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Point of Hopes (Astreiant #1)

by Melissa Scott (Goodreads Author), Lisa A. Barnett

3.8 of 5 stars 3.80 · rating details · 210 ratings · 25 reviews

Nicholas Rathe is a pointsman, a watchman in the great city of Astreiant, the capital of the Kingdom of Chenedolle. It is the time of the annual trade fair, and the city is filled with travelers, and someone is stealing children. The populace is getting angry and frightened and is looking for someone to blame, especially some foreigner. Nicholas, in the midst of all this,...more

Paperback, 432 pages

Published February 1st 1997 by Tor Books (first published December 6th 1995)

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Feb 12, 2013 Furio rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: gay, gay-fantasy, gay-mystery, gay-supernatural

On the one hand I love fantasies, especially if they have gay characters, but I usually find even the best detective-stories dull.
This is a classical detective-story set in an alternative XVI century French-like kingdom.

The two authors outline a believable society and they enrich their descriptions with many interesting and witty details: the result, admirable though it is, is overwhelming and yet it would have born more development.
Writing is professional and subtle but the story develops slowl...more

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Nov 02, 2012 Crane Hana rated it 5 of 5 stars

I am ashamed to say I bought this paperback used, and owned it for almost two years before I read it. The cover art looked rather bland and dull, and only the back cover blurbs made me pick it up.

When I finished it, I wanted to email Melissa personally and apologize.

Where to begin? I'll start with the world building that Scott and her late partner Lisa Barnett created: an alternate-reality late Renaissance on a world under two suns, where astrological predictions govern nearly every facet of lif...more

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Jul 04, 2012 Sineala rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: borrowed, e-books, fantasy, favorites, fiction, gay, paper-books, queer, mystery

One of my favorite SF worlds, and basically just a really good book. It's an everyone-is-queer, nonobvious-matriarchy secondary-world police procedural mystery fantasy in a world that looks kind of sort of like Renaissance Holland if you squint. (Melissa Scott has a PhD in comparative history. Her worldbuilding is awesome. I first heard of her via Trouble and Her Friends, which I picked up because it was cyberpunk and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was very, very queer.) And if that's...more One of my favorite SF worlds, and basically just a really good book. It's an everyone-is-queer, nonobvious-matriarchy secondary-world police procedural mystery fantasy in a world that looks kind of sort of like Renaissance Holland if you squint. (Melissa Scott has a PhD in comparative history. Her worldbuilding is awesome. I first heard of her via Trouble and Her Friends, which I picked up because it was cyberpunk and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was very, very queer.) And if that's not enough, there's the magic system: astrology is real, and it really, truly works.

The plot is something that could, in the hands of lesser writers, easily end up boring: in the city of Astreiant, the capital of Chenedolle, the queen, childless, is ailing, and it's time for her to choose an heir. Naturally there is some political infighting. It's also fair season, but what's most on the mind of city residents is that children have begun disappearing, and no one knows who is taking them or why. And luckily, you get to avoid reading about most of the machinations of the nobility, because Our Heroes are not nobility. Nicolas Rathe is a scrupulously honest pointsman (policeman) from one of the rougher districts of town, who stumbles into the problem and sets about trying to solve the mystery. Philip Eslingen is an out-of-work mercenary, new to Astreiant, and he more or less stumbles into... Rathe, and then the two of them try to help each other out.

(Yes, they do get together. No, it's not in this book. One of my favorite things, though, after Nico/Philip, is the series' use of the archaic word leman to mean a same-sex lover. My other favorite thing is the gargoyles. My other other favorite thing is the scurrilous broadsheets. No, wait, Istre b'Estorr. You know, I could keep going...)

The actual mystery resolution happens kind of weirdly, and I'm not sure I'd recommend it primarily as a mystery, but I am not a big mystery fan, so it didn't bother me.

And now, having reread this, I'm going to read the shiny new novella. Hooray!(less)

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Sep 13, 2010 Margaret rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-and-science-fiction, authors-qrs

Nicolas Rathe is a pointsman in the city of Astreiant, responsible for keeping the peace and investigating crimes; Philip Eslingen is an out-of-work soldier searching for a job in the city. Together, they fight crime! Okay, sorry, couldn't resist.

In any case, this book and its sequel (Point of Dreams) are an enjoyable mix of fantasy and mystery, with excellent worldbuilding; the city is so intimately described that it feels very real, down even to its smells and sounds. I liked the characters a...more

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Feb 08, 2009 Jane rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Jane by: acchikocchi

Shelves: fantasy-sci-fi, pointsman, recommended, queer-protagonist

Recommended by acchikocchi during the GCADoD '09 as an overlooked, but well-done sci-fi/fantasy series with an OMG!Gay!Woobie!Hero and so far, the series lives up to its promises. Some things of note:

- The Kingdom of Chnedolle is a Renaissance-like world ruled by stars; astrology influenced one's career and choices (hour to hour even)

- As best as I can described it, Boston marriages (for females as well as males) are legal and very common in Chnedolle

- There are some groundworks laid for a relat...more

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Oct 04, 2012 heidi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ebook, reviewed, wiscon

I fell in love with Melissa Scott because of Trouble and Her Friends. So when I saw this pop up on my recommended list, I was intrigued.

