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Tales of Alaric the Minstrel #2
In the Red Lord's Reach
A wandering minstrel was all Alaric wanted to be. But he was born with a power that let him travel anywhere he'd ever been -- or could see -- with a mere thought. It was harmless magic, but to the people of the South it made Alaric that most dreaded of beings -- a witch. So he became a voluntary exile, journeying the lands, playing for his meals, bringing happiness to high and lowborn alike. Until he came to the valley of the Red Lord.
In the Red Lord's castle, Alaric discovered a horror that was stealing the life and soul from the land. Using his power to flee this valley of death for the safety of the far north, hew was adopted by the nomad tribes as one of their own, and was challenged by their own great witch to learn the extent of his magic. Yet Alaric couldn't forget the terror he had left behind. One day he knew he'd have to challenge the evil that waited in the Red Lord's realm....
In the Red Lord's castle, Alaric discovered a horror that was stealing the life and soul from the land. Using his power to flee this valley of death for the safety of the far north, hew was adopted by the nomad tribes as one of their own, and was challenged by their own great witch to learn the extent of his magic. Yet Alaric couldn't forget the terror he had left behind. One day he knew he'd have to challenge the evil that waited in the Red Lord's realm....
268 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 1989
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213 people want to read
About the author
Phyllis Eisenstein
75 books90 followersPhyllis Eisenstein was an American author of science fiction and fantasy short stories as well as novels. Her work was nominated for both the Hugo Award and Nebula Award.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
October 14, 2017
In the Red Lord's Reach (1989) by Phyllis Eisenstein reads like the fantasies a decade earlier, which makes sense because the stories were first published in 1977 and 1979 in The Magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy. That makes this book seem a fix-up, but I think that the short stories were always intended to form a complete arc. Each chapter of the novel reads like a complete short story.
This particular novel is the sequel to Born to Exile, being the second book of the Tales of Alaric the Minstrel. I hadn't read the first, but that didn't matter. While his past history got quite a few nods, this set of stories forms a distinct stand-alone tale, assuming nothing of the reader.
Because the novel is broken down into stories, you almost always get a feel of progression and advancement, as each story isn't so long that the action bogs down or that it gets lost in its own descriptions. It's a good trick and I'd like to see more modern authors using it. Where it falls down compared to modern novels is in its loose story arc. The ending doesn't come across quite as rousing as if an entire book has built up to that point.
The action here is very low key as action isn't the focus of the story. If you're good with that, the story moves, but if you crave good action, you'll find that many sections drag.
The primary character, Alaric, has one good power, teleporting, and much of the novel explored that one good power, what it means, and what advantages it can be put to. While some advantages of teleporting are obvious, many are situational and not quite as obvious. The character of Alaric himself is a bit of a pacifist and a bit of a self-doubter. He's not an oozing testosterone fighting hero. Everything doesn't go right simply because he's a good guy doing right. The world is a bit more complicated here than good and bad, a little larger than it seems at first.
While I happily recommend the book to anyone, as I rather enjoyed the read, I can't say that anyone in particular would enjoy it. In this novel, much depends on your taste.
This particular novel is the sequel to Born to Exile, being the second book of the Tales of Alaric the Minstrel. I hadn't read the first, but that didn't matter. While his past history got quite a few nods, this set of stories forms a distinct stand-alone tale, assuming nothing of the reader.
Because the novel is broken down into stories, you almost always get a feel of progression and advancement, as each story isn't so long that the action bogs down or that it gets lost in its own descriptions. It's a good trick and I'd like to see more modern authors using it. Where it falls down compared to modern novels is in its loose story arc. The ending doesn't come across quite as rousing as if an entire book has built up to that point.
The action here is very low key as action isn't the focus of the story. If you're good with that, the story moves, but if you crave good action, you'll find that many sections drag.
The primary character, Alaric, has one good power, teleporting, and much of the novel explored that one good power, what it means, and what advantages it can be put to. While some advantages of teleporting are obvious, many are situational and not quite as obvious. The character of Alaric himself is a bit of a pacifist and a bit of a self-doubter. He's not an oozing testosterone fighting hero. Everything doesn't go right simply because he's a good guy doing right. The world is a bit more complicated here than good and bad, a little larger than it seems at first.
