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Trade Pact Universe #2
Ties of Power
Sira, the most powerful member of the alien Clan, has dared to challenge the will of her people--by allying herself with a human. But can she hope to carve a new life for herself when the Clan is determined to reclaim her genetic heritage...at any cost?
496 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
30 people are currently reading
427 people want to read
About the author
Julie E. Czerneda
103 books754 followersHaving written 25 novels (and counting) published by DAW Books, as well as numerous short stories, and editing several anthologies, in 2022, Julie E. Czerneda was inducted in the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame. Her science fiction and fantasy combines her training and love of biology with a boundless curiosity and optimism, winning multiple awards. Julie's recent releases include the standalone novel To Each This World, her first collection Imaginings, and A Shift of Time, part of her Night's Edge fantasy series. For more visit czerneda.com Julie is represented by Sara Megibow of Megibow Literary Agency LLC.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
March 12, 2025
Having got all the amnesia rubbish out of the way in the first book I was hoping this second in the series would be a big improvement, unfortunately this isn’t the case. Having recently read the prequel Stratification series, I felt compelled to complete the story but at times it is a bit of a struggle.
The book started quite well but I soon became irritated by the lack of logic in many of the situations, for example;
The rest of the book is basically lots of characters running around making poor decisions with very little purpose.
There are a few interesting incidents that kept me reading the book and the ending wasn’t bad, but still a little bit disappointing.
The book started quite well but I soon became irritated by the lack of logic in many of the situations, for example;
The rest of the book is basically lots of characters running around making poor decisions with very little purpose.
There are a few interesting incidents that kept me reading the book and the ending wasn’t bad, but still a little bit disappointing.
December 29, 2010
The second part of the trilogy started with A thousand words for stranger,[return]They both hold their own as stand alone stories. The authors notes in my ebook edition implies that making it stand alone added a hundred pages of back story. but not in the main by repetition rather she used stuff from the cutting room floor.[return]Having said that you really should read these in order. To avoid major spoilers.[return][return] It sprawls rather too much. leaving me floundering as I waited for plot points. Sira has her reproductive organs stolen. Understandably miffed at this she send her partner to retrieve them, Her attempts to follow after him are hammpered by the Drapsk a race of aliens who keep on insisting that they really really need her "magic" presumably her Psionic talents.[return][return]There are problems with this the Psionics are not well done but Czerneda does write good aliens.
November 29, 2016
This was a great second installment to the Trade Pact Universe series. I thought I liked the characters in the first book, but the depth that they were given in Ties of Power really made me love them. The drapsk are so sweet! Definitely my favorite side characters by far, although we had the return of Huido and Barac as well. Another high point was the character development we saw in Rael and the expanding of the universe known to the reader - finding out more about the M'hir was fascinating and I like the direction it seems to be moving towards for the third book. Yes, read this! This might be my favorite sci-fi series that I've read this year!
November 26, 2014
There are a few tropes that I don't care for and it's mildly dated, but overall the story is interesting. There are two things keeping me from giving it four stars: the formatting of Chapter and Interlude is annoying and I feel the second hundred pages could've been heavily edited (too much time spent with friendly kidnappers).
Thankfully the ending was satisfying, making up for the rest of it.
Thankfully the ending was satisfying, making up for the rest of it.
June 8, 2007
The sequel to A Thousand Words for Stranger doesn't quite live up to the promise of the first, but it is still an excellent book, and it ties up a lot of questions left unanswered in the first book.
January 14, 2016
I didn't like this book as much as the first one. Basically the main character, Sira, despite all her powers/abilities is separated from her love/partner Morgan and spends much of the book helping a group of aliens who have kidnapped/adopted her. Meanwhile, the other characters try to find Sira and the person who has stolen her ovaries. So most of what's important to the larger narrative only happens in these short interludes. It is very clear that this is the second book in a trilogy
August 11, 2013
Ms Czerneda has created some wonderful aliens! She's also created some not so wonderful but very believable aliens. I enjoyed this second book in Sira and Morgan's story. The first few chapters felt slow, but my patience was amply rewarded by the remainder and vast majority of the book. I look forward to reading the third installment in this series.
