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A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One
Unavailable
A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One
Unavailable
A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One
Audiobook33 hours

A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One

Written by George R. R. Martin

Narrated by Roy Dotrice

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

4.5/5

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Currently unavailable

Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

NOW THE ACCLAIMED HBO SERIES GAME OF THRONES

From a master of contemporary fantasy comes the first novel of a landmark series unlike any you've ever read before. With A Game of Thrones, George R. R. Martin has launched a genuine masterpiece, bringing together the best the genre has to offer. Mystery, intrigue, romance, and adventure fill the pages of this magnificent saga, the first volume in an epic series sure to delight fantasy fans everywhere.
 
A GAME OF THRONES
A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE: BOOK ONE
 
Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister forces are massing beyond the kingdom's protective Wall. To the south, the king's powers are failing—his most trusted adviser dead under mysterious circumstances and his enemies emerging from the shadows of the throne. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the frozen land they were born to. Now Lord Eddard Stark is reluctantly summoned to serve as the king's new Hand, an appointment that threatens to sunder not only his family but the kingdom itself.

Sweeping from a harsh land of cold to a summertime kingdom of epicurean plenty, A Game of Thrones tells a tale of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and bastards, who come together in a time of grim omens. Here an enigmatic band of warriors bear swords of no human metal; a tribe of fierce wildlings carry men off into madness; a cruel young dragon prince barters his sister to win back his throne; a child is lost in the twilight between life and death; and a determined woman undertakes a treacherous journey to protect all she holds dear. Amid plots and counter-plots, tragedy and betrayal, victory and terror, allies and enemies, the fate of the Starks hangs perilously in the balance, as each side endeavors to win that deadliest of conflicts: the game of thrones.

Unparalleled in scope and execution, A Game of Thrones is one of those rare reading experiences that catch you up from the opening pages, won't let you go until the end, and leave you yearning for more.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editor's Note

Winter is coming…

The first novel in the landmark series “A Song of Ice and Fire” and the inspiration behind the gripping, expansive HBO show. With “A Game of Thrones”, George R. R. Martin has launched a genuine masterpiece.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateAug 14, 2003
ISBN9781415900642
Unavailable
A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One
Author

George R. R. Martin

George R.R. Martin is the author of fifteen novels and novellas, including five volumes of A Song of Ice and Fire, several collections of short stories, as well as screenplays for television and feature films. Dubbed ‘the American Tolkien’, George R.R. Martin has won numerous awards including the World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award. He is an Executive Producer on HBO’s Emmy Award-winning Game of Thrones, which is based on his A Song of Ice and Fire series. He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

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Reviews for A Game of Thrones

Rating: 4.365422999831107 out of 5 stars
4.5/5

13,026 ratings610 reviews

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  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I've just finished re-reading this book, and what can I say? It's even more of a feat the second time around. My original review stands below, supplemented by some 2011 thoughts.

    This was the first fantasy book I read, and it blew me away. I'd always assumed fantasy books were about young boys with shadowy pasts who discovered they were heirs to the kingdom. (Well, that's still possible *spoiler!* but even if so, it's not the overarching story). Martin goes to great pains to describe the entire world he has created, showing us a world torn apart by war, but one in which every aspect - from the warriors' armor to the concerns of the wives of lords - is equally important. He refuses to pander to stereotype or cliche, and constantly startles with the breadth of his imagination. Highly recommended. The only caveat: by book 3, the appendix/list of characters is 50 pages long. Some chapters can become headscratching as you try to remember the identities of dozens. Well worth it, though!

    Supplement: what an astounding achievement. Listening to Roy Dotrice's audio book made me truly realise the depth of each of the dozens (hundreds?) of characters in this novel. Even the coldest villains are motivated by the sum of their lives, and the sweetest, kindest among them equally so. I daresay there is not a single wrong step in these books: fans who ardently dislike the Catelyn or Sansa chapters absolutely get my goat. Catelyn is a woman born to a fascinating, decaying house, whose entire life has been shaped by those around her and allows us to witness so many powerful moments, while also being able to comment on them with an intelligence or awareness lacking in those around her. For Sansa, it's the exact opposite, wonderfully: the machinations of King's Landing are seen through her naive eyes, making for a truly delightful reading experience, and a true testament to Martin's skills.

