Reviews

The Virtu by Sarah Monette

redheadbeans's review against another edition

5.0

This series is just so goooood. Book 1 was definitely more Mildmay's book, which book 2 is more Felix's book. Ah Felix. You just.... keep digging, don't you? And poor Mildmay. I love him, the wonderful lad. And Mehitabel. Bless.

Great writing, good humor. The magic system is a bit ehhhh at times and I kind of skimmed those portions. I can appreciate that a lot of good thought was put into it, but it's a bit too much for me. Thankfully the character building was given the greater focus, so. The plot is another sort of long journey with the central focus of the story now being Felix and Mildmay's relationship. Which is good. It's fun to read about.

Overall, great book. Already enjoying what I've read of book 3.

codenamerogue's review against another edition

4.0

Weird pacing continues to be weird, but I still like these characters and the writing. Will for sure be continuing the series.

lottpoet's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

ineffablebob's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The Virtu reads to me like the second half of the first Doctrine of Labyrinths book, Mélusine. You'd expect a sequel to pick up threads from the prior book, of course, but in this case it's almost the mirror image. Characters, places, plot points from the first book are revisited again and again, almost like retracing steps of a journey in reverse. There's only one significant new character, and even she is a reflection of someone in the first book. None of this should be read as a criticism - I enjoyed this one even more than the first, but it does mean that once the general trajectory became clear, there wasn't much in the way of surprises. Didn't matter to me, as the characters are so interesting that knowing where the plot was going didn't matter much. My one actual criticism is that I felt that the climatic ending conflict was won too easily, almost by accident. But that's not enough to seriously detract from my enjoyment - highly recommended to anyone who liked the first one.

skiaphilia's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Mildmay........ I love u

evp's review against another edition

4.0

A solid sequel and an entertaining fantasy adventure. I really love the pace of these books, where action scenes are not dragged out. The language barrier felt smaller in this book, with most of the new vocabulary being described as they were introduced. However, I still really struggle with some of the language. It's really hard to pick their accents, with Mildmay mixing 19th Century English words (e.g. molly) with modern-day American (y'all and 'an herb'). This needs to be more consistent, as it really takes me out of the world.

I think I realised that necromancy fantasy is something I enjoy. Good stuff.

nextboldmove's review against another edition

4.0

This is a book that should basically be duct-taped to the back of [b:Melusine|492069|Melusine (Doctrine of Labyrinths, #1)|Sarah Monette|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175199913s/492069.jpg|2484], since it really doesn't work at all as a stand alone novel. Bonus that this book really does better things with the characters we meet in [b:Melusine|492069|Melusine (Doctrine of Labyrinths, #1)|Sarah Monette|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175199913s/492069.jpg|2484], too.

One of the better books I have read recently with an LGBT main character.

wealhtheow's review against another edition

3.0

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.

threerings's review against another edition

4.0

I loved this book and it made me finally fall in love with Felix and Mildmay, so I got the resolution I wanted from the first book. I'm thoroughly addicted to the series now.

kristi_asleep_dreaming's review against another edition

5.0

http://kristis-tea.blogspot.com/2007/03/melusine-and-virtu-by-sarah-monette.html