Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Blood Ties (Castings #1)

3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 · rating details · 444 ratings · 64 reviews

A thousand years ago, the Eleven Domains were invaded and the original inhabitants forced on the road as Travelers, belonging nowhere, welcomed by no-one.

Now the Domains are governed with an iron fist by the Warlords, but there are wilder elements to the landscape which cannot be controlled and which may prove their undoing. Some are spirits of place, of water and air an...more

Paperback, 459 pages

Published April 7th 2008 by Orbit

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Amazing Series

63rd out of 110 books — 16 voters

Fantasy & SiFi to read before you die.

72nd out of 90 books — 78 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 1,018)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Mar 16, 2011 Duckie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: scifi-and-fantasy

This was a real mixed bag. On one hand, I liked the way relationships between people were tied to their ancestors' roles as invader/invaded. It was a clear reflection of the author's own Australian background and showed that people are never truly free of their histories. On the other hand:
1) The characters. Ash was well-rounded, but most of the other characters were rather two-dimensional. I found Bramble and her "Cooking and weaving and girl stuff is icky!" attitude annoying. Don't get me wron...more This was a real mixed bag. On one hand, I liked the way relationships between people were tied to their ancestors' roles as invader/invaded. It was a clear reflection of the author's own Australian background and showed that people are never truly free of their histories. On the other hand:
1) The characters. Ash was well-rounded, but most of the other characters were rather two-dimensional. I found Bramble and her "Cooking and weaving and girl stuff is icky!" attitude annoying. Don't get me wrong, I like a good tomboy female character, but I have little patience with characters whose attitude toward traditionally feminine activities is contempt, rather than simple disinterest. It's petty, and it's a cheap way to write a character. I was also disturbed by the general sense of contempt I felt the author had for most of her non-Bramble female characters. I felt like the author judged one female character more harshly for considering an abortion, than Ash was judged for murdering people. This left me with a really bitter aftertaste after finishing the novel.
2) The pacing. The plot takes around 200 pages to show up. It got better from that point on, but I didn't like having to wade through 200 pages of Bramble bonding with her horse to get there. And I say this as someone who loves horses.
3) The frequent mention of rape to show that this is a Serious Book. It's a major pet peeve of mine when authors do this. Rape is not a gimmick, Mrs. Freeman. Rape is brutal, and violent, and terrifying. Good authors who use rape in their stories include at least one graphic, visceral description of it, so the reader understands the terror the victim feels every time rape appears as a threat. Offhand references like "He took me from the back. Both passages" don't cut it. I should be reading that phrase thinking "Dear God, what a horrific experience for someone to survive." Instead I'm reading it thinking "Wow, that kind of sucks." If you're going to include rape in your novel, Mrs. Freeman, you need to go all the way. Referencing it without ever describing it cheapens the crime, and feeds into the larger cultural perception of rape as something that "kind of sucks but isn't really that bad."
In conclusion, the writing had an easy flow to it and the parts of the book that dealt with ethnic histories and people's attempts to address the wrongs of their ancestral pasts were intriguing. But because of the way the author handled issues like rape and her harshness, almost contempt, for her female characters in general, I'm undecided about whether to continue with the sequels.(less)

like 6 likes · see review

Nov 20, 2011 Kae rated it 3 of 5 stars

As I often do when I pick up a new book from the bookstore, I chose this book with no prior knowledge of it; similarly as I do when I get that new book, I also wound up enjoying it.

Blood Ties has an interesting twist on an old genre. The world is familiar, but the way the story is written is not. Maybe it's the fact that this is her only adult series, but I found the simplistic form of writing very charming in the setting; and something different from the usual fantasy book.

The characters were e...more

like 1 like · see review

Apr 14, 2013 Rachel Toh rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

Fun, engaging and a thrill to read. The switching between characters can be a little annoying because it throws you off the story. It makes it feel like watching TV back in the days before set top boxes that could record and play back. You would be totally caught up in the story and then suddenly, cliff hanger! Change character. Very frustrating, you feel like your emotions are thrown around, but somehow it makes you appreciate the book better. I suspect this because when you have the pace reset...more

like · see review

Mar 04, 2013 Clare rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like · see review

May 09, 2011 Lighthearted rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

Saker is an enchanter driven by a painful past. Bramble is a free spirit gifted with a strong connection to horses. Ash is the son of Travelers, longing for a place to call home. All three are of the old blood, among the last of their kind. As their stories unfold, along with the stories of those whose lives they touch, it becomes clear that their fates are connected to each other as well as to the fate of the Domains.

