A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, #1) in A Song of Ice & Fire Fans

Dec 25, 2009 Gaijinmama rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, fantasy

I went into this having seen the first two seasons of the TV show, so some of the suspense was gone.
Didn't matter a whit. I could hardly put the book down and pretty much binge-read the last 300 pages over a three-day weekend. Family? sleep? work? what's that?
Indeed, it was all I could do not to plow right into the next volume of the series, but I'm making myself take a break to process it.

The story is just plain non-stop irresistible brilliance. In more than 800 pages, not a single word is wast I went into this having seen the first two seasons of the TV show, so some of the suspense was gone.
Didn't matter a whit. I could hardly put the book down and pretty much binge-read the last 300 pages over a three-day weekend. Family? sleep? work? what's that?
Indeed, it was all I could do not to plow right into the next volume of the series, but I'm making myself take a break to process it.

The story is just plain non-stop irresistible brilliance. In more than 800 pages, not a single word is wasted. More importantly in my view, the characters are believable and complex. The bad guys have some redeeming qualities, and the good guys have some grey areas and do some unlikeable stuff. They're people, not superheroes, and that's what kept me riveted in their story.
Hands down, my favorite character is Tyrion, The Imp. I'd say he's the anti-hero of the whole darn thing. As far as I'm concerned, this is really his story. Kinda like Star Wars is really about Han Solo, not that boring Luke Skywalker, right? Tyrion isn't exactly a good guy but he is smart, shows compassion in spite of himself, generally does the right thing when it matters, and oh. my.gods. does he have a sense of humor!! Between him and Petyr Baelish( who really is a scumbag, but endearing nonetheless) I found myself giggling at all sorts of inappropriate moments.
Warning: in case you've been hiding under a rock, let's just say things get a bit violent here and there. I'm not at all squeamish, but this book contains some truly sick and twisted stuff that pushed even my limits. What makes it even more upsetting, is that it's portrayed realistically. There is no cruelty in this book that hasn't actually been done to someone at some point in history.
Same goes for the magical aspects of the story. Magic exists in this world, but it comes at a price, and people still have to deal with the consequences of their actions, or deal with the fall-out of other people's actions (Catelyn Stark, a word please!! In my office, now!!).
People survive by using their brains. And sometimes bad things happen to good people.
Maybe I'll grab the next book and dive right in, after all. ...more

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Apr 03, 2010 usagi ☆ミ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: teenage-shennanigans, 2010, what-is-this-i-dont-even, magical-reality, own, sexy-tiems, fantasy, witches-and-whores, best-of-10

All I can say is - HBO better attempt to do the book justice or there'll be fisticuffs. :| ...more

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Jan 11, 2012 Susie rated it it was amazing

I feel that I should apologize to all of the other exciting and enticing books that I had planned on reading within the next few months as I will now be dedicating all of my spare time to George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series. The first book in the series, A Game of Thrones, thoroughly surpassed my unreasonably high expectations.

I had seen this series listed on numerous “Best of Fantasy/High Fantasy” book lists over the years. Having relegated the books to my own personal list of “Se I feel that I should apologize to all of the other exciting and enticing books that I had planned on reading within the next few months as I will now be dedicating all of my spare time to George R. R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series. The first book in the series, A Game of Thrones, thoroughly surpassed my unreasonably high expectations.

I had seen this series listed on numerous “Best of Fantasy/High Fantasy” book lists over the years. Having relegated the books to my own personal list of “Series that I would love to start reading if I suddenly had endless amounts of free time and/or were trapped on a remote tropical island with the complete series in my possession”, I had not given much thought to actually tackling the lengthy tomes anytime soon. With the release and massive popularity of HBO’s TV series A Game of Thrones, I decided that it might be worth finding out what all the hype was about.

I was absolutely hooked by the end of the first chapter. A Game of Thrones is one of those books that is almost as much fun to review as it is to read simply because it has appeal factors for so many different audiences. First off, the characters are numerous and extremely well-developed. And by numerous, I mean like Russian author numerous. But it’s not difficult to determine which characters are the ones worth watching, and Martin is a very sympathetic author who gives the reader gentle reminders (subtly and often) as to who each person is and why they’re important. Like Ken Follet’s much heralded The Pillars of the Earth (also made into a TV series), this novel has political intrigue and machinations coming out of the woodwork. There are plenty of villains and tried-and-true heroes, but there’s also a preponderance of morally ambiguous characters that are always unpredictable, leaving the reader helpless to determine what their next move will be.

The setting for the story is highly detailed and imaginative, with lands ranging across several continents and including tribes and peoples too numerous to include in a single review. The customs, religions, languages and even food preferences are comprehensive, which makes the reader feel like they have escaped to a new world each time they open the book.

The chapters are typically short, each told by one of a different handful of narrators in turn. This literary technique makes it near impossible to feel like you’ve reached a good stopping point where you can put the book down because you’ll probably have to read another three or four chapters before you hear from the same narrator again and find out what fate had in store for them at the end of the previous chapter. This leaves the reader simply itching to pick the book up again.

