Mapmakers and the Flickering Fortress

Mapmakers #3

by Cameron Chittock, Amanda Castillo

Alidade and her friends face their ultimate challenge in the final installment of the graphic fantasy trilogy that's perfect for fans of Avatar the Last Airbender and 5 Worlds.

With our heroes divided, they must find a way to stop the Night Coats and to reunite before it's all too late. With their freedom and the magic of the Memris on the line, each Mapmaker will have to decide — what is the future they want for their world? 

And what are they willing to pay to make it happen? 

This epic conclusion comes to an end as Alidade, Lewis, Blue, and their new friends and Mapmakers, finally take on the Night Coats who ruin any chance of hope for their homes and family. With dark magic and plenty of action, will Alidade be able to free everyone of the Night Coats?

The Mapmakers #1: Mapmakers and the Lost Magic, #2: Mapmakers and the Enchanted Mountain, #3: Mapmakers and the Flickering Fortress

Genres: Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Fiction, Comics, Graphic Novels Manga, Juvenile

Kindle Edition

Published April 23, 2024

About the author

Cameron Chittock is a writer of comics and graphic novels including the Mapmakers trilogy and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Stranger Things. When he’s not scribbling down ideas, he enjoys coaching basketball, reading comics of all kinds, and exploring New England with his family.

Reviews

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to start by saying, I haven’t read the first two books from this series. But somehow that didn’t ruin the experience for me at all. There were a few things that I know would be better explained if I had read the first two books, but I still thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It was so cute and so fun! So full of magic and adventure and adorable characters and good moral lessons for both kids and adults. Absolutely recommend this book! And now I need to read the other books in this series asap!

[Abbigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this conclusion to the trilogy was really disappointing. A lot of unanswered questions that I don't think needed to be, a failure to fully drive home the problem with the Night Coats, and unclarified aspects of this world that would be interesting to know about.

[mad mags · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Full disclosure: I received a free e-ARC for review through Netgalley.)

At the conclusion of MAPMAKERS AND THE ENCHANTED MOUNTAIN, besties Alidade and Lewis had just split up: Alidade surrendered herself to the Night Coats, in the hopes that she might learn more about them; and Lewis, with the help of Cado and his new Memri, Peak, set off in search of more Mapmakers.

When Alidade and Constable Frances Atwater arrive at Nox City, chaos is looming. Night Ward Wolfhart is missing and his underlings are trying to find him before word gets out. Naturally, Alidade sneaks off to do some investigating of her own. With the Constable in tow, Alidade finds hidden doors that lead to dark, threatening, thorn-filled worlds. The secrets they discover threaten to undo everything - including Atwater's faith in the system. (Insert "Are we the baddies?" gif here.)

Meanwhile, in the Plains, Lewis and Cado find a scattered farming community on the brink of disaster. Ominous black weeds - reminiscent of Flickers - are choking all the crops. When Peak accidentally falls on one, he's knocked out cold. Luckily, an aspiring Mapmaker named Ripley Range knows just how to revive the Memri. She invites the gang back to her home - which is also the Mapmaker's Plains lodge. The entire Range family are Mapmakers - or more like translators, as they'd call it - and they've slowly been mapping the expansive Plains as a team. A scribbled out section called the Barrenlands catches Lewis's eye; ever the optimist, he runs off in the middle of the night to prove that it's an area worth mapping (and saving). What he finds there is wondrous.

MAPMAKERS AND THE FLICKERING FORTRESS is a fitting conclusion to the Mapmakers trilogy. Chittock and Castillo continue to broaden Alidade and Lewis's world beyond the Valley, and the ending even introduces Mapmakers from all over the globe (crossing my fingers for a spin-off). The big reveal about the Night Coats is pretty great and hints at political corruption and hypocrisy happening IRL. And of course, I absolutely adore the environmentally friendly themes found in the Mapmakers series; the plot line with the thought-to-be-extinct pheasants is just lovely. Ditto: Alidade's conversation with the thorny trees. Plus we get to see Blue smile!

