"A whimsical fantasy tucked within a murder mystery"
In the city-state Astreiant, it is the time of the year
when ghosts are visible so city lawyer Kurin Holles
expected to see the apparition of his lover, but the
specter fails to appear. Kurin knows the most likely
reason is his beloved is magically unable to return, which
leads to the conclusion that her death was caused by a
murder. Adjunct Point Nico Rathe asks his superiors for
permission to investigate the death, especially since the
victim possessed a copy of the spellbook The Alphabet of
Desire. However, the assignment goes to a subordinate
Voillemin, who intends to do nothing in order to further
his career. Nico decides to serendipitously make inquiries. Former soldier Philip Eslingen provides weapons
training to those performing in the upcoming The Alphabet
of Desire midwinter festival. Soon corpses begin to appear
on stage accompanied by the appearance of The Alphabet of
Desire spellbook. The book provides a link back to Nico's
other case, but if the cop digs to deep he will learn what
death by magic means. POINT OF DREAMS cleverly places a well-crafted murder
mystery inside an enchanting fantasy tale. The cast makes
this Renaissance world of magic seem real as Nico and
Phillip are wonderful heroes while every hard worker has
had to deal with a sycophant shirker like Voillemein. The
taut story line works in such a way that fans of both
genres will enjoy the plot and seek out the previous novel
of Melissa Scott and Lisa A. Barnett set in this realm,
POINT OF HOPE. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted November 16, 2001
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