While I happily recommend the book to anyone, as I rather enjoyed the read, I can't say that anyone in particular would enjoy it. In this novel, much depends on your taste.
March 2, 2018
I so enjoyed the first Alaric the minstrel novel, that I wanted to read the second and final book about him. It opens with the compelling tale of a strange king's domain whose evil is unknown until a climactic moment. The second half of the book bogs down in a near-documentary of tundra tribal life and explanations of the world's magic. Bringing the cruel king to justice is forgotten and Alaric is caught up in scenes with annoying or throw-away characters. He does use this time to "find himself" though, and the exciting last twenty pages are probably richer for it.
April 28, 2009
One of my favorites of all time. Every Eisenstein novel or story are worth reading, for they're both rare and exceptionally crafts. This novel is really a fix-up of several short stories published in the 80s, though it is put together seamlessly and is a very touching story. It's a small fantasy, no big epic tale, but it is so well-written and so sad in the end that it stands out.
June 22, 2020
These are the continuing adventures of Alaric the minstrel, hero of Born to Exile, who has the ability to transport himself instantaneously from one place to another, a trait he has to keep secret for fear of being called a witch. In his wanderings he comes to the domain of the Red Lord where he offers his musical services in return for the usual bed and board. Very soon he realises that there is something disturbing at the heart of the Red Lord’s reign. The hold the Lord has over the valley is as a reward for protection against bandits - of whom Alaric has seen no sign - and screams come from the Lord’s tower every night. When Alaric says it is time for him to leave he is taken to the tower where he finds the Lord tortures and eventually kills his victims, a fate now intended for Alaric.
He escapes (of course, how could a self-teleporter not?) and makes his way to the north lands where he falls in with the deer-herding (and riding) nomads who live there. The chief, Simir, himself a fugitive from the Red Lord, takes to him, as does Xavia the daughter of the nomads’ witch, Kata. Kata’s potions and prognostications are a solace for the nomads - she yearly provides them all with the Elixir of Life and imbues the men with the talent to hunt. Here being a witch is not seen as devilry, though Alaric does not accept that for a while. His relationship with Xavia is not taken well by Simir’s sons and leads to a confrontation. The sons are exiled and Alaric finds himself desired as a successor by both Simir and Kata.
The bad winter which follows leaves the nomads with few deer, no prospects for the next year and little option but what all along the reader knew was coming; to try to overthrow the Red Lord.
It’s decently enough written and engaging (not to mention remarkably free of errata) but an attempted rationale for Alaric’s powers as tapping into what seem to be magnetic field lines, described when Kata leads an expedition north to harvest the strange flowers which grow only there at midsummer and provide the ingredients for the Elixir of Life, sits somewhat oddly with the otherwise purely fantastical premise.
He escapes (of course, how could a self-teleporter not?) and makes his way to the north lands where he falls in with the deer-herding (and riding) nomads who live there. The chief, Simir, himself a fugitive from the Red Lord, takes to him, as does Xavia the daughter of the nomads’ witch, Kata. Kata’s potions and prognostications are a solace for the nomads - she yearly provides them all with the Elixir of Life and imbues the men with the talent to hunt. Here being a witch is not seen as devilry, though Alaric does not accept that for a while. His relationship with Xavia is not taken well by Simir’s sons and leads to a confrontation. The sons are exiled and Alaric finds himself desired as a successor by both Simir and Kata.
The bad winter which follows leaves the nomads with few deer, no prospects for the next year and little option but what all along the reader knew was coming; to try to overthrow the Red Lord.
It’s decently enough written and engaging (not to mention remarkably free of errata) but an attempted rationale for Alaric’s powers as tapping into what seem to be magnetic field lines, described when Kata leads an expedition north to harvest the strange flowers which grow only there at midsummer and provide the ingredients for the Elixir of Life, sits somewhat oddly with the otherwise purely fantastical premise.
