The Mountains of Majipoor
core novel 1995 Majipoor Cycle
Record
| First published | 1995 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 3.50 (635 ratings, collected 2026-09-14) |
| First-edition ISBN | 9780553096149 |
| Internal chronology | 4 |
Synopsis
The Mountains of Majipoor follows Harpirias, a young nobleman of Castle Mount sent on a diplomatic mission to the planet's remote, frozen northern regions, an area so isolated that its inhabitants have had almost no contact with the rest of Majipoor's civilization. Tasked with negotiating the release of Majipoori hostages held by a reclusive tribal people, Harpirias must cross forbidding mountain terrain and navigate a culture whose customs and expectations are entirely unfamiliar to him. What begins as a straightforward errand of statecraft becomes a test of patience and improvisation as local protocol proves far more intricate, and far slower, than the deadline pressing on him allows. Set generations after the events of Valentine Pontifex, the novel follows Harpirias's growing understanding of a hidden corner of Majipoor and the diplomatic ingenuity required to bring his mission to a peaceful close.
Where it sits
- Universe: Majipoor Cycle
- Series: The Lord Valentine Cycle core; position 4 of 4 in the series' recorded order
- Author: Robert Silverberg
Notes
- From the series record (The Lord Valentine Cycle): Majipoor Chronicles (a linked collection of 5 short stories and 5 novelettes/novellas, each following a different point-of-view character across Majipoor's history) is registered Core, not Expanded, under the collection-as-Core exception -- it is the primary reading unit for book 2 of this cycle, not a peripheral side collection.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings and are never conflated: a book's place in one says nothing about its place in the other.
- Publication order, within the series The Lord Valentine Cycle: position 4 of 4: previous Valentine Pontifex (1983)
- Internal chronology, within Majipoor Cycle: position 7 of 7: previous The King of Dreams (2001)
Sources
← Majipoor Cycle dossier · All universes
Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.