[Poll Ballot] A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin - 5 Stars

[Heather Reads Books]

This is my second time reading A Game of Thrones. The first time, back in 2012, was before I was terribly prolific with writing reviews, so I don't have much to compare this experience to besides a five-star rating. However, since the HBO show's lackluster series finale, I've had the bug to tackle these books again, to remind myself all the ways in which the books differed from the show, and (perhaps foolishly) to better position myself for when the fabled Winds of Winter finally comes out. Being stuck inside during a global pandemic seemed like the perfect time to abandon this world altogether and return to Westeros, and I'm glad I did.

The five star rating definitely holds. As fantasy series go (and, honestly, just fiction in general), George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire sets the gold standard. The plot is so well-worn in the public consciousness that I don't think I need to spend much time on what actually happens in this first installment: we are introduced to the Stark family of Winterfell, see their family scattered to the cruel winds as the machinations of the scheming Lannisters builds up to and then explodes into civil war across the realm. At the same time, in exile in the Far East, the last remaining heir to the deposed king of Westeros, Daenerys, comes into her own and decides to seek the crown lost to her before she was born.

That's what happens in a nutshell, but there's a lot else going on under the surface. The characters are well-drawn and wonderfully complex. Even better, they are written by an author who understands how the mechanisms of political power work and is unapologetic about realistically depicting the lessons of history. I know this series in general has been given critiques of being "too dark," but having been a student of history, I know how its horrors are too often glossed over for a more rosy, heroic view. GRRM never does this, and often plays and subverts such tropes deliberately. (Littlefinger, for example, telling Sansa that real life is not like the songs, and that she may learn that one day to her sorrow – this is a pitch perfect microcosm of this book and the series at large.) Furthermore, the author is never concerned with putting a modern gaze on a setting that has a fundamentally different frame of reference. For this, I respect him greatly, but I can understand it's not for everyone.

However, while my rating didn't change from my previous read, this time around, I was certainly aware of how much I've changed. The first time I was chiefly concerned about the characters. This time, I was concerned about the world and its politics. GRRM is a master of world-building, and I was constantly pleased how many references that become relevant later were packed into this volume. The world in this series is a fully realized, breathing and roiling thing. I've tried to read too many fantasy stories lately where the scope of the world feels blurry and small. Additionally, GRRM has an incredibly strong grasp of politics and warfare on a macro level – period appropriate, yes, but much of the political actors in Westeros ring true in an international relations context today. It doesn't matter what century or world it is; humanity has its schemers, opportunists, warmongers and people upon which greatness is thrust and they're just trying to deal with it. That's the real achievement of Game of Thrones, and what makes it stand out among many other stories that have the trappings of the "fantasy" genre.

On top of it all, there is a wonderful undercurrent of mysticism. I don't know how I missed it the first time, but I did. This book is chock full of lore, of stories of half-remembered ages past that were more magical than the current day. Constant hints abound that this magic is not lost, but gone underground and working in more subtle, mysterious ways. This provides a salve for the the gritty, cutthroat political actions and hints to something greater. For the players on this massive field, there is a possibility that the noble and righteous can overcome even with all the evils of mankind stacked against them.

If magic still exists out there somewhere, perhaps so does hope. I didn't realize how much I needed to hear that right now.

[Nikki]

What a lovely review - thank you!

[Heather Reads Books]

Nikki wrote: "What a lovely review - thank you!"

Thanks! I'm glad you liked it. :)

[Joanne]

Ok, the last line struck a tear for me....lovely review and you have kindled the urge I have been having the past few weeks to re-read these myself.

[Sue]

What a wonderful review!

[Nicole R]

I have read through the fourth book and enjoyed them all (for the most part), but, by the time I read it three things happened:
(1) the show had diverged fairly substantially from the books,
(2) the show was moving beyond even the fifth book, and
(3) I became more and more sure that Martin will never finish this series.

So, I never got to the fifth book and, instead, just enjoyed the show for what it was without comparing it to the books. If Martin one day proves me wrong and publishes the final two books in this seven book series, then I think I will go back to the beginning and read them all.

Until then....

[Heather Reads Books]

Joanne wrote: "Ok, the last line struck a tear for me....lovely review and you have kindled the urge I have been having the past few weeks to re-read these myself."

