Corambis

Well, it had to happen: the series is officially over. And sad though that may be, the one thing that is not sad is this book. I will not give anything away, just say that for me, most book series endings leave me rather disappointed and often saying "that's it?" But not Corambis; this one left me just saying "AWWWWWWWWW!!!" And yes, sad as it may seem, I gave the book a little hug at the end :p (don't make fun lol) I loved this book, this series, and the world that Sarah Monette created. She explained everything without being repetitive or formulaic and her characters were rich and complex and had an incredibly expressive personal voice. LOVE this series!!! (If you see any "I Heart Mildmay" T-shirts out there, let me know :D) Do your selves a favor, read all four books from Melusine and The Virtu, to The Mirador and finally Corambis. Thank you Ms. Monette! You did fantasy fiction proud!!!

Just as always, Sarah Monette give us a wonderful book. Her characters really deserve a standing ovation! I'm sad to say goodbye to Mildmay and Felix but they were fantastic friends during my reading! (ps: sorry for the mistakes of grammar or ortograph I could have done, but I'm french and I don't speak english fluently...)

Exiled in the last (third) book, the wizard Felix and his long-suffering half-brother, former thief and assassin, Mildmay, travel to the distant land of Corambis where Felix must submit himself to the will of a council of wizards. Corambis has been in the midst of a civil war, the abrupt ending of which seems to have heralded the awakening of various strange and deadly mechanisms. A new character, Kay Brightmore, Margrave of Rothmarlin, was at the center of the fighting for the freedom of his lands from the rule of the Corambins. In an act of desperation, he and the leadership of the rebellion sought to awaken the powers of the mechanism of Summerdown, to disastrous effect. Corambis is so far from Felix and Mildmay's city of Melusine, that much knowledge has never spanned the distance. Felix has some idea of the powers at work and has the ability to safeguard the world from them, but he's hobbled by the will of the council. In the meantime, the brothers need to sort out their relationship and see if they will be able to forge a new life in this strange land. They cross paths with Kay and with many other characters along the way. All the characters are well-drawn and fascinating, and the land of Corambis, with its technology (trains!) and differing views of magic, is also worthy of exploration. This forth and final book in the Doctrine of the Labyrinth series (beginning with _Melusine_--the books are best read in order) makes for a satisfying conclusion.

Exiled from the Melusine for heresy, Calabine wizard Felix and his half-brother journey to the land of Corambis to face a wizard tribunal's judgements. Corambis is riddled with unrest, however - and Felix and Mildmay find themselves embroiled into a mystery thwarting even the must powerful of mages. Can their powers ultimately turn the course of events? A fine fantasy steeped in magic, perfect for fantasy collections.

First, you absolutely cannot read this book without reading the previous books in the series. In fact, even if you've read them, you might want to re-read them first, unless your memory is far better than mine, because the author refers frequently to past events without wasting time retelling them. That being said, Corambis is a great conclusion to an incredible series. I loved the first two books in this series, and was disappointed in the third book (The Mirador) because of the addition of a third POV character, who I found to be quite boring. In addition, in that book, Felix and Mildmay were both off in separate directions, and so the scenes between the two of them (which really are the heart and soul of the entire series) seemed few and far between. I was worried that Corambis would suffer similarly by the addition of Kay's POV. I am happy to say that I was wrong. I did not find Kay's chapters nearly as tedious as I found Mehitabl's. And, even better, a greater number of Felix and Mildmay's chapters are spent with the two of them together. This book is really about healing, and for those of us who have agonized along with Felix and Mildmay, it's about time. The series really does come full circle. I actually got goosebumps when I read the first line of the epilogue. I won't spoil anything, but it really hits you that this is the end of the tale, and I found tears in my eyes. I will miss these characters, but am so glad that the author made it work so well.