

I am a Poe collector, but the exterior of this one is a bit garish for my tastes. Will reserve judgement until the full product is on display, however.

Not for me, but I do like the slipcase

>2 GusLogan: It was very close.

>4 DMulvee: Yep, looks like the rib cage opens up to reveal the tell-tale heart!

The picture looks like a half leather binding with paper or Cloth boards and sculpted headcaps. So we can assume that Smith and Settle will hand bound this.
I like the binding, but I guess 500£.

The book and slipcase make it seem like Poe is a modern day horror author. Personally I prefer a more classic look like Thornwillow or LEC for one of the most renowned American authors.

Haha it will be interesting to see the price tag on this one.

>8 Joshbooks1: Ah, the price! A figure so ghastly, it chills the very marrow of my bones—an unutterable horror, as if it were whispered from the lips of the grim and ghastly Raven itself. Quoth the seller, "Forevermore," while I, the poor wretch, ponder how my wallet may endure this most insidious extortion, its emptiness a pit as dark and hollow as the heart of the dreaded night.

YAYYYY I’m so happy.

>9 What_What:

Ah, the price! A specter grim, it chills my marrow to the brim,
A figure whispered low and hoarse, from lips that haunt with no remorse.
Like the Raven’s darkened lore, quoth the seller, “Evermore!”
And I, poor wretch, in dismal plight, ponder how to face this blight—
My purse, a hollow, ghastly tomb, as dark as night’s eternal gloom.
This extortion, cruel and dire, feeds upon my heart’s desire,
While I, in shadows lost, implore, “Shall it haunt me—evermore?”

>8 Joshbooks1: At first glance I think I prefer the older more understated SE with Harry Clarke illustrations. I don't think his illustrations can be bettered for Poe.

>8 Joshbooks1: Haha it will be interesting to see the price tag on this one.

My bet is £500! 😁

Very kitsch design. The illustration featured won the open contest earlier did it not? That looks a lot better than the exterior of this LE which is kind of a mess. Might be another case where the SE (assuming there is one) is actually better than the LE.
>11 abysswalker: Sensible chuckle.

>11 abysswalker: I like your version better!

For anyone looking for an alternative (and cheaper) Poe collection you can check out Nepenthe Press, a recent start-up publisher that has a Poe collection coming out later this year or early next. The higher states have sold out but the basic edition looks to still be available. Link is: https://www.nepenthepress.co.uk/poe. And, of course, there is the earlier "standard" Folio edition of Poe's works that you can search out on secondary markets.

Wow!

A little garish. Reminds me of the B&N leatherbound classics.

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/edgar-allan-poe-edgar-allan-poe/1126052007

In the image in the email announcement, the eyes on the spine of the book are blinking. Maybe a new gimmick to rile up the masses ...

The cover reminds me of their older Poe stories that was a set with a volume of Wilkie Collins stories. I don’t think it looks bad, but I wouldn’t pay a high price.

It's illustrated by Evangeline Gallagher, who was the winner of the Poe illustration prize in 2022:

https://www.foliosociety.com/uk/blog/this-folio-life-judging-the-folio-book-illu...

It should be an interesting production.

>12 assemblyman: Arthur Rackham does a pretty good job. His illustrations for Hop-Frog gave me nightmares!

>8 Joshbooks1: 'Haha it will be interesting to see the price tag on this one.'

You'll have to sacrifice a cat under a willow tree at midnight whilst walking widdershins and reciting 'at a price affordable by every man' ;-)

>17 PartTimeBookAddict: Ditto! Folio seem to be positioning themselves somewhere between B&N leatherbound classics and Illumicrate.

>17 PartTimeBookAddict: I'm reminded of Folio's Phantom of the Opera. I'm interested but not sold yet.

>23 Cat_of_Ulthar: I thought it was the same artist at first.

What is the significance of the three eyes? There's the famous pale-blue eye, but I don't get the spine. It just seems like generic Halloween decorations.

I prefer the Harry Clarke replica.

>22 cronshaw: 'Illumicrate'

Hmm, more Folio ephemera? The new management haven't really explored that yet, other than the 1984 stickers. You could be giving them ideas, you know: mugs; tarot cards; Folio's special tea blend.

Make your whole life experience Folio ;-)

>24 PartTimeBookAddict: I must admit I don't get the three eyes thing either. Artistic licence?

