On the Throne

[Raven]

So, having had a few weeks to think about it, some thoughts on the first 4(3) books:

 

I'm really liking what Martin has done with Jamie Lannister. In the first two books he came across as a bit of a cliché bad guy, but all that started to change in book three when you started to see things from his point of view and Martin started delving into his back story. I think it's interesting to compare his character's development with that of Tyrion because they are both stuck with reputations they don't actually deserve, but how they got there has been quite different. Over the course of the story (so far...) you find out that although he broke his word, Jamie actually did the right thing by killing Aerys, but has been reviled for it. Tyrion is reviled generally - despite all the things he did to save King's Landing etc - for being a deformed midget. At the moment it looks as though Tryion is heading for a very dark place and may actually become the monster a lot of people think he is. On the other hand, could Jamie be becoming the nobler brother, by actually becoming the person Tyrion always tried to be?

 

I think Tyrion telling Jamie he killed Joffrey is going to be a defining moment for the two characters and that words spoken in anger will come back to haunt them both at some point.

 

More thoughts soon . . .

[Raven]

Game on, again . . .

 

A Feast for Crows

 

Pages 1 to 4

 

I only had time to read 4 pages last night, but already I'm hooked.  Train journey tomorrow, that should let me get properly stuck in again.

[Raven]

Pages 4 to 90-something

 

I think the book so far can be summed up thus: 

 

"Yay!  More characters to remember . . ."

 

and

 

" I've left this too long, I don't remember who anyone is/where everything is anymore!"

 

Actually, I've been doing better on the latter that I thought I would, but it has been good to catch up with some more familiar characters in the last couple of chapters.

[Raven]

Pages 90-something to 368

 

I'm not going as fast as I would like with this (it's not the fault of the book, I'm just getting very little time for reading at the moment and this isn't a book you can dip in and out of!)

 

After the events in the previous book things have wound down a bit and Martin is back into set up once again. 

 

New players are taking to the stage - some interesting at this point, some not so much - but by-and-large it is the chapters about the established characters that I've enjoyed the most. 

 

One theme that seems to be emerging, to a point, is that the women seem to be wearing the pants in Westeros (and beyond) and that the men seem to stop thinking the moment they drop their pants (Ser Arys I name thee Ser Plum!).

[Raven]

Pages 368 to 568

 

Making slightly faster progress now, but still not as fast as I would like.

 

Oh, sweet Cersei, you are building a house of cards and you think you are using granite.  This is going to end in a world of hurt, but it's actually quite fun trying to work out how the fall will come from.

 

I quite liked the bit with Samwell running into Arya in Braavos, but no connection being made. 

 

I've been expecting Tyrion to pop up there at some point, we shall see . . .

[Raven]

Pages 569 to End

Ha!  Cersei proves that Bitch Management means you are never far from a fall! (I’m sure essays could be written on her leadership style . . .).

Interesting as well that all of the women who looked to be strong earlier in the book have had falls (some to greater degrees than others).

Overall though, a lot of set-up and, well, not a lot else. 

It's not been bad, but after A Storm of Swords I had high expectations for the end of this book and they weren't really met.  The story feels like it has stopped several chapters short. 

I'm beginning to suspect that this may be a result of Martin having focused on only half the characters, I guess I'll find out come the end of A Dance with Dragons. 

Whilst the split has undoubtedly made it easier to follow what is going on, it's frustrating to think I probably won't be able to find out what happens to anyone in this book until the next novel is published sometime next year(?).

 

Straight on to A Dance with Dragons: Dreams and Dust.

[Raven]

A Dance with Dragons: Dreams and Dust

Start to Finish

 

Well it took long enough, but I finally finished this last night. 

 

The protracted reading time has very little to do with the quality of the book, but more my shoddy efforts at reading of late.  Every time I've picked up the book I've read quite sizeable chunks, but those pick ups have often had several days between them.

 

After A Feast for Crows it was good to catch up with the other half of the story and especially to have Tyrion, Jon, Davos and - to my surprise - Theon back in the story.  At the same time it's been frustrating because after reading Feast I want to know what is happening to the characters that were covered in that book! 

 

I can see why Martin split the story, but I'm still not sure it was the best way forward.

 

I'm also still finding the chapters with Daenerys hard going.  At the beginning of the book it seemed that the different plot threads leading to her were starting to pull together (Ironmen, Dornish Princes and Imps all seemed to be converging on Meereen) but no.  She bathes, she eats, she feels bad about the state of the world she has created, she moons over her sellsword for a bit before a spot more hand wringing, another bath and some more food - Gah!   Also, her nipples get mentioned so often, along with Tyrion's cock, that it's a wonder they don't both have their own credits in the house lists at the back of each book!

 

Hey, ho . . .

 

I have enjoyed the rest of it though.  After some of the comments I had heard I had feared it would drag and despite my taking nearly two months to read it that hasn't been the case. 

 

Part 2 now, straight on to A Dance with Dragons: After the Feast (I'm looking forward to getting out of Westeros for a bit, after that!).

[Raven]

A Dance with Dragons: After the Feast

 

Start to Finish

 

Finally made it over the line - it took me 10 days shy of five months to read just three books!  (That honestly isn't a reflection on the books, I've just not had much reading time recently . . .).

 

Some surprises come the end, not the deaths I was expecting or the ending I thought things were building towards. 

 

Everything feels frustratingly up in the air. 

 

Obviously this is a series with multiple on-going plot lines, but the lack of any real watersheds at the end of the last three books is annoying when there's nothing more to read (for the moment).

 

I don't believe for one moment that Stanis is dead*, if he were surely Jeyne would be back in Bolton hands and that doesn't appear to be the case. 

 

Jon's death was a surprise, probably all the more so because it seemed unnecessary, but I guess taking up arms and heading south with a load of Wildlings probably was enough justification for the other men of the Watch to react as they did.

 

Now Cersei has had her teeth pulled it is difficult to see how she is going to get back in the game, but I guess Kevan's death may give her some small amount of traction in that regard.

 

Daenerys.  Oh for the love of God.  She get's to fly a dragon and she's still boring (though I do quite like Ser Barristan Selmy and the bits with the Ironmen at sea).

 

The return of Varys was a good twist though, I like that he has been working to keep things off balance at King's Landing.  It is a nice touch.

 

But there is still so much we don't know!  Nothings at all about Little Finger and Sansa in this last book. No Bran. Jamie has disappeared.  And what has happened to the Onion Knight and his quest?!

 

But then there are Tyrion and Arya, the two best and most interesting characters by far (although I'll be blowed if I know what is happening with Arya at present . . .).

 

I've enjoyed the ride, prolonged though it has been.  I had been looking for a good fantasy series and I think I can claim to have found one, but I'm slightly annoyed now that I have to wait for more (perhaps I should only pick series that have been completed from now on).

 

I guess, in part, this post is to remind me where things stand when the next book is published!

 

For now, though, a pause.

 

* I found the excerpt from The Winds of Winter at the back of the book after writing the above!

[Madeleine]

I know this is an old thread but I only read this recently - I found it hardgoing and pretty tedious on the whole, with a lot of storylines never really going anywhere - Dany is still boring, and Arya seems to have gone back to the beginning with endless training again - it was boring in the first book and it's boring now!  Hardly any Jaime either, and yes Jon was a shock but the Lord Commander seems to be one of those positions which, like the King's/Queen's Hand, is risky to say the least, and he did make himself very unpopular.  Stannis's death is so vague that it'd be interesting to find out what actually happened, but I think he is gone.  Best storyline was Tyrion (as always) and Mormont, another great pairing.  But overall a great disappointment, and I think this is the weakest of the books so far.