April 13, 2020
[Probably 3.5 stars really]
There are a lot of interesting ingredients here: the protagonist’s ability to teleport in the blink of an eye to anywhere he has previously been, an ability he has to hide from other people, who hate and fear witches (though the reasons why are never really explained); the Red Lord’s terrible rule over his valley; the mystic powers of Kata, the witch of the polar nomads. But it doesn’t quite cohere. The first section, in which Alaric enters the valley and meets first the cruel Red Lord and then the band of bandits who are trying to avoid him, in both cases without anything that might be called success, is fairly well done. The next section, in which Alaric heads north and meets up with the polar nomads, was not quite as successful: the goal is clearly to force Alan to accept that he can use his powers for more than just running away, but the way that he slides into the nomad’s society is a little too much of the hero who was promised, and the nomads themselves are mostly fairly generic. (It’s also a bit strange that most of the story is actually spent outside the Red Lord’s reach.) The exception is Kata, the aforementioned witch, a standout whose first rejection, and then acceptance, of Alaric as somebody she can respect, if not an equal, is the truly interesting part of this section. But after the journey to the Pole, this thread of the story mostly falls into the background as we move towards the inevitable final battle, with the inevitable twist that all the bad guys are working together. Alaric’s revelation that the offensive use of his powers is, in some ways, no better than their defensive use is interesting but leaves the book feeling curiously unfinished. On the other hand, after reading the book I discovered that it was actually part of a larger series, so perhaps some crucial context is missing here: there are several references to past events in Alaric’s life that it turns out are probably from other Eisenstein stories. So my final recommendation on this book is probably to start with “Born to Exile” instead.
There are a lot of interesting ingredients here: the protagonist’s ability to teleport in the blink of an eye to anywhere he has previously been, an ability he has to hide from other people, who hate and fear witches (though the reasons why are never really explained); the Red Lord’s terrible rule over his valley; the mystic powers of Kata, the witch of the polar nomads. But it doesn’t quite cohere. The first section, in which Alaric enters the valley and meets first the cruel Red Lord and then the band of bandits who are trying to avoid him, in both cases without anything that might be called success, is fairly well done. The next section, in which Alaric heads north and meets up with the polar nomads, was not quite as successful: the goal is clearly to force Alan to accept that he can use his powers for more than just running away, but the way that he slides into the nomad’s society is a little too much of the hero who was promised, and the nomads themselves are mostly fairly generic. (It’s also a bit strange that most of the story is actually spent outside the Red Lord’s reach.) The exception is Kata, the aforementioned witch, a standout whose first rejection, and then acceptance, of Alaric as somebody she can respect, if not an equal, is the truly interesting part of this section. But after the journey to the Pole, this thread of the story mostly falls into the background as we move towards the inevitable final battle, with the inevitable twist that all the bad guys are working together. Alaric’s revelation that the offensive use of his powers is, in some ways, no better than their defensive use is interesting but leaves the book feeling curiously unfinished. On the other hand, after reading the book I discovered that it was actually part of a larger series, so perhaps some crucial context is missing here: there are several references to past events in Alaric’s life that it turns out are probably from other Eisenstein stories. So my final recommendation on this book is probably to start with “Born to Exile” instead.
April 3, 2011
I liked the fact that the main character was so sensitive.
February 29, 2024
I wasn't aware this was a sequel when I picked it up or I would have probably waited until I found the first book. I am glad I didn't. This book is one of those low-key fantasies that just don't seem to be written anymore. Mostly a personal journey with fairly low stakes yet somehow I am just as invested in the outcome. I would recommend this to anyone who wants an older-school fantasy novel that isn't an LotR clone and isn't trying to be some big epic.
September 4, 2025
I picked this up from the 92¢ bin at a used bookshop and was pleasantly surprised. If you like fantasy with musical protagonists, try this one.
EDIT: I did not realize until after I finished reading this that it was the second in the series. The author did a good job presenting enough of the Alaric backstory to make it sound like interesting color and not required reading. Now I want to go back and read Born to Exile.
EDIT: I did not realize until after I finished reading this that it was the second in the series. The author did a good job presenting enough of the Alaric backstory to make it sound like interesting color and not required reading. Now I want to go back and read Born to Exile.
September 23, 2018
Mostly, this book is uniformly good. Not great, but good. The part that most impressed me is that the protagonist, in addition to threats from natural forces, bad guys, and very bad guys, also must conflict with very good people whose goals simply differ from his.