    (The only thing I disliked was how much I cringed to think of poor Roy Dotrice having to speak phrases like "the finger found her wetness, and entered her there". Hmmm.)

    Anyway, in closing, I can't wait to see this come to life in HBO's series, and to re-read book 2 with my newfound awareness of so many character motivations and elements that I only vaguely grasped the first time around.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I seen the show first then realized it was based on the book. I got the book and fell deeper in love with games of thrones. It is my all time favorite series above all others.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Finally! Alright, as I am certain most of you know, this series is amazing. It is even more amazing knowing some of what is to happen. I am like a little cheerleader for the fictional characters. "Don't worry (insert characters name) you are going to pull through!" "Shut your face, you lying whore (insert characters name)". Ahh.. the love of a beautiful series. :) Brilliant.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This book will shake and break your heart. This book will make you realise that life is anything but gentle. But this book will also bring you the greatest adventure you have yet to see. I have bought my whole book collection back in 2014. I have been procrastinating with this series for four years. And today, while writing this review, I thank the old gods and the new, for convincing me to read the first book.I am probably one of the last people that have reviewed this book, and I assume you all already know a lot about the Game of Thrones series.It is a book about one Iron Throne, and all the wars, fights, betrayals are about who will be sitting on that throne, and who will be in charge of all kingdoms.Now, starting off, I am still not sure why people would send armies and armies of soldiers in order to win the throne, when it seems that no matter who becomes a king, that person gets instantly killed. And no kingdom respects each other, and kings and lords keep fighting off and wasting resources for a lost purpose, so there’s that as well.We have many houses, Stark, Lannister, Baratheon, Tully, Arryn, Targaryen, Tyrell, Greyjoy, Martell, etc - and they all feature with something unique to their house. Most importantly, they all either want the throne, want revenge or want them both.But just to clarify - I loved the book!George R.R. Martin is a genius! He has created this amazing world, and characters that are so alive that make you either hate them or love them, but with all your heart. He has created relationships so tangled and stories so well written, that he puts other authors to shame.The book is written from a third person perspective, and each chapter features a character. And with each chapter, George moves the time gradually, so we are not stuck in a loop of time pause. I enjoyed this method quite a lot! It kept the story line going very smoothly.‘’Most men would rather deny a hard truth than face it.’’ There were so many characters I admired. But my connection with these characters in this book is unlike any other connection I have made. I usually either love or hate a character. But here, I judged actions, and relationships, and things people said and did!I liked Eddard Stark’s bravery, and his manliness, but I didn’t like the fact that he was too honest for his own good.‘’Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?‘’That’s the only time a man an be brave’’. I loved Arya’s fierceness, but I didn’t like her stubbornness.‘’For the second time today Arya reflected that life was not fair.’’ I liked Sansa’s politeness, and girlishness. She had all the perfect manners, but she also would betray family for love.I loved Jon Snow’s story, and how he overcame his past, and learned to live with it.‘’Let me give you some counsel, bastard.‘’ Lannister said. ‘’Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armor yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.’’ I loved many other characters for things they did, and hated many others, but I cherished the difference in each and every character, and that was the beauty in it - that even though an author can create so many characters, he can make them so different from each other.In this book, you will encounter everything: mostly mean people, ready to kill everyone and anyone standing in the way of their plans. You will read about a story of a family that falls apart, a kingdom that vanishes, a fight between kings, how a little girl will learn life in one day, how a mother will watch her children disappear, one by one.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    In the time that's elapsed since the first book was released Shakespeare managed:Henry VI, Part 2 (1590–1591)Henry VI, Part 3 (1590–1591)Henry VI, Part 1 (1591–1592)Richard III (1592–1593)The Comedy of Errors (1592–1593)Titus Andronicus (1593–1594)The Taming of the Shrew (1593–1594)The Two Gentlemen of Verona (1594–1595)Love's Labour's Lost (1594–1595)Romeo and Juliet (1594–1595)Richard II (1595–1596)A Midsummer Night's Dream (1595–1596)King John (1596–1597)The Merchant of Venice (1596–1597)Henry IV, Part 1 (1597–1598)Henry IV, Part 2 (1597–1598)Much Ado About Nothing (1598–1599)Henry V (1598–1599)Julius Caesar (1599–1600)As You Like It (1599–1600)Twelfth Night (1599–1600)Hamlet (1600–1601)The Merry Wives of Windsor (1600–1601)Troilus and Cressida (1601–1602)All's Well That Ends Well (1602–1603)Measure for Measure (1604–1605)Othello (1604–1605)King Lear (1605–1606)Macbeth (1605–1606)Antony and Cleopatra (1606–1607)Coriolanus (1607–1608)Timon of Athens (1607–1608)Pericles, Prince of Tyre (1608–1609)Cymbeline (1609–1610)The Winter's Tale (1610–1611)PS. There was no Netflix in those days. Or even an EU which people worked out their inadequacies with, by pretending to hate while not understanding it.(Bought in 1997)Three things that have niggled me about these novels.One: A league equates to three miles (though there are many variations on the definition of the term). GRRM seems to be under the impression that it signifies a measure of distance much shorter than a mile, which presumably is why he frequently writes of characters or locations being a thousand leagues away which in the real world would equate to the distance between the North Pole and Malaga, when he clearly intends a distance of some hundreds of miles;Two: Keeps. GRRM frequently, vaguely, refers to castles as having multiple towers and keeps, apparently blithely unaware that the keep was the largest structure and the highest point in a castle, and that therefore in any castle (well, apart from one prominent example in France) there was only ever one keep in any one castle, not lots of them;Three: Lobstered steel. He frequently uses this adjective - which he seems to have invented - to refer to the finely segmented overlapping armour plates used in expensive suits of armour to protect the lesser, smaller areas such as the joints, where a lot of small plates would have been needed to ensure protection as well as flexibility.George The word is 'loricated'. You could have googled it. Really.Alright . Rant over. Those are trivial quibbles I concede.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    From my Cannonball Read V review...

