The Virtu (Melusine)

by Sarah Monette

Hardcover, 2006

Status

Available

Call number

813.6

Series

Doctrine of Labyrinths (2)

Genres

Publication

Ace Hardcover (2006), Hardcover, 448 pages

Description

"[A] wonderful follow-up to [the] extraordinary fantasy debut, Mélusine, this sequel is every bit as original and satisfying as its predecessor." --Publishers Weekly, starred review His sanity restored, Felix Harrowgate knows there's only one way back to the life he once knew as one of an elite society of wizards: return to Mélusine and restore the Virtu, the source of the city's power and protection. After all, it was the manipulations of Felix's former master that destroyed the magical orb. Now that Felix has determined his course of action, there's a very specific companion he needs for this epic journey. Only Mildmay isn't so keen on Felix's plan. Not only is the assassin and thief grieving his dead lover, he's suffering the ill effects of a curse. Besides, Mildmay isn't so sure a return to Mélusine is in Felix's best interests. But there's no persuading Felix otherwise, which means Mildmay is compelled to join forces once more with the mercurial wizard with whom he shares a bond unlike any other. But neither man expects the evil they encounter when they enter Mélusine once more. For Malkar Gennadion, the dark wizard and sadistic master Felix believes himself free of, lies in wait. . . . "An engagingly intelligent fantasy." --Library Journal "Compelling. . . . The magic is delightfully inventive. . . . Perhaps best of all is [Addison's] authorial voice, abundantly blessed with originality, sophistication, and artistry." --Booklist Book two in award-winning author Katherine Addison's captivating series, The Doctrine of Labyrinths Originally published under the name Sarah Monette.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member veevoxvoom

The Virtu is made up of ten kinds of awesome. I squealed with joy the entire way through.

The story picks up from Melusine with Felix and Mildmay in the Gardens of Nephele. Felix, recently healed, is starting to act sane again. Pretty soon he and Mildmay pack their bags to go home to Melusine,

except, of course, the journey isn’t as peaceful as they’d like it to be. Once in the city they are faced with more dangers as Felix tries to reinstate himself in the Mirador and old enemies rear their heads.

The Virtu, like its prequel, is a delicious, lush book. The geography, the religions, and the philosophy of its characters roll sleekly off your tongue and into your head. The imagery of labyrinths introduced in the first book really becomes dominant here, as well as the growing relationship between Felix and Mildmay. First time around Felix was crazy, so it was difficult for him and Mildmay to really connect, but in The Virtu the tensions of their relationship is string-taut. There’s sexual tension as well as Mildmay’s desire to be loved and Felix’s inability to be anything other than a jerk. Even if the book weren’t as exquisite in other areas as it is, I would read it for the relationship alone.

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LibraryThing member narwhaltortellini

And so, Felix and Mildmay head back to Melusine to right some wrongs and stuff. We shall see the return of some fairly missed main characters, along with the entrance of a new one. Much like the first book, this is really about how Felix and Mildmay are dealing with each other and themselves.

These

books are good, and they get a reaction out of me like not many other. But lord almighty, do they annoy me. Felix is done with the crazies and back to just being a sane jerk. I actually don't mind this fact. Mildmay continues his deterioration started in the end of the first book from the persevering attitude with piteous giggle-inducing what-the-fuck-ness to still persevering but with self-depreciative grumbling and constant mopey thoughts. ...I can't say that I don't mind that, but my original wince at this development was like the wince when a character you like gets stabbed in the arm. Ouch, you hurt my character. Ooo, but what interesting developments will this happenstance cause?

Our interesting development is that Mildmay's now disastrously low self-esteem practically encourages Felix to be a bastard to him, while Felix being a bastard to him rather encourages Mildmay's disastrously low self-esteem, while all the while the two are so emotionally attached to one another (not all in a bad way!) that they'd feel empty and worthless without the other.

Ok! So then what happens??

...What, with their self-images and how they get along? ...Nothing, actually. The plot just keeps going with them acting like that. Methinks the point is to NOT be like most other stories in this situation, where the character most in the wrong is going to be lead by their personality flaw to make some huge mistake and then learn from it. 'Cause darn it, people don't always change that easy, if at all. But the characters' and their flaws started feeling so set in stone, part of me stopped even waiting for them to change. I wasn't even expecting to see improvement at this point, actually (two more books to go, after all ^_^). I was just hoping for something that would... trip up the relationship. (There actually IS another aspect of their relationship that does this somewhat, and it was enjoyable for that, but I guess I needed more.) As the book went on, when plot points/conversations came up that seemed like they may have the potential to spark something else (good? bad? different?) in their relationship or reactions, I stopped getting a little more tense and a little more into, holding my breath just a tiny bit to see if something happens, and just started saying, 'Oh, whatever, they're just going to act like always.'

