My Top 20 Special Edition Books! (As of 2023)

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much to Wraithmarked for sponsoring this video! Less than 48 hours left before their awesome Kickstarter campaign of Iron Prince and Fire and Song ends. Check it out here: www.kickstarter.com/projects/wraithmarked/stormweaver1and2?ref=d39dwx

[@TheFolioSociety]

Thank you so much for including our Game of Thrones and Book of the New Sun editions, we're delighted that you love their illustrations and production!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank YOU so much! Would love to get the rest of A Song of Ice and Fire. Slowly. 😂

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you for sharing these beautiful books with us, Petrik! We are clearly in a very special and exciting era in terms of book production.

[@PetrikLeo]

You're welcome, Philip! And yeah, so true. Can't wait to see The Way of Edan Broken Binding Press edition!

[@TheBookishMom]

SO many beautiful books! The leatherbound books are always just SO lovely, totally worth the price!

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeahh, Dragonsteel did a great job producing them! :D

[@noobody89]

Suntup Press did a gorgeous edition of "The Last Unicorn" that'll be shipped in the spring. All of the editions, classic, numbered, and lettered are sold out but even the renditions of them are beautiful to look at. Curious King Press did a great job with "The Blade Itself" and I'm glad I managed to nab one though I am still kicking myself for not getting their rebind of "Ready Player One" when I saw it for sale.

[@PetrikLeo]

I saw that beautiful edition of The Last Unicorn on sale! I haven't read the book (I know I know) and I, most of the time, can't justify spending a big amount of money on books I haven't read and loved yet. I look forward to seeing people getting the book, though! But yes, I am so happy with this acquisition of The Blade Itself. I'm glad you snagged a copy, too. I wonder how CK will top it with Before They Are Hanged, we'll see! :)

[@Kenb3d1]

Agree with your choices, that Blade Itself version is a work of art. Looking forward to your next video.

[@PetrikLeo]

The standard edition is a masterful book production, imo. Curious King barely makes any profit from their standard edition. It seems like many book collectors have mentioned their standard edition is absolutely insane and worth the money. :)

[@samuelleask1132]

So many amazing books here!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! That's so true! 😁

[@thepussycat66]

Such a great idea and video! 😍 Who doesn't love beautiful special editions?! 😊 For me personally the art work on the cover and on the inside is the most important criteria. As well as the edges. I love digitally sprayed edges.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, my friend! Yeahh, it is hard to resist beautiful special editions. Cover art and interior artwork matter the most to me, too! :)

[@astevenswrites]

So many BEAUTIFUL books! You're such a bad influence, Petrik! Kidding, of course... only bad for my bank account 😊 I'm definitely starting down a dangerous road. But... I'm also getting tons of cool ideas, too!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you, Andrew! hahaha, the books you get will be worth it. You'll see when you have Malice Grim Oak in your hand!

[@safinan8008]

Hi 👋 wow you have really nice edition books!! Happy reading to you!! 🎉😊

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! I'm grateful. Happy reading to you! 😊

[@mushrizzo]

I ordered Warbreaker on the 3rd of January. I didn’t realise I had just missed out on the lower price! Honestly, it’s probably a good job though - I definitely would have picked up The Way of Kings as well if it had been the original price. I’m ok with just owning one leather bound Sanderson. I also have the secret project books and they are really special.

[@PetrikLeo]

Warbreaker leatherbound is BEAUTIFUL. Be careful about leatherbound edition. One is good, but more than that is a very slippery slope. I was okay with having one leatherbound until my friends got me another, and then... well, I need to own them all. :')

[@book_scent]

You have a stunning collection!! I could stare at beautiful books all day long 🖤 I finally caved and ordered The Way of Kings (LB edition), should arrive this Friday - I'm so excited and can't wait to see it in person 🤩

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Karin! Haha, might as well get the leatherbound edition now before the price increases next week!

[@book_scent]

@@PetrikLeo That was my thought exactly 😂

[@Bighomer5]

Man those are some good looking books. But the pricing for some of them is ridiculous!

[@AshleyRebecca]

I always love a good map! So fun to see your favorites!!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Ashley!! A good map is always great to have!

