If I'm understanding bonds correctly, it's a huge game mechanic that should never be used.
You start the game with four bonds. I think that means one of each suit, though the book doesn't ever seem to say that. It looks like you can never have more than four bonds. The only ways to get new bonds is to replace existing bonds.
The starting bonds seem roughly balanced. Hearts remove a wound, Diamonds gain a coin. Spades gain a wound. Clubs gain a wound or remove two coin. Pretty much balanced. Near the beginning of the game, it's 50/50 whether I gain or lose.
Since the Heal action exchanges a coin to remove a wound, it's pretty much always a bad deal to take the club option to pay two coin to avoid taking a wound. The only reason I would want to do that is if the only other option is death, in which case I probably should have healed instead of consorting ... unless I have zero coins, in which case I should Perform because losing a few cards is better than a 1 (or 2) in 4 chance of death.
Once I resolve spades, I can gain three coin. But resolving spades means taking three wounds, which costs three coin to heal, so it's not really much of an incentive.
If I take three wounds at once, it's game over. So I never want to consort with two wounds, unless spades (and probably clubs as well) are resolved.
If I'm fully healed, and I draw a heart, that's wasted. So I may want to consort fully healed for coin, but it's not worth as much as consorting with exactly one wound.
If I replace a bond, the Glinting Idol is the only replacement that is better than the original. (I think the Cordial Person is still subject to the normal clubs rules?) Two of other replacements make consorting (already close to 50/50) an even worse deal. And even the Glinting Idol isn't that good, because it heals two wounds, and I almost never want to consort if I have two wounds, because drawing a spade (or possibly a club) will kill me.
It just seems like I would almost never want to consort, except under very specific conditions:
1. I have exactly 1 wound (unless I have the People’s Militia) and I would rather risk inflicting a second wound than spend a coin. And the odds are not good, unless either spades or clubs is resolved.
2. I have zero wounds, and I'm willing to take a wound or two on the off chance that I might get a coin.
3. I have two wounds and spades and clubs are resolved. (And I do not have the Horned Wizard.)
4. I have two wounds, and the deck is so low that I'm pretty sure there's better than 1 (or 2) in 4 odds of ending the game.
So basically I don't want to consort unless bonds are resolved (which won't happen if I don't consort) or I'm really desperate.
It just feels like one of the core actions is something that I'll probably go many games without using.