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Worlds of Lucifer #1
The Land Beyond the Gate
Two Against Lucifer
Three times Alan MacDougall had passed through the strange Gates in the ruined Scottish tower to find himself in the worlds of Lucifer, where the demon-gods lived on. There, unknown to them, Ahriman ruled as lieutenant to the Prince of Evil—and sought to entrap Alan into serving his Master’s foul plots of conquest.
Now the fourth Gate waited. Alan’s only friend in Lucifer’s twisted lands, the Bard Taliesin, had already passed it. But Alan lingered beside his beloved Elspeth. Then he stepped through.
This time, as he and Taliesin made their way through the realms of the fourth land, the dark magics of forbidden mysteries were shown Alan, but nothing he could use against Ahriman’s determined effort to force Alan to lead Lucifer’s legion to universal domination.
When Alan sought to flee back through the Gate, he found that it had vanished. For him and Taliesin, there was now no escape!
Three times Alan MacDougall had passed through the strange Gates in the ruined Scottish tower to find himself in the worlds of Lucifer, where the demon-gods lived on. There, unknown to them, Ahriman ruled as lieutenant to the Prince of Evil—and sought to entrap Alan into serving his Master’s foul plots of conquest.
Now the fourth Gate waited. Alan’s only friend in Lucifer’s twisted lands, the Bard Taliesin, had already passed it. But Alan lingered beside his beloved Elspeth. Then he stepped through.
This time, as he and Taliesin made their way through the realms of the fourth land, the dark magics of forbidden mysteries were shown Alan, but nothing he could use against Ahriman’s determined effort to force Alan to lead Lucifer’s legion to universal domination.
When Alan sought to flee back through the Gate, he found that it had vanished. For him and Taliesin, there was now no escape!
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1984
65 people want to read
About the author
Lloyd Arthur Eshbach
36 books5 followersLloyd Arthur Eshbach was an American science fiction fan, publisher and writer, secular and religious publisher, and minister. He discovered science fiction at age 15 and began writing letters to the professional magazines, then started to write his own stories. The third story he wrote sold to Science Wonder Stories in 1929. While still writing his own stories and articles, he published two short-lived magazines during the early 1930s, Marvel Tales and The Galleon. He initiated Fantasy Press, a small press which published the work of authors such as E. E. Smith, Jack Williamson, Robert A. Heinlein and John W. Campbell, Jr.. Fantasy Press published a total of 46 titles in its lifetime, with two additional fantasy titles published under the subsidiary imprint, Polaris Press. Fantasy Press books were produced in limited print runs averaging 3,750 copies each, with between 250 and 500 copies of each title bearing a limited plate inserted after the title page that was numbered and autographed by the book's author. These constituted the first hardcover editions of many of these works, previously available only in used copies of magazines.
Eshbach was a church publisher from 1958 to 1962, then he was a salesman for the Moody Bible Institute until retirement in 1975. Upon his retirement, he became a pastor in the Evangelical Congregational Church and served churches of that denomination in Pennsylvania in Lancaster County, Reading, and Womelsdorf.
Eshbach was a lifelong science fiction fan, and besides creating Fantasy Press he was instrumental in assisting others in the creation and operation of their own fan or specialty presses, including William Crawford of Fantasy Publishing and later F.P.C.I. (Eshbach bought Crawford his first set of type for his press) and Thomas Hadley, of first The Buffalo Book Company and later Hadley Publishing Company (both of Providence, RI), whom Eshbach instructed and assisted with marketing and sales of his books and organization of his mailing list (which list eventually became the basis for the formation of a sales base for his own Fantasy Press).
His memoirs, Over My Shoulder: Reflections on a Science Fiction Era, were published in 1983; and his last novel, The Scroll of Lucifer, in 1990. Other books included The Armlet of the Gods, The Land Beyond the Gate, The Sorceress of Scath and The Tyrant of Time. He also edited Of Worlds Beyond: The Science of Science Fiction Writing (Reading, PA: Fantasy, 1947), the first book-length work on science fiction writing from a professional point of view.
An active member of science fiction's First Fandom, he was Guest of Honor at the 1949 World Science Fiction Convention and the 1995 World Fantasy Convention.
