The Goblin Tower
core novel 1968 Novaria
Record
| First published | 1968 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 3.50 (650 ratings, collected 2026-08-30) |
| Page count | 260 |
| First-edition ISBN | 9780345298423 |
| Internal chronology | 1 |
Synopsis
The Goblin Tower opens with King Jorian of Xylar facing an unusual predicament: Xylaric custom decrees that a king must be beheaded after a five-year reign, with the next ruler chosen by whoever catches the severed head. Rather than submit to the ceremony, Jorian escapes his kingdom with the magical assistance of the sorcerer Doctor Karadur, who transports him to distant lands beyond Xylar's reach. As payment for this rescue, Jorian is obligated to retrieve the Kist of Avlen, a legendary repository of ancient magical manuscripts, sending him on a quest across the fantastical realms of Novaria. Along the way he contends with wizards, strange creatures and shifting political alliances, all while agents of Xylar pursue him to drag him back for the beheading his escape interrupted.
Where it sits
- Universe: Novaria
- Series: The Reluctant King core; position 1 of 3 in the series' recorded order
- Author: L. Sprague de Camp
Notes
- From the series record (The Reluctant King): Core trilogy of the Novaria setting, later gathered into the omnibus The Reluctant King.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings, but they resolve to the exact same sequence for this book, so one combined line is shown instead of two identical ones.
- Reading order, within the series The Reluctant King: position 1 of 3: next The Clocks of Iraz (1971)
Sources
← Novaria dossier · All universes
Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.