A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin

A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
Dropps: 9/10

A Game of Thrones, the first installment of A Song of Fire and Ice series by George R. R. Martin, is an epic read combining fantasy with human drama. Not only is it one of the most talked about fantasy series, it is also the inspiration for an HBO series starting this April.

Winter is Coming. The Seven Kingdoms of Westeros have seen a long summer and now they will feel the pain of a long winter. King Robert Baratheon of the Seven Kingdoms holds his power tenuously. Eddard Stark, friend and confidante of the king, is forced to realize that intrigue and disaster are descending on his family and friends. The Starks are a proud, strong family, but they seem to be the only thing standing in the way of the Lannister family taking the throne for themselves. Meanwhile the Targaryens, the ruling family before Robert, are stirring up their own trouble across the sea. Daenerys Targaryen and her brother, the last of their family, are determined to take back their birthright. As if that wasn’t enough, in the north magical beings, including the “Others,” are threatening to enter the Seven Kingdoms and wreak havoc on its inhabitants.

Although the instinct might be to relate this series to the Lord of the Rings trilogy because it’s a long fantasy epic (and the actor who played Boromir will be starring in the HBO series), Martin’s tale is very different from Tolkien’s. The world has some fantastic elements, such as a phenomenon that has winters and summers lasting years rather than months, and menacing creatures called the “Others” that make vampires look like members of a boy band, but it is much more relatable to our medieval world. The drama lies more in the human conflict than in the fantasy.

Obviously, there’s no shortage of intrigue in this novel. Once you get going, it’s hard to stop especially since the story changes point of view just when the current view is witnessing a dull moment. The reader experiences multiple characters so completely that it’s difficult to claim the story belongs to just one individual. However, anyone with any Medieval English history under their belt can recognize the parallels the story has to the War of the Roses. It has yet to be seen just how closely Martin will stick to the York and Lancaster (Stark and Lannister) feud since there are still three more books in the works for the series, but the first book definitely relies on history.

Once again, be aware that A Game of Thrones is only the first book of seven, and each one is a hefty read. Some might not appreciate devouring the first four books of the series and then waiting for the remaining three. It has been more than five years since the fourth book was published and there is no news on the fifth’s publishing date. Since it is just one in a series, the first book is not complete on its own. A Game of Thrones does not come to a place that can even be called an “ending.” The harshest criticism of the series so far seems to be that Martin is nowhere near finishing. Hope runs strong in the belief that, for better or for worse, HBO will make him finish it, but if you’re in the mood for a bit of fantasy, mayhem, and excellent character development, dive into A Game of Thrones.

–Devin Barreto