Mountains of Majipoor, The [Mass Market Paperback]

Robert Silverberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1996

Facing blizzards, ice storms, and strange beasts on a mission to the frozen tundra, Prince Harpirias attempts to rescue a party of scientists who have been kidnapped by an uncivilized race from beyond Majipoor. Reprint.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Silverberg's fourth Majipoor book?his first in over 10 years?is, like the second novel in this popular fantasy series, Majipoor Chronicles, a bildungsroman. Set five centuries after the events in book three, Valentine Pontifex, it details the adventures of Prince Harpirias, a young bureaucrat exiled from Castle Mount when he commits an unintentional indiscretion during a hunting expedition. The prince is given a chance to redeem himself by rescuing a group of scientists who have been taken captive by a previously undiscovered, less technologically advanced people whom Harpirias considers "savages." Aided by a Shapeshifter and several others, Harpirias makes several discoveries that startle him much more than they will the reader. While there are moments here that recall the glorious descriptive passages displayed earlier in the series, these are infrequent, and sadder still is the author's apparent lack of interest in his characters. Hissune in Majipoor Chronicles and Valentine himself were living creations, but Harpirias and the Shapeshifter seem less full-fledged characters than elements tailored to further the plot. While fans may be grateful for any return to Majipoor, this shadow of a novel doesn't provide the journey they might have hoped for.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Exiled to Majipoor's forsaken borderlands for an act of youthful folly, Prince Harpirias accepts-with considerable misgivings-a final chance to redeem his past disgrace by accepting a mission to rescue a group of hostages from the hostile barbarians who inhabit the icy mountains at Majipoor's end. Returning to the world of Lord Valentine's Castle (LJ 4/15/80) and its sequels, Silverberg transforms an otherwise standard coming-of-age story into an allegorical rite of passage. Fans of the author's other Majipoor novels will welcome this graceful coda to a popular series.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Spectra (January 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553573276
• ISBN-13: 978-0553573275
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #962,871 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Short-story with novel pretensions, October 23, 1997

By 

[e-mail] (Bogotá, Colombia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mountains of Majipoor, The (Mass Market Paperback)

For those of us who have read Silverberg's novels located in huge, beautiful and diverse Majipoor, the publication of a new book on this marvelous world is always a special event. Two of three previous books in this saga ("Lord Valentine's Castle" and "Valentine Pontifex"), have been full-length novels, with well developed characters and plots, covering 400 pages or more. The third one ("Majipoor Chronicles")is a collection of short stories, which contains one titled "A thief in Nimoya", which I consider one of the best ever written by Silverberg. However, "Mountains of Majipor" is only a short story, maybe what is considered a "novella" in the science fiction jargon. A large print and a clever page layout converted an otherwise short-story in a novel. The books depicts the adventures of a court noble who is disgraced and sent to one of the most remote and harshest areas of Majipoor, where he finds a primitive people, with very strange customs. His mission is to rescue several scientists who have been kidnapped by that isolated tribe. Silverberg's talent for creating believable and interesting aliens appears again in this book, which offers clues to the origin of one of the native peoples of the planet, the shapeshifters. I consider "Mountains of Majipoor" a loosening exercise by the author, preparing himself for the bigger task of giving his readers once again a full novel placed in Majipoor. That one is "Sorcerers of Majipoor", recently published. It was a good read, I liked it, but I expected a little more depth from one of the most respected authors in science fiction.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great short story in the realm of Majipoor, April 2, 2004

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C. T. Hunter "chips_books" (Gainesville, FL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mountains of Majipoor, The (Mass Market Paperback)

While I wouldn't put this book on the same level as Valentine Pontifex just because of its size, it is still a really fun book to read. WHile the events here do not affect the world of Majipoor in any big way, the simplicity and excitment of this one are really great.

Basically, the story consists of a prince from Castle Mount (Harpirias) being sent on a mission to recover a team of scientist that were captured by a lost tribe of barbarians (the Othinor) in the Kyhntor Mountains. While the story line was very simple, the action was great and the interactions among the characters (which had major communication problems) were entertaining and interesting.

This is a short, easy read, and I'd reccomend it to anyone who has enjoyed Silverberg's other Majipoor novels.

1.0 out of 5 stars The poorest of all the Majipoor novels, April 17, 2009

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D. Johnson (Quinnesec, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mountains of Majipoor, The (Mass Market Paperback)

Buy this one last after you've read every other Majipoor novel, and you're addicted. It's a poor story that could have taken place anywhere; there's little that ties it to Majipoor at all. Silverberg doesn't seem to have dedicated much thought to this one.