I loved this book! The history of the Domains propels the story: one thousand...more

like · see review

Jun 28, 2010 Kate Forsyth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

Pamela Freeman is best known for her children’s fantasies, the Florimonde books which begins with The Willow Tree’s Daughter, and also for her biographical novel, The Black Dress, about the life of Sister Mark Mackillop. This is her first fantasy for adults and it is utterly brilliant. I haven’t read a fantasy novel that I’ve enjoyed so much for a very long time, and one of the reasons for this is the fresh and surprising structure of the book, which takes the time to tell the stories of a myria...more

like 2 likes · see review

Apr 16, 2011 Craig rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

This is a terrific book. Its unusual structure makes the first half of the book a bit difficult to stick with, as it's almost entirely devoted to world-building (and it is indeed a wonderfully unique world). Instead of the common path where the plot introduces the characters and the world they inhabit, the structure here is for chapters to introduce, develop, and follow major characters (and many minor), which organically leads both to the reader understanding their world and for the plot to eve...more

like 1 like · see review

May 17, 2012 Nenia Campbell rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: x-2008s, x-series-bk-1, magic-and-sparkles-and-shit, boo-a-ghost, cool-idea-poorly-executed, reviewed, did-not-finish-or-skimmed

first thought: oh my god, what a pretty cover. it reminds me of avatar: the last air bender. ooh, and it's about people traveling to seek out their own fortunes and how they influence people on their journey. so it's also going to be like the butterfly effect.

wrong wrong wrong...

wrong.

basically, it's like an rpg game without any of the interesting dialogue or control. the people in this story wander around doing things that don't really further the plot in any way. it's almost entirely character...more

like 1 like · see review

Jan 25, 2012 Heather K Veitch rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, library-books

This was the first time I had read a Pamela Freeman book, and I was attracted to this after seeing it in the local library and being drawn in by the first few lines. As it was, it was a quick read with likeable characters and a lot of twisting plots -- it was interesting to see how the various storylines were going to come together as and when the different characters met up.

I particularly fell in love with the character of Bramble -- self-assured, fiesty, knowledgeable yet vulnerable and open-...more

like · see review

Feb 05, 2011 Kay rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

This was a very enjoyable book. It has a fairly slow pace to it but this was not a problem for me. I really enjoyed reading about the characters everyday lives and getting to know them. This is one of those books where you are slowly drawn into it and before you know it you are completely invested in the outcome and the characters lives. I liked Ash right away and while I liked Bramble, I felt that it was harder to connect to her as a character. This became easier as I continued to read.

This bo...more

like · see review

Apr 18, 2011 Sofie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Freeman has a richly imagined world - the book is impregnanted with a deep history and culture that, while romanticised and idealised rather than realistic, lends weight to an otherwise non-existent story. Unfortunately, her timescale errs on the dramatic-and-unrealistic side - not only has the civilisation not developed at all in a thousand years (no science, no change in religion, politics or social values) they're still hanging on to the prejudice and wrongdoing that was engendered thirty gen...more Freeman has a richly imagined world - the book is impregnanted with a deep history and culture that, while romanticised and idealised rather than realistic, lends weight to an otherwise non-existent story. Unfortunately, her timescale errs on the dramatic-and-unrealistic side - not only has the civilisation not developed at all in a thousand years (no science, no change in religion, politics or social values) they're still hanging on to the prejudice and wrongdoing that was engendered thirty generations ago. A thousand years is a long time for a people to sit stagnant on things like this, but these people act like the wars happened last Winter. It's an odd blend that just doesn't ring true, to me.

Her writing is clean, clear and evocative, and certainly the strongest element in her work. Despite the books other flaws, which would normally have resulted in a dog-eared bookmakr hanging out from one-third-in for the rest of eternity, her writing kept me interested enough to finish it to the end, even when I could clearly see there'd be no significant plot development for the rest of the book.

