Book Review: Blood Ties by Christie Golden (A World of Warcraft Midnight Novel)
In the World of Warcraft Alleria and Turalyon are heroes of epic proportions. They have been fighting for a millennia against the Burning Legion, and now they’ve returned to find their son, Arator, is fighting the same cause. Despite sharing blood, this small family doesn’t really know how to relate. Now they’re working together to investigate rumors that demonic activity is starting up in an old abandoned Legion base. Can this family find a way to work together in time to avert disaster? Find out in Christie Golden’s Blood Ties, a prequel to World of Warcraft: Midnight.
[Note: While I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it has been provided to me by Random House Worlds for the purpose of this review. Warning: My review of Blood Ties contains some spoilers!]
Family drama mixes with war in Blood Ties
Arator has had to fight his heritage his whole life. Born to two of the greatest heroes Azeroth has ever known, nothing Arator does will ever be good enough. Complicating matters, Arator has his own way of doing things that doesn’t always follow the rules. When his parents unexpectedly show up after being gone his entire life, Arator is eager to get to know them, and he has the perfect way for them to reconnect.
There are reports coming in that fel energy has been spotted in an old Legion base. Arator offers to go investigate, and his parents jump at the chance to spend time with their estranged son. Once there, they find that something is definitely going on; they just aren’t quite sure what.
The three head off across Azeroth to find answers as they continue to bond. But soon they find out that there’s more to family than being related. Arator especially chafs at his father’s strict world view. Although his mother’s hot and cold attachment style keeps him unbalanced too. The three stumble through their investigation and slowly learn how to work together. The only real question is: will they learn to become a family before one of them ends up dead?
World of Warcraft fans will love this
No one will be surprised to find out that Blood Ties is aimed at fans of World of Warcraft. Players of the game will recognize locations, factions, races, and campaigns mentioned in the book. Readers who haven’t played the game will likely be a little confused by the lack of context for these different aspects. But playing the games might not be enough to fully enjoy the book.
Blood Ties is just one of many World of Warcraft books. These books tell an interconnected story of the WoW world. There are many references to the other stories in Blood Ties. Also, the relationships between different characters have been built over many adventures, making them difficult to understand if you just read one book from the middle of the series.
Personally, I have never played World of Warcraft or read any of the books. I was able to read and enjoy Blood Ties, but I did often feel lost. And I had to really pay attention to context clues to piece together past events. It’s probably not something most readers will want to do.
But World of Warcraft fans will certainly enjoy the exciting adventure and family drama of Blood Ties. The characters are fun and engaging, and the fight scenes are epic. Fans will love experiencing the adventure in familiar places from the game. They will also find it more entertaining for the familiarity of the names and context. If they’ve read Golden’s other books from her World of Warcraft series, it will be even better.
A good family drama
While non-World of Warcraft fans will probably not be interested in Blood Ties, it is true that under the World of Warcraft skin is a strong family drama. Arator is a son who feels both abandoned and overshadowed by his parents. Suddenly these larger-than-life figures come crashing into his world. Spending time with his parents, he begins to realize that not only are they normal people, they’re flawed people.
Trying to reconcile his hero worship image of his parents with the reality of who they are is hard. Especially when they are trying to push him into being the perfect son they’ve always pictured him as.
These three love each other deeply, but it’s unsure if they can work together or if they even like each other. The only way to find out is to keep trying. The more time they spend together, the more they begin to understand each other. But some hurts run too deep to fix, and some families are better off apart. Is that the fate of this small family?
A hit for World of Warcraft fans, a miss for others
Blood Ties is a good story. Even though I’m not a WoW fan, I did enjoy reading it. But I don’t think the average reader is going to enjoy wading through the World of Warcraft dogma just to read about Arator, Alleria, and Turalyon’s family drama. But those who are well versed in World of Warcraft will love this story.
Golden has crafted a rousing and rowdy story that also has a tender heart at its core. Because I feel like the reader’s enjoyment of this story is so dependent on their relationship to World of Warcraft, I’ve given two different ratings for Blood Ties…
Rating: for WoW fans: 8/10
For non-WoW fans: 6/10
I know that World of Warcraft fans definitely won’t want to miss Golden’s latest story and should check it out today. Everyone else probably won’t want to check it out though.
Also check out: The Remarkable Life of Ibelin Is A Touching Look At A Life Lived Online
