The Folio Society Book of the New Sun Two-Volume Edition Review: Is It Worth £150?

Here’s the short version of the Folio Society Book of the New Sun: Gene Wolfe’s four novels fit into two slipcased volumes, with Sam Weber’s paintings and a Neil Gaiman introduction, for US$235 (£150 in the UK). The finish reports from early buyers deserve a hard look.

Quick verdict: buy it if you want the illustrated Wolfe and missed the sold-out 2019 limited edition. Skip it if cosmetic flaws would ruin your week.

Jump to:

• What the edition is
• Build quality
• Is it worth it?
• Our take
• FAQs

Detail	Folio Society edition
Volumes	2 (Shadow & Claw, Sword & Citadel), 1,160 pages, 10″ x 6¾”
Art and intro	Sam Weber (8 colour, 12 black-and-white); Neil Gaiman
Binding	Quarter-bound blocked cloth, printed paper sides, blocked slipcase
Released / price	February 24, 2021 / US$235 or £150 (checked October 2026)

What is the Folio Society Book of the New Sun two-volume edition?

It’s Folio’s collector’s edition, and Weber designed the binding art for each of the four books, so the front and back boards of the two volumes are four separate paintings. The text runs in black and red. If your shelf leans toward the Game of Thrones 15th anniversary steelbook, this is the stranger, quieter cousin.

How does Sam Weber’s artwork change the reading experience?

Weber says he kept asking what Severian is actually looking at, and he made the interior art mostly black and white, like a world short on sunlight. You get eight colour plates, four of them double-page spreads, plus twelve black-and-white pieces. I’d rate it alongside the Harry Potter illustrated collection for art-led sets, though a hands-on reviewer wanted more landscapes, and I agree.

How well is this edition made?

On paper it’s handsome: coloured tops, blocked slipcase, 1,160 pages. Consistency is the weak spot. Buyers in a March 2021 LibraryThing thread reported scratched covers, dented slipcases, cut top edges and ink bleeding, and Folio offered replacements. We judged the Folio Wasp Factory limited edition on the same points.

What do Reddit collectors say about quality control?

One r/foliosociety poster said the two-volume sets had production problems and that the replacement arrived with the same damage. Over on r/genewolfe, an owner of the four-volume set is glad Folio made this one so more readers can own it. Those reports date from the 2021 printing, so photograph the box before opening.

Is the Folio Society Book of the New Sun worth buying?

For most of us it’s the only route to Weber’s art, since there is no four-volume standard set, and Folio says the 2019 limited edition sold out in days. The covers reproduce the limited edition designs, and a 2021 reviewer found the colours more vivid. The price has risen from roughly £125 at launch.

Who should buy this edition and who should pass?

Buy it if you reread Wolfe and want art that respects the text. If you own big sets like the Star Wars Skywalker Saga box set, this fills a different corner. Pass if you only want a cheap reading copy, because this is a shelf piece first.

• Pros: the full tetralogy in two volumes; Weber’s plates and binding art; two-colour text; a Gaiman introduction.
• Cons: reported finish issues; art favors characters over landscapes; US$235.

Our take

I judged this set from Folio’s specs, hands-on reviews and collector threads, not from my own copy. The best part is how seriously Weber treated Wolfe’s text, and my score is 4/5 for design, with the Reddit read about 3.5/5 because of the finish reports. Folio fans and Tolkien shelf builders (the Hobbit collector booster box crowd) will enjoy it. It’s sold through the Folio Society store. Tell us in the comments what you’d recommend or what you missed.

FAQs

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