The Siege of Mt. Nevermind

Dragonlance: Chaos War #6

by Fergus Ryan

A miraculous machine . . . and a nightmare!

Innova, a young gnomish recluse finds himself in a terrible situation. Tried in a gnomish court for an unfortunate accident and sentenced to spend months at the bottom of Mt. Nevermind tuning gnomeflingers, young Innova makes an incredible discovery. The whole gnomish society is changed by one machine that, unlike any other gnomish invention, makes the entire mountain run like clockwork.

In the face of this, Commander Halion Khargos of the Knights of Tahkisis must fulfill his Vision, sent to him by the Dark Queen Tahkisis. He must take Mt. Nevermind.

Fergus Ryan tells the amazing story of the gnomes of Mt. Nevermind during the upheval of the Chaos War. And because they're gnomes, their adventures are punctuated with two or three explosions.

Genres: Dragonlance, Fantasy, Fiction, Dungeons and Dragons, Science Fiction Fantasy

320 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published September 1, 1999

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first Dragonlance novel I don't finish (and I'm about halfway into the story). Due to either one of these or a mix of them:
- writing style
- some details causing frustrations
- change in reading taste (or rather, a developed taste)
- me not being familiar enough with the gnomes (?)
- ...

It's been since 2009 that I felt like this. Back then, it was Kendermore by Mary Kirchoff that didn't convince me (see here), because, for example, Tas was too human and adding contemporary elements certainly didn't fit in the Dragonlance setting.

'The Siege of Mt. Nevermind' never caught my attention. There were some nice moments and ideas, but the whole plodded on. Also, was this written with teens in mind? I have the impression that other Dragonlance novels, prior to this one when you consider the Krynn timeline, were worked out better.

I agree with Jim's review (see here). This is indeed the weakest novel in the Chaos War series. Not only because of the writing itself and certain things not worked out. The Knights of Takhisis don't act like it; they don't come across as all evil and powerful and menacing. Commander Khargos is an adolescent, whose rise to fame came much too soon. Big mouth, not enough substance.

Among the gnomes, there are a few sympathetic characters, like Innova, the main character, Talos, and Lucretius Climenole.

Ryan tried to mix Fantasy and Thriller, which can be a nice combination, if done well. Sadly, this isn't the case here. Too many frustrations about the story plodding on, the Knights of Takhisis being pussies, and whatever more. Let's hope the rest of the pack is better written, but that'll be for another time. I'll have to apply the same tactic as with Pratchett's Discworld novels: not too many in a row, come back when needed to savour the stories more.

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always loved the gnomes of Krynn, but this book was something special. An amusing delight that nearly had me laughing in places. Seems I will have to dig around for other books by this author.

[Jim C · Rating 2 out of 5]

This novel is part of the Dragonlance world. It is part of a series but is a stand alone novel. This book takes place during the Chaos War and details the taking of the gnomes' homeland by the Knights of Takhisis.

I believe this novel to be the weakest one of this series. It never excited me. The positive aspect of this book is the characters. The author does a great job with the gnomes as he doesn't follow tradition and make each gnome hyperactive tinkers. He gives each one traits whether good or evil and makes sure each one is distinctive. The negative of this book is the plot line that causes all the events to unfold. Events happen because of the Paradise Machine and this machine works beautifully (a very rare occurrence for a gnome) and because of this machine, chaos happens. I never bought into this concept and because of this I never bought into the book.

To me, there are better books in this world. I did think the author had some good ideas but failed to act on them properly. It was a nice peek into the world of gnomes but as a book for pure entertainment I suggest other books in this series.

[Mikaël · Rating 2 out of 5]

The gnomes don't act like gnomes (that'd usually be a good thing but in this case, it's just asinine), Takhisis doesn't act like Takhisis, the dwarves don't act like dwarves (and don't belong there anyway). Each chapter brings more and more plotholes as it seems like an entire chapter's worth of off-screen events happens inbetween every chapter

Absolutely nothing is correct in this book, except maybe the Aghar.. but that's prolly 'cause it was written by one of 'em

[Matt Littrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read all these Chaos War books, and expected them all to be bad. And every one of them has pleasantly surprised me. They are all good, and this one is no exception. Some of the writing is a little wonky, and I'm not fond of the Gnomes in general, but it was a good tale.
There was humor, intrigue, silliness, confusion...in the end, just a good little tale that might surprise you.

[Trey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book entertaining. The Gnomes in Dragonlance are an often overlooked characters. I really those Hailon Khargos was a fascinating KOT and I wish we could have further adventures with him. I thought the legal twists in Gnomish society was unique and I connected with Innova, the main Gnome of the story. Excellent and entertaining read.

[Tom Green · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointed

[Mike Ceballos · Rating 2 out of 5]

El mundo de Dragonlance es vasto, y sus historias enriquecedoras a la saga de dicho universo. Sin embargo, hay autores que no reflejan el sabor original de las crónicas y leyendas de la dragonlance. A pesar del loable esfuerzo de Fergus y los elaborados detalles filosóficos e ingenieriles de los gnomos; no logré engancharme con la historia. Muy dificil la postura de Kargos como preferido de Takhisis y más aún, la redención final y sacrificio personal buscando mostrar una postura honorable ante un Caos inminente. Sin embargo, tiene escenas convincentes de la cultura y vida de los gnomos del Monte Noimporta, es lo que rescata y llena de fundamento a la novela. Sin embargo, se nota el vaivén interno de la narración que en ocasiones pierde el interés del lector. Aún así, para alguien que es fanático y busca conocer todos los detalles previos a la guerra de las almas, es un buen material de lo que sucedió en el Monte Noimporta.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, I finally got through The Siege of Mt. Nevermind. It was fine, my least favorite of the Chaos War series. I recall reading a short story by Ryan (maybe in the Players of Gilean) where I had the same issues I had with this novel; the writing confused me. I don’t pretend to my super duper intelligent, but I do read quite a bit and not just this quality of paperback fantasy, so I’m used to reading all different styles and genres. However, something about Ryan’s writing style just perplexed me. I had numerous moments where I read a paragraph and just didn’t understand what had occurred. Anyway, Knights of Takhisis invade Mt. Nevermind while the gnomes refine their usually suspect inventions into remarkable working order. I didn’t hate it but sometimes I wished it were a short story instead of full novel. A bit overblown and melodramatic for me.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much fun to read. Gnomes are not dwarves. Under no circumstances make that mistake. Dwarves are all seriousness and work. Gnomes are accidental mishaps. (As opposed to the kender who are a cacophony of mishap.) Anyway, that's the general picture I get of those races. This book is extremely strange and silly and great fun to read. Don't expect the seriousness of most of the other Dragonlance books, this one is definitely on a different track.

[Paulo "paper books only" · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember reading this novel and enjoy it. The gnomes of Dragonlance are far stranger that their cousins the Dwarves. In their mountain of Nevermind they make their experiments and inventions. They even got a kind of elevator involving a catapult. It was a fun to read.

[Kurt Newman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun little book to read. In the world of Krynn readers hear a lot about gnomes and gully dwarves but this is one of the first to elaborate on the type of lives they live. It also gives a good view of the annoyances they can be to others. It was a good read and I enjoyed it.

[Girish Mani]

Overall it's a good book about gnomes and their tinkering with machines.