And there's one of the main problems - this isn't a trilogy, it's a novel in three parts. After the first plot-points, which occur a little later than you'd expect in a novel, nothing much happens but the following of those plot points. At least, nothing that coherently fits together to make an emotional arc or a story. It's interesting - things happen to people, they make decisions, and other things happen, but it doesn't seem to have much of a point. There's no answer to the character's starting states - nothing that shows how they've grown, their development, and the closure at the end seems shoehorned in at best.

There's no resolution at the end of this book. Their quests aren't remotely answered - in the case of some characters, it's not even clear what their journey will be yet. Which makes the book fundamentally unsatisfying, to me. I wanted a story, something that would finish what it began, at least in part.

And while the characters themselves feel dimensional, they're difficult to tell apart. Bramble was the only character I could keep track of - all the male characters blended into one another in short order. This was not helped by the fact that Freeman would stop the whole story to give us the point of view of another, inconsequential character. For example - one character killed a would-be-pick-pocket in self-defence, and spent a good deal thinking about the consequences of that. We then jump to a three-page POV of the death scene from said pick-pocket's point of view, a tangent which does not serve the story and does not give us any information we needed to know - it doesn't even give us anything unexpected. This happens several times throughout the book, and I'm at a loss as to why these interludes are there. There is no useful information in there. These characters are not important - we can see they're not important, and seeing things from their viewpoint doesn't add anything. They distract, confuse and slow down the book.

To me, those are big flaws, things that run right to the bones of the book and should have been addressed in the first or second draft where they could have been fixed relatively easily. So it is, I think, a testament to the quality of Freeman's writing that I still finished the book with a reasonable sense of enjoyment. While I won't be purchasing the remainder - I've no wish to slog through another lot of not-much-happening before the plot reveals itself - I will have a look at any other series or books she brings out.(less)

like 1 like · see review

Mar 26, 2012 Yvonne Boag rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

Just finished The Castings trilogy by Pamela Freeman. It is quite a bit different from the normal fantasy books, it raised series issues that made you think. It was set in a pre industrial world where 1000 years ago the people had been invaded by another civilization. Now, the people who had been invaded were the minority and subjected to different laws then the rest of the population.

What I really liked about this story is through out the three books it didn't just tell the stories of the main...more

like 2 likes · see review

Oct 13, 2011 Paul rated it 3 of 5 stars

The real strength of this book is in the vignettes involving minor characters - if you're looking for a fast-paced narrative, this isn't it. That's not a bad thing, but I almost wish Freeman had just kept writing slightly-connected scenes rather than trying to work it all into a converging plot. I found that it was more enjoyable to spend time with her "minor" characters, learning about their back stories, than to go back to the three "main" characters, none of whom stood out to me as particular...more

like · see review

May 22, 2012 Craig Laurance rated it 4 of 5 stars

Blood Ties, the first of The Castings Trilogy (I bought the omnibus edition) is set in a generic fantasy land--feudal/medieval, where magic happens on the fringes. What is interesting is the precise prose and the character building. And the heroes (protagonists) are all ordinary folk--not a king or queen or disguised princess in sight. Rather, they come from the peasant/merchant class. The story slowly and carefully combines three viewpoints; all of them are members of an oppressed ethnicity loo...more

like 2 likes · see review

Jul 23, 2011 Ruth rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: spec-fic

c2007. Great start to the trilogy and going to be trying to get hold of the second one just as soon as possible. I really enjoyed the style of writing - just hit all the right buttons with me. The characters were well drawn and an unusual plot with multiple POVs which, I found, added to the background really succinctly. Bramble, Ash and Saker all very interesting but I preferred the Bramble and Ash story arcs. "It had rained overnight and she rode into a landscape of moving water: drops falling...more

like · see review

Jan 07, 2013 Carolyn rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: high-fantasy

Most of the time they were just puttering around not really doing anything to advance the story on. There's just a lot of useless padding. I wasn't overly impressed with the dialogue and the relatively good parts of the story, the action and chase scenes, were few and far between. It was a disappointment because the book starts off good with a chase scene that will occur later on in the story.
The shifting view points were also not done very well. Some were WAY longer than others and not even ju...more

like · see review

Sep 05, 2011 Derrick rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, fantasy, owned-in-hc

1000 years ago, one group of people invaded a land and dispossessed another group. This series deals with the remnants of that dispossessed and how some want revenge.

The format was different. Each chapter, whether 1 page or 50 pages, followed one character. And it switched between at least 6-10 different characters. By the end of the book you began to see the hint of an outline of how all these different threads were coming together.

I enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the rest of th...more

like · see review

Aug 06, 2010 Célia rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: editora-planeta, 2010, 2-stars, gift, not-own, fantasy

Laços de Sangue é o primeiro livro da trilogia O Dom, da escritora australiana Pamela Freeman, sendo também a sua estreia na ficção para adultos. É um livro que já me tinha chamado a atenção mesmo antes de ser publicado por cá, por opiniões positivas que li, e por isso foi com alguma expectativa que parti para esta leitura.

Trata-se de um livro de fantasia, cuja história decorre no mundo imaginado dos Onze Domínios, povoados pelos descendentes do povo de Acton, que conquistou este território há v...more Laços de Sangue é o primeiro livro da trilogia O Dom, da escritora australiana Pamela Freeman, sendo também a sua estreia na ficção para adultos. É um livro que já me tinha chamado a atenção mesmo antes de ser publicado por cá, por opiniões positivas que li, e por isso foi com alguma expectativa que parti para esta leitura.

Trata-se de um livro de fantasia, cuja história decorre no mundo imaginado dos Onze Domínios, povoados pelos descendentes do povo de Acton, que conquistou este território há vários séculos atrás, e pelos Viajantes, habitantes originais dos Onze Domínios, agora um povo nómada, desenraizado, e mal visto. Este livro acompanha o percurso separado de dois jovens de ascendência Viajante, Bramble e Ash. Bramble é uma jovem com espírito selvagem, que só se sente bem rodeada pela Natureza e que já há muito tempo vem “ouvindo” o chamamento da Estrada. Um acontecimento inesperado leva-a a partir finalmente da aldeia onde reside, na companhia do seu cavalo. Alternadamente, acompanhamos a vida de Ash na sua aprendizagem para a função de segurança, tarefa para a qual foi “empurrado” pelos pais Viajantes pela sua falta de habilidade para cantar.

É neste contexto, a que a autora acrescenta elementos sobrenaturais relacionados com Videntes e fantasmas, que a história vai decorrendo. Entre os relatos dos acontecimentos que envolvem Bramble e Ash, e que abarcam ainda alguns anos, podemos ainda ler pequenos capítulos dedicados a personagens secundárias. Confesso que este foi um dos aspectos que mais gostei neste livro e, muito sinceramente, foi aqui que encontrei os maiores pontos de interesse neste livro pelo interesse e diversidade destas histórias paralelas. E isto aconteceu pelo facto de não me ter importado particularmente com o decorrer das histórias das duas personagens principais. Simpatizei mais com Ash e com os seus dilemas do que com Bramble, que me pareceu quase sempre uma personagem algo estereotipada.

A história e a abordagem são interessantes, e também gostei da escrita de Pamela Freeman. No entanto, acho que a autora falhou em aliar o ritmo bastante lento da história à criação de personagens suficientemente cativantes para manter o interesse do leitor no seu destino e no desenrolar da história. Por isso, às tantas dei por mim a virar páginas não com vontade de saber como terminava, mas sim para chegar ao final da história. No que diz respeito ao mesmo, é importante referir que o enredo tem um final aberto, que claramente abre caminho ao próximo volume da trilogia.

Não diria que é um livro que possa satisfazer qualquer amante de fantasia, mas ainda assim penso ter pontos de interesse que agradarão a alguns leitores.(less)