Awww, thank you! Yeah, for some reason, reading this book right now has been super calming for my mood. It's nice to be in a completely different world with completely different troubles. It helps that I bought a box set for cheap a few months ago and they're already in my house, sitting nice and pristine on my bookshelf, lol.

Sue wrote: "What a wonderful review!"

Thank you!

Nicole R wrote: "I have read through the fourth book, but, by the time I read it three things happened: (1) the show had diverged fairly substantially from the books, (2) the show was moving beyond even the fifth b..."

LOL, totally understandable. I pretty much mainlined all of them in 2012-2013 and in hindsight I think I rushed through them so I could finish before the next season of the show premiered. This time I'm trying to go slower so I can enjoy them more and contemplate the larger context.

Since the show ended up deviating so drastically from the books, I realized there's some stuff in the later volumes that I've pretty much forgotten, but now I'm like "Maybe I should revisit that, because it seemed like it was gonna be important..." I also spent a time assuming Winds of Winter would never come out, and until the show ended was pretty content never to revisit the books. But then, well, I found the last season so disappointing that my curiosity was piqued by the books again, so here I am...

At least there's been some reporting that GRRM is making good use of the quarantine writing Winds of Winter, so I might allow myself a brief glimmer of hope, lol.

[annapi]

I've heard that with this Covid self-isolation he is actually getting some good writing time in on the next book!

[Heather Reads Books]

annapi wrote: "I've heard that with this Covid self-isolation he is actually getting some good writing time in on the next book!"

Yep, so I hear! Here's the article I saw about it.

https://www.vulture.com/2020/03/georg...

[Nicole R]

Heather Reads Books wrote: "At least there's been some reporting that GRRM is making good use of the quarantine writing Winds of Winter, so I might allow myself a brief glimmer of hope, lol."

Oh my gosh! I just contemplated the possibility of GRRM getting coronavirus! WASH YOUR HANDS AND PRACTICE SOCIAL DISTANCING, SIR!

[Heather Reads Books]

LOL, I know, right! He's reportedly doing the right stuff. Stay inside, George, and write, write like the wind...!

[Theresa]

What a masterful review, Heather! Brilliantly written and expressing much of what resonates about this series.

I too love the books and also, separately, in itself, loved the HBO series. Even the final season which played out much as I expected, actually.

I reread all through Feast of Crows before A Dance With Dragons was published. Took me about 3 weeks and was so great. I read GOT the year the paperback - not trade size - was published, mere months before Clash of Kings was released - 1997? 1998? And I have been obsessed ever since. I too will reread some volumes when there are signs of TWOW being released.

@NicoleR - I have friends who will not read a series unless it is complete. Doesn't really bother me. In fact the final books in some famous works were not actually finished by the author. Even Proust...the last couple of books of A Remembrance of Things Past had not been edited by him when he died. And he always did extensive editing before publishing. Yet no one cares.

[Heather Reads Books]

Theresa wrote: "What a masterful review, Heather! Brilliantly written and expressing much of what resonates about this series.

I too love the books and also, separately, in itself, loved the HBO series. Even the ..."

Thanks, Theresa!

I hold the HBO show in incredibly high esteem also. Many people I talk to think it declined significantly in quality after the show outpaced the books, but I personally was 100% with it until about the final three episodes. Then it started to feel too rushed and many of the endings didn't feel satisfying or provide satisfactory answers for many of the questions I had. But I still think it's some of the finest television ever produced. Perfectly cast, with incredibly gorgeous settings and costumes and set-pieces... really just wonderful.

I honestly don't know how I missed the series before the TV show came out – it's right up my alley, but I hadn't heard of it at all until my friends convinced me to watch the first season of the show with them. I still fondly remember one of them promising me "sh*t is about to get bananas" right before that episode with Ned aired. He wasn't kidding! I've been hooked since.

I'm hoping by the time I get through my reread maybe there will be some glimmers of hope that Winds of Winter will be released, but... then again, depending on how long the pandemic lasts, I might be tearing through the volumes much faster than I anticipated.

[Shelly]

I have season 5 of GOT sitting on the coffee table. In a stack of DVDs I got on my last trip to the library before they closed. I have not watched any of them, probably because I can't concentrate on anything!

I read all 5 and will happily read the next one if it is published. I think Martin is quite the genius.

[Theresa]

Martin wrote a fantasy that crosses genre lines and appeals to all adult ages. And it is so well written. Yes, the man is a genius.