[@aprendeingles2day]

⭐Petrik, what a great list! Thanks⭐

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much! 😁

[@cipriansirbu3699]

All are gorgeous 😍,I'm happy for you and a bit jealous 😅. From all these beautiful editions,I own only three:Warbreaker,The Sword of Kaigen and A Game of Thrones ( I have the entire series from Folio). The great news is that tomorrow,The Way of Kings Dragonsteel edition will arrive. Can't wait 😁.

[@PetrikLeo]

Haha thank you so much! Having the entire Folio set of A Song of Ice and Fire is truly enviable, though! I hope to achieve that someday. Slowly but sure. You will love The Way of Kings Dragonsteel edition, too! 😁

[@BOB_77]

I loved everything about today's video from the very idea of the video to the beautiful books (I am very jealous), a friendly advice for hopefully the next video make sure the lighting is better positioned.

[@PetrikLeo]

Yup! Lessons learned. The lighting here is this way only because my usual lighting broke down. 😭

[@BOB_77]

Well, that sure explains a lot 😅

[@mikouf9691]

Gorgeous collection. Sanderson dominated your list! I also own and love that full-color edition of Empire of the Vampire. In fact, it's one of my favorite because of the numerous color illustrations. I also love my 30th anniversary edition of The Princess Bride. It contains heavy paper, 50 sepia-colored illustrations, a color map, a bonus short story and 2 introductions by the author (one for that edition and the intro that was included in the 25th anniversary edition). Honorable mention to my Dune deluxe edition which contains a gorgeous new cover, a stamped and foiled case featuring a book quote, stained edges, fully illustrated endpapers, a beautifully designed poster on the interior of the dust jacket, and a redesigned world map of Dune. As always, thank you for sharing your collection with us.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! Haha, Dragonsteel makes great products. 😂😂 Glad to hear you have a copy of EotV full-color edition, too. I may need to get a copy of Princess Bride 30th anniv edition. I didn't know about that!

[@djsuth7727]

Nothing better than a beautiful edition of a beloved book !

[@PetrikLeo]

So damn true! 😊

[@dinocollins720]

Another fantastic video! Thank you!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Dino! 😊

[@ryerye3147]

I do enjoy deckled edges lol.. weird rite? A few of the Murakami books come with them.

[@PetrikLeo]

Arghh I'm not a fan of deckled edges at all! They felt so weird to me hahaha.

[@doghairandbooks]

Beautiful editions! I'm planning on buying my first Dragonsteel sets soon to get ready for the Words of Radiance pre-order. My favorite special edition book set has got to go to The Broken Binding Dandelion Dynasty. Have I read the books yet? No lol. Did I buy it because it's absolutely gorgeous? You bet!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! Haha! The Broken Binding set of The Dandelion Dynasty is truly beautiful. There's nothing new inside, but the digitally sprayed edges are so slick and neat. I totally understand the decision to buy the books without reading the books yet... :D

[@nicholasczech6973]

Great Video Petrik, hoping my own Novel series is published one day. Love it when effort and paid talent of high quality are in honest mark with each other. Really hope the last 3 Dune books by Frank Herbert get this treatment. Along with CS Lewis space trilogy, RJ Barker and Jurassic Park just to name a few.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much! I wish you the best of luck in your writing. And I think there's a good chance the last 3 Dune books by Frank Herbert will get the same treatment! :)

[@amy_harboredinpages8272]

So many beautiful books! I actually scored a copy of that beautiful Ryan Cahill, Of Blood and Fire from a creator who was inhauling, & even with the outrageous shipping charges, I still got it for about 35$ (us).

[@PetrikLeo]

Wow! That's an amazing price actually!

[@spilchsaysstuff1427]

The Dragonbone Chair is the only one I would be interested in. Cheapest I could find was for £120. But this is without the slipcase.

[@PetrikLeo]

The slipcase is EXPENSIVE. 120 pounds is actually a good price!

[@nanotyrannus5435]

Yeah, the slipcase was not included in the $175 retail price.

