Oren wrote:
I believe that the deluxe set has sold out and we will now be getting second impressions.

I base this on the fact that Amazon.co.uk tried to charge me for my pre-order (which I had placed on August 30) on October 4. Unfortunately, I had a problem with my debit card, so the book didn't ship, and now, after fixing the payment problem, it's already out of stock.

Amazon doesn't try to charge you unless they have the item in stock, meaning they had the set in stock two days ago.

I'm not sure a second impression of the set is worth the asking price, so have doubts about getting the set now.

I would personally be very surprised if an expensive non-mainstream bookset like this sold out on pre-order. Many online retailers showed an Out Of Stock status even before the release date. That leads me to believe they didn't know when it would be released to begin with. My local Dymocks confirmed as much. Anyway, let's see if someone actually received this.

I hope that you are right. I have bad experience ordering HarperCollins titles from Amazon; on more than one occasion I received a second impression even when pre-ordering. That was the case in 2011 with The Pocket Hobbit, for example, whose delivery from Amazon was also delayed.

I believe that HarperCollins has the habit of supplying first impressions only to specific retailers and then second impressions to others.

I agree though that it would be a bit odd for an expensive deluxe edition to sell out so quickly.

Oren wrote:
I hope that you are right. I have bad experience ordering HarperCollins titles from Amazon; on more than one occasion I received a second impression even when pre-ordering. That was the case in 2011 with The Pocket Hobbit, for example, whose delivery from Amazon was also delayed.

Everyone got a 2nd Impression of the Pocket Hobbit when it was first released. HarperCollins were unhappy with the paper, the paper in the second impression is whiter than the first impression and went back to the printers to get them reprinted, which was why the delivery was delayed and why you did not get a 1st impression.

They eventually decided to sell the 'defective' first impression anyway in Australia and possibly New Zealand as well, I got a copy from Australia. I think they were also sold in the UK as well, as I remember seeing them in UK bookshops about a year after the initial release.

The Pocket Hobbit is an unusual book in that as far as I am aware the 2nd impression was on sale before the 1st impression.

But the first copies distributed in the UK didn't actually state that they were second impressions, is that not right? My copy is a marked first impression that I bought from BD at publication.

BH

Khamûl wrote:
But the first copies distributed in the UK didn't actually state that they were second impressions, is that not right? My copy is a marked first impression that I bought from BD at publication.

BH

Yeah, both impressions clearly state which one they are. A few of the first seem to have been sold in the UK, just not very many, as the rest were exported to the penal colony like filthy convicts. If your first impression is very slimline, it is definitely the exported version. If thicker, it is the domestic second impression.

From memory, my second impression was an Amazon.co.uk pre-order and my first impression was purchased in Brisbane a few days after the second impression arrived from Amazon.

I didn't know the story about the first impression of The Pocket Hobbit. I got my second impression from Amazon before I emigrated to the UK. During one of my trips to the UK to arrange the immigration, which was in late 2012, I found a first impression copy at Waterstone's in The Mall Luton. I was tempted but didn't buy it in the end. I regretted it afterwards, but now, because of your story about the inferior paper, I have no qualms The story also explains how come a first impression was available in the UK a year after I had received the second impression from Amazon.

I've emailed HC about the new HoME Deluxe bookset. I'll let you guys know when I hear back from them.

I just had a look at my pocket H (2011) and it's as I recall; a first impression, with the cheaper paper as Stu describes. I definitely bought this at publication time online (BD) making no check on impression before purchase. Guess I must have got one of the few that got through.

BH

My HoME Deluxe Boxet pre-order from Amazon has just shipped. Just received dispatch confirmation.

A reply from Waterstones regarding this HoME Deluxe Box set .

'I've looked into this for you with the suppliers and can see that this was cancelled just before the publication due to a printing error. This is now undergoing a reprint and will become available again around early next year. '