Little surprised not to see a topic on this series by George R. R. Martin. One of my favorite fantasy series. A Game of Thrones A Clash of Kings A Storm of Swords A Feast of Crows Granted it seems to take Martin awhile to get them done. I'm anxiously awaiting A Dance with Dragons now.

Yes, George R.R Martin is one of the best!!, but....i cant find "A storm of swords" snif..

Try Amazon.com /Morpheus

ASoIaF is one of my favourite fantasy sagas of all times. Martin just has a magical writing style... oh, and well, the network of intrigues is so large that it seems sometimes like a labyrinth to me. You never know what happens next That leaves room for many discussions, what I like a lot.

I haven't read any of the books, I focus on the TV series! Looking forward to season two!

When I first read the book, I found it confusing. So many storylines, so many characters. I started 4 times reading the first two chapters. Then I gave up. After season 1 of Game of Thrones, I reread (Is that a proper word?) it. Now I find the series awesome! And I'm looking forward to season two of GoT ofcourse

Political intrigue, solid world-building and gripping narrative - it's like the fantasy equivalent of Frank Herbert's Dune! I'm now reading A Dance with Dragons, and I'm happy to see a clear recovery from the slump that was A Feast for Crows. I rarely warm up easily to fantasy literature, but Martin has done sterling work here. My absolute favourite thing about the whole setting is the irregularity of the seasons. That's a brilliant way of emphasizing that this is fantasy - not realism, or history, but sheer, unadulterated fiction in a brand new world! This is not to say that the world in question is wholly original, except in the sense that Middle-earth is original; i.e. a harnessing of various mythological and legendary sources to create a world that is strange enough to be fascinating yet familiar enough to be comprehensible. Martin takes a bunch of toys handed down through generations and plays with them in an interesting way.

Allow me to be the contrarian. I couldn't finish the first book. It was written well enough. I just don't like the authors world-view. He seems to be saying that nobility is genetic flaw that will be inevitably weeded out by evolution. I don't need that kind of cynicism in my fantasy. If I want to be depressed, I can just read the paper.

Posted by c0c0c0He seems to be saying that nobility is genetic flaw that will be inevitably weeded out by evolution.

I can see how you'd get that impression from the first book. After all, many of the characters are involved in politics, which has always been a field where valour, honesty and chivalry - the traits of a beloved leader - are not exactly survival behaviour.

And let us not forget that the cast of characters are mostly self-serving, ruthless gits on the surface. What ultimately makes them appealing is learning how and why they have come to behave as they do. Lots of character development there, and the emergence of that nobility you look for.

Whether it's worth the hundreds of pages of reading is another matter. There are countless good books around, and I see no reason for anyone to have to grit their teeth to finish any particular one.