[@brokenredflag]

I read in the dragonsteel site that you need to separate the leatherbounds (way of kings books )or they may get damaged. Sorry that hapend to mistborn. Hope this helps. Anyway, i agree with all your points of vews that make a special editions👍!. I would add a slipcase, for safe transportation and the book wont open in mid trip. Also i dont mind magazine thin pages as long as their acid free. And the book is thick and heavy. The book is usually good qualaty when heavy. Sometimes they do this thin pages so the book fits in one book, kina like the bible. Thanks for the ride petrick! Such a grate video. Merry christmas!!!❤ happy new year🎉i hope your famaly, wife and coco are healthy and happy. God bless you all.🙏🫰🫂

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much for the kind words and wishes! Yeah, really sad my copy of Mistborn is damaged, but oh well... Hard lessons learned! :)

[@nanotyrannus5435]

My personal top 10: 1. Lyra's Books - Coraline (Standard Edition) 2. Dunmanifestin - Guards! Guards! 3. Subterranean Press - Gardens of the Moon (2nd Printing) 4. Dragonsteel - Way of Kings 5. Grim Oak Press - In His Majesty's Service 6. Subterranean Press - An Empyreal Retinue (Limited) 7. Grim Oak Press - The Dragonbone Chair 8.Centipede Press - Babel-17/Empire Star 9. Dragonsteel - Alloy of Law/Shadows of Self 10. Amaranthine Books - Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (Hyde Edition)

[@PetrikLeo]

Great list! I have seen Coraline Lyra's Books edition. Unfortunately, I missed out on it, but I'm not surprised that's your number 1. A totally magnificent edition!

[@Talking_Story]

Gorgeous collection!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much! :)

[@MaxFidler]

I love Folio Society books. A similar thing happened to my LoTR slipcase from Folio. The books are an amazing quality but the slipcase not so much. That said so far the ASOIF slipcases have held up.

[@PetrikLeo]

I definitely concur their slipcase for A Song of Ice and Fire holds up so well. Thankfully, the production of their books is always spectacular! :)

[@christeascozycorner]

dang, learned so much about book quality from this video 🤣 like acid-free paper and smyth-sewn binding i got the sword of kaigen special edition and it looks SOOOO GOOD! felix ortiz is an amazing artist I NEEEED TO SEE ALL THE ENDPAPER ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE MISTBORN SPECIAL EDITIONS mistborn spoilers . . . . . . IS THAT MELAAN IN ONE OF THE ENDPAPERS. DAMN SHE HOT

[@PetrikLeo]

Yay! I'm glad the video was informational, too. I wish I could talk about them more but this video is super long already. I will show you all the Mistborn endpaper later, and yes... She is HOT 🤣

[@Olphas]

I expected to have maybe one or two of the mentioned editions, but thanks to Dragonsteel it is not looking so bad 😁I will not be able to resist Words of Radiance next year, even though it will be so expensive .. they are worth it. I am still thinking about getting the Sherlock Holmes Essential Edition but I already own two sets of Complete Sherlock Holmes and it is a lot of money ... hmm. Next year the Kickstarter Edition of Gunmetal Gods might be a new favourite. That looks extremely promising

[@PetrikLeo]

It will be so difficult to resist Words of Radiance next year! :') And yeah, I agree about the Gunmetal Gods. I feel like that edition will set the bar for the Indie Kickstarter book! Extremely promising indeed!

[@bauman921]

I love the folio versions of a song of ice and fire but I just cant buy them because i know in my heart that he will never finish it

[@PetrikLeo]

Oh yeah, that's for sure. There's no way he'll finish the series now. Unfortunately. 🥲

[@fjuran1]

Such beautiful books, so sad that many are now unavailable. Tried to get GOT & Williams.

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeah, the nature of limited editions! :)

[@focusrelax8838]

Man, how lucky isn’t he getting the way of kings and game of thrones edition for free!! Wtf! I like to have it aswell

[@PetrikLeo]

I definitely feel fortunate. 😊 Some readers are super generous!

[@aliturk6692]

I think the edition for Gunmetal Gods will blow all of these out of water, zamil went above and beyond for it.

[@PetrikLeo]

I totally agree with that. Let's see how he'll deliver the product!!

[@faye3386]

Glad I'm not a fan of the dragonsteel encyclopedias, else I'll go broke lol All empire of the vampire editions look so pretty, but i read the sample chapters and i hated the writing so I'm just gonna admire the art through my screen Oddly enough, 2 of the best looking books i own are Arsene Lupin and a Study in Scarlet from magnetic press who mainly makes graphic novels (i think).

