The Bonds of Blood - Travis Simmons

RATING: FOUR STARS

The Bonds of Blood is the first instalment of Travis Simmons' Revenant Wyrd Saga, an epic fantasy that chronicles the adventures of Jovian, Angelica and Joya Neferis as they embark upon a dangerous quest to save their older sister, Amber, from the clutches of an unknown but prophecised evil.

Before they set out from their plantation home, Dauin Neferis gifts his children with elaborate weapons and powerful artefacts that were once owned by their mother; equipment that he knows will be invaluable if they are to succeed in their quest and bring Amber home safely. Lord Neferis also knows that there is more to his children than he has told them and sends Grace, a mysterious and elderly scholar, to guide and watch over them while they traverse the wilderness.

Frequented by reticent spirits and ancient figures with powers beyond their understanding, the Neferis children are continuously tested in ways that they could have scarcely have imagined and begin to discover what their father had neglected to tell them: that they have many more gifts than financial privilege. 

The Good

Simmons has set The Bonds of Blood in a remarkably vivid world, which has a well developed and unique history that gives the book a fascinating sense of realism. To briefly summarise his world, the Holy Mother became sick of the strife that man caused as they tried to rule and own all that surrounded them and, long before the events of the story, separated the Spirit Realm from those of the physical, leaving their inhabitants with little of the Wyrding Way. 

In addition to being set in a magical world that I could actually imagine as existing, Simmons has a remarkable imagination and has filled The Bonds of Blood with many different races of creatures (other than humans) that act to help or hinder the Neferis children in their own different ways. This adds a much more interesting depth to the story than if it was simply about good humans fighting bad ones, which in turn adds to its enjoyment to read.

The Bad

The main issue I had while reading The Bonds of Blood is that Simmons has, sadly, over-described everything and uses too many necessary adverbs in his prose. This slows down the speed of the story and makes much of the text more boring to read than it needed to be. 

Furthermore, Simmons tells the events as they unfold from multiple points-of-view, and whereas I don't have a problem with this per se, the extent to which Simmons switches character within each chapter often makes it hard to follow what's going on and who is thinking/doing what.

Final Thoughts

Despite having a few problems that may have put me off reading The Bonds of Blood before I picked it up, I think, after reading it, that it's scope and imagination easily counteracts them and make the book well worth reading. Thus, I would strongly recommend reading The Bonds of Blood to any lover of fantasy and even to someone who's unfamiliar with the genre, but wants to experience epic imagination at its best!