like · see review

Sep 20, 2010 Fábio Ventura rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A australiana Pamela Freeman, autora de livros de fantasia infantil, marca a sua estreia na ficção para adultos com o primeiro volume da trilogia “O Dom”, “Laços de Sangue”.
Num mundo estruturado por Onze Domínios e dominado por senhores de guerra, um antigo grupo de nómadas conhecido por Viajantes tenta viver a sua vida à margem da sociedade e marginalizado por ela. É nesse contexto que conhecemos as vidas de Bramble, uma rapariga tão selvagem como os animais que adora; Ash, um jovem sensível a...more A australiana Pamela Freeman, autora de livros de fantasia infantil, marca a sua estreia na ficção para adultos com o primeiro volume da trilogia “O Dom”, “Laços de Sangue”.
Num mundo estruturado por Onze Domínios e dominado por senhores de guerra, um antigo grupo de nómadas conhecido por Viajantes tenta viver a sua vida à margem da sociedade e marginalizado por ela. É nesse contexto que conhecemos as vidas de Bramble, uma rapariga tão selvagem como os animais que adora; Ash, um jovem sensível a treinar para segurança; e Saker, um rapaz com um terrível segredo e um grande desejo de vingança.
“Laços de Sangue” é um livro bastante complexo e com um ritmo muito lento. Com uma linguagem bastante cuidada e descritiva, tem um grande enfoque na apresentação das personagens principais e da caracterização política e social do mundo em que vivem. Durante as 437 páginas desta obra, vamos conhecendo as vidas de Bramble, Ash e Saker como histórias independentes e sem relação entre si. Além disso, essa sólida estruturação é intercalada com pequenas histórias de algumas personagens secundárias, escritas na primeira pessoa, o que acaba por fortalecer a caracterização dos protagonistas e o mundos dos Onze Domínios.
Um dos elementos mais fortes deste primeiro volume é a forma original como Pamela Freeman usa o sobrenatural. No mundo de “Laços de Sangue” há uma definição bastante interessante para a morte, algo muito prático e que inevitavelmente cria alguns dilemas no leitor. Em adição, neste mundo existem fantasmas e deuses, elementos quase palpáveis e facilmente vistos e ouvidos pelos habitantes dos Onze Domínios e que coexistem com eles.
Pamela Freeman tem um grande talento para as descrições dos cenários e das próprias personagens. É muito fácil para o leitor visualizar o preciso local onde os protagonistas se encontram, ou até mesmo os seus gestos e atitudes. Acaba por facilitar a relação da história com o leitor.
No entanto, “Laços de Sangue” não deixa de ser uma obra algo difícil e até um pouco aborrecida de se ler. Há uma clara necessidade de um fio condutor ou de um conflito de fundo que ligue todas as personagens e que prenda o leitor à história. Durante praticamente todo o livro, apenas conhecemos as histórias independentes de cada um e só mesmo no fim é que as personagens se juntam e se adivinha um enredo maior e em comum entre eles. Pode parecer estranho, mas o livro terminou da forma como deveria ter começado. E pela grande quantidade de capítulos dedicados a cada personagem (principais e secundárias), é possível que aos poucos se perca a ligação com a história.
Dentro do género, “Laços de Sangue” não é uma obra totalmente original ou envolvente. No entanto, facilmente vai agradar aos amantes do género pela sua solidez, ainda que fragmentada nas suas várias histórias independentes. Pela sua mitologia, pela força de cada personagem e pela forma como Pamela Freeman escreve, tenho a certeza que os próximos dois volumes serão bem mais envolventes que “Laços de Sangue”.

(Opinião publicada no blog Bela Lugosi is Dead)(less)

like · see review

Mar 11, 2011 Karen Field rated it 5 of 5 stars

Blood Ties by Pamela Freeman is the first book in The Castings Trilogy. It is also the first adult fiction novel the author has published,as she usually writes for children. I have read several of her children’s books and enjoyed them immensely. This book was no exception. In fact, it has qualities that make it stand apart from her previous writings. If you are a fan of the author, then you definitely will not be disappointed with Blood Ties.

The story is well written - smooth and interesting. Th...more

like 1 like · see review

Jan 25, 2008 Jarrah rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: author-pamelafreeman, genre-adultspeculativefiction, genre-epicfantasy, series-castings, setting-alternateworld

Adult epic fantasy. Book 1 of a trilogy. Concerns the parallel adventures of Ash, a gypsy (or Traveller) boy who apprentices in the city, learning to protect and to kill - and perhaps to lose himself irrevocably, if destiny doesn't pull him away - and Bramble, a wild village girl who takes to the road and is drawn to her own destiny, entangled with Ash's and with the safety of everybody in the Eleven Domains.