[Erica Pehrson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this story and this was a GREAT conclusion. I loved the little pheasants! The characters are SO cute and this one had some great funny panels. Idk why it's rated 3.99. this should AT LEAST be a solid 4 stars!! This is a great middle grade series and I highly recommend it!!
I love the villain and the weird chemistry between the two characters (not romantic but just fun rivalry, obv). I loved the "side quest" that they were finishing mapping the world while Alidade took on the Night Coats. Good mystery, fun reveals, great character interaction. I love this story
And Lewis using his quilting skills in the end <3<3<3

[Gv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of cool concepts and lovely artwork as usual. I love the friendship between Alidade and Lewis, the worldbuilding and, gosh, I want to visit a lodge sooo much. However, this last volume felt a bit rushed and....
what happened to the constable? i re-read the ending 4 times and I am still not sure what I am meant to think? That she ran away? vanished? converted? turned into a coat? ...

[Amy Wolford · Rating 4 out of 5]

The third and final entry follows Alidade and Lewis as they try to take their freedom back from the Night Coats. The maps that they make bring back the Memris of their home.


Though this is a Middle grade book, it is still fun to read for any age. The world building is nice and the magic system is unique to this world. The banter between their enemies is more playful than cruel which is nice for a change. The adventure can sometimes be tense but mostly it is just fun. The message of finding harmony with nature is one that everyone needs no matter the age.


The artwork is cute and colorful. I love the detailed character designs and backgrounds that just bring the story more life.


The last chapter answers some questions but leaves several unanswered. This could hopefully mean more from the world as spin offs. Fingers crossed. This world offers readers a positive message about friendship and acceptance that resonates across all three volumes.


Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an eARC  of Mapmakers and the flickering fortress.

[Linet Badali · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt the author tried to squeeze in a lot of varying ideas just to finish the book. The storyline and concepts got really muddied and confusing from the middle to the end of the book. Furthermore, characters whom I thought were one gender, ended up being the opposite gender which left me feeling really confused. For example, the whole time I thought the constable was male, just to find out she was female and Cado I thought was female turned out to be a boy. If Cado was a boy, then why did the artist draw what looked like earrings in both his ears? Last, the constable disappeared. The author made it a point to make this a known fact to the reader multiple times, but then we never did find out what happened to her. She was completely left out of the ending altogether which was weird considering she was an important part of the story starting from book 1. Where I absolutely loved books 1 and 2, I did not like book 3 at all.

[Jaime Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each one of these books was better than the last! This edition focused heavily on themes of friendship, not having to carry heavy things alone, taking big things one step at a time, and staying determined to find community and create positive change even in the face of overwhelming odds and overbearing leadership. It had the most tension out of all of them, with the history and purpose of the Night Coats finally being revealed. I found the twists and unwinding very satisfying and liked the way it made the other Night Coats rethink their dedication. Ripley and her family were fun additions to the story, and she complimented Lewis, Alidade, and Cado very well. Again, I wish more people would read this series, especially as all the installments are now out. Read in one sitting and thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Tamikan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this graphic novel.

I didn't realize this was the third book in a trilogy when I requested it. I got the previous entries from the library and I'm glad I did because this does not work as a standalone.

Flickering Fortress was probably my favorite of the series, too. Our heroes come together to solve the main conflict while still leaving the world open for more stories. This whole series has such a positive message about friendship, acceptance, and staying true to yourself. The artwork is cute with great character designs and a good mix of detailed and simplified backgrounds that match the character artwork.

I would recommend this series for middle school students

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I requested this not knowing it was third in a series, so you know what had to be done. I got to binge them all!

I don't want to give too much away, as this is the third and last in the series. Essentially, we are following Alidade and Lewis on their adventures to take their freedom back from the oppressive Night Coats. They do this by making maps of their home (Valley, Mountain, Plains) that bring back the Memris of their lands.

These books are adventurous with many lessons about courage, friendship, and hope. This was such a fun series! I think lots of middle school readers would enjoy reading them.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Kayla Zabcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

85%

"You can't understand the world if you don't stop long enough to learn anything!"

As I mentioned in the review for the first installation in this series, I find that authors seem to struggle with the balance of revealing backstory and world mechanics in graphic novels, but this series managed it quite well, and it really came together in the end.

Basically it's a series about finding harmony with nature instead of trying to control and rule over it with an iron fist; essentially, we are a part of nature no matter how much we protest, and it's better for everyone involved if we accept that fact and try to work with it instead of against it.