[All the above is from Wikipedia]
Eshbach was a church publisher from 1958 to 1962, then he was a salesman for the Moody Bible Institute until retirement in 1975. Upon his retirement, he became a pastor in the Evangelical Congregational Church and served churches of that denomination in Pennsylvania in Lancaster County, Reading, and Womelsdorf.
Eshbach was a lifelong science fiction fan, and besides creating Fantasy Press he was instrumental in assisting others in the creation and operation of their own fan or specialty presses, including William Crawford of Fantasy Publishing and later F.P.C.I. (Eshbach bought Crawford his first set of type for his press) and Thomas Hadley, of first The Buffalo Book Company and later Hadley Publishing Company (both of Providence, RI), whom Eshbach instructed and assisted with marketing and sales of his books and organization of his mailing list (which list eventually became the basis for the formation of a sales base for his own Fantasy Press).
His memoirs, Over My Shoulder: Reflections on a Science Fiction Era, were published in 1983; and his last novel, The Scroll of Lucifer, in 1990. Other books included The Armlet of the Gods, The Land Beyond the Gate, The Sorceress of Scath and The Tyrant of Time. He also edited Of Worlds Beyond: The Science of Science Fiction Writing (Reading, PA: Fantasy, 1947), the first book-length work on science fiction writing from a professional point of view.
An active member of science fiction's First Fandom, he was Guest of Honor at the 1949 World Science Fiction Convention and the 1995 World Fantasy Convention.
[All the above is from Wikipedia]
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 11, 2010
Let me tell you a story:
A young girl, browsing through the science fiction section of her local library, finds an interesting looking book, the first in a series. She takes it home, finds the plot engaging and the characters fascinating, and quickly rushes back to the library to borrow the rest of the series.
Unfortunately for her, the fourth and final book hasn't been published yet. She goes about her life, forgetting all about these books.
More than a decade later, she finds herself in her hometown library, and remembers about the books. She browses the shelves, but can't find them, and can't remember much about them except that the author's last name starts with E, and the covers are very colorful. She searches online, but isn't able to track them down, and starts looking for them whenever she's in a used bookstore, hoping that she'll stumble across them.
Years later, success! She finds the first book, and (now knowing the author's last name) orders the rest of them online. She starts to read, and…
Just a few chapters into the first book, she knows she's not going to enjoy it. The writing, the characters, the plot - none of them are grabbing her. Whatever magic there had been for her as a teenager has since dissipated. However, she presses on, determined to tie up this loose end.
She gets to the final book, almost two decades after she first encountered the series. Not only is it not a good book, but the ending is a TOTAL RIPOFF!
Another childhood memory tarnished, she puts the books in the Goodwill pile…
A young girl, browsing through the science fiction section of her local library, finds an interesting looking book, the first in a series. She takes it home, finds the plot engaging and the characters fascinating, and quickly rushes back to the library to borrow the rest of the series.
Unfortunately for her, the fourth and final book hasn't been published yet. She goes about her life, forgetting all about these books.
More than a decade later, she finds herself in her hometown library, and remembers about the books. She browses the shelves, but can't find them, and can't remember much about them except that the author's last name starts with E, and the covers are very colorful. She searches online, but isn't able to track them down, and starts looking for them whenever she's in a used bookstore, hoping that she'll stumble across them.
Years later, success! She finds the first book, and (now knowing the author's last name) orders the rest of them online. She starts to read, and…
Just a few chapters into the first book, she knows she's not going to enjoy it. The writing, the characters, the plot - none of them are grabbing her. Whatever magic there had been for her as a teenager has since dissipated. However, she presses on, determined to tie up this loose end.
She gets to the final book, almost two decades after she first encountered the series. Not only is it not a good book, but the ending is a TOTAL RIPOFF!
Another childhood memory tarnished, she puts the books in the Goodwill pile…
May 3, 2020
This is old school fantasy. If you're into Zelazny, moorcock, and who doesn't love a little moorcock, or even Peake then this is a good series to get into. Otherwise it's certainly still enjoyable and caught my interest enough to read the next one at least. 4 stars.