I've reread this book now that the next is nearly out, and while I know I enjoyed it considerably the first time, I actually had LESS fun rereading this than Melusine. I think a lot of the entertainment value came from the (dwindling as the book went on) hope that something in the relationship would change. Knowing it wouldn't through the second read actually made it almost tedious.

But darn it, even with the feeling of stillness in the character development, the noticeably less fleshed-out state of Felix's character in comparison to Mildmay's, these characters and their situation are too engaging for this book to be bad. There's potential for a lot of crazy shit to go down with these two. Just sitting there and listening to them know each other (too well? not enough?) can be fun. I await the next book with more eagerness than a thousand Harry Potter releases, and absolute, heart-clenching, wistful dread.

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LibraryThing member xicanti

This is simply one of the best books I've read in ages.

It has scads of good qualities. The action moves quickly, zipping the reader from scene to scene with the speed of thought. Small details from the first book pay off in a big way. The magical system is inventive and nicely described. The

setting is beautifully realized, and Monette shows us how her world works in a logical, organic way that makes sense within the confines of the story. Her grasp of voice, too, is spot-on. The alternating first person points of view continue to work to great effect. As was the case with the first volume in the series, the reader can instantly tell whose perspective is in play at any given time.

The book's biggest strength, though, is its characterization. Monette is stunningly good at showing the reader just who these people are. Absolutely everything herein contributes to the characterization. Every scene, every word, deepens the reader's understanding of these two men and their relationship. That, above all else, is what kept me reading. The tension between them, much of it fueled by miscommunication and assumption, is handled very well indeed. It kept me absorbed and involved, desperate to see where these two characters would end up at the story's end.

As was the case with Melusine, I'm sure the style isn't for everyone. Some readers may find the alternating perspectives off-putting, and the plot is perhaps a little episodic in places. However, I strongly recommend this to those who enjoy character-based stories. Read Melusine first, though, so you know where these people are coming from.

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LibraryThing member yarmando

The narrators' voices were well-crafted and engaging, and the plot looked like it might be worth following. But I'm just not in the mood for books with sentences like this: "She was the last heir of the major line of the House Attalis, and therefore the last major impediment between the House

Erkhthais and their goals: an end to the endless series of suit and countersuit before the Aisxime--and the attendant, though disavowed, raids and assassinations--and the absorption of the House Attalis holdings into their assets."

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LibraryThing member katchoo

'I gulped and I said, 'If I got to leave you, then I don't know why I should bother to stay alive.''
-

I found The Virtu even better than Mélusine, and I had liked the first book pretty well. There's more of a plot to be unveiled this time, and it all goes deeper into the Labyrinth symbolism (which

is supposedly the subject of the series). I

It's still unclear to me what is the purpose of Magic there. Are wizards actually useful to society in some way, apart from scaring people shitless?

Felix went back to sanity and his usual ways, and Mildmay still is the loveliest creature in that universe - I would gladly fuck him sideways until he cried. Their relationship is growing more and more intense, even if they apparently have different ideas about why & how they like each other.

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LibraryThing member Jenson_AKA_DL

Although a little slower and more difficult for me to get through I did enjoy this continuing story of the wizard, Felix, and his brother, Mildmay the Fox. In this story Felix has decided to return to Melusine with a purpose that will get him back into the good graces of The Lord Protector, such as

they were.

Now that Felix has his sanity back it is quite easy to see his faults and vices for what they are, and they are most definitely not pretty. Somehow despite his selfishness and complete obtuseness to his brother's feelings he manages to keep a toehold on being likable. Occasionally this toehold worked loose and if there was anything more aggravating than Felix at his worst, it was Mildmay's acceptance of it. Now that Mildmay has a crippled leg and has lost any hope of regaining his previous vocation of thievery his self-esteem has flown right out the window. Felix is really not very much of a help in this department which causes many moments of wanting to smack him upside the head. Had they not had the good fortune to run into Mehitabel it is hard to say what might have become of Mildmay's character. However, it is precisely the characters’ faults and relationship that kept me interested in the story through the confusing descriptions of wizardry and geography.

Overall I did enjoy the story. I liked Felix for being such an ass (as stupid as that may sound) and Mildmay for being so damnably loyal. Despite the fact that this story seemed to have a finite ending I know that there are at least two more of the series that I will definitely be reading in the future.

