I finally finished all the 5 books from the series. This is the only series that I got hooked to, other than Harry Potter and Lord of the rings. I loved this series a lot, mainly because it is a fantasy and is set in the medieval ages. I have been recommending this series to anyone and everyone I meet or talk to.
Favorite characters
– When the series started, Jon Snow and Arya Stark appealed to me the most. But as the series progressed and I finished third part of the series, I was sure I liked Tyrion Lannister the most. I liked his character so much that I ended up reading “The wit and wisdom of Tyrion Lannister”.
Characters I dislike
– Cersei Lannister, Joffrey Baratheon, Ramsay Bolton. These are the only characters which are truly black, others have a shade of grey.
My reaction after finishing the books
According to me, third book was the best, followed by first, second, fifth and my least favourite was fourth book. I took the following reviews from Goodreads:
1. A Game of thrones
[pullquote]”When you play a game of thrones you win or you die. There is no middle ground.”[/pullquote]
Read this book very slowly and you will love it.
Reasons to pick this book:
- different point of views
- war, politics
- way too many interesting characters
- plenty of subplots
- kings and knights
- every single character is flawed
- No single hero or villain
- Epic fantasy
- Martin’s writing, dialogues
- twists and turns that you don’t expect
- “Age of empires” live in action
2. A Clash of Kings
969 pages! No joke. Definitely one of the fattest books I have read. Still no regrets. Loved it. Bran’s narration was little boring, rest all were good.
Women in medieval age – what I felt after reading this series: http://wp.me/p3iG9o-1H3
3. A Storm of Swords
WOW! what a book. So many twists and turns that I couldn’t even imagine. This is definitely the best book in the series and one of the best books I have ever read. I am so badly addicted to this series. Don’t want it to end.
{ Spoiler: I started liking a character (Jaime) that I did not like right from the first book. Most of the characters that I disliked are gone. Probably, there are some new characters in the next book for me to dislike 🙂
Jon Snow and Arya are still my favourites, but Tyrion got added to the favorites list now after the terrific ending. Daenerys got so strong and commanding in this book. Liking her character too. And wait! Catelyn Stark is alive! And Lysa died. Her death was totally unexpected.}
4. A Feast for Crows
Pretty boring since none of the important characters are there in this book. I missed Tyrion’s storyline the most. Nothing important happens in this book. I had a tough time finishing it. But I had to read it, since I am very eager to read the next book.
5. A Dance with Dragons
1000+ pages. This is the fattest book I have ever read in my life. Slow paced but ending was fantastic, as always. Last few chapters were good. This book had all my favourite characters – Tyrion, Daenerys, Jon Snow. Wish it was smaller in size and fast paced like the other books.
This is the only book where I got confused with the names. There were so many people in Meereen with similar names like Skahaz, Reznak, Shavepate and these people even were called with multiple names. This made me lose track of who belonged to which free company. There were so many free companies and sellswords to keep track of!!!
Now I am waiting for the next book to release.
I am thinking that the next book will be really good, as all the stories have come to the climax part in this book.
6. The Wit and Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister
I love Tyrion’s quotes from all the books. Best dialogues/quotes in the books belong to Tyrion. So how could I not read this book?! This book is great with many awesome quotes from Tyrion.
[pullquote]”Why is it that when one man builds a wall, the next man immediately needs to know what’s on the other side?”[/pullquote]My favourite quotes from this book:
“They say I’m half a man. What does that make the lot of you?”
“My mind is my weapon. My brother has his sword, King Robert has his warhammer, and I have my mind … and a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone if it is to keep its edge.”
“There has never been a slave who did not choose to be a slave. Their choice may be between bondage and death, but the choice is always there.”
“Kings are falling like leaves this autumn.”
“The best lies are seasoned with a bit of truth.”
and many more…. Grab this book if you love this series.
Some GRRM facts
(taken from his interview here).
- (In his house)A letterbox shaped like a castle, complete with a drawbridge, and a car registration reads GRRM.
- Started the first, A Game of Thrones, in 1991, when he was 42.
- A giant sword and axe are mounted on the hall wall, and when he flicks a switch in the tower, dozens of intricately painted medieval dioramas are illuminated.
- ‘I’m fascinated by war,’ Martin admits. ‘War brings out the best and the worst in people. Literature of the past used to celebrate the glory of war; then the hippie generation in the 1970s wrote about the ugliness of it. I think there’s truth in both.
- Two bedrooms are for Martin’s books; the third is for McBride’s Lord of the Rings figurines.
- Points of view of different characters – currently 16 – each with a distinctive voice.
- Hadrian’s Wall was the inspiration behind the wall of ice conceptualized in the novel.
Some other links
- This link gives the history behind the series – http://history-behind-game-of-thrones.com/. Like how the story most closely resembles the Wars of the Roses.
- http://www.westeros.org – a great site if you want to read up more about the series or just want to remember something.