[Seras23 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful conclusion to a delightful trilogy! "Mapmakers and the Flickering Fortress" has many surprises in store for Alidade, Lewis, Cado, and for the readers as well. Many questions are answered, though there may be a few left that readers may prefer answers to. Despite that, readers will be filled with wonder, hope, and joy just as our characters are in this story. This entire series is an essential addition to middle grade graphic novel collections everywhere. Truly a delight!

[Fi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a perfect conclusion to this graphic novel trilogy. I thought this was so well developed. I loved the characters and the journeys they went on, both literally and figuratively. The art is so well done and the color palette is SO cozy! The magic system of the maps and the memris was very cool and unique. And I loved the themes of community, culture, and friendship, and standing up to corrupt power structures!! What more could you possibly ask for in a graphic novel series?

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Final book in the trilogy finds Alidade and her Memri, Blue, trying to find other mapmakers while her friends set out on their own in other directions across the Plains. They learn that the Night Coats have been trying to claim all the land by altering maps. Fans of the previous books will be clamoring for this one.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've loved each of these books and have found myself caught up with the adventures from beginning to end. I love the combination of magic, mapmaking, bonds of friendship, and variety of creatures.

The artwork is so pretty and is a wonderful addition to the story.

Highly recommend!

[Yolotzin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the series. It's cute. Could've been expanded more, but I think it ends well. Love the new characters! Ripley does look super cool. I would like a full map of their world. I was surprised at the night coats map; that hadn't crossed my mind.

[Rainbow Bookie Monster · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun story! Excellent graphics! A great end to the trilogy! My 10yo also really enjoyed this graphic novel!

[Kai Charles(Fiction State Of Mind) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The crew continues to try to unite the mapmaker communities.

[Ember Moto · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice ending but I thought it was a little rushed and there was more about the world in this series I wanted to know.

[Kristy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The resolution was a bit rushed with a couple unanswered story lines, but overall still good.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great conclusion to an awesome series.

[Kestrel B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I made the mistake of not realizing this is book 3 of a series when I requested it! Nevertheless, it was pretty easy to pick up the story and parse out what I had missed in the first two installments. I won't review too much on the story, because I'm probably missing something and don't want to do any injustice.

The world building and magic are really cool! I love the connection between the mapmakers and their familiars, and the land. The adventure is sometimes tense but mostly kindhearted, even the banter with enemies is more playful than cruel. I do want to read the first two to really see and understand one characters' political awakening happens.

Overall message is very positive; people connecting with the environment, persevering due to friendship, and encouraging curiosity and resourcefulness in the reader.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had a wild twist at the end. Very curious to know how the leader handles it.

[Kiri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital copy of this book in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own.

I'm going to be 100% honest and say that I did not fully read the description and relied only on the title so I did not realize that this book is the third in its series. I did not read the other two before it so the story greatly confused me. Still, I enjoyed what I did glean from it and the characters/world is fun. The illustrations are also very nice. (They're what drew me in the first place.)

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this story and these characters so much! This was such a great way to wrap everything up. I really enjoyed this last volume. I liked that the author focused on friendships throughout these books and not romance. I think that these books all have great lessons for both kids and adults. I'm sad that this series is over but I loved reading it!

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This final instalment was just such a let-down in comparison to the other two books! As such I no longer feel comfortable recommending this series, as the ending is just not good, so it’s not worth the investment.

Some world-building questions were answered here, which was good, but others were not. While I was pretty content to not have all the answers in the first and second novels as this is a series, you NEED to give them in the series conclusion. And I still don’t know why the Mapmakers’ way of life nearly led to war, or where the Night Coats came from (which might flesh out their motive more than “it’s human nature to want power”), or how on Earth Kip and her family knew what a Memris was or could do and that mapmaking brings one into being (because I’m pretty Alidade didn’t? Like why didn’t she know, but Kip and Cado did), along with some other details.

Also, having built up the Night Coats to be this intimidating, all-powerful entity in the previous two volumes, they were a terrible villain in this one! Alidade basically just did what she wanted, despite being a prisoner, and was easily able to evade them most of the time.

The colour palette made this hard to read. You know how TV shows these days have those scenes that are impossible to make out due to poor lighting? That’s this whole book. The action that saved the day was drawn so unclearly that I still don’t understand how it worked, or even what purpose it served.

I still absolutely love what this series is trying to do, as well as all the distinct, endearing characters, which is why I haven’t rated this less than 3 stars. This volume just needed a LOT more clarity to have cinched the landing of the series as a whole.

[Andréa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.