One of 50 Surviving Copies

Nebel [Numbered]

King, Stephen

Publication: Linkenheim, Germany: Edition Phantasia, 1986. First Edition.

Notes: The first separate edition of Stephen King's novella, The Mist. The story first appeared in the Dark Forces anthology and then it was collected in Skeleton Crew. Limited to 500 numbered copies, signed on the title page by the illustrator, Herbert Brandmeier (there were also 30 copies with Roman numerals for presentation).

This is one of two King books published by the fantasy-science fiction publisher Edition Phantasia in 1986. It (Es) was the first publication of that novel in any language; Nebel is the first stand-alone publication of The Mist as a separate book. While often referred to as a bootleg edition, the publisher was not a fly-by-night affair. They published authorized limited editions by many writers, usually in illustrated editions signed by the artist.

It appears with both Nebel and Es they were perhaps sloppy with the rights or at least not as careful as they should have been. According to the publisher, "Nearly the whole edition [of Nebel] was destroyed on command of the author, who was obviously not informed of the project by his German mass market publisher, who authorized the limited edition. It is not a bootleg edition, as often quoted."

For more information on Es and Nebel, see the Creating Suspense Across Versions: Genetic Narratology and Stephen King's IT, a research project at the University of Antwerp, in Belgium.

The most recent copy at auction (Kiefer, 2025) made 5720 euros ($6692).

249, [3:blank] pages. Translated by Alexandra von Reinhardt. Bound in gray cloth, stamped in black at the spine, in a dust jacket and a velveteen-covered slipcase. Printed with a large font.

Edition + Condition: First edition (first printing, one of 500 copies numbered opposite the copyright page). A fine copy in a fine dust jacket and a fine slipcase. This copy, no. 393, is not included on the list of known copies maintained by the stephen-king.de website, which has tracked about 45 numbered copies. This copy was acquired by the previous owner in 2000 at a bookstore in Washington.

ISBN: 3924959102

Item No: #366259

Price: $7,200