Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R Martin

 

Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R Martin

Tiny Overview

After a brutal battle for the iron throne, the Stark's have been living in Winterfell for a couple years. Until, an old friend calls upon Ned, and him and his family relocate to King's Landing, so he can fulfill his duty as Hand of the King. Tragedy, betrayal and war ensue. 

Themes:

• Adventure
• Betrayal
• Cli-fi
• Dark
• Fantasy
• Politics 
• Moral ambiguity
• Violent

Context

Martin drew heavy inspiration from the Wars of the Roses, that happened in the 15th century in England, as well as many other medieval wars. He combined this with the inspiration of Tolkien, and boom. GOT.

Martin also runs a blog, which is interesting.

My Waffling

Bloody hell. If I thought the previous books were big, then this one is giant. 

In the overview, I tried to give away as little as possible, as there is so much.

As mentioned in my first review, I cannot imagine. I am also slow, so I had to watch the show to imagine the book and solidify what was going on. Joe Dempsie (Chris from skins) was a surprise I did not expect to see in the show! That was nice. I read the illustrated version which definitely helped. 

When I told friends and family that I was reading this book, they were surprised. And then told me I had picked the wrong book to start reading fantasy for. I am reluctant to admit it, but they are probably right. I am now cursed with catching up on the show and pointing out bits that were wrong, or crucial bits that were skipped. Tyrion's cell in The Eyrie getting slowly steeper and smaller the longer he is there, and how a big fight happens and Tyrion is involved in it. In the show, the cells do not change as he is kept in the same one, and he is knocked out instead of taking part in his father's battle with his weird crew of people he's found along the way. 

I really really enjoyed this book. Didn't expect some of the deaths - plot twists can be good and bad I suppose. if you are going to read this, I would recommend reading a little bit then watching the show to see it happening, especially with someone who has watched it and understands every detail. It is confusing in the beginning as it feels like you are dropped into the middle of a story and you have no build up. There is a lot of history, lore, characters and dynamics that are yet to be understood. You have to piece together a puzzle without all the pieces - and not everyone can power through or understand it. 

4.5/5