This one I read for review. There were parts I definitely liked. Ash is a bit of a swee...more

like 1 like · see review

Sep 12, 2007 Judith rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fantsy fans

Shelves: adultfiction

I have to start by saying that the author is a close friend, and I read this book in manuscript, so I am obviously not the most dispassionate of readers. I will also say that I rarely read the kind of fantasy that Pamela is writing here—I don't "get along with it"! I often find the epic cast of characters with strange names, and vast wanderings over uncertain terrain just lose me—but this was certainly not the case with "Blood Ties".

Pamela has always had a wonderful skill with characterisation...more I have to start by saying that the author is a close friend, and I read this book in manuscript, so I am obviously not the most dispassionate of readers. I will also say that I rarely read the kind of fantasy that Pamela is writing here—I don't "get along with it"! I often find the epic cast of characters with strange names, and vast wanderings over uncertain terrain just lose me—but this was certainly not the case with "Blood Ties".

Pamela has always had a wonderful skill with characterisation (she's an award-winning writer for children and teenagers) and this skill is the heart of "Blood Ties". These characters are not cyphers—they are fully fleshed (even the dead ones!) and carefully drawn individuals. Similarly, the world-building in the novel is pretty well flawless. There was just one section in the book, when I read it in MS, that I felt "lost" (geographically, as it happens), and Pamela addressed that before publication.

But it's not just the physical world that she's created. The social dynamics, the history, the parallel worlds of the living and the dead—Pamela knows this world "down to the plumbing" (as Zilpha Keatley Snyder once said about creating alternate worlds), and the reader is in sure and confident hands.

It's a world where gods and ghosts live side-by-side with the living. It's a land taken by force from its indigenous people millenia ago—and the remnants of those people, the Travellers, remain outcasts in their own land. And it's a world where the dead may just not rest...

Certain scenes from this book have stayed with me over the months—I wont go into specifics, as they would be spoilers—and knowing a little of what's to come in Books 2 and 3, I can't wait to rejoin Ash and Bramble on their journey.

The book's Australian publisher is currently in negotiations for UK and US publishing deals. But if you're in either of those territories and you can't wait, then you can order it from gleebooks.com.au (and no, I'm not on the payroll). (less)

like · see review

Jan 07, 2012 Christopher Bashforth rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is an excellent read despite not much of a plot line. The authors main strength is her characters. By the time you finish the book you really feel that you have got to know every single character. Plus the fact that every chapter is written from a different characters viewpoint is also very immersive. There is a little world background but because you know the characters so well, by the end of the book you are totally immersed. My only critism that sometimes the writing is too sentimental.

like · see review

Aug 02, 2009 jD rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: series_trilogy, fantasy_adventure_worldbuilding, genre_fantasy

I was shocked that I feel in love with this trilogy. So far two of the books have been published, the third is due in Sep 09. The is a story that sneaks up on you. There are multiple major characters that are not meet until the end of this book, well some of them do. Some of the book is first person and some is third person. It is an unusual mix and no one is perfect but you find you really want them to be successful but you are never really sure what that means exactly.

like · see review

Jul 30, 2011 Jen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: australian, fantasy, teenage

Took a little while to get into this fantasy, but it got me in by the end. Bramble is a Traveller with a way with horses, who flees from her home when she accidentally kills one of the lord's men. There is some mystery surrounding her power. Ash is also a traveller but with different powers, the ability to make ghosts speak. By the end of the novel, the two travellers have joined together and have pledged to fight both the power of the lord and the enchanter who is raising the ghosts against the...more

like · see review

Aug 18, 2010 Cj Wyckoff rated it 4 of 5 stars

The author weaves together the stories of major (and minor) characters, two of which are engrossing. At first I was put off by the switch from one character to another, but before long I was alive in the world and caught up in the tale. This is the first of a trilogy, and I am ready to read the next.
The author lists Jane Austen, Georgette Heyer, and Dorothy Sayers among her favorite authors and influences.

like · see review

May 25, 2009 Penelope rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone who enjoys a good fantasy novel.