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LibraryThing member angeltyuan

Plot/Themes - 4/5
I loved the ongoing tension here between the brothers who each have no trust to spare, but care about each other without knowing why (Felix doesn't remember his crazy-timez, and Mildmay didn't really interact with the non-crazy Felix until now).
The mythology is actually pretty

interesting, with labyrinths and mazes, and I like that nature is acknowledged as being indifferent to human suffering.
Some of the events are a bit too coincidental/plot device-y though, especially that female Troian on the ship, but seeing how there was that whole "prophecy made true" vibe going on, I guess it's to be expected.
The incest-y snippets are starting to emerge and I'm curious as to how that's going to work out, along with Gideon's "treaty" with Felix. It's weird though, that I kinda see the Felix/Mildmay or Felix/Gideon as moving along like one of those romance novels where the guy is an asshole, but the girl keeps going back to them (Beauty and the Beast anyone?)...

Characters - 4.5/5
I liked that Felix knows about his inability to be nice/considerate and his guilt over forcing Mildmay to be the lenient one. That said, I still don't like the way he makes everything out to be about himself, not thinking things through and putting other people (especially Mildmay) in danger. He also seemed to get distracted really easily, making him seem detached to the stuff that goes on around him. Still, at least he finally gathered the guts to smoke Strych.
Then there's Mildmay's resignation in being the one ordered around as he can't say no to Felix (first figuratively, and then literally), as well as his fear that Felix doesn't need/want to associate with him anymore - which disturbingly parallels the Malkar/Felix relationship dynamic. The jealousy and resigned fondness is a little heartbreaking, just as his sense of betrayal and distrust at the end is too.
I liked Mehitabel, even though her story is a bit vague, at least she can be counted on to care about Mildmay when Felix is too self-centered to notice.
Only problem I have is that von Heber and Gideon seem to have entirely new personalities. I liked the old Gideon better, when he wasn't ever so dependent on Felix.

Writing - 3.5/5
I like Felix as a sane narrator much better, he fluctuated a bit much when he's crazy and his character was very inconsistent then. And the bad grammar and repeated phrases are back, though at a more controlled level. Still, Mildmay's snark keeps me happy.

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LibraryThing member terriko

Very reminiscent of Guy Gavriel Kay, in a good way: heavy on the politics and people within a slightly fantasy world.

LibraryThing member ShellyS

Melusine and the books following are The Doctrine of Labyrinth series, which refers to the labyrinths that play an important part of the magic in her universe as well as important roles in each of the four books in the series. For me, they really are one long book broken into four volumes.

In

Melusine, the characters of Felix Harrowgate, a Cabaline wizard, and Mildmay the Fox, a cat burglar, were introduced. Felix was used by his evil mentor, Malkar, a blood wizard, to destroy the Virtu, the globe that channeled the magic powers and spells of the Mirador’s wizards, an act which drove Felix insame. It isn’t giving much away to say that Felix turns out to be the half-brother of Mildmay, a development that even I, an inexperienced fantasy reader, figured out early on.

The Virtu picks up almost immediately after the conclusion of Melusine, and details how the half-brothers journey back to the Mirador, in the city of Melusine. Accompanying them on their travels is Mehitabel Farr, an actress with a secret past. Felix is convinced he can fix the Virtu and hopes he will have the chance before tried and executed for its destruction. Back in the Mirador, Mildmay becomes a pawn in Malkar’s plot to ensnare Felix once again.

Upon finishing this, I jumped immediately to the third book, and then the fourth. To do justice to these books without giving much away or without going into details that might spoil the joy of reading these books is darn near impossible. The characters are what makes this series.

Felix and Mildmay, both sold to thief keepers by their prostitute mother, grew up in Melusine’s Lower City, but the paths their lives took were very different. After being a thief, Felix ends up working in a brothel, where he’s found by Malkar and taught how to pass for an aristocrat, which led him to become a wizard of the Mirador.

Mildmay also began as a kept-thief at an early age, but by the time he was 14, had been trained as an assassin, finally breaking away from his keeper and earning a living as a cat burglar and cardsharp. Where Felix is arrogant and vain, the taciturn Mildmay is humble to a fault, living on the edge and old beyond his years. Where Felix is educated, Mildmay is barely able to read. Where Felix has magic, Mildmay has his fists and his tenacity. Their strengths and weaknesses are both complementary and cause for conflict, with each causing the other pain, both intended and not. Entwined in their adventures is the slow progress of their relationship over time as they learn to trust each other and their own feelings. Throw in various forms of magic and magic theory, and the books have a strong foundation.

