Book Review – The Virtu

Author: Sarah Monette
Cover Artist: Judy York
Publisher: ACE
Binding: Hardcover
Publication Date: 2006

After a protracted wait, despite the release of The Virtu in the summer of last year (alas, the benighted library system in this poor reviewer’s neck of the woods runs like molasses when it comes to new releases), I finally had a chance to read the followup to Sarah Monette’s excellent debut novel Melusine.

Among the Gardens of Nephele, Felix Harrowgate has regained sanity and magical ability, yet his half-brother Mildmay the Fox is all but crippled by the effects of the curse that nearly claimed him. Felix embarks on a quest to return to Melusine and restore the Virtu, a journey that will draw Mildmay after him and lead them on a path across the sea and the realm of Kekropia once more.

As with Melusine before it, The Virtu rises above the tried-and-true (albeit given a new life here) fantasy models to be a complex yet at times touching depiction of relationships. Felix and Mildmay once again are depicted in alternating first-person chapters as they struggle with their feelings about each other, the people around them, memories of the past and the forces arrayed against them. The multi-faceted personalities of Felix and Mildmay are on full display here, bringing a great depth to the storylines that twist and turn like the literal and symbolic labyrinths encountered throughout The Virtu.

The more fantastical side of the story is no less intriguing, as Felix and (reluctantly) Mildmay delve ever deeper into the thaumaturgical arts that will enable a mending of the Virtu. The various schools of wizardry are described in more detail, and the numerous mysteries touched upon in Melusine are given answers throughout the book. In particular, having just read Melusine to refresh my memory before starting The Virtu, I was impressed by the neat setup for events much later.

The Virtu could easily be an excellent conclusion to the stories of Felix and Mildmay, but Sarah Monette has indicated that two more books will follow: The Mirador and Summerdown, both of which I’m eagerly anticipating.

Melusine was an outstanding debut novel on a number of levels, but The Virtu surpasses it easily.

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