January 29, 2019
Part 2 of the Tales of Alric. Sequel to Born to Exile. Not as good as the first, but still not bad. Open ended as if for another book.
July 6, 2020
Enjoyable book set in near Arctic climate zone and further north. Good characterization and interesting characters and villains. Hopefully there is more to come next, someday.
April 30, 2022
3.5 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
Summary
Alaric, a traveling minstrel with the power to shift instantly to anyplace he has seen, has crossed the forbidding northern mountains to find a surprisingly green land, but with a dark secret at its heart.
Review
In The Red Lord’s Reach is a more cohesive story than its prequel, Born to Exile, likely because less of it originated as short stories, but I also found it somewhat less appealing. It’s still fun, but Eisenstein sets up a villain in the first segment, and then largely ignores him until the end. While we spend the time getting to know Alaric, the protagonist, as a more fully formed character than in the first book, there’s always the nagging memory of a task left unfinished.
Sadly, as in the first book, Eisenstein wraps up the end in just a few pages. While she takes care to tie off the main threads and tensions, there’s no resolution of Alaric’s larger goals and issues, including the love of his life, Solinde. A symbol of his early life that he’s carried throughout two books eventually just falls by the way, literally, and is left behind.
Still fun, but it feels very much like the middle book of a trilogy that was never finished.
Summary
Alaric, a traveling minstrel with the power to shift instantly to anyplace he has seen, has crossed the forbidding northern mountains to find a surprisingly green land, but with a dark secret at its heart.
Review
In The Red Lord’s Reach is a more cohesive story than its prequel, Born to Exile, likely because less of it originated as short stories, but I also found it somewhat less appealing. It’s still fun, but Eisenstein sets up a villain in the first segment, and then largely ignores him until the end. While we spend the time getting to know Alaric, the protagonist, as a more fully formed character than in the first book, there’s always the nagging memory of a task left unfinished.
Sadly, as in the first book, Eisenstein wraps up the end in just a few pages. While she takes care to tie off the main threads and tensions, there’s no resolution of Alaric’s larger goals and issues, including the love of his life, Solinde. A symbol of his early life that he’s carried throughout two books eventually just falls by the way, literally, and is left behind.
Still fun, but it feels very much like the middle book of a trilogy that was never finished.
April 9, 2014
This looks like a typical fantasy novel about a boy becoming a hero but its not....I dont know what Mr. Phyllis thought when he was writing this book but after reading the two books I just lost faith in having super powers even If I could get them....The reading is simple and all along you will feel the loneliness Alaric feels, why everyone wants him to be more than he wants to be..trying to forcibly cast their aim and ambitions on him and the underlying sorrow is all along there...I dunno If i could take another book of this journey of despair taken by the Wanderer...the Minstrel with a soul of Gold.
February 10, 2016
Not great, but decent enough that I'd read more of her work.
The story itself was thin and fragmented in components, but the storytelling itself was good, and was the redeeming quality.
Minor sword & sorcery tale, more about the journey of the protagonist than the actual story itself - this could have been set in any realm, anywhere, any time and delivered the same tale.
Not saying you should go out and buy it, but if you end up reading it you won't be wracked with self-loathing afterward.
The story itself was thin and fragmented in components, but the storytelling itself was good, and was the redeeming quality.
Minor sword & sorcery tale, more about the journey of the protagonist than the actual story itself - this could have been set in any realm, anywhere, any time and delivered the same tale.
Not saying you should go out and buy it, but if you end up reading it you won't be wracked with self-loathing afterward.
October 22, 2007
I read this series in the wrong order, but it was still an entertaining idea. This was one of my first introductions into the fantasy genre, and it was one of the books that hooked me. Its a very fast, easy, read. Perfect for an airplane or an afternoon when you're sick and stuck in bed but not in the mood for something heavy.
April 19, 2015
Stunning, lovely, must read! Read easily and enjoyed every moment of it.
August 10, 2015
Cute, as is the first part, but more predictable, which is why I cannot give it more than 3 stars. I'll still read the third book. Wait, what?
November 4, 2017
Very slow and didn't flow from the first book.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews