Book Description
The Book of Elementals Vol. 1 and 2 is an omnibus reprint edition of two classic fantasies by Phyllis Eisenstien:In Sorcerer's Son, Cray Ormoru, born in magic and raised with sorcery, dwelt in a world of happiness within the walls of Castle Spinweb. His mother, Delivev the sorceress, provided everything he needed or desired. Still Cray yearned for something more. And as he grew from boy to young man, Cray sensed that the time had come to undertake the quest to find the father he had never known, the young knight who had pledged eternal love to Delivev and then never returned from a final mission for his own lord. And so Cray set out on the journey which would take him from town to castle to a fortress of bronze, totally unprepared for the sorrows and dangers that lay ahead. For the fate of Cray's father would only be discovered by the light of demon fire... In The Crystal Palace, Cray and his friend Feldar Sepwin, a seer, craft a mirror of silver, wood and spider web, enchanted to show the viewer his or her heart's desire. Yet for Cray the mirror showed nothing for years. Then one day he was drawn to it to see the image of a young girl. But who she was and where she dwelled remained mysteries. In time, as the girl grew into a beautiful woman, Cray discovered her home with the help of demons of Fire, Air and Ice-a magnificent palace in the realm of Ice. Cray discovered that she was Aliza, a sorceress dedicated solely to the study of her craft. And Cray realized that his quest had just begun-for Aliza was as much prisoner as mistress of her Crystal Palace, and even Cray might not master the power to break the spell and set her free... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Well I actually bought a book from a Columbia Professor
Good all around, I don't like fantasy much, but this book is worth the read.Give it a shot, especially if you are into fantasy ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Good, but pales in comparison to Sorcerer's Son...
I have to say: I absolutely loved the Sorcerer's Son (the book that this is the sequel to), and I thought that this book started out good as a sequel and as a normal book. However, although the book had many twists and surprises I thought that the overall experience was duller than the first book, and there are some errors that do not fit with the first book.

It seems that although Eisenstein has in some areas expanded the sequel from its origin, in other areas she has shrunk it back, at the expense of the book; for instance (no spoilers except if you haven't read Sorcerer's Son yet, and even then it's a minor one), we are now told that Cray's mother is the only sorceress/sorceror who is not evil and doesn't recruit demons in the whole world, wiping out a lot of possibilities for other characters and contradicting in a way with the first book.

I also thought that too big a chunk of the book was spent inside the crystal palace with somewhat repetitive talk going on between Cray and Aliza. I have nothing wrong with character development, but I would have preffered that Eisenstein had drawn out a story in which the character development could happen "on the move" as it did in the first book.

Another splotch for me was the badly chosen "evil" in the book.(possible spoiler) Having wiped out other possibilities by saying that Cray's mother was the only one who practiced magic besides recruiting demons, we get barely a sense of real danger from the evil sorcerer in this book since we see that he's not even as strong as the one in Sorcerer's Son. It seemed like Eisenstein kept on trying to add on special evil powers to him all through her book to cover what she realised was a rather weak archfiend.

However, I can't deny that I still love Eisenstein's writing more than most other authors'.

So I give this book a "4". In comparison with Sorcerer's Son, however, I would give it a "2.8"

SPECTACULAR!
This book has great memorable characters that you can identify with as well as think of them as your own friends.A fantastic sequel to the book,Sorceror's Son.Kudos to Phllis Einstein for her effort.A third book would very welcome.

A fitting sequel to the Sorceror's Son.
This book was, I think, one of the best fantasy books that I have ever read. In the previous book, Cray finds that hehas inhereted a powerful legacy not only from his sorceress mother but also from his similarlyempowered father. The Crystal Palace shows within its pages how Cray'sknowledge - not his enthusiasm - of sorcery increases.To fill this voidwithin himself Cray must look beyond his life and his world. Eisenstein isa mistress of her art and this book serves to exemplify her skill.

LOVED IT!!
Here is a brief synopsis.This is the 2nd book after The Sorcerer's Son.It follows Cray Ormoru's latest quest on saving the woman he loves from her Grandfather.

Romantic literary fantasy
I haven't yet fallen out of lovefor this book.The story is filled with longing desires, an emotionallyintrinsic brand of sorcery, and villainous jealousy.That there wereends to the depths of her story haveleft me checking the ailes of bookstores for many years.(Where did I put my copy?) ... Read more

Book Description
Word count: 1043. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

In the Red Lord's Reach
I always try to back up my opinions of books with clear reasons.This review will have to be somewhat of an anomaly, because I know there's something wrong with "In the Red Lord's Reach", though I don't quite know what it is.The beginning finds Alaric traveling northward, where he enters the valley of the Red Lord.After finding and rescuing an innocent torture victim in the lord's castle, he falls in with a band of outlaws, then joins some deer-herding nomads on the arctic plains.The Red Lord himself is a total blank, torturing and killing for no reason.The book might have survived such an uninspired stock villain, however, since he's only 'on-screen' for about ten pages.

I think the big problem with this book is the long middle section.We see Alaric joining the nomads, hobnobbing with one chief, hobnobbing with a different chief, taking a trip to the north pole to collect flowers, fighting some young ruffians, and much more.Still and all, it doesn't build up to an overwhelming story.In "Born to Exile", everything clearly reflected the book's central theme.This book has the same theme, and a similar ending, but the middle part is meandering and it's less clear why Alaric can't fit in.

Nevertheless, the writing is still strong and succinct.The scenes are constructed carefully, and flow by without contradictions.Eisenstein is one of the better and more original fantasy writers of the last thirty years, and all of her books are worth a look.

Why has the music stopped?
I own and have read this book and the previous one "Born to Exile", and have read both several times.Alaric is minstrel who has the unique ability to travel instantly to any place he has already been.But, his real magic is the lyrics and music that touches the heart of all how listens to it.In the novel"In the Red Lord'sReach" he has come into his man hood using his ability to help the people of the north survives.Buy, borrow, or steal it, then read it. Tell your friend to read.Then demand through the publishers, booksellers and Ms. Phyllis Eisenstein to please let Alaric live again in new stories. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Trapped in a Parallel World
Celia, a Midwest graduate student who tutors Spanish, has a new boyfriend, Larry- who came to her for language lessons and has now become her lover. Larry has found the gate to a parallel Earth. On this Earth, however, the Spanish Armada was not defeated by the British Navy, the Protestant Church never gained a foothold, the steam engine (nor any technological advance since then) was never invented, and North America is a Spanish-speaking wilderness. Enslavement of any commoner without a protector abounds in this parallel America.
And Celia finds herself trapped there... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Great Book
This was a fantastic read.From the cover and the description, it seemed very typical and straight forward.But don't be fooled, this novel is filled with characters with many facets, and lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing.Eisenstein is not a very prolific writer, but if you enjoy this one, pick up In the Red Lord's Reach, The Crystal Palace and Born to Exile.All are fine reads.

Exquisite Fairy Tale
As a jaded fantasy reader, I immediately recognized the character types I'd seen in a hundred other fantasy novels.What Eisenstein did is take characters that could easily have been cliches and made them live.These people seem real and human, and the story -- the wonderful, absorbing, unique story is so well told I couldn't put the book down.Some scenes were classic fantasy novel moments but they were so well done they seemed fresh, like I was reading the book the others had been imitating.The plot itself was original and satisfying; it kept me guessing/hoping/wondering without relying on illogical, artificial twists, and I can't remember the last time a fantasy novel achieved that.

Flat Static Characters from Central Casting
After having read several of the reviews for this book, I decided to give it a try. Never before have I read a book with such cookie cutter characters. They are simple and unchanging, with no depths, thoughts, or emotions (the one exception is the knight's mother, she displays her everlasting sadness, but even then, that is her only emotion.) The young knight, the loyal squire, the recluse sorcerers, the nonspecific seer, etc. You needn't waste your time reading this book. Halfway through, you'll throw it down and say "Who cares?"

Amazing... Simply amazing...
This is honestly the best book i have ever read.I had Pottermania for a while, but not anymore.I'm surprised this book is so underrated, because none of my fantasy/sci-fi friends have ever even heard of it!Trust me, it's absolutely wicked!

One of the Best fantasies of the 1970's
This book was published in 1979, a few years after the original Ballantine Adult Fantasy series had ended and right before the amazing fantasy fiction boom of the 1980's.As a result I've always considered this book a major transitional work in Fantasy fiction.The story of Cray (the son of the title) is a great coming of age story and shows how an author can create a Fantasy novel that does not require huge armies or huge casts of characters but focuses on a boy trying to find out something about himself.The love between son and mother is also heartwarming and quite a feel good.The writing is clean and descriptive with no false dialog or emotions.The ending is satisfying and touching (I love to re-read the ending).A book on a small scale that grows into a large wonderful read. ... Read more