>24 PartTimeBookAddict: What is the significance of the three eyes? There's the famous pale-blue eye, but I don't get the spine. It just seems like generic Halloween decorations.

There's also the eye of the Black Cat. But I concur that it seems more likely a random spooky motif than anything driven by specific story references.

Also, instead of a ribcage, a box cover that looks like floorboards might have been more apt.

The art isn't quite the assault of color as that in Something Wicked This Way Comes, but it doesn't seem a mile away from it either.

>20 red_guy: I agree and thank you for reminding me of them. I love Rackham illustrations in general but when it comes to Poe I prefer Clarke.

In regards the price I would think it would be not be going for more than £400.

>28 assemblyman:

I'm with you regarding the illustrations - Harry Clarke's seem to me to be rather more appropriate. I think you might be disappointed about the price, though. I hope I'm wrong but either way this is not one to add to my LE collection.

Edited for omission.

>29 folio_books: Your probably right about the price. I was looking at the prior Halloween LE releases and judged it by that. Dracula was £235 and Frankenstein was £300 so I assume this one could not be more than £400.

Interestingly, the Folio Harry Clarke edition is by no means complete. There was originally (1919) a colour frontispiece and other colour illustrations, and several tales and their illustrations are missing, which were present in the edition published by The Minerva Press in 1971. The Folio edition is more compact and has better paper. Tartarus did a nice edition with the tipped in colour illustrations, - better than the Folio version, but I missed it when it came out and it is now quite expensive, although not LE money.

>31 red_guy: The Calla edition included all the illustrations as well I think. I kept it after I got the FS one because of that.

Ooh is that ✨ephemera✨ I see? 🤩 I really hope it's a chapbook but honestly I'll take anything at this point after the long art print gap.

For those who cannot see images hosted by ImgBB: https://imgur.com/a/oFwJ36N

>33 BooksFriendsNotFood: Ugly, pimped-out Goth bling design

I like that it's a change. A lot of the LEs this year have been same old same old (even though I still really enjoyed them) so this is an interesting, probably one-off departure.

"...pimped-out Goth bling" I'm thinking about this as a description of Poe's works and...I'm not against it.

One of the three previous FS editions is reviewed at https://www.librarything.com/topic/344189
The other editions were in 1957 and 1999.

Have to agree with the garish comments. Some alternatives:

Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, The Lakeside Press (1930), designed and illustrated by W. A. Dwiggins, part of the 1926 RR Donnelley (The Lakeside Press) famous Four American Books promotional campaign - 1000 copies

Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, Random House (1944), illustrated by Fritz Eichenberg

The Macabre Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, Tartarus Press (2018), illustrated by Harry Clarke, 8 color plates, 23 full page b/w illustrations plus numerous ornaments - 400 copies

Yikes, not to my taste. Does it come with a glow in the dark hang up skeleton, and perhaps some vampire teeth?

I can't believe they went from the Lovecraft LE to this. The downward spiral continues...

>34 ultrarightist: Ugly is indeed the word that springs to mind. Is this the ULEOAT?

>37 kdweber: the Heritage Press edition illustrated by William Sharp is worth considering as well, especially the earlier copies with boards covered in handmade batik paper. Printed in two colors with attractive layout. Though the spine tends to suffer from sunning.

The folio threads these days always end up reading like a folio hate train. Sigh

> 42 Yes, it's depressing, isn't it ...

I don’t think the thread would be of any value if everyone was mindlessly cheering. Some are sold, some clearly not, some undecided, some are worried about price, and others offered thoughtful alternatives. It’s a fair assessment.

I’ll give them this: the design is indeed horrific.

>11 abysswalker:

Nice poem. AI?

>42 DramPan: >43 red_guy: I checked out the comments & quotes on Twitter this morning and they're much more excited over there!

>39 RATBAG.: 'I can't believe they went from the Lovecraft LE to this. The downward spiral continues...'

I've just been rereading the original Call of Cthulhu thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/256828

That might have been a watershed title; the Lovecraft LE was not greeted with undiluted praise. Many comments were fiercely anti, long before anybody ever got their hands on an actual copy. Some didn't think the content worthy of the Folio treatment. Others were unhappy about the binding not being made from dead animals. Some loved the books but not the marketing. Others complained about - wait for it - the price: £345 was considered outrageous back in 2017*. But it sold well and the standard edition is still in print. There had been rumbles earlier about the new management but is CoC where, for some, the rot really set in? When did Folio's Golden Age end?