I could probably write a review for A Game of Thrones that ended up being about as long as the book itself (close to 700 pages depending on which edition you receive) singing its many praises. George R. R. Martin is an exceedingly talented writer who deserves every bit of acclaim and all the glowing complements that I’m sure he has received over the years. If the rest of the series is anything as good as the first book, which I have every confidence that it will be, then I have several months of exciting reading to look forward to.
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Apr 04, 2012 Thee_ron_clark rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: action, other, fanstasy

After watching the first season of Game of Thrones on HBO, I felt it only appropriate to read the novel that inspired it. In some ways, I feel I would have liked the book more had I not seen the television series. In others, I think it actually improved the reading experience.

The general plot is that a fantasy kingdom of knights, nobles, and the such are involved in various levels of intrigue and plots to hold and gain power from one another in a land that was once a home to fantasy beasts and c ...more

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Nov 20, 2010 Alex Telander rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-read-in-2010

Journey to Westeros for the first time, with A Game of Thrones, but beware for winter is coming. In the first of George R. R. Martin’s landmark, epic fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire, readers will be introduced to a complex world of many lands and many families, with many characters, but have no fear for Martin tells the story from unique viewpoints of different members of different families, forcing the reader to fit the different pieces of the story together, creating the overall puzzle Journey to Westeros for the first time, with A Game of Thrones, but beware for winter is coming. In the first of George R. R. Martin’s landmark, epic fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire, readers will be introduced to a complex world of many lands and many families, with many characters, but have no fear for Martin tells the story from unique viewpoints of different members of different families, forcing the reader to fit the different pieces of the story together, creating the overall puzzle of plot. Readers will be reminded of everything they love about great fantasy stories, whether they be simple or epic; as well as discovering why George R. R. Martin has earned the title of the “American Tolkien.”

In the world of Westeros, there are Seven Kingdoms, long ago independent, now united under the Iron Throne, but those named king never seem to last long in this world of corrupt, power-hungry families. There are two main families which readers are first introduced to: the Starks and the Lanisters, emulating the Wars of the Roses with the Yorks and Lancasters. With the Starks there is proud and strong Ned, who is to be the King’s Hand to Robert Baratheon, and his determined and caring wife, Catelyn. The sons are Rob, the eldest, Jon Snow, a bastard, Bran who suffers a debilitating accident, and Rickon who is too young to really understand what is going on. The daughters are Sansa, who is a young, fair maiden always looking for her knight in shining armor to whisk her off her feet; and Arya, who is boyish and wants to learn how to fight with a sword, ride a horse into battle, and defend herself. The Lannisters are a different type of family, constantly looking for gain whether it is with land, riches, or power. At the head of the household is the aging Lord Tywin, with his children: the beautiful, blond and blue-eyed Jaime and his twin Cersei – who share much more than a sibling affection – and little Tyrion, a dwarf who has had to fight for everything in his entire life. Cersei is wife to the king, Robert Baratheon, and together they have young Joffrey, heir to the throne, along with Tommen and Myrcella.

While tension builds between the families at King’s landing, far to the north lies the Wall – 700 feet tall and 300 miles long, protecting the Seven Kingdoms from the evils of the far north. There lies myth and legends of demons and ghouls, as well as a landless king. It is here John Snow is sent. To the east in the Free Cities is Viserys and Daenerys Targaryen, the last surviving children of King Aerys II, looking to one day take back the throne that is rightfully theirs.

A Game of Thrones is fantasy at its very best, with lots of complex, interesting characters; moving storylines filled with tension and adventure; a detailed and varied world that is well explored; and an underlying question of who is truly good and who is truly evil in this harsh world.

Originally written on March 14, 2011 ©Alex C. Telander.

For more reviews, and exclusive interviews, go to BookBanter ...more

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Apr 22, 2010 Amber rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, biblio

Wow...only around 200 pages or so into this, and it's wonderful. Deep, realistic, and intensely political without being dry. I can't wait to read more, and then the rest of the series.

Ok, flash forward, completed the book (and indeed, the rest of the series) as soon as I could.

I've read a lot of fantasy. I've read fluff, and I've read dry, and I've read a modicum of smutty fanfic...but I've never read anything quite like the world that George R. R. Martin weaves around his reader.

Each chapter is ...more

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Jun 10, 2011 Susan rated it really liked it

I am obsessed with the books!

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Apr 02, 2012 Ashley rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: dragons, fantasy, book-to-movie, magic

I fell in love with the HBO show and a friend told me to try the books now that the new season just finished to read the books then I would understand the show better. I liked the book almost as good as the show. I understand alot more of the stories and the characters than before. My favorites are still Arya, Tryion (the Imp), and Jon. Least favorite so far: Cateyln (mom) and DEFINETLY don't like Sansa.

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