[@PetrikLeo]

Haha you're in luck! Being a fan of Dragonsteel leatherbound is an expensive hobby. I was okay with not having them when I had only one. And then I got two... anddd now I have them all. I get that about Empire of the Vampire. The first half was a huge struggle for me. It felt so juvenile. Thankfully the book won me over in the second half. :)

[@nanotyrannus5435]

There should be noted for the price of Amaranthine Books, that includes worldwide shipping via DHL Express. So with any other publisher that would be 50-60USD on top of the retail price that is included here.

[@PetrikLeo]

Whoa really? That is actually AMAZING. I didn't know that! 🤯

[@tuliopires9134]

Pls good sir, we crave for a bookshelf tour

[@PetrikLeo]

Next month! Need some equipment for better lighting to come first. 😂

[@General_reader]

I know nothing about Kickstarter, Patreon. Someone explain to me how I learn about these special editions in advance! I’m missing out so many opportunities.

[@PetrikLeo]

Not the best option, but in my SFF Spotlight videos, I always spotlight new special editions as much as I can. :)

[@Edog1337]

Tbh, notch binding with high quality glue such as US hardcovers is pretty good for reading copy and durability. The cheaper UK glued bindings make hardcovers hard to open and feel cheap. Sanderson leatherbounds would be better if it was actually leather. Having all of them as well, it is obvious the Mistborn set is the lowest quality. That gilt flakes off with ease; mine came new with gilt coming off. Those Broken Binding special editions are the best quality for the price imo. Especially compared to Curious King at 3-4x the price. Folio Society should be leatherbound not clothbound at that price. Can get better quality physical book from Easton Press for $100 a pop. For the $250 folio society price you get a few more pieces of art for 2.5x the price!! A lot of special editions are not higher quality above the $50 price point. It is just a small boutique publisher making such a small quantity that they have to charge more. The “Limited Run” effect. Seems like you don’t have any of those $1,000+ Lettered special editions that boutique pubs put out.

[@PetrikLeo]

I agree with your first point. US hardcovers with notch binding are much superior compared to UK glued binding. But for prices, I have to completely disagree with you. I think it all depends on what you're looking for. Broken Binding is certainly great for its price, but if I want higher specs, Broken Binding cannot deliver that yet. The Broken Binding Press is their best product, and if we're comparing specs, this one definitely loses out to Folio, Curious King, and more. Personally, I think Easton Press is not worth it at all. Most of them don't have interior art, which is a big part of the special edition I look forward to. Back to prices, though... considering that many standard hardcovers with nothing new inside are about $30-40 already, these special editions being priced at $50 is insane to me. I completely disagree with that. Unless you don't want them to earn any profit. For example, Broken Binding charged 55 pounds for their Broken Binding Press title. That's $70. This is possible because traditional publishers are not involved. And that already requires $70, not $50, for them to earn profits. Trad pub requires the fine press to pay them for rights, and these rights can be already super expensive. Sanderson didn't want to charge $100 per leatherbound, but required to by Tor Books. Then, the price of artwork. Tommy Arnold costs about $3000 per artwork. Curious King has 8 new art by him. That's roughly $24,000. Pricing it at $50 x 500 copies = $25,000. They will lose out a LOT. This isn't charity. Paying publishers (this can be pretty insane, you'll probably be surprised by how much Broken Binding charges later for Malazan next year due to this), artists, letterpress printing, smyth-sewn binding, 140gsm paper, book production, and more, $50 per copy is simply not enough. Actually, Curious King barely makes any profit by selling out their $250 Blade Itself edition. All the production (and paying publisher) of the standard edition IS that expensive. The owners want to do it simply because they want readers to experience what it feels like to get a very high premium book at a relatively "cheaper" price, even if it's still expensive. Curious King is making a profit thanks to their deluxe and lettered edition. These vary among every product, of course, but it is not as simple as saying, "They are not above $50 price point." Although, I will agree that some special editions, as I said at the beginning of the video, don't earn their price. Like Sullivan's leather hardcover. I would rather pay $150 for something I know will satisfy me than what they're offering at $90. (Note, this is self-pub so they're totally in charge of their own prices). This reply has been long enough. Definitely not everything can be discussed and explained here. I can't believe I spent 15 minutes replying to you haha. Anyway, agree to disagree! However... those $1000 lettered editions? Yeah, those are definitely increased due to its limited run. I cannot afford them, and I don't think I'm willing to unless I've become a billionaire. :'D

