Groups | Search | Server Info | Keyboard shortcuts | Login | Register [http] [https] [nntp] [nntps]

Groups > rec.arts.sf.written > #493844 > unrolled thread

[review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett

Back to article view | Back to rec.arts.sf.written

Contents

  [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett jdnicoll@panix.com (James Nicoll) - 2018-06-20 13:39 +0000
    Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett mcdowell_ag@sky.com - 2018-06-20 10:56 -0700
      Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett jdnicoll@panix.com (James Nicoll) - 2018-06-20 18:24 +0000
    Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett Robert Carnegie <rja.carnegie@excite.com> - 2018-06-20 14:18 -0700
      Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett djheydt@kithrup.com (Dorothy J Heydt) - 2018-06-20 21:53 +0000
      Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett jdnicoll@panix.com (James Nicoll) - 2018-06-20 22:29 +0000
        Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett Dimensional Traveler <dtravel@sonic.net> - 2018-06-20 18:26 -0700
          Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett djheydt@kithrup.com (Dorothy J Heydt) - 2018-06-21 02:24 +0000
            Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett Dimensional Traveler <dtravel@sonic.net> - 2018-06-20 21:45 -0700
      Re: [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett Robert Carnegie <rja.carnegie@excite.com> - 2018-06-20 16:34 -0700

#493844 — [review] Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett

Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett

https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/review/behind-the-curtain
-- 
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll

[toc] | [next] | [standalone]

#493864

On Wednesday, June 20, 2018 at 2:39:47 PM UTC+1, James Nicoll wrote:
> Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett
> 
> https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/review/behind-the-curtain
> -- 
> My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
> My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
> My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll

I can second most of this review. I really like the Point Of... books as readable entertainment, even though I don't go for most Fantasy. Most of what you see of the relationship between Rathe and Eslingen is two men thrown together by chance that work together well - and I find that I enjoy books that show teams working together in harmony. Magic is matter of fact in this world, with one feature that should be further explored here or elsewhere - in this world Astrology works well enough for people to tell what jobs they will be good at - and what jobs others will be good at.

(I don't have enough experience of hammocks to assess the book for readability in those situations. I do have fond memories of a cheap sun lounger my parents had when I was young, so I can unequivocally recommend it for sun loungers :-))

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493867

In article <33c2617a-1e31-4ce2-a882-553a93d056d5@googlegroups.com>,
 <mcdowell_ag@sky.com> wrote:
>
>(I don't have enough experience of hammocks to assess the book for
>readability in those situations. I do have fond memories of a cheap sun
>lounger my parents had when I was young, so I can unequivocally
>recommend it for sun loungers :-))

Hammocks are fine for reading in. A bit problematic when it comes to
escaping them.
-- 
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493877

On Wednesday, 20 June 2018 14:39:47 UTC+1, James Nicoll  wrote:
> Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett
> 
> https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/review/behind-the-curtain
> -- 
> My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
> My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
> My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll

Are we running out of fantasy place names?  From your
Tor article the other day, I learned that Brisingamen
has been re-used; then, from Wikipedia, that it was 
borrowed from Norse myth in the first place.

I've forgotten the webcomic's name whose places seemed
to be random lifts from the atlas of Scotland; then 
I learned that the map was an accurate one, but IIRC
in New Zealand.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493883

In article <7c17972a-4b25-4c19-8310-d01e8b13e411@googlegroups.com>,
Robert Carnegie  <rja.carnegie@excite.com> wrote:
>On Wednesday, 20 June 2018 14:39:47 UTC+1, James Nicoll  wrote:
>> Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa
>Scott & Lisa A. Barnett
>> 
>> https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/review/behind-the-curtain
>> -- 
>> My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
>> My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
>> My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
>
>Are we running out of fantasy place names?  From your
>Tor article the other day, I learned that Brisingamen
>has been re-used; then, from Wikipedia, that it was 
>borrowed from Norse myth in the first place.

And it was not a place name but the name of a necklace.


-- 
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493890

In article <7c17972a-4b25-4c19-8310-d01e8b13e411@googlegroups.com>,
Robert Carnegie  <rja.carnegie@excite.com> wrote:
>
>I've forgotten the webcomic's name whose places seemed
>to be random lifts from the atlas of Scotland; then 
>I learned that the map was an accurate one, but IIRC
>in New Zealand.

Ah. My cheat for a campaign was to use a map of Sundaland. Rotated so
nobody recognized it. 
-- 
My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493918

On 6/20/2018 3:29 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
> In article <7c17972a-4b25-4c19-8310-d01e8b13e411@googlegroups.com>,
> Robert Carnegie  <rja.carnegie@excite.com> wrote:
>>
>> I've forgotten the webcomic's name whose places seemed
>> to be random lifts from the atlas of Scotland; then
>> I learned that the map was an accurate one, but IIRC
>> in New Zealand.
> 
> Ah. My cheat for a campaign was to use a map of Sundaland. Rotated so
> nobody recognized it.
> 
One game company as their official campaign map use a map of England 
rotated 90 degrees clockwise.

-- 
Inquiring minds want to know while minds with a self-preservation 
instinct are running screaming.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493928

In article <pgeus5$m47$1@dont-email.me>,
Dimensional Traveler  <dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:
>On 6/20/2018 3:29 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
>> In article <7c17972a-4b25-4c19-8310-d01e8b13e411@googlegroups.com>,
>> Robert Carnegie  <rja.carnegie@excite.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> I've forgotten the webcomic's name whose places seemed
>>> to be random lifts from the atlas of Scotland; then
>>> I learned that the map was an accurate one, but IIRC
>>> in New Zealand.
>> 
>> Ah. My cheat for a campaign was to use a map of Sundaland. Rotated so
>> nobody recognized it.
>> 
>One game company as their official campaign map use a map of England 
>rotated 90 degrees clockwise.

Somebody once, just for the heck of it, posted a picture of a
continent and invited us to identify it.  Turned out to be
Antarctica, rotated and without snow.

-- 
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493931

On 6/20/2018 7:24 PM, Dorothy J Heydt wrote:
> In article <pgeus5$m47$1@dont-email.me>,
> Dimensional Traveler  <dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:
>> On 6/20/2018 3:29 PM, James Nicoll wrote:
>>> In article <7c17972a-4b25-4c19-8310-d01e8b13e411@googlegroups.com>,
>>> Robert Carnegie  <rja.carnegie@excite.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> I've forgotten the webcomic's name whose places seemed
>>>> to be random lifts from the atlas of Scotland; then
>>>> I learned that the map was an accurate one, but IIRC
>>>> in New Zealand.
>>>
>>> Ah. My cheat for a campaign was to use a map of Sundaland. Rotated so
>>> nobody recognized it.
>>>
>> One game company as their official campaign map use a map of England
>> rotated 90 degrees clockwise.
> 
> Somebody once, just for the heck of it, posted a picture of a
> continent and invited us to identify it.  Turned out to be
> Antarctica, rotated and without snow.
> 
Given its location, the idea that rotating Antarctica would make it 
harder recognize seems strange.  Removing the snow, that I can believe.

-- 
Inquiring minds want to know while minds with a self-preservation 
instinct are running screaming.

[toc] | [prev] | [next] | [standalone]

#493910

On Wednesday, 20 June 2018 22:18:09 UTC+1, Robert Carnegie  wrote:
> On Wednesday, 20 June 2018 14:39:47 UTC+1, James Nicoll  wrote:
> > Point of Dreams: A Novel of Astreiant (Astreiant, book 2) Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett
> > 
> > https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/review/behind-the-curtain
> > -- 
> > My reviews can be found at http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/
> > My Dreamwidth at https://james-davis-nicoll.dreamwidth.org/
> > My patreon is at https://www.patreon.com/jamesdnicoll
> 
> Are we running out of fantasy place names?  From your
> Tor article the other day, I learned that Brisingamen
> has been re-used; then, from Wikipedia, that it was 
> borrowed from Norse myth in the first place.

Oh, and on the original subject, I just remembered the recent-ish member of Marvel Comics' tribute hero team 
"Young Avengers" being prompted to reconsider appearing 
as a teenage gay superhero named "Asgardian".  So he 
switched to "Wiccan".  Then that was challenged too
since he wasn't a worshipper, but, he does real magic, 
which probably excuses a lot.

"Demiurge" was used as well.  Yes, that's a big deal.

[toc] | [prev] | [standalone]

Back to top | Article view | rec.arts.sf.written

csiph-web