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The Virtu Melusine Sarah Monette 9780441014040 Books

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The Virtu Melusine Sarah Monette 9780441014040 Books

In this second instalment of the serial we find more or less the same flaws that were in the first, first and foremost the author's morbid, sadistic complacency in describing and overindulging in the two main characters' messed up lives and their tormented, disfunctional personalities, an excess that leads sometimes to inconsistent or childish behaviours.
Introspection is therefore at the same time the main asset of this book and its main flaw: Felix and Mildmay feel constantly, impossibly tortured, most of the pain they suffer, now that they have escaped their abusers, is self inflicted. Tension is always there but it is sort of circular: the two never really grow up and tend to repeat the same damaging behavioural patterns with disastrous consequences.

It is also difficult to understand (and surely hard to stomach) how Felix only realizes he has hurt his brother AFTER he has done it. Each and every person makes mistakes but he really only talks about having changed while he keeps on behaving like the cruel, spoiled courtier he was before getting insane. It is the author's choice, of course, but perhaps it could have been carried out in a more nuanced way.

On the other hand while the plot is not exceptionally rich in events, it never drags. Ms Monette's love of language is evident throughout as was in the first volume but here her writing flows even better. This remains a serial not to be read when only looking for easy fun but the language here gave me authentic pleasure. Mildmay's slang, which was rather clunky in the first volume, is here unerring and highly communicative. The same Mildmay often breaks the fourth wall to address the reader directly and it always sounds good.

The magic is a bit convoluted but engaging, side characters functional to the plot, the plot itself evolves nicely and the 500 hundred pages read quickly and pleasurably.


Tags : The Virtu (Melusine) [Sarah Monette] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. A powerful wizard until his former mentor seizes his magic and uses it to shatter the Virtu, an orb that serves as the magical source and protection for the city's wizards,Sarah Monette,The Virtu (Melusine),Ace Hardcover,0441014046,406608075,Fantasy fiction.,Wizards;Fiction.,AMERICAN SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY,Fantasy,Fantasy - General,Fantasy fiction,Fiction,Fiction - Fantasy,Fiction Fantasy General,Fiction-Fantasy,GENERAL,General Adult,United States,Wizards

The Virtu Melusine Sarah Monette 9780441014040 Books Reviews

This book is the sequel to Melusine, and that's by way of saying they're more like two volumes of a single tale than two standalone books. Melusine gets Felix and Mildmay to where they were going, but once they're there they have to patch themselves up and then get home...and that's only the beginning.

The first book introduced the characters as individuals, and used various adventures during their journey to let you get to know them better. This book is all about the characters interacting--specifically Felix and Mildmay, who remain the two POV characters in this continuing first person narrative.

Felix was psychologically damaged in the first book, requiring Mildmay to protect him. In this book, it's turnabout as Felix recovers and Mildmay quickly finds himself out of his depth. A common thief without any magic, he's looked down upon by the wizards who Felix seems constantly surrounded with, and in some cases he finds himself helpless at their hands. What's more, too much has happened for him to return to his old life, and he's cast adrift to find a new niche for himself. He's in over his head with Felix himself, too the hapless madman from the first book is gone, replaced by a powerful, confident and charismatic man who's used to getting his way through any means necessary.

But Mildmay is no pushover, and Felix isn't all-powerful, and the two of them quickly discover how much they need each other--a prospect that doesn't comfort either of these men who're used to living their lives in emotional isolation. But it makes for great reading, let me tell you. This book is saturated with the developing relationship between the two brothers, touching scenes and false starts and sometimes lashing out as they increasingly realize they're in this together.

The plot here is more integrated and consistent than in the first book, where it mostly consisted of spurts of activity among a lot of boring travel. This time, Felix has a goal that drives the action he wants to get home to fix his screw-up, redeem himself, and take vengeance on the man who hurt him. Mildmay mainly follows along and bails the reckless wizard out of trouble. They pick up some new companions and some old ones, including perhaps the only two sane and stable characters in the series. The labyrinth motif deepens in this book into a true theme that echoes on every level from the literal to symbolic, as the characters find themselves lost in actual labyrinths and emotional ones, and even the maze-like turns of prophecy and fate.

But don't expect a happy ending. Just when everything seems to be working out alright and the end is in sight, Felix manages to screw it all up royally. He gets what he wanted, but all is definitely not well, to the tune of another two books following to clean up the mess he makes. And poor Mildmay...if you like writers who are cruel to their characters, this is definitely a book for you. Mildmay claims he can find his way through any maze, and he and Felix had both better hope that's true.
In this second instalment of the serial we find more or less the same flaws that were in the first, first and foremost the author's morbid, sadistic complacency in describing and overindulging in the two main characters' messed up lives and their tormented, disfunctional personalities, an excess that leads sometimes to inconsistent or childish behaviours.
Introspection is therefore at the same time the main asset of this book and its main flaw Felix and Mildmay feel constantly, impossibly tortured, most of the pain they suffer, now that they have escaped their abusers, is self inflicted. Tension is always there but it is sort of circular the two never really grow up and tend to repeat the same damaging behavioural patterns with disastrous consequences.

It is also difficult to understand (and surely hard to stomach) how Felix only realizes he has hurt his brother AFTER he has done it. Each and every person makes mistakes but he really only talks about having changed while he keeps on behaving like the cruel, spoiled courtier he was before getting insane. It is the author's choice, of course, but perhaps it could have been carried out in a more nuanced way.

On the other hand while the plot is not exceptionally rich in events, it never drags. Ms Monette's love of language is evident throughout as was in the first volume but here her writing flows even better. This remains a serial not to be read when only looking for easy fun but the language here gave me authentic pleasure. Mildmay's slang, which was rather clunky in the first volume, is here unerring and highly communicative. The same Mildmay often breaks the fourth wall to address the reader directly and it always sounds good.

The magic is a bit convoluted but engaging, side characters functional to the plot, the plot itself evolves nicely and the 500 hundred pages read quickly and pleasurably.