    I’ve watched all three seasons of A Game of Thrones and enjoyed them immensely. My husband has read all five of the books; I had not heard of them until the TV show started. I usually don’t go in for fantasy books (nothing about Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit appeals to me), although I did enjoy reading and watching the Harry Potter series. I think I enjoy magic, and castles, and ridiculous concepts of honor; I just didn’t realize that there were books out there that had the things I like without the things I don’t.

    I bought the bullet and bought the first book at the airport before leaving on my honeymoon. We were taking five flights total, and while I had a kindle full of fun books to read, I knew that for about 20 minutes at the beginning and end of each flight I’d not be able to access it. So I figured it made sense to have a physical book that I could easily step away from (because I knew what was going to happen next) and that was broken down into such small chunks that I could stop and start without getting lost. This fit the bill perfectly.

    I loved this book. I loved the narrative device, I loved the character development, I loved the writing. It’s clearly difficult to form my own visions of people and places now that I’ve seen actors and sets assigned to them, but that didn’t take away from the book for me. In fact, I think it helped me keep everything straight in my mind, at least as much as I could. We learn about so many different people in this first book that I think I might have been confused if I didn’t have the TV show in the back of my mind to jog my memory.

    As seems to be the case with most people I’ve discussed this with, my favorite chapters are the ones dealing with Arya, Daenerys, and Tyrion. I like Arya’s spunk, Daenerys’ steadfastness, and Tyrion’s self-awareness and humor. I’m not so much interested in Bran, or Jon, or really any of the other Starks, and Sansa. Oh Sansa. The women in this book are interesting and not one-dimensional (except perhaps Sansa, at least initially); the men are complicated and not all just excited to pick up a sword. And while there were many brutal scenes involving poor treatment of women, I don’t get a misogynistic feeling from the writing. Martin has chosen to set the book in a fictional world but it still has a lot of the same issues (expressed in different ways) as we have in this one. I look forward to reading book two, and anticipate that it’s going to be very hard to fit any other books in between now and when I finish book five.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is one of the most amazing fantasy books I have ever read. The world is so enormous and expansive, packed full with rich history and action.
    What i love the most, If I must be honest, is the complex characters and plot. No one in these lands are good nor evil, and so their decisions and allegiances can be hard to predict. But one must also be aware whilst reading this series! Nobody is safe, and some will win and others may lose.
    I know I will read on through these tales, keeping the amazing television series in mind, through the journey.

    I recommed this book to all lovers of story, fantasy, action and intrigue.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Great book. I am addicted!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
     This book was as epic as would be expected from George R. R. Martin. Characters are being killed left and right, the reader is completely at a loss to figure out who's behind certain things and who will ultimately come to power and rule the kingdoms. Though the book took forever to read and had so many characters it was hard to keep them all straight, it was definitely epic.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is the ultimate fantasy series (even tho not yet complete). Complex plot, intriguing characters, compulsively readable. I knew I wasn't reading the standard issue when the man who I thought would be the hero died 50 pages in. These volumes are the source for the splendid HBO series. If you enjoy fantasy and don't mind a large helping of sex and violence, cannot recommend this series highly enough.
    The other volumes are:
    (2) A Clash of Kings
    (3) A Storm of Swords
    (4) A Feast for Crows
    (5) A Dance with Dragons
    (6) The Winds of Winter (not out)
    (7) A Dream of Spring (not out)
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    A friend recommended this book to me, saying it was "Better than Tolkien." I am think "wow, that is strong praise, I had better read this!" The fact that a non-insignificant chunk of humanity think this is true is so incredibly disheartening to me.

    For the first 100 pages or so, I was like "eeeeh, its gonna get better surely." Then we have the scene where a 12-year girl is sold into marriage and raped, and partway through her rape she decides that sex is fun and can be a source of power for her. There aren't enough flashing FAIL gifs in the world to convey how beyond sick of this trope I am!