- http://www.innatthecrossroads.com/ – providing recipes for dishes featured in the book. I found the page “Dishes even WE can’t make!” more interesting. 🙂
- http://www.innatthecrossroads.com/a-feast-of-ice-and-fire/ – The Official Game of Thrones Cookbook. I saw this book at a local store. Most of the dishes are non-veg, so no point in buying it.
- http://www.westeros.org/GoT/Characters/ – talks about all the characters.
I will be back with more quotes from the books.
I am familiar with the name of the first book, but I am not acquainted with this series as such. Someday, I will also read fantasy. The thing is, I find it difficult to understand fantasy – but I haven’t attempted much, I agree. I’ve not even read HP or LOTR. Somehow, I find genres like literary fiction, more interesting, these days!
Destination Infinity
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You should try reading at least one fantasy novel. You can start with this series itself. Give it a try and if you don’t like it, then you can always stop reading. These books are really good. I have a feeling you might like them. 🙂
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Glad you read all six of them. I have read so far the first 3 only. The interest in fantasy novels is about battles and campaigns. Martin clearly explains the messiness and unpleasantness of medieval warfare. Some people may complain about the explicit sex. I did not find it offensive.
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The first 3 are the best in the series I feel. Especially the third one was so fantastic right? the ending was awesome.
Yeah some people have even termed him misogynist, which is so not true. There are many strong female characters in the book and I think he is just being true to the period where the story is based.
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Wow..thank you so much for such a nice review.. i have been wanting to start this series since the longest time, but i had no patience.. But now I feel totally pepped! 🙂
I love the quotes you mentioned from The Wit and Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister.. Especially these two:
“….. a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone if it is to keep its edge.”
“Why is it that when one man builds a wall, the next man immediately needs to know what’s on the other side?”
I have read HP, and have seen LOTR mvies.. I couldn’t read the books, somehow.. But this am surely going to read.. I was on a Japanese books reading spree.. now I can give that a halt and start with this ! 🙂
thanks for this wonderful review! 🙂
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You should start this series Mi. If you liked Lord of the rings, you will definitely like this series, as it is kind of inspired from LOTR.
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Have never heard of the series till now ! I always thought “Game of Thrones” was a game ‘coz when I open certain apps on my phone, it shows the ads for “Game of Thrones” game.
Since you recommend it so much, must see if I find a copy, read and like it 🙂
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Oh yeah the name sounds like a game, but it is mainly politics that people play for getting the throne. If you like stories like Lord of the rings, you will definitely like this book. You should anyway give it a try once.
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wow thanks for this wonderful review. i have been eyeing this series for a while now. should get it soon and start reading.
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Since you like fantasy, you should definitely give this series a try. I started with the first book and couldn’t stop myself until I had finished the whole series. You should give these books a try.
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just checked it out in barnes and nobles. too pricy. will need to wait for a coupon or something before buying it. but i’m super psyched about reading them someday.
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Try on Amazon. I got mine from there.
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I have heard so many good things about this series!
I have to pick them up and start reading 🙂
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You should try reading at least the first book from the series Pixie. I have a feeling you will like it, since you like fantasy.
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I didn’t even hear about this book. Shows how distanced I am from the rest of the world. But, I am glad I read your blog. 🙂
I just checked at the library if I could get this. I have been dying to read a book. I will surely pick this. 🙂
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This book has suddenly become very famous. Try to read the book Dil. I hope you like it. 🙂 It has some amount of violence and some unwanted sex scenes. But if you get past those, it is really brilliant.
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I am so glad you wrote this 🙂 I have read all the 5 books and I too urge everyone to read it. 🙂 I loved it 🙂 My favorite characters keep getting killed so was scared to keep a favorite after the 3 book.
I too found the 4th book boring. I want to read whole of the series once again coz I read real fast. This one has to be read slow and enjoyed 🙂
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Yeah that’s the sad part about this series. You cannot like a character as you don’t know when that character might die. 😀 😀
Even I want to read the series again more slowly.
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so far I havent read a single fantasy book:(
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You should give a try. You might end up liking fantasy right? You’ll never know.
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Been wondering about this series for a little while now….your review is captivating! Maybe after I finish the 70-odd books on my shelf…
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Yeah you should try this series PB. Since you like fantasy, there is a chance that you might like it. If you liked Lord of the rings, then definitely you will like it.
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I must check this series. Havent read a series after the HP lot! 😛
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You should try this series Shilpa. I would say this is one of the best in fantasy genre.
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I saw the series and it was so violent that I just gave watching it… maybe the book is a lot better. 969 Pages!!!! gawd!!! Do you have ebooks?
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They are really huge books, so I bought the hard copies. Books are better than the series. Some episodes are pretty gross.
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Intrigued..Will try this series
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You should try this series Seema. I hope you like it 🙂
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It says a lot if this is one of the few series you have finished. 🙂
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Welcome to my blog Vasilly.
You are right. Since this is one of the few series that I really liked, I can say it is really good.
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I completed the first book, was really good am onto the second one 🙂
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oh wow. that’s great Seema. I hope you like the other books too. 🙂
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