[@nanotyrannus5435]

@@PetrikLeo Letterpress printing is incredibly expensive, Curious King mentioned that they probably could make the Standard edition 50 GPB cheaper if they went for offset instead of letterpress. And that is with the extra fixed cost because with all Letterpress you only pay tooling and machine setup time once.

[@PetrikLeo]

@@nanotyrannus5435 yeah I figure that would be the case! I'm shocked by how amazing the paper and text feels. I didn't know the differences would be that huge. That's why I have a lot of respect for Anthony. His passion in bookmaking is admirable.

[@zenthepoet.]

Petrik Talks Book Cover Beauties!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you, Zen!!

[@ChaptersWeLove]

They are sooo beautiful 😍

[@PetrikLeo]

I totally agree!! :)

[@ChaptersWeLove]

@@PetrikLeo give them to me lol

[@PetrikLeo]

If I have a spare copy and it's easy to send, I would! :D @@ChaptersWeLove

[@ChaptersWeLove]

@@PetrikLeo 😊

[@benjaminmolina3456]

Can i still get A Mark of Kings by Bryce O'Connor & Luke Chmilenko, Deluxe Hardcover Edition?

[@PetrikLeo]

I think so! Check out the Kickstarter campaign I linked. I think there's an option to get A Mark of Kings as an add-no. The price has increased, though!

[@heretic124]

You should read Book of the New Sun after you're done with Sun Eater (aside from book 7). It has similar style though a very very very unreliable narrator. ;)

[@PetrikLeo]

That's the plan! I know Ruocchio is inspired by the series, too! :)

[@heretic124]

@@PetrikLeo Awesome. Btw I recommend reading translator's notes or whatever they're called for each book before you start that particular book. Wolfe as "translator" of Book of the New Sun explains certain words, societal classes and other stuff. Helps with understanding of what's going on a little better. They're at the very end of each book, usually like 3-5 pages. Nothing close to Sun Eater's encyclopedias.

[@mikesbookreviews]

This video should be flagged as sexually suggestive.

[@PetrikLeo]

Fair enough! :D

[@darktower74]

Where do you get these special editions? Only from Kickstarter campaigns? Does Amazon sell many? I guess you keep an ear out for authors publishing new books; is that when they are advertised? Is there a reddit page or something?

[@PetrikLeo]

No reddit page at all for me. The most updated information tends to happen on Twitter and Instagram. Check out my SFF Spotlight videos. I always make sure to spotlight new special editions there so people don't miss out on something they want. :)

[@nanotyrannus5435]

For most special edition publishers you have to be on their newsletter.

[@Syko1985]

Oh Petrik, I enjoyed the ranking but that lighting was not the best 😬

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeahhhh. Sorry for that! I tried a new lighting and it turned out unsatisfactory! I couldn't re-record it, too. My other light broke down. Need to get a new one but it might take a while due to the holidays. :(

[@ZOMGfantasy]

Why you do this Petrik, I've already done my holiday shopping 🫠

[@PetrikLeo]

Hahaha! At least some of these are sold out. xD

[@iaparamedicos]

Petrick, do you still read historical fiction or in 2023 was it almost all fantasy?

[@PetrikLeo]

I took a break from historical fiction this year. This happen sometimes. I took a break from reading scifi last year and I read many of them this year. I will be reading some historical fiction next year. Kingsbridge is a big priority for me in 2024. 😃

[@spilchsaysstuff1427]

#PetrikforFantasyNews

[@PetrikLeo]

Haha thank you! :)

[@spilchsaysstuff1427]

@@PetrikLeo I'll make it happen. Daniel Greene can't ignore me forever.

[@gryftkin]

My credit card just got up and ran away... It sounded suspiciously like my wife.

[@PetrikLeo]

What the heck 🤣

[@gryftkin]

@@PetrikLeo If I spend $250 on a book, she might kill me :D