As much as I enjoyed the budding relationship between Zryan and Astrid, it did at times feel forced. Upon their first meeting, Zryan is full of innuendos and suggestive comments that seem so out of place when they are supposed to be rivals about to face off to the death with one another.
It felt like a little too much all things considered, and a bit heavy handed with the sexuality he seemed to be forcing on their first interaction which just took away believability for me. I will say I still really enjoyed this relationship and it just got better as the book went on, and I definitely loved the bond between these two.
I wasn’t certain what to think of Skylar’s point of view at first, as she didn’t immediately grab me as a main character, but once the purpose of her storytelling is reevealed she actually became such an interesting character to follow. I also adored the interactions between Skylar and Axel at every turn. They are so snarky to one another and constantly butting heads and exasperated with the other. I honestly think I preferred their encounters over Zryan and Astrid, as to me they felt as if they had more to their “relationship” as guard to the captive and captive (so to speak) then the blatant lust of the other two. Their chemistry had me rooting for something more between them, and that the two could find some middle ground despite their contrasting goals.
Now, there were a few things that didn’t always make sense to me reading through this book, but not enough to really take away from the story. For example, it was hard for me to comprehend Astrid as this helpless seeming, constantly needing to be saved damsel that she comes across as. This didn’t really jibe for me because she is supposed to be this heir trained from a young age to defend herself both against assassins, and inevitably the duel to the death with the heir of her opposing country, and yet it seems like she is constantly needing to be saved throughout the course of Blood Bound. I couldn’t really reconcile someone trained to duel to the death and protect herself with someone who never seemed able to actually defend herself whenever the occasion arose. Certainly she never expects to win the duel, and for that reason perhaps excuses can be made, and it makes sense that sometimes she would need help against a multitude of assassins over the course of her life, but the degree that her helplessness seems to be presented in this book seemed a bit extreme with her background.
Again, this is more of a note than a deep criticism as it didn’t ruin the experience of the book by any means, it just seemed inconsistent with who she was supposed to be. She also comes more into herself as a being throughout the course of the novel and I loved seeing Astrid gaining such strength and coming into her power. Her growth was endearing to watch and only solidified her strength as a character and I enjoyed the journey immensely.
I cannot wait to see where this series goes and will definitely be keeping my out for the sequel when it comes. I am deeply invested in the characters and their outcome and will absolutely be continuing on with the series. It is a great start to the series and I recommend it for fantasy fans out there especially.