September 13, 2025
From what I can tell, Lester and Judy-Lynn apparently hoped Eshbach's series would become the Next Big Thing, another The Sword of Shannara or The Belgariad. That, however, never happened -- one of their rare editorial stumbles.
If you don't know Eshbach's name, he's old school SF (b. 1910, three years after Heinlein). His biggest claim to fame is launching a short-lived but important specialist press in the late 1940s and 1950s, Fantasy Press. Then, after a 20-some year hiatus from writing, Eshbach was lured back to writing by his close personal friend Lester, for whom he wrote the Lucifer's Tate tetralogy.
Lester edited Eshbach himself, which was getting rarer for Lester even during the early 1980s; he was already past 60 at that point. But his buddy Eshbach was a special case. The Del Reys gave The Land Beyond the Gate strong promotion. It received a Darrell K. Sweet cover, whom Lester loved (Judy-Lynn even stopped other publishers from using him by hiring Sweet full-time as staff), and she also -- in one of her innovations -- started printing Eshback's name on the right-hand side of the novel's pages. Judy-Lynn believed that readers saw headers on that side more, so this was one of her small tricks for marketing the author, rather than the author's book.
Unfortunately, The Land Beyond the Gate just isn't very good as a novel. Its pacing is clearly Howardian, which tends to pall at novel length, and especially when the need for constant action overwhelms basic characterization and world-building. For instance, this is telling:
Refusing further speculation, [Alan] MacDougall turned his back on the incredible scene and strode down the ramp. (p. 76)
The context doesn't matter, but clearly Eshbach believed having his protagonist genuinely think about this secondary world would damage the non-stop action. Which is a shame, because his "land beyond the gate", Tartarus, actually has a slightly interesting premise. Apparently, back in olden days, Lucifer had created this place for the Daughters of Lilith, who died out, and were replaced by real-world people after their deaths; for instance, MacDougall's Gandalf-like bestie is Taliessin, the famous bard from medieval Welsh legend.
In Tartarus, though, people are immortal ... and really, really bored. Insofar as Eshbach has a theme, this is it. When MacDougall arrives from our primary world, that shakes things up, and then the Tartarians try starting a random war to relieve the monotony. I can see where that sort of theme would appeal to Lester: the dullness of immortality without variation.
Nonetheless, Eshbach's writing leans heavily on the wrong side of terrible. He creates an awkward and heavy-handed romance between MacDougal and Darthula (predictably one of the few female characters), and his Conan-pacing renders MacDougal a rather conventional muscle-head. We get a generic historical infodump starting about page 50, plus your standard Magical Artifact that Explains Everything ("the Scroll of Lucifer").
Moreover, since Lester insists that first novels in a series always end with some measure of optimism, Eshbach has his hero conclude with the thought, "despite all its shortcomings ... [Tartarus] was a wonderful place" (208). But that isn't earned; Eshbach is too enamored of mind-numbing action to spend any real effort on having created that "wondrous" effect.
The novel's dumbest moment, though, arrives when MacDougal is suddenly granted temporary god-like powers by the demon Ahriman, so he uses those powers to ... well, dump one of his rivals, the goddess Morrigu, into a steaming pile of manure (140). It's the wrong kind of humor for the wrong kind of audience. Otherwise, nothing about Eshbach's book codes as YA or children's; not in the same way as Brooks or Eddings consistently do.
Either way, The Land Beyond the Gate is deservedly forgotten. It represents a clear miss for the del Reys at a time when everything else they touched was turning to gold.
If you don't know Eshbach's name, he's old school SF (b. 1910, three years after Heinlein). His biggest claim to fame is launching a short-lived but important specialist press in the late 1940s and 1950s, Fantasy Press. Then, after a 20-some year hiatus from writing, Eshbach was lured back to writing by his close personal friend Lester, for whom he wrote the Lucifer's Tate tetralogy.
Lester edited Eshbach himself, which was getting rarer for Lester even during the early 1980s; he was already past 60 at that point. But his buddy Eshbach was a special case. The Del Reys gave The Land Beyond the Gate strong promotion. It received a Darrell K. Sweet cover, whom Lester loved (Judy-Lynn even stopped other publishers from using him by hiring Sweet full-time as staff), and she also -- in one of her innovations -- started printing Eshback's name on the right-hand side of the novel's pages. Judy-Lynn believed that readers saw headers on that side more, so this was one of her small tricks for marketing the author, rather than the author's book.
