Ahhhhh, A Game of Thrones. A household name by now and just saying the title conjures up images of swords, knights and lots of grotesque violence and nudity. After receiving the entire boxed set for Christmas last year, I put it on my bookshelf and there it sat for about 4 months as I was slightly intimidated by the sheer volume of each novel. So I made a deal with myself to just begin the first book, no pressure, nice and slow. My goal was to just finish the first novel. Finally, as of September, I have finished this lengthy tome and I loved it so much that I need to tell the world what they already know! My Game of Thrones review:
Let me first start off by saying that I was surprised and actually adored this book. I thought because of it's length that I would get bored with way too many trivial details. The book definitely goes into detail, but what I found slowed me down was keeping track of all of the characters. What a family tree! How does George R.R. Martin keep track of so many families? I can only assume he does so through sheer genius.
Right away as you open any of the books in this series, you will be greeted with quite an extensive map. The map of The North and The South are the settings for the novels and show The Seven Kingdoms. The book begins in Winterfell in The North and gives us a glimpse into the lives of Lord Eddard (Ned) Stark, ruler of Winterfell, and his family for which we root for throughout the first story.
Chaos ensues almost immediately and I love that. For me, a book needs to get my attention right away and I found myself getting swept up in this fantasy and all of it's characters. For lovers of the fantasy drama there is no shortage of mythical creatures like dragons and walking dead. Strangely enough I also found myself accidentally referring to this series as historical fiction as it gives off the feeling of being lost in a far off time in our own world. There is swordplay, romance, suspense and adventure in this masterpiece. A Game of Thrones will absolutely appeal to a variety of readers' favorite genres.
Ok, let's face it, I know I'm a little late to the party here and A Song of Fire an Ice series has been around for awhile. A Game of Thrones was first published in 1996 and the HBO TV series began in 2010, but I actually enjoy being the last one to read the popular books. So long as I haven't stumbled upon any spoilers, I like the idea that I'm getting to experience a book for the first time while everyone else has been there, done that. There is nothing like reading a really good book for the first time, experiencing all the feels.
Now, while I would give this novel a solid 5/5 stars, it is not without it's faults (albeit they are miniscule). There are a lot of characters, like A LOT, to keep straight. The author will throw more names at you than you think you can handle, but I found that keeping track of the important, central characters was easy. This book is lengthy and full of details. George R.R. Martin must be some kind of mad genius to be able to weave such intricate details and storylines, but bear with it and that overload of information will only lay the foundation for future storylines and chapters to come.
In conclusion, I would recommend this book to the few who may not have read or watched the TV series and even to those who have only watched the TV series. For those who enjoy big books and for those seeking a world in which to lose themselves in. By far, one of the greatest novels of my generation and certainly a story that will be remembered for years to come. It may have taken me 5 months to digest this amazing piece of literature, but it was worth every minute!
Andrea