*You can buy one now on ebay for £1,150.00.

Edited to add: Or £990.00 if you're cheap: ;-)

PS: where have ebay hidden the 'previously sold' list? I'm sure it used to be more obvious.

I haven't included links to the two above ebay offers because they are ridiculously long.

>48 Cat_of_Ulthar: Wow, that thread is surreal... totally appropriate for that particular book :)

Just to be clear, I don't consider the design a failure (like, say, Rob Roy). Merely not to my tastes. I expect it to find favor with the younger crowd FS is pursuing on social media, which is perhaps the point.

I don't mind the binding. It doesn't look any less ridiculous than Dracula to me ... plus I find Poe moderately ridiculous anyway.

I remember in 1957 when Folio was going for the young kids with this design:

>52 HonorWulf: Is that...Boris Karloff?

>52 HonorWulf:, >53 Shadekeep: The Carry On team must have been watching: smart suit aside, that looks remarkably like Oddbod and his clone :-)

>53 Shadekeep:, >54 Cat_of_Ulthar: Dunno but I like the way the blood spurts work up and down the spine and become red as they merge into the front cover.

>33 BooksFriendsNotFood:
If the price is reasonable and there are many illustrations I will buy this.
Looks really nice to me.

>55 HonorWulf: I'd expect that to be sunning rather than a design choice.

>57 gmacaree: Not sure - every copy I've seen is the same way and the color is always uniform.

>57 gmacaree: Next you'll be telling us the chipping to the top of the dust jacket wasn't done on purpose.

They should reissue it with thermal ink, so that everywhere your hand touches becomes briefly red.

Speaking of imagination: I eagerly await a Poe volume with an exterior illustration/design devoid of ravens, hearts, bricks...

>61 St._Troy: The 1999 edition was pretty classy:

>62 HonorWulf: Indeed, quite excellent.

>55 HonorWulf:
Having bought the Ayrton version new on publication in the fifties I can confirm that the tomato ketchup was uniform on spine and cover. Even as a teenager I thought the effect somewhat cheesy, but then so too were most of Poe's stories.

>18 A.Nobody:

The yellow-rimmed eyes look naturally placed but the other two are on the wrong plane. For a moment I thought they might have made given spine's eyes some sort of lenticular or holographic treatment.

>64 Jayked: Thanks! That's amazing.

>47 BooksFriendsNotFood: That's great!

One of the most curious things for me about this design is an uncanny similarity Folio could not possibly have been aware of.

Here in New Zealand there is a pizza chain, Hell Pizza, whose marketing, style, and indeed, precise colour scheme is black, red, and bone cream:

https://inject.co.nz/work/hell



The leitmotifs of the macabre mimeographed for the masses.

A UK charity on ebay has the classy edition on auction with a very nice opening bid:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/126714289012

What do folks think of the 1990 facsimile of the 1954 FS edition, the combined Poe & Collins set? (Or for that matter, the 1954 edition itself.) The covers look suitably understated, is the interior as nice?

>70 Shadekeep:
See >36 wcarter:

I rarely purchase LE's (I have five among hundreds of SEs) and this one doesn't appeal to me but I did just purchase a copy of the 1999 SE which seems to be fairly available in the US.

>33 BooksFriendsNotFood: Well, I have to say that's not really the vibe I want in my Poe volume. I can appreciate new and different designs -- for instance I thought the FS's PKD limited edition was beautifully done. But, when you think of Poe you think of Gothic, and to me that looks more like either a cheap B&N cover, as shown here --



For my taste, I think Suntup did a beautiful job with their Poe cover --



But of course, that's just my opinion. Maybe I'm must old and set in my ways :)

>73 astropi: Hey, people like what they like and that's fantastic! I don't like B&N editions because they're very boring and standard looking, but it's really the material (and interiors) that hugely differentiates them from Folio LEs. I find the Folio edition nice in an over-the-top way, but it's certainly not one of their best or a must-own or anything — just a nice little Halloween surprise. Granted, at a no doubt non-nice, not so little price.

>73 astropi:

You and I fully agree here.

FS have a video up on Facebook for the Poe LE. Interesting to note that there is going to be an accompanying booklet for the poem The Raven produced by Pat Randle which is a big plus. I’m still not sure on the book itself but as usual it looks far better in the promo video than in the initial pictures.

Link to the video
https://fb.watch/vbqU4qITpN/?

Ah yes, a bust of Palace Athena indeed... Pallas Athena

Grauniad levels of brilliance here.

>76 assemblyman: That does make it more appealing but with other versions existing out there, it still doesn’t do enough for me

>76 assemblyman: And letterpress! Sky must be falling.

That's probably the reason why Nepenthe Press cancelled The Raven and changed to The House of Usher ...

The LE in the video looks about exactly as one would expect based on the pictures and FS's recent quarter leather LEs. The chapbook being The Raven is also unsurprising considering the cover had a raven on it, but I like how large the chapbook is. I was also expecting another same old case with the 2 "doors" that you open (such as the Long Way LE and the Castle LE), but this is more unique where the "doors" open and lay completely flat, which I like because it's different. I also hope the eye and dagger images on the book cover are foiled.

While I liked the book in the picture, after the initial excitement of the announcement wore off, I was thinking that maybe I could skip this LE (2 skips in a row including this and The Hobbit would've been applause-worthy for me) because I still wasn't sure I'd be in the mood to re-read Poe in a couple weeks - and I don't often buy books unless I want to read or re-read it immediately - but the video is certainly getting me to imagine the book in my hands and on my desk, and a skip is certainly looking less likely*. I may grab this with the new Murakami and The Nutcracker.

Also this is a recent, personal pet peeve of mine, but I hope the limitation label is just glued on one side instead of being glued completely flat like in the last few LEs. Also, my fingers are crossed that the book feels higher quality than The Book Thief.

*Which is awesome because I love a good Folio LE, but which sucks because I hadn't realized we'd be getting more non-Hobbit LEs this year and I spent waayyy too much money on non-Folio books in the past few weeks and my budget is beyond unsalvageable.

When was the last time FS did anything letterpessed?

>83 David_Mauduit: Letterpress printed limitation pages galore!

I don't think the limitation pages are letterpress printed anymore (not that you can really notice the difference because they didn't have the "bite" anyways). I think the Aurora Australis commentary was letterpress printed as well. EDIT: And of course The Waste Land LE.

There was also “If not, winter…”, though I think it preceded The Waste Land?

Edit: would it not be a nice irony if the FS now started producing more letterpress printed books, following the trend of recent sci-fi / fantasy fine presses like Lyra’s, Arete, Curious King, Suntup (partly) and Conversation Tree Press?

>86 BorisG: Yes, Sappho's poems preceded The Waste Land. Both are magnificent, and in particular Sappho's poems were priced at $155 -- an unbelievably great deal to a gorgeous book --
https://www.librarything.com/topic/310836

I'm all in favor of more letterpress books. All that said, it sounds like The Raven will be letterpress, but the book itself will be printed offset. Someone please correct me if I'm mistaken.

A few grouped screenshots with forced subtitles related to The Raven (mostly!) from the promotional video...











And a few of George Tute's wood engravings from the 1995 'miniatures series'...

If people are interested in the illustrations, here's another that was shared a couple of days ago: https://www.instagram.com/p/DA_mTYfRYLa/?img_index=2

I rewatched the video and this moment (screenshot shared below) made me realize that the red on the cover may be foil, which is absolutely the way to my heart. The leather does also look like it may be closer to The Book Thief than The Moonstone or Canticle, so I'll prepare myself for that just in case.

>78 FitzJames: At the risk of pointing out the obvious, the subtitles are auto-produced by the software which is attempting to convert the speech into text, they aren't created by FS or any human hand. The Grauniad doesn't have that excuse !

>91 antinous_in_london: Yes, I had very much assumed so as I was also most curious as to the type used which said software names 'Woolbaum,' but can only be Walbaum. However, as they were imbedded in the video, someone must have watched it upon completion and let it pass, that was the human failing.

And no, the Grauniad does not! Theirs are hand-crafted, artisanal errors for the discerning newspaper reader.

(In retrospect, it is delightful that my spelling of artisanal was itself an error. I swear I read it here on the forum as artisinal and alas repeated it without meaning to.)

Suspect this will cost a lot more than the Thornwillow edition which was entirely letterpress

>92 FitzJames: hand-crafted, artisinal errors

Which are the kind we letterpress aficionados appreciate!