I love a good police procedural, with or without magic. Nico wears out a lot of shoe-leather tracking down what is happening to the missing kids, and deals with a lot of the public as well as he can. Phillip is a adventurer-gentleman with a distinct paranoid class consciousness.

The world-building is AMAZING, as I would expect from Scott. Men and women have socie...more

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Oct 09, 2012 Laura rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012, fantasy, mystery, owned-hardback

This book takes place in a city called Astreint, in a vaguely defined fantasy world. The city has numerous neighborhoods referred to as Points, and each Point has its own watch station. Rathe is second-in-command at the Point of Hopes watch station and investigating the disappearance of the city's children. The other main character is a recently released mercenary who is searching for employment. The two characters' actions eventually come together to resolve the question of the children's disap...more

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Dec 26, 2012 Vistula rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 20th-century, fantasy

Ok, so this book has a good worldbuilding. At the same time it concentrates very heavily on that, and characterization suffers. I have no idea who main characters are. Rathe is a cause embodied and Eslingen is a pretty soldier. That's it. They're bland at best. How better this would be without dragging the whole plot mercilessly? How better it would be if this Caizzo magist (Denizen?) was a main character? Or a necromancer friend with a difficult name? They both had more potential then main char...more

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Mar 24, 2013 Phoenixfalls rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: a-passel-of-women, cities, class, fantasy, fantasy-mystery, female-author, from-my-2012-tbr, high-fantasy, necromancy, astrology, queer-protagonists

This novel is incredibly satisfying, despite being fairly uneven technically. The characters are charismatic; the mystery, though fairly simple, maintains an excellent sense of tension due to the stakes; and the world is fascinating, lovingly detailed, and fairly unique among fantasy worlds. I stayed up all night to finish this, and immediately wanted to read the next in the series. (Sadly, neither of the two other Astreiant books are available in any of the library systems I have access to.)

It'...more This novel is incredibly satisfying, despite being fairly uneven technically. The characters are charismatic; the mystery, though fairly simple, maintains an excellent sense of tension due to the stakes; and the world is fascinating, lovingly detailed, and fairly unique among fantasy worlds. I stayed up all night to finish this, and immediately wanted to read the next in the series. (Sadly, neither of the two other Astreiant books are available in any of the library systems I have access to.)

It's actually a little surprising to me, how much I enjoyed this book, because there were several elements of its execution that normally irritate me. Scott & Barnett had inconsistent control over POV -- most of the book is told from a tight third-person viewpoint centered on either Rathe or Philip, but every once in a while they slipped into a third-person omniscient, or switched POV from Rathe to Philip mid-section. Now this isn't uncommon, particularly in fantasy from the 80s/90s, but it always bothers me. The prologue, which let the book pass the Bechdel test on the very first page, was in the POV of characters that did not appear again until a couple hundred pages in, which again isn't really uncommon in high fantasy novels, but again, usually gets under my skin.

And oh, the info-dumping! There are a LOT of passages that are just the characters thinking about how their world works, how peoples' stars affect their chances in life, what the various political factions think of each other, all things that people don't actually think to themselves in real life but which they do in fantasy novels because the authors have put in a lot of work into building their worlds and want the reader to see it. Normally this is a cardinal sin to me; I would much rather just be thrown into the world and forced to figure out what's going on for myself. But here I was willing to forgive it, because the world was legitimately fascinating. The entire social order is built around astrology, so everyone knows the time of their birth down to the hour or better, and their stars determine what careers will suit them, and they go to astrologers often to get readings for what their near-future might hold. There are masculine stars, which encourage people to wander, and feminine stars, which encourage people to settle, so for the most part women hold political power by virtue of being landowners while the militaries and trading companies are dominated by men, but plenty of men have feminine stars and plenty of women have masculine stars. Stars also determine when it's propitious to marry or have children, so same-sex relationships are common and same-sex partners can have legal standing entirely separate from marriage, which is (I think) heterosexual and focused exclusively on property.

This is what perplexed me most about Scott & Barnett. On the one hand, as I said, there were quite a few heavy-handed info-dumps about astrology and politics, and I was fine with them because they were interesting, but I still noticed them. But the world-building around gender and sexuality was just as interesting and different from the norm as the political and magical systems, and Scott & Barnett conveyed that information in my preferred fashion -- the characters simply used the terminology as was appropriate, and I was left to infer what it all meant on my own. I don't know if one author handled the politics/astrology and the other handled the gender/sexuality, and that was the cause of the difference, or if they left the gender/sexuality world-building mostly oblique so that it could fly under the radar of more conservative fantasy readers; but either way, though I did not mind the info-dumping, I wish the astrology/politics world-building had been handled as subtly as the gender/sexuality world-building was.

It was, of course, for the gender & sexuality world-building the I picked up the book -- I'm always looking for SFF that has alternate gender roles and more expansive ideas of sexuality than is typical. On the sexuality front this book satisfied completely; as I said, queer sexualities are incredibly common and entirely unremarkable in this world, and that is delightful. On the gender front my reaction was a bit more complicated. On the one hand, it's world where political power is mostly concentrated in female hands -- Chenedolle is ruled by a Queen, all the prospective heirs are female, most property owners are female, and property passes down to daughters. And this is one of the rare books that I placed on my GoodReads "A Passel of Women" shelf -- there are women everywhere in this world, as pointsmen (police officers), pickpockets, tavern keepers, and shady financiers. The preferred gender-neutral sentence construction is "she or he" instead of "he or she." The book passed the Bechdel Test despite having male leads.

But. There was a pattern that I noticed about halfway through the novel, and it's one that I do not like. Despite all the women in the book, somehow, the characters that actually moved the plot were all male. The two leads, of course; but also the butcher that reported the missing apprentice that got the action started; the drunk journeyman that was the main instigator in Philip's changes of fortune; the necromancer that helped Rathe put the pieces of the mystery together; the traders who provided a crucial piece of evidence; the shady businessman who was more involved than he knew. Now, it's possible that this was a deliberate choice by Scott & Barnett. After all, if feminine stars are about stability and masculine stars about change, then it is vaguely in keeping with the focus on astrology for the men to be astrologically more inclined to be the movers and shakers of plot. But really, I'm pretty sure that's a terrible bit of fanwanking on my part; I strongly suspect that despite women having equal or greater power in the world, the men have greater power in the plot because that's how insidious sexism is.

Still, despite all those little critiques, this book was simply fun. I did see where the mystery was headed in advance, but that didn't detract from the tension through the middle of the book because though I knew what was going on I did not know that everything would end well. The climax felt a little rushed, mostly because it wasn't until the climax that I was actually convinced that the astrology-based magic actually had power in the world rather than being superstition, but it was still emotionally satisfying. And despite my reservations about the narrative's gender equality, the world itself is exactly the sort of place I like to spend time, the sort of place I wish was more common in SFF -- one not enslaved to our too-narrow ideas of gender and sexuality, and with swashbuckling heroes and magic to boot. All in all I am very happy I read this, and will be seeking out more of the authors' work as soon as I can.(less)

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Aug 13, 2012 Isis rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Isis by: Sineala

Shelves: fantasy, glbt

Procedural murder-mysteries set in vaguely matriarchal everyone-is-bi fantasy medieval Holland where astrology works. The worldbuilding is pretty awesome, and yes, I could read endless slash of the two main characters, who are clearly going to tumble into bed together eventually.

However, I found it very hard going at first. The details of the world come fast and furious with no explanation, only context, and although I prefer contextual worldbuilding to exposition, there's just too much too quic...more

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Jul 26, 2011 serrulatae (girl a) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, 2011, glbt-fiction

This book was actually more like a detective novel than a fantasy novel, and takes place in an alternate history medieval setting where most of the characters are middle-class citizens. Magic is a part of everyday life, mainly in the form of astrology, where the stars determine the lives of the people. There were no coming-of-age rites or epic quests to go on as per the usual fantasy fare; instead the plot revolves around Nicolas Rathe, who works a job equivalent to that of a policeman and inves...more

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Jun 12, 2012 Drianne rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sf, gay, m-m, lesbian, library, favorites, books-i-own, mystery

One of my favorite m/m sf books. The world-building is great, the writing is great, the pairing is great. I love the characters. I *love* this book (and its sequel) -- it's a terrible, terrible loss that Lisa Barnett passed away of cancer and will not be able to keep writing with her partner, Melissa Scott.[return][return]Original thoughts: A cross between fantasy and mystery, set in an 'everyone is bi' universe. Oh, I *loved* this book. It follows the efforts of Nicholas Rathe, a pointsman (= p...more

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Jul 16, 2012 Just_ann_now rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, historical, 2012, on-my-kindle, women-of-genre, rec-from-a-friend

Updated review:

This is why I reread books! To go back in and catch the color, the richness, the subtleties that I miss when I'm barreling full-steam towards the ending. What a gorgeous world Scott and Barnett have created, and what a delicious pair Nico and Phillip are. I really enjoyed catching the little details of their - not flirtation by any means, but the growing sense of attraction they feel for each other. (How adorable that each one of them thinks, "I wish I had been wearing something...more

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Jul 21, 2007 Michalyn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, historical, mystery

In Point of Hopes, our hero, Nicolas Rathe is a Pointsman (think detective) and he's called to investigate the sudden disappearance of a shocking number of Astreiant's children. At the same time, former Lieutenant Philip Eslingen, new to Astreiant and just released from his period of service, finds himself out of a job. He becomes a bodyguard at a local tavern and through a number of twists of fate, he and Rathe cross paths and end up working together to find the children.

There are so many wond...more

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Nov 11, 2012 SA rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

Review for series. God, these books. I'm slightly disappointed I hadn't read them earlier, and also a bit pleased I get to have them now.

This series is like smashing together alternate Tudor-era France with magical realism with Law and Order. Plus the two main protagonist dudes falling in love. It's not that it's epic--it's that it's solid, and the mystery-genre underpinnings of the series go such a long way into making this far more than your average fantasy mass market paperback. The world is...more

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Jul 02, 2009 Wealhtheow rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: queer-characters, fantasy

Set in a fictional fantasy world similar to seventeenth century England. The main difference is that astrology is real--and not only can it be used to accurately predict the future, it can be used to change it as well. The premise and plot are pretty good, but it gets bogged down in minutia. I know what the two main characters had for literally every meal of the week the story covers. I know how they hang their jackets, I know where they buy their ale--every single conversation, meal, and clothi...more

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Dec 30, 2012 Jonet rated it 4 of 5 stars

It's unfortunate that Melissa Scott is increasingly labeled as a "gay" author. She writes good stories that happen to have gay people in them.

This is a case in point. Point of Hopes is a fast-paced fantasy mystery with an original setting and good world-building. In this first novel, the two lead characters are not yet a couple, but the focus is the story, not the sexuality.

I highly recommend it.

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Mar 08, 2012 Andrea rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book and this series until it stopped due to illness. But this complex fantasy world looks so familiar and yet so foreign at the same time. A world where your horoscope really does matter, magic happens, and a day-to-day policeman or Pointsman has a wonderful cast of characters to deal with....and a new potential love on the horizon. I sorely wish for more Points books

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Oct 04, 2011 Walter Underwood rated it 4 of 5 stars

This has a measured pace and it pauses to describe things, something that could be really annoying, but it somehow matches the main character. Nico Rathe is a pointsman (policeman) who is observant and thinks before he acts. The other characters are nicely drawn, too. The mystery is intriguing and actually mysterious. And ... they get to call in the cavalry at the end.

I'm reading the next one immediately.

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May 10, 2013 Isana rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Those who love action packed fantasy

Well written with a complex and engaging story line. I couldn't put the book down! My only problem was that the world was a bit TOO complicated at times. Hahaha. It made my head spin though I understood what was happening . . . essentially. It was still an amazing read. You should pick it up. You won't be sorry.

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Oct 26, 2012 Jain rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011-reads, american-literature, fantasy, fiction, lgbt, northamerican, mystery

A decent fantasy novel with some very good worldbuilding, marred by a wooden writing style and an anticlimactic ending. Despite these problems, I liked both of the main characters enough to read the (much more enjoyable) sequel.

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Apr 01, 2012 Kiki rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

Pretty good fantasy novel, but I'm confused by the reviews that mention a romance ... That led to some disappointment, since there was absolutely NO romance in this one. Maybe in later books ...

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Feb 16, 2009 Annie rated it 4 of 5 stars

http://superfastreader.com/point-of-h...

I really liked this one.

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Oct 29, 2009 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: sffantasy, mystery

Oddly paced for a mystery, but the world-building is awesome. I do like a Renaissance fantasy.

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Jun 26, 2009 Thermopyle marked it as to-read

http://www.tor.com/index.php?option=c...

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Jul 08, 2012 Mark rated it 4 of 5 stars

A crime thriller wrapped in a fantasy. Really enjoyed it

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Oct 15, 2009 Julie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, mystery, triple-take

Interesting world, okay characters, far less interesting plot. More mystery than fantasy. Not as much lgbt content as I was expecting. Full review at http://www.flaminggeeks.com/tripletake

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May 13, 2013 Weatherglass marked it as to-read

May 11, 2013 Freyavenlyo marked it as to-read

May 10, 2013 Christopher marked it as to-read

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About Melissa Scott

Scott studied history at Harvard College and Brandeis University, and earned her PhD. in comparative history. She published her first novel in 1984, and has since written some two dozen science fiction and fantasy works, including three co-authored with her partner, Lisa A. Barnett.

Scott's work is known for the elaborate and well-constructed settings. While many of her protagonists are gay, lesbia...more

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Point of Hopes (Astreiant #1)

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