King Bruenor Battlehammer, with Drizzt Do'Urden, sits on his throne and mourns over the loss of his friend Regis and his adoptive daughter Catti-brie nearly 24 years before.

Above all, King Bruenor regrets never completing his quest to find the legendary home of the Delzoun dwarves, Gauntlgrym.

Meanwhile, Nanfoodle, the gnome inventor famous for his Moment of Elminister - a purposeful explosion that sent gas swarming to the surface during a vicious battle 40 years earlier - and Jessa Dribble-Obould, an orc, hatch a plan to poison Bruenor.

Bruenor drinks the ale and shortly after the entire population of Mithral Hall goes into mourning at the abrupt death of their king.

Pwent, distraught over the death of Bruenor, seeks out Nanfoodle and Jessa for answers in the hills outside of Mithral Hall.

It is then revealed that Bruenor faked his death with the help of Nanfoodle and Jessa in order to continue his quest for Gauntlgrym while leaving Mithral Hall in Banak's good hands.

(Andahar is a magical unicorn that can be summoned much like Guenhwyvar, Athrogate's demon boar, or Jarlaxle's nightmare.

Andahar was a gift to Drizzt from the ruling council of Silverymoon for his work with both blade and diplomacy during the Third Orc War.)

Dahlia has been charged by the Red Wizard of Thay lich Zulkir Szass Tam to go to create a Dread Ring.

She was raped by the barbarians and impregnated by the tiefling Herzgo Alegni and forced to bear his demon offspring which she killed soon after it was born while she was still a child herself.

While searching for the lost kingdom in Ten-Towns and Icewind Dale, they investigate rumors of a sanctuary inhabited by a beautiful witch and a halfling caretaker.

While visiting Clan Battlehammer, Bruenor (traveling under the alias Bonnego) decides to continue his search for more information to the location of Gauntlgrym.

Pwent, having reached an age where he is not as agile and mobile as he once was, reluctantly decides to stay in Icewind Dale when Drizzt and Bruenor take their leave.

Upset that the city lord will not rename a bridge after him, he recalls his chief assassin Barrabus the Gray from his home in Memnon.

Herzgo is at odds with the Red Wizards and the Ashmadai, and when he learns of their agents in Luskan he tells Barrabus to go investigate.

Sylora then seeks out Dahlia and commands her to follow her and serve her under threat of death and Szass Tam's displeasure.

Eleven years later in 1462 DR the Dread Ring has been completed thanks to the death and destruction caused by the primordial's rage.

Dahlia is forced to serve Sylora and Barrabus hunts the Ashmadai with great success under orders from Herzgo.

Jarlaxle and Athrogate continue to reside in Luskan, still seeking a way to avenge themselves for the events that occurred in Gauntlgrym 11 years before.

Dahlia also searches for a way to get back to Gauntlgrym and to seal off the primordial, hoping this will lead to her freedom from Sylora.

Jarlaxle, Athrogate, Dahlia, Bruenor, and Drizzt decide to travel to Gauntlgrym together in an attempt to stop the primordial and hopefully destroy the Dread Ring in the process.

The five enter Gauntlgrym whereupon Bruenor sits upon the dwarf king's throne and is enchanted with divine power and knowledge from the ancient dwarves.

The primordial has attracted many minions from the Elemental Plane of Fire to fight off intruders, powerful salamanders and even a small red dragon.

During the fighting, dwarves from Icewind Dale and Mirabar (who have also been visited by dwarf ghosts) arrive in another part of Gauntlgrym in order to help seal the primordial.

While Drizzt and Dahlia hold off the Ashmadai and several legion devils, Athrogate and Bruenor move deeper into the city to seal the primordial, but are intercepted by Beealtimatuche.

God-blessed Bruenor engages Beealtimatuche in a titanic battle, but even with his new powers, the devil seizes the upper hand.

Finally, the grievously-injured King Bruenor cleaves the devil's head in half and throws him in the heart of the primordial.

Attempting to escape, Dor'crae is caught in a waterfall created when the lever was pulled, and explodes into black flakes, seemingly destroyed.

Regis remarks that Bruenor is indeed dead, and when he motions behind the dwarf king, he turns to see his adopted daughter, Catti-brie, dancing in the woods.

Ryan Van Cleave of California Literary Review stated that Gauntlgrym is a "quick read with satisfying fight scenes, and deeply layered with emotional atmosphere."