>90 BooksFriendsNotFood: I still can't take the image of B&N's edition out of my head. This design doesn't fit to my liking

>95 drizzled: Quite agree. Also, with so much red and the spine eyes for some reason resembling submarines, I cannot get "The Hunt for Red October" out of my head (tongue in cheek)...

I didn’t think so at first but then I saw the B&N spine in a picture of someone’s bookshelf and thought they had somehow gotten an early copy of this LE. Though I do quite like it, but I have a penchant for a splash of kitsch in my decor.

My only complaint against the B&N edition comparisons is that most B&N Collectible Classics look quite ugly in real life. Even when the design doesn't look bad online (incidentally, I definitely do not like the design of the B&N Poe books...or, to be fair, any of the other Poe editions shared in this topic), when you look them up in the store they're unattractive. To me, anyways. Probably something to do with the cover material used and the bulkiness of the books.

On the other hand, some that look bad online feel kind of good in the store, e.g. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-alchemist-and-other-novels-paulo-coelho/114... (I refrained though because I dislike collections of novels...that's too much reading pressure).

Unsure of the veracity of the source but this site says the price will be £450: https://theartsshelf.com/2024/10/16/the-folio-society-to-release-anniversary-edi...

>99 cyber_naut:
Not cheap, and probably £500 on the ROW site!

>99 cyber_naut: They have a number of articles on Folio publications, so veracity likely quite safe:

https://theartsshelf.com/tag/the-folio-society/

Book is live:

https://www.foliosociety.com/uk/tales-of-mystery-and-imagination-limited-edition...

£450.00 / $650.00

Edit: 500 copies

And £515 for ROW.

So far, it would appear 151 copies have sold in the 15 minutes since it has gone live.

I don't like the externals of this LE, but for the illustrations I could have purchased a standard edition

>104 drizzled:

glad i'm not the only one who doesn't like the presentation. it feels too gaudy

Forgive me if this information has been posted somewhere else, but is there any way to see the table of contents of this LE?

>106 CJDelDotto: It should be the standard stories for Tales of Mystery & Imagination unless they did something crazy reusing the title and changing the contents? I have two other versions of this collection. It's some of his best tales from Tell Tale Heart to Fall of the House of Usher.

>107 A.Godhelm: Thank you for the link! Apart from "A Descent into the Maelström," "William Wilson," and "Metzengerstein," I've read all of these tales. Since I've been reading and re-reading a lot of Poe lately, I'll make a point of reading these three tales as well!

Flying away fast for a classic... 189 copies left.

183 left. Not my cup of tea design wise, but it's selling very well.

£450.00 = $580 USD.
Price: $650 USD a "modest" 12% FS tax for Americans.
Honestly, I think the illustrations are fitting, but the design is not my cup of tea. Also, the price is more than I would be willing to pay for an offset printed book these days.

First folio society LE purchase! I tend to agree it's gaudy but I'm into it anyways. To me, weird books make for a good reading experience even if they look a bit ridiculous on the shelf.

From the perspective of a first-time LE buyer, this has a lot of appeal because I'll get a bit of everything: leather, foil, letterpress (albeit minimal), colored edges, two different papers (one being mould-made), and an interesting box.

Given how fast this is selling I am fearful of what The Hobbit LE will be priced at in less than a month's time: $1,000.00?

>113 podaniel:
My guess would be ~ £333 - £450.

>112 HatchedMango: Congrats! I like it and think it'll make an excellent conversation piece!

>112 HatchedMango: congrats! There are a lot of fine presses right now (which is wonderful) that make truly beautiful limited editions. I know limited editions are always more expensive than a "standard" book (although some standard FS books are rather up there in price) -- but what I'm saying is

Welcome to the LE Club

It's a slippery slope, you might find yourself running out of money... but the books are truly works of art, enjoy :)

Thanks! I might have misspoke. This is my first Folio Society LE. I have dabbled in used Limited Editions from other sellers but am glad to experience my first from Folio Society. The financial snowball has been steadily growing!

And sold out, in 6 hours and 22 minutes. (At 22 minutes past the low stock counter disappeared (showing 2 in stock) and it remained 'available' to add to cart, but it vanished as the first link on the Folio front page.)

Sold out!

Woke up in time to get one of the last 13 copies!!

I bought a copy too – I love the illustrations, and though the binding is a bit teenagery / over-the-top, I thought it might kinda work for Poe (whose writing is over the top too, even if in a different way). I have the earlier FS edition with Harry Clarke’s illustrations, which are superb too, but the layout / typography makes it an awkward read for me.

Also with FS LEs these days, it’s quite a safe bet that you can recoup the costs on the secondary market if deciding to sell later on.

Already up on Ebay for only £805!

>122 wcarter: Ah! Warms the heart how dependable they are. First off the starters marks this time tobyms84 with two copies (he had three copies of The Book Thief).

Edit: Not the first time I have noted this, but the scalpers who list these Folio volumes often don't bother to even add the most salient search terms to their listing titles. Thus, many listings of The Book Thief apparently feel it unnecessary to have the author's name 'Zusak' in the title, much like the current Tales of Mystery and Imagination... quite without including 'Poe'.

Can’t decide if I regret not going for this one or not…look forward to feedback from the group once people have it in hand!

>118 FitzJames: That's really impressive for Poe edition that's been done so many times. Clearly they tapped into something here. I hope that means an SE on the horizon because the illustrations look great.

>105 Korius:

You are not alone, but apparently we are the minority.

>125 A.Godhelm: Impressive indeed given that most of the Limited Edition classics that Folio has produced over the past couple of years are still in stock. Have a good feeling that we'll get a standard edition around this time next year.

Crazy to think that last month Thornwillow's half leather Poe edition was sold at auction for $700 after fees which is identical in price to this volume for US citizens. Hell, for $995 you can still buy it from their website which I consider a huge upgrade. Congrats to Folio I suppose, but I have zero regrets on passing on this one and wouldn't even buy it for half the price.

I think comparing this to the Thornwillow highlights why Folio Society took a smart approach with the design. This edition has zero appeal to those who are only interested in “tasteful” books. To those of us who (even if only on occasion) enjoy wacky things, this book offers something the Thornwillow doesn’t.

If this would have been a more tasteful design it would have been a poor man’s Thornwillow yet still cost hundreds despite not being letterpress, only appealing to those that really like the artwork.

And I don’t mean that as a criticism. The Thornwillow looks to be a great offering and I’d certainly like to own one of their books. I do own one Arion press book I bought used so I’m not completely unfamiliar with modern letterpress.

>128 HonorWulf: Not convinced that this falls into the same wheelhouse as the still in-stock ‘limited edition classics’ you allude to - it seems to appeal more to the SF/Fantasy/Horror customer that FS have successfully mined over recent years, rather than a Thucydides/Beowulf/Walter Scott/Charles Darwin etc ‘classics’ customer (allowing also for problems like the unpopular design of Rob Roy & the overpricing of Beowulf etc which surely also contribute to the rate of sales)

>130 HatchedMango: Though Amaranthine still caters better for those who have a taste for the wacky !

Amaranthine looks very interesting! Their elementary editions look like a great value for letterpress. I do wish the paper wasn’t so white but I’m glad to have them on my radar.

>132 antinous_in_london: There's definitely some overlap on the customer base with this one (similar to the Dracula, Frankenstein and Turn of the Screw LE's that also sold out - although not this fast). That said, there's no shortage of high quality Poe editions out there, so it's a bit different than the recent Neuromancer and Canticle releases that had pent-up demand. I think the letterpress Raven booklet really pulled it over the top.

>134 HonorWulf: Agree that FS dipping their toes back into letterpress with the Raven booklet may have given it a push (better than just including another ‘frameable print’).

I know a couple of friends who bought this even though they didn't particularly like the design as they found it a bit YA but they know that FS LE’s are often better in the flesh than in photos & that even if they get it in their hands & hate it they can always offload it without losing a penny - FS LE’s seem to be in the risk-free purchase category.

Let’s see how long ‘The Hobbit’ takes to sell-out !

>135 antinous_in_london: The Hobbit's definitely a contender for the 22 minute record - whether it sells out in minutes or hours is going to be up to the price, which I'm going to assume is going to be quite steep...

>136 HonorWulf: Even at a steep price I’m sure that a large number of the people who bought the LOTR LE will want/need the matching volume, so it already has a built in market (& for a future Silmarillion…?) so assume it will go quickly!

>136 HonorWulf: >137 antinous_in_london:

Looking at the recently updated wiki's Statistics section (thanks to wcarter), of the 'Fastest Selling FS Books' seven of the eight entries are from the 2020s, with only Mort left representing the 2010s. 2024 has clearly been a swell year as it has swept three entries (first position The Book Thief, x250; third position Neuromancer, x500; & fourth position Tales of Mystery and Imagination, x500).

Come November 19th, I would be most surprised if The Hobbit did not bring 2024's clutch to four entries. What will be interesting to see is how swiftly 1,000 copies go next to The Lord of the Rings at its 34 hours 15 minute benchmark. I'm guessing it won't even be comparable.

If it does make a tilt at the 22 minute mark set by the Zusak, that would be remarkable: quite the difference between selling 250 copies in 22 minutes and 1,000 copies in 22 minutes!

Well I received my copy today and the slip case is damaged. There's a black card rectangular spacer on the inside left on the slip case which has not been glued to the rest of the solander case apart from at the very top. As a result it is loose and flaps around when you open the case and add or remove the book. In time it will, no doubt, detach completely. This is really unacceptable for a £450 purchase and a total lack of quality control.

I'll contact Folio but the number of dented or poorly produced books is becoming a real issue. I really do not want to spend my time chasing replacement books and sending the faulty books back to them.

So I'm very disappointed to say the least!

>139 pse1: Sorry to hear! It's not a defect, per se, but the Facebook group has been talking about how the signature tip-in breaks the cool design of the fore-edge painting since it's of thick white paper stock, which stands out like a sore thumb against the black edge paint. It's the same in all the copies, so it's more of a poor production design decision than anything.

>139 pse1: Have you thought of buying some glue?

I received mine and am quite happy. After seeing it in person my wife still thinks it’s ugly as sin but I think it’s great. I’m a little worried about the foil rubbing off, I had a small bit come off on my finger, not that it looks bad, but with heavy use I wonder how that will hold up.

>141 Cat_of_Ulthar:
For a £450 book I’m not sure I should be buying materials to repair it. With just 500 copies I’d expect the solander box to be checked that it wasn’t falling apart.

But perhaps I’m too demanding…

You’re not too demanding but I’d find that easier than messing with a replacement. On the other hand, having them replace it eats into profits and could, theoretically, nudge them to improve quality control. On the other other hand, high end products are made by people just like everything else and stuff happens. I actually find that cheaply made, mass produced products have the highest quality control of all. Probably because it’s highly automated.

>143 pse1: Folio should absolutely replace the solander box at zero cost to you. My experience is that their customer service is very good and efficient. You shouldn't have any problems.

>143 pse1: Not demanding at all. When I buy a new car, I expect not to be advised to go buy a toolkit if a mechanical failure occurs. With such a small run on this LE, all copies should be individually inspected and packed for any contingency on route.

I agree with the others - this is something you should bring to Folio's attention. Their reputation for first rate customer service is well deserved, and this should be made right at no cost to you.

>143 pse1: I wouldn't say you're too demanding, my point was basically what >144 HatchedMango: says, that it would be quicker and less hassle than asking for a replacement. But I agree you're perfectly entitled to do so.

>148 Cat_of_Ulthar: Agreed. And the glue is useful in lots of other scenarios if you’re a collector.

I received my copy and I can say with all honesty that I’m quite pleased with the book.

Sure the design is just as garish as the photos on FS site, but the feeling/quality of the book far exceeds to my (admittedly low) expectations. I’m most happy with my purchase, despite the price paid.

And I don’t hate the design at all now that I have it in hands. Kind of a guilty pleasure vibe.

Does anyone know when there will be a standard edition of the LE Edgar Allan Poe book, since it sold out the same day? How many months (or years)? They did the same thing for Dracula and Frankenstein so I thought I would ask. Thanks!

>151 cazaniq: Done 34 years ago. See https://www.librarything.com/topic/344189
Also done in 1999, see https://pics.cdn.librarything.com/picsizes/57/73/5773e902807d9f85978616253414443...; and in 1957, see https://pics.cdn.librarything.com//picsizes/db/39/db39968b4513595636f30453067434...

>152 wcarter: Thank you for your reply! I have the 1999 edition, but do you know roughly when they'll release a standard edition of the Poe book with this particular artist (from the new LE edition)? Her artwork was nice but the price was really high, much more than the Dracula LE when it came out, so I ended up not getting it. And they always release a standard edition of their horror classics (e.g. Call of Cthulhu)

>153 cazaniq: Folio hasn't said, but based on how well it sold, I would expect late 2025 or 2026.