Unfortunately, The Land Beyond the Gate just isn't very good as a novel. Its pacing is clearly Howardian, which tends to pall at novel length, and especially when the need for constant action overwhelms basic characterization and world-building. For instance, this is telling:
Refusing further speculation, [Alan] MacDougall turned his back on the incredible scene and strode down the ramp. (p. 76)
The context doesn't matter, but clearly Eshbach believed having his protagonist genuinely think about this secondary world would damage the non-stop action. Which is a shame, because his "land beyond the gate", Tartarus, actually has a slightly interesting premise. Apparently, back in olden days, Lucifer had created this place for the Daughters of Lilith, who died out, and were replaced by real-world people after their deaths; for instance, MacDougall's Gandalf-like bestie is Taliessin, the famous bard from medieval Welsh legend.
In Tartarus, though, people are immortal ... and really, really bored. Insofar as Eshbach has a theme, this is it. When MacDougall arrives from our primary world, that shakes things up, and then the Tartarians try starting a random war to relieve the monotony. I can see where that sort of theme would appeal to Lester: the dullness of immortality without variation.
Nonetheless, Eshbach's writing leans heavily on the wrong side of terrible. He creates an awkward and heavy-handed romance between MacDougal and Darthula (predictably one of the few female characters), and his Conan-pacing renders MacDougal a rather conventional muscle-head. We get a generic historical infodump starting about page 50, plus your standard Magical Artifact that Explains Everything ("the Scroll of Lucifer").
Moreover, since Lester insists that first novels in a series always end with some measure of optimism, Eshbach has his hero conclude with the thought, "despite all its shortcomings ... [Tartarus] was a wonderful place" (208). But that isn't earned; Eshbach is too enamored of mind-numbing action to spend any real effort on having created that "wondrous" effect.
The novel's dumbest moment, though, arrives when MacDougal is suddenly granted temporary god-like powers by the demon Ahriman, so he uses those powers to ... well, dump one of his rivals, the goddess Morrigu, into a steaming pile of manure (140). It's the wrong kind of humor for the wrong kind of audience. Otherwise, nothing about Eshbach's book codes as YA or children's; not in the same way as Brooks or Eddings consistently do.
Either way, The Land Beyond the Gate is deservedly forgotten. It represents a clear miss for the del Reys at a time when everything else they touched was turning to gold.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 14, 2023
Finally finished this a while ago but forgot to post.
I originally started this because it looked like a silly little book, but it proved to be much better than I could have guessed. Eshbach uses a beautiful blend of the real world within the book and the fantasy one “beyond the gate” that he created to underline specifics of each in an ingenuous way and enhance the reader’s appreciation of both.
His descriptions were also something to behold. Extensive (though not overly lengthy) and vivid, his imagery made it as though I was staring at his world and the amazing constructions within in a painting. From the fantastical skies to the esoteric architecture to the land surrounding, I was caught up in the visions he created, almost smelling the rain or dust or air or whatever else might’ve accompanied a description at a time.
Lastly, his world, the rules that govern it, and the system of magic (if you should so call it) were so novel and unlike any fantasy book I have read. If only I could find the final three books in the series!
My only gripe was that there were a couple instances where it was a product of its time, but these are few and not nearly as detrimental as they could be.
I originally started this because it looked like a silly little book, but it proved to be much better than I could have guessed. Eshbach uses a beautiful blend of the real world within the book and the fantasy one “beyond the gate” that he created to underline specifics of each in an ingenuous way and enhance the reader’s appreciation of both.
His descriptions were also something to behold. Extensive (though not overly lengthy) and vivid, his imagery made it as though I was staring at his world and the amazing constructions within in a painting. From the fantastical skies to the esoteric architecture to the land surrounding, I was caught up in the visions he created, almost smelling the rain or dust or air or whatever else might’ve accompanied a description at a time.
Lastly, his world, the rules that govern it, and the system of magic (if you should so call it) were so novel and unlike any fantasy book I have read. If only I could find the final three books in the series!
