I must confess that I really like this colour. I like to use it to make darks, along with Ultramarine Blue, another favourite, it makes a deep but transparant dark. Problem is that the true Alizarin is not colour fast. In water colour it will fade in a relatively short period of time, in oils it is supposed to last longer. Even though I really, really like the colour I jsut tossed the last tube of it out. The uncerttainity about its lightfastness means that I should stop using it.
I can always mix reds with one of the Quinacridone reds or magentas in its place. Just something I will have to get used to I guess.