Shelves: sf-and-fantasy

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and very much look forward to reading the next in the series, Deep Water. It was original in its subject matter and the smaller stories within the larger one were fascinating and well written. It was a refreshing book and stands out from other recent releases.

like · see review

Dec 13, 2012 Lisa rated it 4 of 5 stars

I'm not a fantasy reader. I'm really not. I mean, I loved Harry Potter but you know..
So as a kid, I read Pamela Freeman's children's books. I now work in a library and while innocently shelving I fell upon this book and was instantly 8 years old again.
So what makes me like this book more than any other fantasy novel? Was it the strong female lead? The distinct lack of romantic altercations (although it is early days)? Was it that is was simultaneously violent and yet not gratuitously gory?
Well,...more

like · see review

Sep 13, 2011 Megan rated it 3 of 5 stars

I really wish there wasn't so many stories told in this book. I liked the three main ones but I felt like the other ones were a little pointless, Pamela could have added the important information from those into the other stories told by the main three. I do like the world that she crated though. I will be reading the next two books in the series as soon as I can :)

like · see review

Feb 27, 2011 Flint rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: epic-fantasy

The overarching plot of this book was extremely slow to develop; I had to read over 300 pages out of 461 to be clued in finally, and even then the big "relevation" turned out really anti-climatic and downplayed by the author. I'm not certain if Freeman ramps it up dramatically in the sequel, but I never got that impression by the time I finished the book. She does however do a wonderful job fleshing out the most minute characters in her story. I've never read a book where even the most seemingly...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 33 34 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend it | Stats | Recent status updates

combine
Other Editions (11)

More editions...

Genres

Fantasy

101 users

Fantasy > Epic Fantasy

5 users

Fantasy > Magic

4 users

Adventure

3 users

Fantasy > High Fantasy

3 users

Adult

3 users

Paranormal > Ghosts

2 users

Dark

2 users

Young Adult

2 users

Science Fiction Fantasy

2 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Pamela Freeman

Pamela Freeman is an Australian author of books for both adults and children. Most of her work is fantasy but she has also written mystery stories, science fiction, family dramas and non-fiction. Her first adult series, the Castings Trilogy (Blood Ties, Deep Water and Full Circle) is published globally by Orbit books. She is best known in Australia for the junior novel Victor’s Quest and an associ...more

More about Pamela Freeman...

Books by Pamela Freeman

The Black Dress: Mary Mackillop's Early Years

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Laços de Sangue

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from Blood Ties

“There were worse things than death.
There would be a leap and a moment suspended, then a long hopeless curve to the rocks and river below. They would fall like leaves between clouds of swifts and then be washed away by the thundering rapids. Bramble clung to that thought. If their bodies washed away then there could be no identification, no danger of reprisals on her family.
She hung on tighter.
The roan's hindquarters bunched under her and they were in the air. It was like she had imagined: the leap, and then the moment suspended in air that seemed to last forever.
Below her the swifts boiled up through the river mist, swerving and swooping, while she and the roan seemed to stay frozen above them. Bramble felt, like a rush of air, the presence of the gods surround her. The shock made her lose her balance and begin to slide sideways.
She felt herself falling.
With an impossible flick of both legs, the roan shrugged her back onto his shoulders. Then the long curve downward and she braced herself to see the cliffs rushing past as they fell.
Time to die.
Instead she felt a thumping jolt that flung her from the roan's back and tossed her among the rocks at the cliff's edge on the other side.
On the other side.
Her sight cleared, although the light still seemed dim. Her hearing came back a little. On the other side of the abyss a jumble of men and hounds were milling, shouting, astonished and very angry.
"You can't do that!" one yelled. "It's impossible!"
"Well, he shagging did it!" another said. "Can't be impossible!"
"Head for the bridge!" Beck shouted. "We can still get him! I want that horse!” — 4 people liked it

“The fact that she was still alive felt wrong, out of balance. She didn't feel special, or protected, or gods-bound. She thought the gods had acted to protect the roan, and she had just been along for the ride. It was the roan who was special, not she.
I should be dead, she thought. If she was dead, then all would have been settled. The warlord's men would have been satisfied to see her body swept away, the roan would have been safe from Beck's whip, the ghost of tyhe man she had killed could have gone to his rest. There was a rounding off - a justice - in her death. But alive, no one was satisfied and no one was safe.” — 2 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: Blood Ties
avg rating	preview: Blood Ties Goodreads rating: 3.79 (444 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2356304.Blood_Ties?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1344265411l/2356304.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2356304.Blood_Ties?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Blood Ties by Pamela Freeman[/url]

Blood Ties (Castings #1)

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website