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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
A nicely imagined (and nicely queer) world, but very slow-paced and with a strange lack of dramatic tension. There are definite indications that the two main characters are going to get together further into the series, but it's so slow burn it's not really clear by the end of the novel that they're even attracted to each other.
3.5 rounded up
Once I got into it I really enjoyed this book but man did this book need a glossary. I would bet at least $20 that the author had spent years and years building up this world before writing the story down. And it's an interesting world, but the author wasn't always great at drawing a map through what she'd built. I read the whole book and I still don't really understand what a "leman" is or what's up with the butchers guild.
But all that aside, it's a great fantasy procedural novel. The tension gradually ramps up until the last quarter or so I was staying up late to read just a little more and the prologue drops just enough hint of what's to come to keep a real sense of suspense over the whole thing.
The world portrayed is women-lead and nonplussed about same sex pairings, which was cool (you don't realize how. many. characters. are. men. until you read a book where it's not the default and you're pleasantly surprised by how many NPCs are "she" for a while) though I do wish there had been a stronger romance element (this is not a romance novel at all).
Once I got into it I really enjoyed this book but man did this book need a glossary. I would bet at least $20 that the author had spent years and years building up this world before writing the story down. And it's an interesting world, but the author wasn't always great at drawing a map through what she'd built. I read the whole book and I still don't really understand what a "leman" is or what's up with the butchers guild.
But all that aside, it's a great fantasy procedural novel. The tension gradually ramps up until the last quarter or so I was staying up late to read just a little more and the prologue drops just enough hint of what's to come to keep a real sense of suspense over the whole thing.
The world portrayed is women-lead and nonplussed about same sex pairings, which was cool (you don't realize how. many. characters. are. men. until you read a book where it's not the default and you're pleasantly surprised by how many NPCs are "she" for a while) though I do wish there had been a stronger romance element (this is not a romance novel at all).
I loved it, absolutely loved it. I would say 4.5 stars over all, the writing was occasionally clunky and the world could be hard to comprehend, but i'm going to round up because having finished it am am thrilled with the experience. Fantasy, mystery, interesting gender roll reversals and two awesome main characters who are adorably clueless about the crushes they have on each other. I can't wait to read the next three and a half books!
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Fantasy murder mystery with an extremely subtle matriarchal society? SIGN ME UP
This one is the slowest and most detailed, but I still love it.
This one is the slowest and most detailed, but I still love it.
Wonderful. This is the first book in a cool fantasy mystery series and I really liked it. The main characters are neat, the mystery is engaging, and the story's really interesting. The world-building in this series is amazing. It's thorough and detailed and lush and I love it. Astreiant seems vaguely based on Renaissance-era Holland and it's quite a refreshing and neat place to visit. It's an astrologically-based matriarchal society where women run the government, run business and trade, and own the land, but without de-valuing men, so gender parity among the common people is pretty much a reality. No one is limited by their gender and anyone can do any job and love any person and it's all just everyday life. It's class that separates society more than anything else, and women do very much take precedence among the aristocracy. But this is not a story about the aristocracy. The two main characters are just regular working guys (an elegant ex-soldier and a hard-working policeman), who are both quite matter-of-fact and sensible and a bit poor. Nico and Philip are both very engaging, likeable people and their growing friendship is delightful to read. There's a large cast of interesting secondary characters as well. This book is not a romance, though there are some subtle hints of a romance to come. The story is definitely focussed on the the mystery, which is fascinating. The writing is solid and wonderfully full of subtext. There are some slow bits and sometimes the writing is a bit clunky with long sentences. This isn't a fast-paced, tense, thrilling mystery romance story, so don't be expecting that. This is a longish story that takes its time and is full of depth and intrigue and interesting people. I really enjoyed it. The second novel, [b:Point of Dreams|836593|Point of Dreams (Astreiant, #2)|Melissa Scott|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1312016782s/836593.jpg|1686546], is even better, but do read this one first.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping
I had just finished another book by Melissa Scott and was hoping for a similar hit with this one. It was good but not quite what I expected.
The opening was a bit slow but the characters and narrative grew on me and I loved the slow burn of the protagonists relstionship from casual acquaintances into friends and trusted companions. It was also nice to see this book written from below - The heroes were not nobility but common middle class men and women.
The opening was a bit slow but the characters and narrative grew on me and I loved the slow burn of the protagonists relstionship from casual acquaintances into friends and trusted companions. It was also nice to see this book written from below - The heroes were not nobility but common middle class men and women.