Of the five contenders for power, one is dead, another in disfavor, and still the wars rage as violently as ever, as alliances are made and broken. Joffrey, of House Lannister, sits on the Iron Throne, the uneasy ruler of the land of the Seven Kingdoms. His most bitter rival, Lord Stannis, stands defeated and disgraced, the victim of the jealous sorceress who holds him in her evil thrall. But young Robb, of House Stark, still rules the North from the fortress of Riverrun. Robb plots against his despised Lannister enemies, even as they hold his sister hostage at King’s Landing, the seat of the Iron Throne. Meanwhile, making her way across a blood-drenched continent is the exiled queen, Daenerys, mistress of the only three dragons still left in the world. . . .
But as opposing forces maneuver for the final titanic showdown, an army of barbaric wildlings arrives from the outermost line of civilization. In their vanguard is a horde of mythical Others--a supernatural army of the living dead whose animated corpses are unstoppable. As the future of the land hangs in the balance, no one will rest until the Seven Kingdoms have exploded in a veritable storm of swords. .
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This has probably been the fastest and largest amount of reading I have done yet. As soon as A Clash of Kings ended, I was very eager to start the next. In the past four days, I have read a quarter of the 1100 page book, and while some people like Noah or Amanda may think that a meager amount, It is certainly allot for me. I think that this speaks wonders about the series and its great amount of detail and perspective. However, the writing style has not changed at all, which is not necessarily a bad thing. My favorite aspect of the series is still the constant change of perspective on the situation. Also, there has been increasing amounts of arcane and magic type things which allot more intrigue, at least for me.
ReplyDeleteUpon finishing the book, I encountered an epilogue, which I found surprising, After finishing, I found that the epilogue really enhanced the story and excited me for the next book.
ReplyDeleteMartin often encloses such information in the backs of his books. For example I found the maps, pedigrees and the list of the different houses and their inhabitants quite useful.
DeleteIs There a time skip between the books, in story? If not Do you know why there was an epilogue in the middle of the series?
ReplyDeleteI fin the pedigrees very useful, especially with the large amount of information concerning the houses of Westoros. However, I wish a map of Braavos and the Narrow Sea were enclosed. As to Ari's question, I think the epilogue was more to inform us about an event to come, rather than conclude the story.
ReplyDeleteI liked the size of the world, He writes in a way that makes the world feel big, such as references to other parts of the world, "lemons! does this look like Dorne to you?" and that there are characters on opposing sides who are still likable. the lack of a 'good side' and a 'bad side' makes it feel more real.
ReplyDeleteAri, Glad you were able to see the good and bad sides of the character on both sides. It is a good quality to be able to see the good in others. Remember to keep post longer and to include some of your reactions, feelings and connections to the writing. Jeff
DeleteThe way other readers talked about this series made it sound darker than it actually is. The world seems more 'civilized' than the real world in a similar time period.
ReplyDeleteI found many of the characters unlikable or boring. While it still tells a good story, lingering too long on uninteresting characters is a problem in these books. It also feels somewhat out of control of the author, as if he decided what wold happen next by flipping a coin.
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