Blood Debt (Touched, #1)

by Nancy Straight

[inlibrisveritas]

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

Blood Debt centers around Camille who after the death of her mother finds out she has family on the other side of the country and that her ancestry is more than a little unique. They are Centaurs, and they have some pretty different views on how her life should be.

I love what Nancy did with the Centaurs in her story and thought it was rather interesting that she choose to keep them mostly human in nature, despite their abilities. She also delves in to Greek mythology and adds some really nice history for the Centaurs as well as Camille’s family history. It’s rather rich in detail and I personally enjoyed the depth she provided. I like that the females have wide ranging abilities like communing with spirits, seeing the future, and reading minds, it adds some interesting little twists to the plot. I will also say that most of the plot revolves around her integration into the Centaur way of life and directly connected to that is the romance, they are both integral to the plot. However there is a a lot I really want to know about that I’m hoping is answered in book two.

Camille is a headstrong and independent girl who is suddenly thrust into a society that thrives due to dependency, and while she is happy to be with the family she didn’t know she had the fact that she has to commit to such a lifestyle scares her. She gets points for standing her ground on the issue and pushing the fact that she is the one who will decide what she does. Bianca, Drake and Gage add an interesting situation to the mix and turns the relationship possibilities into some sort of weird square thing. It’s not as bad as it sounds, I promise…Camille’s heart belongs to one guy and it is obvious who it is. However they end up in a complicated situation based on family honor and bloodlines and it adds some odd little kinks to the mix. I did have a problem with the main relationship though…it wasn’t technically insta-love, but it’s too close for my personal tastes. Camille isn’t so willing to jump into a relationship blindly so her resistance is known and mostly constant, it’s the male in question that exhibits the puppy love quality. Granted he is sweet and does seem quite devoted to her, but he came on a bit strong.

I’ll definitely read the second one when I get the chance, because the ending leaves off at a pivotal moment and I just have to know what happens to Camille.