    This book is sexist garbage, and not even very interesting to boot. I read someone describe it as a soap opera for men, and I think that description is pretty apt.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A good series. Well written. But it is more than obvious that Martin plagiarizes Howard. The stories are deep and involving. But kind of pointless because we are probably never going to see the last two books. A plus is the level of fantasy he writes in. No gay elves prancing through the faerie dust. Good, hard, hammering fantasy. Makes me glad he was influenced by Howard.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    And a half star. I'm not sure whether I would have liked the book as much if I hadn't seen the TV series. And I'll never know! However if I hadn't seen the series I would never have started the book - too many pages and too many books to follow. And I'm definitely not going to read part 2.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Wow, this is actually a really good book. They were actually right this time LOL. The chapters are compiled of events surrounding several different characters and written from their points of view. While this would be daunting to read normally as most books written in this fashion are written in anthology format, I found that this was actually very easy to follow because it is not written in that format. Instead it is written as a continuous story through several different pairs of eyes. The stories are all very captivating and keep you hooked til the end. The characters have depth and likability. A couple seem so real they nearly jump right off the page! While most books of 800+ pages would become boring and difficult for me to read, this book did not have that effect. I enjoyed reading it all the way through. A very emotional ending that leaves you ready for Book 2 even after the just finished 800 page tomb. I also find that I like the book better than the series although watching the series did make it easier for me to understand the book and it's characters. As in most cases of book vs. film, the book just holds so much more detail, depth and raw emotion as you are able to see the story unfold through your eyes and not someone else's. I would definitely recommend this book to ANY fan or to anyone interested.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I enjoyed Game of Thrones even though it's by no means an easy read. It drew me in and the vivid imagery and wonderful characters kept me interested to the end.
    The world of GoT is harsh and violent and children are forced to grow up at a young age. The different POV's can also be off putting, but didn't bother me once I was absorbed in the story.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    With the TV series being so highly praised and widely liked, I definitely felt the need to read the novels that the series is based on. I have to admit that I have seen the series, which made the plot of the novel fairly unsurprising. To those unacquainted with both series and novels, I will briefly outline the main setting. George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones is the first in a series of novels set in the fictional world of Westeros, inhabited by lords, knights and kings. The novel boasts many characters and the plot takes place all over the fictional world Martin has created, which is why it is hard to give a more exact description. The novel, however, does exactly that, i.e. provide a detailed description of characters and their background, relationships and landscapes. The so-called game of thrones begins when Robert Baratheon, the ruling king of the seven kingdoms dies and several houses fight to provide the next ruler of the iron throne. The fact that the novel comes with an appendix outlining the different houses and the main characters in the novel speaks for itself. In order to understand everything detailed background information will not be completely necessary but definitely helpful. To go into depth here about characters and plot would hence be rather useless.Having seen the TV series, my impression of the novel is of course somewhat tainted. Concentrating on the main issues of the craft of writing a novel, however, I have to say that Martin did a very fine job. The novel is narrated from several different perspectives, those of the main characters. This limits the narration to one perspective in each chapter, but provides a multitude of perspectives in general. As can be expected from an 800+ pages tome, the plot does not really speed along, which is also due to the fact that Martin has to introduce many characters and their storylines so as to be able to connect them afterwards. Since I do not have much trouble with sticking to the narration for many pages without the plot moving along all too much, I was perfectly fine with Martin's style. I can also not imagine a better way to do this while at the same time getting in the depth that Martin provides. If the novel were not part of a series, I would definitely have to say something about the ending, which I found quite slow and disappointing as it is. Knowing that there will be more satisfies me, though.If you have seen the TV series or just heard about the idea behind the TV series, you might want to read the novel(s). If still possible I would suggest, though, to read the novel(s) first before turning to the TV series as that gives more room to your own imagination, which is something that I personally cherish a lot when reading books. On the whole, I found A Game of Thrones to be a nice read that will most likely be enjoyed by fans of the genre. 4 stars.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    i love this series. i recommend it to almost anyone. the story always captivates me and there are no exceptions to anything..your favourite characters can die at any moment and the ones you hate prevail, or vice versa. george rr martin has done a great job.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is my second go around with this book and I will tell you that it would not have been successful w/o the HBO series. because of the TV show the characters really came to life for me.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A lot of fuss and eventually you have to read it right? It's quite good, and exactly as I expected - Book 2 next...)
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    beginning of series (Joe liked) I don't think I'll go further - no sleeper, but lots of work mid-way... sad to say I don't have the time to dedicate. Perhaps after I've won the lottery & have my library on my own island......
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    OK, am re-reading along with Dave & Jamal; the HBO series has made it a huge hit (they've done well)and I'm more in the mood for epic fantasy.
    7/2012