Told in alternating first person povs, the narratives have distinct voices that will get into your head and stay with you a long time. Because I have a lot of books still waiting to be read, I’ll resist the urge to reread these now. But I doubt I’ll be able to hold out for long.

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LibraryThing member slothman

Felix and Mildmay return to Mélusine, where the Virtu, a powerful enchanted artifact that is crucial to the integrity of the community of wizards that protect the city, has been damaged. Neither of them are expecting a welcome on their homecoming— but Felix is the only person with a chance to

repair the Virtu before the neighboring Kekropian Empire takes advantage of Mélusine’s weakness. And the solution involves a labyrinth beneath the Mirador itself. This book resolves the significant threads left hanging from Mélusine. While our heroes have clearly learned from their journey, they still have a lot of room to grow.

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LibraryThing member JeremyPreacher

I totally failed to love Melusine, but The Virtu was leaps and bounds better. The characters aren't so unrelentingly unlikeable, the situations aren't quite so unbearably awful, and the book ends on a definite up note.

That being said, this is a book with some very strange pacing issues. The travel

is richly detailed and occupies the first half of the book - other than the daring prison rescue, which takes up about ten pages. The second half is all careful relationship-building - very well done, but again, the actual major plot point is quickly dealt with and quickly tossed aside. And the final adventure is oddly placed - it isn't even hinted at until the very end of the book, and it becomes clear that it won't be a cliffhanger simply by looking at how many pages are remaining, but it seems tacked-on to the overall story.

None of these scenes are bad, they're just handled a little oddly. Overall, The Virtu made me much more excited to finish the series.

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LibraryThing member silentq

Book 2 in the series, and it's just as hard to put down as the first one was. Felix is much more likable in this book, he's realised that he can be an unpleasant person and is trying to be a bit better. I love Mildmay even more in this one. :) It did feel rushed though, and I was really surprised

to see two big resolutions in this book when I know that there's a third in the series. The author didn't linger quite as much over lyrical descriptions of the cities and their inhabitants, and the travel portions were over in the blink of an eye. I rarely felt like they even had any close calls when they were trying to sneak past enemy magicians. The addition of a savvy lady to the party was a welcome surprise. The revelations about labyrinths were neat as well, but overall it just felt a bit thin, especially compared to the first book.

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LibraryThing member lycomayflower

This sequel to Melusine picks up right were that book left off. It is perhaps not quite as enthralling as the first book, but the characterization that made Melusine so great carries on and there's satisfying plot progression and developments for Felix and Mildmay. We meet a nifty new character

named Mehitabel, too, and I really hope she sticks around for book three because she was both awesome and underused in The Virtu. Basically, more of the same and a must-read if you liked book one.

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LibraryThing member TheIdleWoman

Again, probably more 3.5 stars for the plot side of things, but the characterisation continues to be absolutely compelling and once again I was simply unable to put it down (handy, since I read it on a long journey). Mildmay's narration is, as ever, a joy to read. Full review coming soon.

LibraryThing member wealhtheowwylfing

This is the sequel to [book: Melusine]. Renegade wizard Felix Harrowgate has regained his sanity but is hated, feared and scoffed at across two continents because of his dark past, madness and most recent betrayal, in which he inadvertantly broke the Virtu, the magical core of the Mirador. With his

half-brother Mildmay in tow, Felix treks back to the Mirador, where he intends to fix the Virtu.

Now that Felix is sane again, the reader can get a much better grip on his personality. I find him to be a very dynamic and exciting character, especially in contrast to Mildmay, who mostly just sounds like Eeyore. (I like the brother equally, but I am getting tired of the setup of: Felix does something thoughtlessly cruel or mercilessly expedient. Mildmay is thus forced into physical or mental pain. All the characters pity Mildmay. Mildmay says, "no no, I deserve it and besides, I love Felix so." Repeat ad nauseum.) As in [book: Melusine], the plot progresses in fits and starts; there are long periods where nothing happens followed by GHOULS ATTACK or PRISON BREAK! Some parts I slogged through, while others I couldn't read fast enough. I look forward to the next book.

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LibraryThing member Isana

Not nearly as satisfying to me as Melusine but still good. Monetter style is really great and I enjoyed reading it. She does the personalities well. Sometimes the easiness of the events were frustrating but it was still a pleasant read. I had my old problem of disliking the main couples again so I

think that took a LOT of enjoyment out of my experience. Oh well.

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