May 9, 2021
Love the universe and the characters. A lot of characters that touch your heart plus great stories and action galore.
March 18, 2018
The continued story of Sarah and her chosen Morgan. This introduces the aliens called the Drapsk, another species that use the M'hir area of power, and know more about it than the clan. A good enough book to read again someday.
February 12, 2019
Book Two of The Trade Pact series is just as good and maybe a bit better than the first. I'm still fascinated by all of the different species that inhabit the different worlds of The Trade Pact. It's a bit like the Star Wars cantina scene, but for a whole series of novels.
Sira, the chooser has stepped out of bounds according to the Council, by choosing a human as her mate. Now she is brutally attacked and found unconscious with a surgical scar, revealing that someone has taken samples of Sira's reproductive organs.
This is another finely written book in the series. Book three should be coming up shortly.
Sira, the chooser has stepped out of bounds according to the Council, by choosing a human as her mate. Now she is brutally attacked and found unconscious with a surgical scar, revealing that someone has taken samples of Sira's reproductive organs.
This is another finely written book in the series. Book three should be coming up shortly.
April 1, 2012
I liked the first book of this series more than this one. By sheer willpower I persevered, mainly because it spent just over half the novel seemingly wasting time with Sira being held hostage by some annoying beings without any clear explanation. Half the book!!! Czerneda could've EASILY lopped off 100-150pp without much loss. When it finally became clear what was going on THEN the story took off, but man. I'm going to read the third book just to see how it ends, but I hope I don't end up regretting it!
July 27, 2017
I love the prequel to the trade pact series, but this was enjoyable enough to finish. There is likely too much vagueness about the M'hir and the species aren't as vividly painted as in the prequel, but the protagonist is captivating.
October 25, 2007
Good part 2! Things are really getting interesting...I hope she can manage to wrap them up in book 3!
September 13, 2019
Yay! More Sira and Morgan!
August 27, 2009
I like the books in this series but find the stratification series was more enjoyable.
March 11, 2018
Czerneda's universe and characters - enough said!
August 28, 2010
This book, second in a trilogy, continues the arc of the story in satisfying ways. Sira continues to grow as a character, and a new species, the Drapsk, adds interest to the mix.
May 28, 2014
See my comments on Volume 3, "To Trade the Stars".
August 7, 2023
3.5 stars
The portrayal of the aliens in this book was delightful, from their nervous tentacle sucking to their frustrating lack of empathy for their Sacred One. Most chapters featuring the Drapsk left me with some chuckles, if not outright laughs. Their reaction to any use of the M’hir, with antennae suddenly pointing in the direction of the user, was downright hilarious. It was such an alien, though logical, way of thought. They felt completely real, and made fierce allies. The Retians also got a better portrayal this book compared with the previous one, with their mud-filled streets and the mud-strewn eggs. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for Clan politics. The beginning, where Sira and then Barac are hiding out left me cold and barely interested, and while the ending was satisfyingly energetic, it kept me wishing to go back to the alien storylines. At least Sira is growing on me; where I wasn’t fond of her in the last book, and started with the same feeling here, her actions when she finally accepted her role, and afterward, give me confidence that she might be an enjoyable character in the next book. It’s unfortunate that her telepathic powers could be so easily influenced, depending on whether the author needed her to be able to escape or not. I also like the chapter structure better than I did last book, every second one from the first person point of view, the next an external narration. Continuing from the previous book, it’s an interesting choice, and was effective, though at times confusing since it featured many different characters who had little to connect them.
The portrayal of the aliens in this book was delightful, from their nervous tentacle sucking to their frustrating lack of empathy for their Sacred One. Most chapters featuring the Drapsk left me with some chuckles, if not outright laughs. Their reaction to any use of the M’hir, with antennae suddenly pointing in the direction of the user, was downright hilarious. It was such an alien, though logical, way of thought. They felt completely real, and made fierce allies. The Retians also got a better portrayal this book compared with the previous one, with their mud-filled streets and the mud-strewn eggs. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for Clan politics. The beginning, where Sira and then Barac are hiding out left me cold and barely interested, and while the ending was satisfyingly energetic, it kept me wishing to go back to the alien storylines. At least Sira is growing on me; where I wasn’t fond of her in the last book, and started with the same feeling here, her actions when she finally accepted her role, and afterward, give me confidence that she might be an enjoyable character in the next book. It’s unfortunate that her telepathic powers could be so easily influenced, depending on whether the author needed her to be able to escape or not. I also like the chapter structure better than I did last book, every second one from the first person point of view, the next an external narration. Continuing from the previous book, it’s an interesting choice, and was effective, though at times confusing since it featured many different characters who had little to connect them.
December 27, 2020
Czerneda, Julia E. Ties of Power. Trade Pact Universe No. 2. DAW, 1999.
I wanted to like this novel and this series more than I do. It has some original alien cultures and interstellar trade, things I usually applaud. But I had a hard time finishing this one. The story arc was never quite clear, and the nature and limits of psychic communication between species was equally vague. The story is strewn with confusingly similar terms. It seems everyone is some kind of chooser or chosen one, or wants to be chosen one, or used to be chosen one. After a while, I just didn’t care. Why are the Interludes? Is it just meanwhile back at the ranch, or is there something else going on? What do any of these aliens exactly look like? Do we really need unpronounceable names to make these all-too-humanish aliens seem alien? There are supposed to be several different kinds of romance and familial structures and genetic imperatives involved, but after a while, I would nod off and find myself several more pages in and would ask myself whether there was anything to be gained by backtracking. I guess I am not the chosen one for this novel.
I wanted to like this novel and this series more than I do. It has some original alien cultures and interstellar trade, things I usually applaud. But I had a hard time finishing this one. The story arc was never quite clear, and the nature and limits of psychic communication between species was equally vague. The story is strewn with confusingly similar terms. It seems everyone is some kind of chooser or chosen one, or wants to be chosen one, or used to be chosen one. After a while, I just didn’t care. Why are the Interludes? Is it just meanwhile back at the ranch, or is there something else going on? What do any of these aliens exactly look like? Do we really need unpronounceable names to make these all-too-humanish aliens seem alien? There are supposed to be several different kinds of romance and familial structures and genetic imperatives involved, but after a while, I would nod off and find myself several more pages in and would ask myself whether there was anything to be gained by backtracking. I guess I am not the chosen one for this novel.
February 23, 2019
Another awesome book by Czerneda. Jason & Sira are trying to get on with their lives and keep the Clan at arms length. The Clan has other ideas. Commander Lydis Bowman is now Sector Chief investigating the disappearance of human telepaths. The Drapsk know more than most beings of the M'hiray, including the Clan. Some in the Clan are practicing outlawed humanoid science along with other species unknown to them (the Clan) with the Retians doing the experiments for them all.
January 4, 2021
I give up. I've been pecking at this story for over 3 months. I've literally sat staring at paint dry rather than picking this story back up again. I was trying to hold out, because I already bought #3. And I've read the Species Imperative series, so I know Czerneda is good! I was really really hoping this would get better, but omfg I am so bored with everything.
Maybe I'll pick up #3 and hope I still know what's going on. But I'm done with #2. I've given it too many shots.
Maybe I'll pick up #3 and hope I still know what's going on. But I'm done with #2. I've given it too many shots.
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October 26, 2025Why you might like it: Biology-led contact with rigorous cultural logic. Rubric match: not yet scored. Uses your engineering/rigor/first-contact/world-building rubric. Tags: biology, first-contact, culture
April 17, 2019
Actually preferred this to book 1 in the series. One of the alien species is just so charming and unexpected. It's nice when "good" is a force to be reckoned with in the universe.
May 21, 2020
Best of the trilogy
November 16, 2021
Made it to page 8. Far too much Harlequin Romance emotive maudlin glop for my taste. Hard to believe Library is wasting diminishing public budget on this type of extremely narrowed audience writing.
January 14, 2022
Super satisfying. Loved it. Love the Draspk. Loved everything about it. No complaints. Excited for the next book.
January 22, 2025
This was an interesting sequel. Sadly, I found myself skimming often because I became bored with the seemingly endless descriptions of everything.
January 4, 2021
Unfortunately, just as I anticipated, not as good as the first book in the series.
January 3, 2023
3.5 stars, Metaphorosis Reviews
Summary
Sira has won her freedom both from her controlling Clan and from her dangerous Power of Choice. But plenty of others are still interested in her, and the Clan hasn't given up yet on copying her powers.
Review
I have most of Julie Czerneda’s books listed in my old records as 3.5 stars, a rating that mystified me when I went back to re-read the Stratification trilogy (I found them better than that). However, I’m finding those ratings more accurate for this original trilogy. That’s also odd, since this is the trilogy that built my original interest in Czerneda.
This second book of the second (chronological) trilogy has a rocky start, and to be honest, there’s quite a bit about the book that’s rocky. What I remember most about the book is the Drapsk (or Drapski?), the cute, fluffy, but also wise aliens, and that’s where Czerneda is at her best. The Drapsk are just as cute, fluffy, and wise as I recall, and not in an annoying way. They’re a great creation, and one of the book’s continuing annoyances is just how badly protagonist Sira di Sarc Morgan treats them. She simply refuses to take them seriously and feels no compunction about using them for her own very selfish purposes, regardless of cost to them. It was not only annoying, but it didn’t fit well for me with how her character was developed in the previous book or how it’s built up in this one (there are changes due to the harmonization of her pasts).
The Drapsk aside, the bulk of the book is taken up with political machinations and plot twists that I honestly had a hard time following (and caring about) this time around. While ostensibly what the book is about, it’s just not as interesting as the story of the Drapsk. Happily, the Drapsk do play a central role, and their story is what kept the narrative going for me. The Drapsk ended up being, for me, a the satisfying core around which a relatively uninteresting plot is wrapped. An interesting, but flawed book.
Summary
Sira has won her freedom both from her controlling Clan and from her dangerous Power of Choice. But plenty of others are still interested in her, and the Clan hasn't given up yet on copying her powers.
Review
I have most of Julie Czerneda’s books listed in my old records as 3.5 stars, a rating that mystified me when I went back to re-read the Stratification trilogy (I found them better than that). However, I’m finding those ratings more accurate for this original trilogy. That’s also odd, since this is the trilogy that built my original interest in Czerneda.
This second book of the second (chronological) trilogy has a rocky start, and to be honest, there’s quite a bit about the book that’s rocky. What I remember most about the book is the Drapsk (or Drapski?), the cute, fluffy, but also wise aliens, and that’s where Czerneda is at her best. The Drapsk are just as cute, fluffy, and wise as I recall, and not in an annoying way. They’re a great creation, and one of the book’s continuing annoyances is just how badly protagonist Sira di Sarc Morgan treats them. She simply refuses to take them seriously and feels no compunction about using them for her own very selfish purposes, regardless of cost to them. It was not only annoying, but it didn’t fit well for me with how her character was developed in the previous book or how it’s built up in this one (there are changes due to the harmonization of her pasts).
The Drapsk aside, the bulk of the book is taken up with political machinations and plot twists that I honestly had a hard time following (and caring about) this time around. While ostensibly what the book is about, it’s just not as interesting as the story of the Drapsk. Happily, the Drapsk do play a central role, and their story is what kept the narrative going for me. The Drapsk ended up being, for me, a the satisfying core around which a relatively uninteresting plot is wrapped. An interesting, but flawed book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews