Point of Knives: A Novella of Astreiant
4/5
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About this ebook
A welcome return to the vividly realized city of Astreiant with its intricate magics and deadly politics, Point of Knives takes place in the interval between the widely praised earlier novels Point of Hopes and Point of Dreams. A fantastical mystery and a rousing adventure, Point of Knives also reveals for the first time the beginning of the romance between Adjunct Point Nicolas Rathe and the Leaguer Philip Eslingen.
The events of Midsummer have not been forgotten by the Fall Balance, and Nicolas Rathe can hardly complain that they’ve done any harm to his reputation, or to the reputation of the Points in general. However, newfound fame has meant that he’s more in demand as an investigator, and the increased recognition and workload make it difficult to pursue friendship, or anything more, with the handsome former soldier Philip Eslingen, his comrade in the rescue of the stolen children. Eslingen’s employer Hanselin Caiazzo is still deeply involved in any number of questionably legal ventures. Any association between Rathe, a representative of Astreiant’s queen, and Caiazzo’s bodyguard Eslingen is regarded with suspicion from both sides of the law.
When a father and son rumored to be “summer-sailors,” or pirates, are murdered on the same night and Rathe finds Eslingen standing over the son’s body, Eslingen proves his innocence easily enough, despite loyally refusing to say exactly what errand he’s running for Caiazzo at that untimely hour of the morning. But when the old man’s grandson and the son’s self-proclaimed wife quarrel over the son’s meager belongings, and Caiazzo dispatches Eslingen to represent his interests in the investigation, Rathe begins to wonder if their friendship is going to survive. Or whether he and Eslingen will survive at all.
Melissa Scott
Melissa Scott is from Little Rock, Arkansas, and studied history at Harvard College and Brandeis University, where she earned her PhD in the Comparative History program. She is the author of more than thirty original science fiction and fantasy novels, most with queer themes and characters, as well as authorized tie-ins for Star Trek: DS9, Star Trek: Voyager, Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis, and Star Wars Rebels. She won Lambda Literary Awards for Trouble and Her Friends, Shadow Man, Point of Dreams (written with her late partner, Lisa A. Barnett), and Death By Silver, with Amy Griswold. She also won Spectrum Awards for Shadow Man, Fairs’ Point, Death By Silver, and for the short story “The Rocky Side of the Sky” (Periphery, Lethe Press) as well as the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. She was also shortlisted for the Otherwise (Tiptree) Award. Her latest short story, “Sirens,” appeared in the collection Retellings of the Inland Seas, and her text-based game for Choice of Games, A Player’s Heart, came out in 2020. Her most recent solo novel, Water Horse, was published in June 2021. Her next solo novel, The Master of Samar, will be out in 2023.
Read more from Melissa Scott
Death by Silver Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Death at the Dionysus Club Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Heiresses of Russ 2014: The Year's Best Lesbian Speculative Fiction Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
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Reviews for Point of Knives
40 ratings2 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This novella felt very slight. The mystery is not that involving, and the relationship development is minor. Non-specific spoilers: I was expecting to either see Rathe and Eslingen get together for the first time, or define their relationship, and they really do neither. There are some mild developments, but nothing truly satisfying - and nothing racier on-screen than a kiss.
There was nothing particularly wrong with it, but it didn't tick the boxes I was looking for. Point of Dreams (the full novel this precedes) is much more satisfying in terms of relationship development and in terms of the mystery plot. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5They're way too cute. It's not as polished as the other two books, kind of like really great fanfiction, but SO entertaining. I just love Nico and Philip so much! A cute short story that I think lives up to the other two quite well. Now I need to reread Point of Dreams. I'm excited about it!