My only gripe was that there were a couple instances where it was a product of its time, but these are few and not nearly as detrimental as they could be.
Read
October 23, 2025science fiction, fantasy
May 14, 2012
Book one of his four volume Fantasy epic. A series for fans of Celtic Fantasy, featuring the Tuatha de Danann of Celtic myth, though gods of Sumerian and Indian mthos also appear in major roles, and some Christian elements also, including Lucifer's lieutenant Ahriman. A Scottish-American travels into the Scottish highlands in 1990. Things both good and bad happen to him. But he does not leave the highlands.
Next chapter: a year later, his brother, our main character, enters the highlands to search for him. He finds the brother, a magic sword, a magic armlet, a scroll, and four magical gates leading to other worlds. In these worlds he encounters the above characters, plus Formores, Vikings, Trolls, Druids, Romans, and other dangers and surprises. What adventures await? What is Ahriman's (and Lucifer's) plan? What is the secret of the scroll?
This series was written by one of the early pioneers of fantasy fiction. Esbach ran Fantasy Press in the fifties, and published many of the early sf and fantasy greats. He was twice guest of honor at the world fantasy convention. After his retirement he returned to writing and gave us this four volume epic fantasy. Book two is Armlet of the Gods, 1986. Book three is The Sorceress of Scath, 1988. Book four is The Scroll of Lucifer, 1990.
Next chapter: a year later, his brother, our main character, enters the highlands to search for him. He finds the brother, a magic sword, a magic armlet, a scroll, and four magical gates leading to other worlds. In these worlds he encounters the above characters, plus Formores, Vikings, Trolls, Druids, Romans, and other dangers and surprises. What adventures await? What is Ahriman's (and Lucifer's) plan? What is the secret of the scroll?
This series was written by one of the early pioneers of fantasy fiction. Esbach ran Fantasy Press in the fifties, and published many of the early sf and fantasy greats. He was twice guest of honor at the world fantasy convention. After his retirement he returned to writing and gave us this four volume epic fantasy. Book two is Armlet of the Gods, 1986. Book three is The Sorceress of Scath, 1988. Book four is The Scroll of Lucifer, 1990.
January 7, 2025
While The Land Beyond the Gate has an intriguing setting with a lot of potential, I found the story to be somewhat disappointing. The world-building hints at an expansive and complex universe, but the execution feels a bit too convenient, especially for the protagonist, Alan McDougall.
Alan essentially stumbles into a mysterious and unfamiliar world with little to no preparation, and yet, things always seem to work out perfectly for him. For example, early on, he conveniently meets a friendly, influential bard who is not only rich but also incredibly knowledgeable. This bard, who seems to have all the answers, shares crucial information with Alan without any hesitation, making his journey feel a bit too easy. There’s little sense of struggle or real challenge.
When Alan wants to become invisible, he just… becomes invisible. These moments take away the sense of danger or tension that you’d expect in an adventure of this kind. It feels like everything falls into Alan’s lap with minimal effort, which reduces the stakes and makes the plot less engaging.
While the premise is interesting, I was hoping for more depth and challenge for the main character. Unfortunately, the lack of meaningful conflict and the overly convenient nature of the plot left me underwhelmed. I don’t plan on continuing with the rest of the series.
Alan essentially stumbles into a mysterious and unfamiliar world with little to no preparation, and yet, things always seem to work out perfectly for him. For example, early on, he conveniently meets a friendly, influential bard who is not only rich but also incredibly knowledgeable. This bard, who seems to have all the answers, shares crucial information with Alan without any hesitation, making his journey feel a bit too easy. There’s little sense of struggle or real challenge.
When Alan wants to become invisible, he just… becomes invisible. These moments take away the sense of danger or tension that you’d expect in an adventure of this kind. It feels like everything falls into Alan’s lap with minimal effort, which reduces the stakes and makes the plot less engaging.
While the premise is interesting, I was hoping for more depth and challenge for the main character. Unfortunately, the lack of meaningful conflict and the overly convenient nature of the plot left me underwhelmed. I don’t plan on continuing with the rest of the series.
June 21, 2010
Definitely not what I was expecting from a novel of this type.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews