A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1

First of all, these books are a great read. They're well written with elegant articulation and beautiful descriptions. The plot is thought out and complex just like any good book should be, the characters have a lot of personality like any good character should have, and there's enough of a storyline to keep a very lengthy book interesting. I like that there are so many character POVs but nothing seems overdone at all. Each storyline and each character has their own separate life that the book portrays and they all have enough scattered chapters through the book that you never forget what's happening with a certain character. That being said... I have read books 1-5 and pretty much the only thing that has disappointed me - and greatly - is the injustice to the protagonistic family done by the antagonistic family. We'll call them family PRO and Family ANTI for protagonistic and antagonistic. The Anti-family has done atrocious - and I mean ATROCIOUS, not just running a dog over and urinating in your soup atrocious but I won't use specifics as to spoil anything - things to this family. These are devastating things that make me sympathize with the Pro-family, things that make me loathe the Anti-family and yearn for justice yet... it seems that the Pro-family just keeps suffering and the Anti-family continues to flourish gaining more power, wealth, and malice. The pro-family sees tragedy after tragedy for standing up to Anti-family. I keep waiting for the Pro-family to get at least a little bit of justice, just to make the books tolerable. Just a morsel, a smidgen of reprieve from this horrible life they've been condemned to but after five books they've had almost all their opportunities to get the right amount of injustice taken away from them. For them to get their much-deserved retribution they'd need to have A, B, C, D, E, F, and G killed, maimed, humiliated, overthrown, mauled, slaughtered, flayed, (enter your own ideas of the most horrific scenarios and enter some explicits and you might have an idea of what this family needs - and me too, to be satisfied) but with so many events chances of justice and ways that they deserve justice has been reduced to only options A and B. Seriously, I'm so disappointed at how the things I've been looking forward to reading in this book keep getting ripped out of the Pro-family's (and my own) hands. Other than that, though, this book moves fairly quickly, the plot furthers at a decent speed, there is just enough action and plot to keep it from being overdone or underdone. WARNING, SPOILER ALERT: I'd like to add, too, that my favorite part of the book is the Others and they've been only a minute part of this book. I watched the pilot of GoTs before I read the books and the very first five or so minutes when they showed the White Walkers hooked me and easily became my favorite part, and this has only been about two percent of the book. I'd love to read more on these things. Being that book six is supposedly the last one, and the really wicked things haven't even really made their debut I'm wondering if they'll get to do so in book six. They're like a threat that's been looming over human-kind unbeknownst to them, and no one believes they're going to be making their much-awaited appearance to the whole world. No one believes they'll be coming back. So, if I had the chance to beg anything of the fantastic author, it would be to give the family their much-deserved revenge and make the Others a huge part of book six. Please! Please!

I have never seen the show. I am absolutely enthralled with this book and looking forward to reading the rest. The character development is out of this world. I feel so connected to them somehow. The emotions that I feel when reading this book are raw and profound. The writing is top tier- gentle yet bold, complex yet airy- and unlike any reading experience I’ve had before.

If you like the HBO series, you will not be disappointed here. This first book corresponds to the 1st season of Game of Thrones. It is nearly exactly the same with a few interesting differences which I liked, and there is more details on the history of Westeros. The sex scenes in the book are somehow more graphic than the show but nothing that an adult can't handle (not for kids)! So I am not a big reader. I hated it when I was forced to read in school and have done a good job of avoiding serious reading save for magazines and news articles. It probably has to do with the fact that I am a slow reader. When I learned there was a book series that the TV show was based on I was interested to look into it. But when I saw just how long the books where, I just knew darn well I wouldn't read it. But the further I got into the show, the more interested I got in the maybe giving the books a try. Finally I downloaded the Kindle sample and it didn't take long to be hooked. For those that haven't seen the show but are interested in the books: The setting is a place and time like medieval Britain. The story follows a handful of great and formerly-great houses in their struggle with love and honor and power. It is a fantasy, but that is not the major part, at least not in this first book. The characters are humans and their life-struggles are those of all humans. The fantasy element is somewhat on the fringes but is there, so it may be more accessible to those weary of learning fantasy worlds like Tolkien's, like myself. The sex and violence is quite graphic and Martin's descriptions of battles is wonderfully vivid, something Tolkien skimps on in The Hobbit; I haven't finished the Lord of the Rings so I can't comment on the comparison there. If you are someone like me who got bogged down in the first book of the LOTR series, this is much easier to read and more engaging throughout. There are multiple stories line occurring all at once and Martin switches between them with every new chapter so it takes some getting used to but they are now hard to follow. The prologue was very confusing (and I've seen the show) so get through it because it sets a scene and you will understand it later. And WARNING, as I was warned prior to watching the show or reading the books, Martin has no loyalties to characters. You will love Martin one minute and curse him the next. If you want a story where the main character/hero triumphs of evil, honor over dishonor, do not read this book. But that is what makes the story so interesting: it's like the real world we live in, evil often triumphs. As for the Kindle edition: I have the both the Kindle and the paperback editions. I always have my phone on me but not always the hard copy so they serve 2 different purposes. I am someone how does like the feel of a book (I know, I know. I said I don't read... Nonetheless). As far as I can tell there are no differences. Even the art at the beginning of each chapter is the same. I switch seamlessly between the two. So in summary, I loved it. I would recommend it to everyone, even to adults who don't read much. It's a great story covered in sex and war… what's not to love!

It's been ages since I originally purchased this book on my Kindle. I saw the size of the book and when I got my Kindle it was one of the first purchases I made. I figured it would be better to carry it on that slim device than to lug around the rather large book. I wanted to read the book prior to the premier of the show but... well that didn't happen. So my goal shifted; I wanted to read the first book before the second season began and that also didn't happen. Well, I gave it a try at least. I began reading this book in April just after I moved to Virginia and didn't have a job. I would spend my mornings putting out job applications and then by late afternoon I'd sit back and read a little. But the size of this book overwhelmed me, not that I haven't read anything of this size before, but for some reason the slow moving percentage on my Kindle wasn't being very helpful. Then I got my temp job and this book was put down. Back and forth over the past five months I went. I would read a new book, put it down, then read 50 pages of Game of Thrones. Not only that but with trying to maintain a regularly updated book blog with ramblings about books I've read it's hard to just guarantee a number of days to read this huge book. However, I finished a book and went back to GoT for my few chapter read through and realized I was actually pretty darn close to being finished. Only, like, 200 pages left! So I read it in a flash and loved every moment of it then sat back and wondered why I hadn't just read it in one go to begin with. Nonetheless, let's talk about the book for the very few people out there who haven't read it. Because, it seems, I am the last person in the world who got around to starting this series. If you've seen the show it's a lot like the book; they did a very good job at portraying the characters and many of the scenes in my opinion. Still, this book is long so obviously it has much more detail and scenery than the show does. If you've seen the show but have not read the book I'd suggest doing so! While I wasn't keen on carrying around a copy of the book because it was so large I do wish, in a way, that I had that opportunity so that I could flip back and forth between the maps and family trees. It would have helped as the cast of the book is huge and the families are very wide spread and detailed. I have forever had issues of remembering people's names, book characters included, and had it not been for the fact that I had already watched the tv show and had faces to place with the names I probably would have been more lost as to who was who and how they were connected. The story is good, the imagery is good, the description is good. This book is good. If you have a fascination with anything remotely like Tudor history, Arthurian legend or the long, detailed writing in Lord of the Rings then A Song of Ice and Fire is perfect for you. Dragons, princesses, secrets and swords fill its pages and often times left my head spinning. This book has a touch of fantasy but it doesn't go overboard. You aren't stuck feeling like you just slipped into the land of the Sugar Plum Fairy or Hogwarts. It's slipped in so casually that you find yourself, whilst reading the book, to just accept what they are speaking of and not think twice about if dragons exist or the dead can rise and kill. Martin may put a little too much emphasis into certain details but I suspect they all come around to meaning something and he certainly helps you to picture the world he has created. It reads like some fantastic part of history yet the characters are certainly living and breathing at your ear, over your shoulder, while you go from page to page. Often times I'll read books by authors who have long since left this earth and I'm left feeling melancholy. "Why don't people write like this anymore? Why don't they put detail into their books and write so beautifully?" and I think I've discovered that there are authors who write in such ways and Martin is one of them. It's refreshing to be able to read a book so beautifully written and with such perfect detail that is current and published within my lifetime. Could it have been shortened down at some points? Certainly. Every other chapter I found at least a few pages that I could have gone without but what are you going to do? It's not like I didn't already know this was going to be a long book when I began it. It does have its fair share of sex scenes, incest, and rape so be forewarned of that those of you who like to avoid such plot. But it's relevant to the story, or so it seems... most of the time, so it's kind of worth talking about. Martin leaves a lot of tidbits of information through out the book which you can pick apart in your own time and wonder what it all could mean. Apparently, it's a Thing fans of the series like to do and I can understand why they would when it spans such long periods of time between publications of books. In that regard, I'm glad I waited to pick up the books so that I won't have to wait forever for each book to come out. Granted, when A Song of Ice and Fire was first published I was ten and this was way beyond my reading comprehension but at least now I can take my time, play catch up, and maybe once I'm completely caught up with the books I can join the countless others who eagerly await the next book in the series. I think what I liked best about the books was that the characters grow and change while you read. Often times you are able to witness how the surrounding events will alter a person or you are simply given privy to details otherwise unnoticed. I started the book with a dead set group of characters whom I liked and ones I disliked but by the end of the book that list had shuffled a little bit. Some of the characters I disliked at first (Sansa, for example) I had begun to like a little more by the end. While I have many other books I have to get through before I start A Clash of Kings I will be happy when I have that opportunity and look forward to it. There are many people out there who love this book and consider it a work of art, the best thing they had ever read, and swear by it. There are others who refuse to speak nothing but negative things about the book - it just did not work for them. For me, I liked it, I enjoyed it, and while I may not be standing on my office's roof proclaiming to the people waiting for their lunches that they must read this book - I still will quietly refer friends to it who are looking for a good tale.

If you're going to consider reading `The Song of Ice and Fire' series, then be prepared for an investment. These books aren't for casual readers, but rather slower and more methodical ones. Requiring a great deal of your time, attention to detail, and the memorization of various characters' political and social associations. The amount of content the book contains is equal to the level of commitment you are willing to give. This may sound intimidating to some people, but Games of Thrones is able to deliver a very deep story targeting a mature audience because of this, though this also means the book's level of comprehension and adult content may become a deal-breaker to some people. Persevere and you'll enjoy one of the best fantasy epics in quite some time. As I previously said, the narrative of A Game of Thrones can be quite cumbersome to comprehend at the very beginning, and the faint synopsis doesn't exactly paint a very big picture of what's to come. So I've decided to provide a brief synopsis of my own. With the murder of King Robert Baratheon's Hand `Jon Aryn', his Majesty himself has requested that his old friend Eddard Stark, head of House Stark take up the role at his side in King's Landing to help him properly govern the realm. Of course taking up this honorable task would mean Eddard, `Ned' must leave the sanctity of Winterfell and his family. But he soon realizes that treachery and deception have consumed the nobility, no one can be trusted, everyone is trying to seize power by any means necessary; particularly the cunning Lannister family. The book doesn't just follow the character Ned, but rather a large collection of personas, some intertwine with the central story arc involving Ned, others involve their own. Daenerys Targaryen, one of the last of the feared House Targaryen, is forced into a marriage with a savage Dothraki warlord in order to gain in army for the means of reconquering her rightful throne. The last major story arc involves Ned's bastard son `Jon Snow' and his indoctrination in the enigmatic `Night's Watch', where desertion is punishable by death. While the plot of A Game of Thrones is truly an epic piece of fiction-writing, it would be nothing if the characters weren't believable. George R. R. Martin has established himself as a very strong character-driven author, one who focuses on the problems of these people and how they affect them. While there are characters which are not affiliated with Eddard Stark, the majority of the major characters can be allocated into the two major noble families: the Starks and the Lannisters. The Starks characterize honor, duty, diligence, and integrity, making them the primary protagonists. They're opposed by the ambitiously materialistic Lannister family, who seem like Martin's equivalent of the Borgia's. Though if there's a weakness in the characterization department, it would be that not enough is done with characterizing the Lannister family. The Stark family makes up the bulk of the story's protagonists, but they aren't exactly perfect. They can be rude, selfish, jealous, and even bratty at times, they're delightfully flawed characters. With the exception of the great character `Tyrion Lannister', we're given very little insight into the life of the family aside from their obvious immoral tendencies. The Lannisters, while morally vague, come off feeling much less defined. I really wish more could have been done with them when compared to the excellently characterized Stark family. In a seemingly endless miasma of betrayal and deceit, the only beacon of hope comes in the form of family. The Starks, particularly the Stark children felt like the real heart of the book for me. Their precious innocence helps invest the reader in the story even further, especially since they're among the victims in this malicious game that the adults are playing. It only reinforces the insurmountable stakes and that nobody is truly safe or completely innocent. Even the world itself feels like a character that helps ground the reader in the author's fiction. Martin's `Seven Kingdoms' are vividly brought to life with intricate detail that makes it really pop off the pages. Its geography, political structure, and the dominant noble houses are all elaborated upon in surreal detail that really gives the reader a feeling of place. Less reliance on more fantastical elements like elves and dwarves gives Martin's world a pinch of reality that most authors tend to avoid. With the exception of the `White Walkers' and the extinct dragons, all mystical aspects are kept at an all-time low, favoring words and steel over mysticism and spells. The outcome is a fantasy world that surprisingly, comes off as genuinely plausible. The Seven Kingdoms feels like a realm that very much could have existed. It's an interesting divergence from the typical high fantasy settings. There's going to be the inevitable comparison between Martin's work and the legacy left behind by Tolkien as the great forefather of fantasy writing. The notion of comparing the two is entirely misguided, simply because Martin's writing is completely different from Tolkien's in nearly every angle. Tolkien emphasized the ongoing struggle between good and evil, the thrill of high adventure in a fantastical world, and the triumph of great heroes over terrible villains who would do the world harm. Martin on the other hand is much less black and white with his delivery. There are obvious characters you can label as `dishonorable', while others stand atop a pedestal as paragons of altruism. But are these characters truly evil for trying to secure the benefit of their family and future generations to come? And are these characters considered good if they're ensuring the stability of the realm by dishonest methods? Martin chose to forgo typical fantasy conventions of magic and obvious morality in the favor of characters who feel genuinely believable in all the most despicable ways. They're not the great heroes Tolkien illustrated; they're morally ambiguous human beings. That's the defining characteristic which separates these two giants of fantasy, the selfless heroes and the morally grey humans. Comparing these two juggernauts is completely irrelevant, for Martin isn't trying to replicate Tolkien but rather make his own beast. Yet, I never like to jump on a bandwagon and proclaim with the rest of the world that a novel is absolutely perfect. Of course these critiques are personal ones and admittedly border on flat-out nitpicking. The first is the absolutely insane overabundance of minor characters. I'm not referring to the central characters that the various chapters shift between; they're all perfectly characterized and fascinating. I'm referring to the endless onslaught of characters that overcrowd the book, but serve little importance in the greater scheme of things. Every story arc is jam-packed with so many characters that range from semi-important to useless. I usually wouldn't mention this, but with a book of this magnitude it really became an issue with me, though it may not for other people. The second issue is the lack of a proper climax to the story. I'm all for having an intriguing plot over a mindless slog of action scenes, but with a book of this size, it would have been nice to have it end with a bang. It's little things like these that stand out when the rest of the book is just so good. When Hollywood absolutely bastardized the final Harry Potter novel by splitting it into two movies in order to fill their glutinous craving for money; I became somewhat of a skeptic to segmenting visual adaptations of popular literature. Creating a television show made me raise an eyebrow, "instead of making a movie they're going to milk it with a whole season of episodes" I thought. After reading A Game of Thrones, I realized that making a television show out of the book isn't just a good idea, it's absolutely mandatory. This book and its sequels have so much content in them that a movie would never do the plot and its various characters justice. It's the perfect source material for an epic fantasy television series, which is great considering we don't exactly have many of those. A Game of Thrones is the start of something special. The beginning chapter of an epic tale that needs to be read by everyone of age who can truly appreciate its complexity. Read the book first before you watch the show, only then can you truly appreciate George R. R. Martin's natural talent for weaving such incredible stories.

I am writing this review as an individual who watched Game of Thrones on HBO before picking up the book series, so with that in mind you may or may not find my review helpful/useful. I will also try to keep this review as spoiler-free as possible. As a fan of the tv series, I came into this book knowing what to expect; I was told that Season 1 and Book 1 are very similar, and that is most certainly true. But do you know what? I still loved the book. I’ll do list format for the book’s good and bad points (in my opinion and in no particular order) to make this a little more organized. -- GOODS: DIALOGUE/WRITING - George RR Martin has a way with words. His descriptions of the various locations and lands and kingdoms of Westeros, from Winterfell to King’s Landing to Vaes Dothrak, have flawless flow. I love descriptive writing, and there is always a fine line between not describing something enough to give the reader a good picture and going overboard to the point where it gets boring to read through paragraphs of superfluous text. This is especially true in the fantasy genre, where the lands and people and words and customs are all…well, fantastical. This book finds that balance, with evocative, beautiful language that puts you right in that setting and right in the thick of the action. Hell, the descriptions of food always made me hungry even if they were serving something that I would never actually eat! As for the dialogue, if you are a fan of the show’s dialogue, or clever dialogue in general, you will enjoy this book. There are a good number of memorable and poignant quotes throughout the book, my favorite being “When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die,” an apt summary for sure. Bottom line, when you pick up this book, be prepared to engross yourself and be swept away to a foreign land. VOICES/POINTS OF VIEW - Notable about this book, and all the books in the series, is that it is constantly switching from various characters points of view (POVs, as I’ll refer to them from now on). And by various, I mean roughly 7-8 characters. As difficult as this is to pull off, Martin does a great job. It’s an effective way to see what is going on in multiple locations at roughly the same time while keeping us invested. I applaud his decision to present us the information this way as it gives us a greater connection with the characters and more insight into various situations as we see how they are impacting the character that we are viewing it through. Not to mention, Martin manages to keep each of the individual POVs unique enough that you don’t need to flip back to see who’s narrating. Each character has distinct personality traits and ways of thinking/speaking that distinguish them from the others. Sansa is lady-like, a romantic and naive. Arya is fiery, resourceful and a fighter. Tyrion is shrewd, astute and full of quick-witted jibes. And so on and so forth. It is also worth noting that each character, even if a few of them are in the same place at the same time, sees different things and different people and analyzes situations in different ways, so each chapter gives you new information in some way or another. It’s very cleverly done and just as frustrating when you realize “UGH this character doesn’t know what was revealed to me, the reader, in THIS CHARACTER’S chapter” which is a great way of keeping you hooked. CHARACTERS: HEROES VS VILLAINS - Getting inside the characters heads, you start to understand their motives and the ways that they think. So you get to decide for yourself what motives are justified and who you believe in or who you’re rooting for. But then again, just because one character appears to be the “hero” of the story, doesn’t mean they’ll necessarily get a happy ending. If you’re looking for a feel-good story about about good conquering evil, this probably isn’t for you. If you’re looking for a story with deep, cunning characters who you can’t always trust, who are shades of grey versus black and white, then you’ll find this book a compelling read. DEPTH - Martin has done his homework and has developed rich histories for each of the characters and their houses. Hell, the Appendix of the book has small blurbs about each house, its history, its sigil, its words/slogan and the relevant members of the house. It’s always available for you to flip back and read if you find yourself confused, which can happen. Having watched the tv series, I was less confused about the various Houses and characters coming into the book, which helped a lot. Yet I still found myself learning new information from the Appendix. It’s a great tool and shows the author’s dedication to his characters and their backgrounds. I was impressed by how richly developed everything was, even though this is only the first book in the series. NO TEENAGE DIARY DESCRIPTIONS ABOUT SEX - This book has sex in it. Quite a bit, too. I can see how this would be off-putting to some readers. Personally, I don’t mind it much. What I appreciated was that the descriptions of sex weren’t long, drawn out, excessively pornographic or mushy-gushy. I appreciated not having to wade through pages upon pages of “his fingers brushed against my fingers and my heart fluttered, he looked at me and I admired his beautiful eyelashes” or other mushy teenage romance dialogues that frankly bore the poop out of me. On the other hand, you’re not reading through pages and pages of detailed erotica either. It’s written very matter-of-factly, very bluntly and to-the-point and only went into a bit more description when it was warranted. Again, I imagine this isn’t for everyone, so you may consider this a negative. The way it was presented throughout the book, however, I felt warranted a checkmark in the “Good” category. FEMALE CHARACTERS - Some of the best depictions of female characters I have read. I was very impressed. The female characters are at all ends of the spectrum in this book, from feminine to tough to conniving. In a book where you’d assume the male characters take front and center, the female characters are just as fascinating, if not moreso in some cases. X-RAY - I have the Kindle version of this book. The X-Ray features really helps you keep track of the book’s many characters and remind you who someone is if you forget, which is SUPER helpful. I used the features many times throughout the book and it definitely aided my understanding and allowed me to further appreciate the depth of the characters and the story. -- BADS: MULTIPLE POVs SLOW DOWN THE ACTION - The constant cutting back and forth between different characters and settings, while well done, also has the side effect of slowing down some of the action. You end a chapter on a cliffhanger as the one character’s POV learns something horrifying or experiences something shocking. But then the next chapter jumps to a character who is in a completely different setting and you have to wait until you get to a chapter of a character who is in place where the cliffhanger first happened. It slows down the action a bit, which can get a little frustrating. If it really bothers you to read a cliffhanger and then wait a few chapters to see a reaction or resolution to that cliffhanger, then this book might frustrate you more than entertain you. Not to mention, if you find one character’s voice/writing style/actions particularly boring, you might find it tiresome to have to wade through those chapters to get to the “good stuff.” I know I personally had that problem in a few instances. TYPOS - I have the Kindle version of this book, and it had quite a number of typos. Not on every page or anything, but more than I would have liked. A few of them sort of interrupted the flow of the story while I was reading, but for the most part they aren’t a huge deal. Just a little annoying. LENGTH - Not gonna lie, flipping through the Table of Contents and realizing there are 72 chapters was a little daunting. And if you have a really busy schedule, you might find the length a little scary too. I’m very glad I stuck it out and plowed through, though! -- Overall, I’m a happy camper and am going to pick up the second book in the series ASAP!

My favorite book in the Ice and Fire series so far, mainly because it has all the best characters and none of the worst :) I like the quality of the print - good font, no typos, and the inclusion of maps to give the reader a better understanding of the geography of the story. The only potential issue is like other books shipped via Amazon, there is no sufficient packing and the book is basically shipped in an empty box. Somehow it arrived in excellent condition though, with no visible damage to corners or sleeve. The book was also very obviously brand new and previously unread.

I've never been a big reader of fantasy. I read the Hobbit in school, The Dark Elf Trilogy sometimes after that, and Lord of the Rings when the films came out. I am, however, an avid reader in general and was shocked when I was this great ad for a new HBO show based on a best selling series and had never heard of it. Elves, Dragons, Wizards, and Dwarves and all I decided to venture from my comfort zone and give it a shot. If this sounds like you so far read no further. Just read the book without a knowledge in the world about it. Then come back and see if you agree. If you've done that or are just looking for a general review, there is only one word for it. Epic. Not as in "I just teabaged the leader in Halo" epic, but as in The Odyssey epic. And it's not so much fantasy as altered history. The fantasy stuff is always somewhere lurking in the back, threatening your comfort zone but keeping a respectful distance. Then you start to become curious about it's ways as it slowly creeps in. Before you know it, you want less and less lords and ladies, and more and more demons and beasts. Now, you may have heard the series has morally grey characters, multiple plot lines, and shocking twists by now. You may thing between your Pulp Fictions and Sixth Senses and network television you may have gotten used to some of those things by now. But no, believe me you haven't. Characters aren't just grey, they're real....but in their own world. They reflect both larger ideas of behavior, mixed with unique and well sustained character traits, wrapped up in the unique attributes of their fictional world. They're real, but in their own ways. It also helps lend creedence to old re-used characters like the hardened veteran, the good knight, the noble hero, and the men turned to redemption by making them as interesting as they were when you first saw them in youth. And plot-lines aren't just multiple, they are interwoven and richly detailed featuring a host of interesting characters. The only thing better than when they all work together, is when they start to branch in their own unique directions. George R.R. Martin weaves a tapestry of the finest plot threads here, and leaves you dangling on every new verse and character. With every new chapter comes a new perspective and a new way to look a the world. It's a unique structure that is a little challenging at first, but pays off richly in the end. Plus hey, if Martin was going to create a detailed new landscape, why not explore all of it? Finally those twists. All I'll say is this. You haven't guessed them. Sure you're smart and too cool to be fooled, and you may have guessed a couple of them, but don't get cocky kid. You have no idea what's coming. Because it's not just great big twists, it's little developments along the way. The "shocking reveal" isn't just used for the endgame but rather keeps the story fresh and moving along through all of it's exciting escapades. My jaw literally dropped while reading this book, and I highly doubt I'm unique in that. Overall, not only is this a great book but it kicks off a fantastic series. That said though, I could see this one easily becoming most peoples favorite. Later works can get bogged down in details and side stories, therefore requiring a little slogging to get through. This first installment, however, is as tight as it is intricate. The pages fly by and you read on just to see what happens next to your favorite character (an ingenious by product of the design). Worth a read on ever conceivable mature reading level, Game of Thrones as a single book ranks among the best fantasy works ever produced and could go toe to toe with any traditional novel out there for sheer entertainment.

Da dove cominciare. Questo è il primo libro di una serie decisamente lunga, soprattutto detto e considerato che ogni libro conta più o meno sulle 800 pagine. Tuttavia ciò non dovrebbe far desistere dall'intraprenderne la lettura, anche perchè è una delle più belle saghe degli ultimi tempi. Mi sono trattenuto dallo scrivere "saghe fantasy", tuttavia, perchè sarebbe una definizione inappropriata e riduttiva. In effetti, se mi chiedessero di cosa parla "A Game of Thrones", mi troverei in difficoltà nel rispondere. In linea di massima, è un gioco di potere. Un gioco di potere in cui, o meglio, attorno a cui, si intrecciano amori, tragedie, incesti, tradimenti, sottili giochi d'inganni ed epiche battaglie, vicende umane delle più varie e drammatiche. Insomma, un mondo in piena evoluzione, vivo e pulsante, in cui si dipana la vicenda. Un'altro dei grandi punti di forza di "A Game of Thrones" è la quasi totale assenza di cattivi assoluti o buoni assoluti. Anche se esistono dei rari estremi, ogni personaggio è disegnato in scala di grigi, e ognuno dipinto con una complessità affascinante. Per questo è impossibile un punto di vista univoco nell'interpretare questa vicenda, caratteristica che non fa che dare maggior valore al tutto. Prima, inoltre, accennavo al fatto che la classificazione di fantasy era riduttiva. A questo proposito la spiegazione è che, pur essendo ambientato in un mondo completamente inventato, si discosta dai canoni del fantasy classico perchè, a parte i draghi, non presenta le tipiche razze magiche/fantastiche dell'immaginario, e la magia è una componente limitatissima. Per concludere, alcune osservazioni finali. La versione kindle da me acquistata è davvero ben fatta, non ci sono errori di impaginazione o sbavature varie. Per quanto riguarda la lingua, infine, l'inglese di Martin non è eccessivamente complesso e con una discreta padronanza dell'inglese si comprende abbastanza facilmente tutto. In caso di difficoltà, comunque, c'è il dizionario integrato nel kindle che sopperisce alle mancanze del lettore. Inoltre, io personalmente ho preferito la versione inglese a quella italiana (ho la prima metà in italiano in cartaceo, ma poi ho acquistato il kindle e mi conveniva maggiormente questa versione completa in inglese, più economica rispetto alla seconda metà in italiano). Libro, e serie, consigliatissimi e promossi a pieni voti.

Not the best book of the series, but the one that hooks your interest and is fascinating from beginning to end. A hugely successful, mammoth, enterprise to write this enormous series and reading them all is a delight for those even slightly interested in medieval history. Sure, this is all fiction, but much of it (the description of the knights,the ultimate power of heraldic kings, the jousting tournaments , the ships, the cottage industries etc are all based closely on historical facts. That is what makes the whole series so popular. It is believable. The use of magic and dragons in the story is the glue that brings it all together for a reader. This sets it apart from being just a a longwinded history lesson. You will love it. Read them all to get the best from a masterpiece of writing.

Siempre leer la fuente original de una historia contada a través de la pantalla es mucho más interesante por la gran cantidad de detalles que separa a una de la otra, el libro es muy bueno y lo recomiendo, tanto si has visto la serie como si no.

Came in perfect condition

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