Astreiant

Danger, trust, desire, love…only Astreiant's stars know the outcome.Nicolas Rathe and Philip Eslingen, the heroes who saved Astreiant's children mere months before, are back, drawn together from opposite sides of the law to investigate a series of murders whose impact stretches deep into Astreiant's underworld. Eslingen is now a professional knife working for a prominent crimelord while Nicolas Rathe is an Adjunct Point, sworn to uphold the city's laws. By rights, they should be wary foes, but instead they find themselves sharing an investigation as well as a bed as their search takes them into the heart of Point of Knives and at its center, the Court of Thirty-two Knives, the hub of Astreiant's underworld.They will need all the allies they can find to navigate the labyrinth of conflicts and alliances that stand between them and catching a killer before they strike again. A single misstep could be disaster, a single doubt, the end of all their hopes.Book 2 of the Astreiant Series 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. The city of Astreiant is full of magic, danger and bureaucracy. Former mercenary Philip Eslingen and Pointsman Nicolas Rathe are friends, lovers and a mystery-solving duo to be reckoned with as they tackle fantastical mysteries that range from kidnapped apprentices to murder in settings that range from palaces to the back streets, the theaters to the docks. The series consists of 6 volumes: Point of Hopes, Point of Knives, Point of Dreams, Fairs' Point, Point of Sighs and Point of Hearts.

The play's the thing to catch the attention of Astreiant…especially when it includes murder, mystery and magic.It's ghost-tide in the city and the dead walk the streets, haunting those who meant something to them in life. The theaters of Point of Dreams have a hit season on their hands and Adjunct Point Nicolas Rathe and former mercenary Philip Eslingen have a murder on theirs. Not to mention a heady mix of intrigue, politics and magic, where even the flowers are more than they seem. Added to all of that, the crimelord that Philip worked for has dismissed him from his service and he's had to move in with Nico. Can Nico and Philip stop the killer before they strike again? And will their relationship survive it if they do?Lambda Literary Award Winner for Speculative Fiction. 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. The city of Astreiant is full of magic, danger and bureaucracy. Former mercenary Philip Eslingen and Pointsman Nicolas Rathe are friends, lovers and a mystery-solving duo to be reckoned with as they tackle fantastical mysteries that range from kidnapped apprentices to murder in settings that range from palaces to the back streets, the theaters to the docks. The series consists of 6 volumes: Point of Hopes, Point of Knives, Point of Dreams, Fairs' Point, Point of Sighs and Point of Hearts.

Murder, magic and a day at the races…The City of Astreiant is full of fair goers for the annual fair and the Dog Moon dog races are one of the main attractions. So a young noble going spectacularly bankrupt in a way that results in rules changes and widespread anger, a couple of suspicious deaths and former soldier Philip Eslingen suddenly finding himself the owner of an unproven racing dog couldn't be happening in a worse conjunction for Adjunct Point Nicolas Rathe. Once again, lovers and partners Nico and Philip must navigate magic, murder, love and politics to save their beloved city from itself. Throw in new pet ownership and a job offer for Philip from Prince Coindarel in his new city guard and what more can their stars hold for them? 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. The city of Astreiant is full of magic, danger and bureaucracy. Former mercenary Philip Eslingen and Pointsman Nicolas Rathe are friends, lovers and a mystery-solving duo to be reckoned with as they tackle fantastical mysteries that range from kidnapped apprentices to murder in settings that range from palaces to the back streets, the theaters to the docks. The series consists of 6 volumes: Point of Hopes, Point of Knives, Point of Dreams, Fairs' Point, Point of Sighs and Point of Hearts.