    9/12 hiatus at 50%... other stuff to read. Am enjoying very much, and reading on my Kindle - perfect item for an e-reader!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Wow, this is actually a really good book. They were actually right this time LOL. The chapters are compiled of events surrounding several different characters and written from their points of view. While this would be daunting to read normally as most books written in this fashion are written in anthology format, I found that this was actually very easy to follow because it is not written in that format. Instead it is written as a continuous story through several different pairs of eyes. The stories are all very captivating and keep you hooked til the end. The characters have depth and likability. A couple seem so real they nearly jump right off the page! While most books of 800+ pages would become boring and difficult for me to read, this book did not have that effect. I enjoyed reading it all the way through. A very emotional ending that leaves you ready for Book 2 even after the just finished 800 page tomb. I also find that I like the book better than the series although watching the series did make it easier for me to understand the book and it's characters. As in most cases of book vs. film, the book just holds so much more detail, depth and raw emotion as you are able to see the story unfold through your eyes and not someone else's. I would definitely recommend this book to ANY fan or to anyone interested.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A Game of Thrones is an tale of epic proportions. The story is believable and the characters are just as corrupted as one might think they would be in the real world. Every detail has meaning and you will never know what might be around the corner. This book marked the beginning of an epic journey through this well thought out world. Fantasy readers and any others will surely enjoy it. A Game of Thrones takes place in a wonderful and well thought out world. There are maps on the first couple of pages that really help the reader understand where all the events are taking place. Every city, every kingdom, every wilderness is brought out into full detail. You could really picture all the sights and sounds of the countryside or of the large cities that dot the landscape. There are some areas mentioned that do not happen to be included on the map, but it just makes those areas much more mysterious and interesting. The author, George R.R. Martin, does a good job of using multiple points of view throughout the book. We follow multiple people, from young children to important rulers, and see how each situation is presented. Many times, this provides a complete view of one event from two opposing sides. Each character you follow is also completely original. They all have their own personalities and quirks, and all have a different path that they go down. Even the people they meet, characters who don't have that much to do with the overall story and those who are guilty of causing the worst of the crimes, are well thought out and really stand out. This book is a shining example of the use of multiple points of view. The story line is amazing. Corrupt leaders, back-stabbing villains, and honorable lords all try to control their own destiny throughout the book. This brings major conflicts of battles, or behind the scenes assassinations to full bloom. You get to see and learn scheme after scheme of daring escapes, grand battles, and evil plots. Some are adverted while some are carried out to full fruition. This just adds to the wonderful complexity of the events. The book does a good job on keeping that complexity at a minimum and allows you to still comprehend a good deal of the hidden plans while still concealing other agendas. A Game of Thrones is a masterpiece of fantasy. There are not many other fantasy books that are this large and open for more elaboration. The characters are well thought out and really give character to the book. The many different settings are perfectly described and really allows you to picture everything in your mind. Any fans of fantasy books should take the time and begin reading this series. If you aren't a fan of fantasy books, this is a wonderful starting point to get you hooked on the genre. You will not be disappointed.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Like so many readers, I was drawn to read the book after seeing the HBO series. Wow, what a delightful reading experience. Not going to retell the story, but just say that I found Game of Thrones to be well written, easy to read and utterly fascinating. It certainly helped that I was familiar with the show, since there are so many characters, families and details. I will certainly continue with the series and see how I fare once the show and book storylines diverge.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I'm hooked starting book two now. This is normally so out of character for me to be reading, but I'm thrilled with the writing and story.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I love the TV series "A Game of Thrones" for its grandeur. The amazing sets, the mix of medieval times, politics, magic, adventure, fantasy. The characters, the intrigues, the mystery. The costumes, the passions, the hatreds!!! Anyway, I don't usually read these kinds of books (fantasy worlds), but I saw the first book in a bin for 50 cents so I thought I'd give it a chance. Well, the series (at least the first season) mirrors the book fairly well. About the only surprise for me was the ages of some of the characters. Daenerys is 13, Jon Snow is 14, Arya is 9 or 10. Despite the length of the book, it reads very, very quickly--probably because I already knew what was happening. It also helps in figuring out the relationships of some of the secondary characters to the main characters, their backstories. Enjoyable. Easy to read.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A group of my friends is reading this series together, so I figured it was high time I read it, too. I've seen spoilers on tumblr, of course, but not enough to really know the story, and not enough to recognize most of the actors in the book characters.
    I love epic fantasy series, and have read them since elementary school. So far Game of Thrones is not my favorite series in this subgenre, but I did enjoy this first book enough to look forward to the second book. It took a long time to 'meet' all the characters, and their stories are spliced together in such a way as to make it easy to lose track of the various threads and secondary characters. And, since pretty much none of the adult characters are really likeable, I was not all that engaged in most of the threads. I do want to know more about the magic and non-human creatures that the introductory scene and Dany's character hint at, but very little of these fantasy elements show up in this first book. Even the dragons don't appear until right at the very end of this book. I don't even like dragons, but I was hoping for at least a bit more fantasy (magic, otherworldly creatures, even dragons) alongside all the detailed (and thus occasionally tedious) battle scenes and shifty politics played out by characters who often seem to not really know the first thing about playing either war or politics. Still, I do like complex worldbuilding and politics, and even with dragons as part of the magical elements of the series, it seems promising enough. Surely the undead creatures and the bizarre, deadly blue eyed people beyond the wall will figure in the later books, and that seems like it could be entertaining.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Like others, I didn't know this series existed until the HBO show came on TV. I watched Season 1 and then decided that I didn't want to have to keep waiting for new series to come to the UK in order to find out what was going on.

    I started the first book, with the rest of the series already stashed on my Kindle for straight after. I went straight from 1 to 4 it was so good.

    I think Book 1 is the most intriguing, because you don't know where it's going to go, you don't quite get what the Others or the Wildlings are, or how it's going to affect anyone. I love the introduction to the characters and the never knowing what is next. That's continued throughout the series, but best in this book.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I had high hopes for this book after having it recommended to me from many different sources. Perhaps it was just overhyped for me. I didn't find the storyline overly intriguing, and I didn't enjoy the way Martin chose to approach the multiple viewpoints. The story progressed from viewpoint to viewpoint much to quickly for me to develop any sort of appreciation for each character, and often left me wondering why there were so many views necessary - it really didn't seem to add much to the story for me. There are ways of doing multiple viewpoints well, and I don't think this was a case where it was handled well. TWOT did it well in my opinion - letting you get to know characters gradually and really get a feel for how they think and their particular idiosyncrasies be known to you, and then giving you another to get to know, and only ramping up the pace on viewpoint changes after you know the characters well. This one left the characters largely a blur in my head. Some of it might also be a distaste for POV from a child - I don't think there's any good way to do a viewpoint of someone so young. Write it too simple and it gets very trying to read; write it too mature and the character is unbelievable. The only youngster I felt Martin hit well with was Daenerys. Arya was close, as she was an interesting character to read, but I didn't believe and often forgot she was only nine.
    I also detested Ned after a short point in - very one dimensional character in my opinion. I got very tired of hearing him spout on about honor constantly, and naively. I found his character rather hard to believe as I didn't believe that such a naive character could have made it to the place that he was (I might be a bit of a cynic). Perhaps if Martin had chosen to go deeper into his character flaws, such as how he fathered Jon. I also found the plot dry in all - and I had very high hopes after the initial bit with the Others on the wall. I wanted more of that! It was quite the let down to be plunged into politics after that, particularly politics as viewed naively by Ned. I found myself laughing incredulously at how he thought things would work quite frequently.
    There were sparks of promise for how later books may be though - if the later books focus a bit more on the fantasy and less on the politics. I understand a certain bit of it is necessary for a believable world, but there's no need to drown you in it. The Others plot, and Daenerys' plot, both I wish had been featured much more and made the focus, with the other lines being highlights to those.
    This is more of a touch of nitpicking, and it may also be merely a fault of mine as I know there were POVs I skimmed through as I didn't enjoy them, but the seasonal aspect of the world I don't feel was made apparent enough. Allusions to 'the long winter' and whatnot were often made, but it seemed to me little explanation was made of the phenomenon and I didn't understand precisely what the deal was with it until much later. I wish (again, it's possible I missed something small that may have helped me out) there would have been just a brief paragraph in one of the first chapters that had given even a cursory description of the seasonal pattern to make it clear that it was something unusual and unique. I'm certain I will eventually get to the subsequent novels, but they aren't particularly high on my list at this moment.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Masterful, complex, fantastical... Okay, okay, I yield, I get it. I plodded through this book; hooked, but not engrossed. I admit that in the last 100 pages I now want to read the next.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Damn, this novel has booked my whole year for this series.