A Dance With Dragons

George R.R. Martin

A Song of Ice and Fire #5

Summary:

(WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS OF PREVIOUS BOOKS AHEAD!)

In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance — beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. In the east, Daenerys Targaryen, the last scion of House Targaryen, rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has thousands of enemies, and many have set out to find her. As they gather, one young man embarks upon his own quest for the queen, with an entirely different goal in mind.

Fleeing from Westeros with a price on his head, Tyrion Lannister, too, is making his way to Daenerys. But his newest allies in this quest are not the rag-tag band they seem, and at their heart lies one who could undo Daenerys's claim to Westeros forever.

Meanwhile, to the north lies the mammoth Wall of ice and stone — a structure only as strong as those guarding it. There, Jon Snow, 998th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, will face his greatest challenge. For he has powerful foes not only within the Watch but also beyond, in the land of the creatures of ice.

From all corners, bitter conflicts reignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all.

Plot:

One of the things I like most about this series is the way the author seems to have put a lot of thought into every sentence (just imagine if it took him 10 seconds for every sentence, how long it would’ve taken to write this entire series, not even including plotlines and character development and all those other things authors have to think about). Yet, despite this, the whole stays easy to read, without ever becoming boring. His descriptions really aren’t all that grand or intricate, but they make the reader use their own imagination, and you really feel as if you’re a part of the story. What I didn’t like about this installment is actually the previous installment’s fault (or the author’s fault for the way he wrote the two different installments, but you know what I mean). It’s kind of hard to have to go back in time (in the story, obviously) and to remember what went on during that time with the other characters from the previous book. It’s also hard to get back into the previous book’s characters’ stories (uhm, yes that makes sense...I think) where the two timelines meet again, since you haven’t seen them for the whole book, and now all of a sudden, without any reminders of what had happened you just continue with their story.

Characters:

The characters in this series are alive. As in, when I put the book down I had to remind myself for a moment that they weren’t still continuing with their lives in some alternate universe, alive. It’s very obvious that the author knows his characters, the little things they do that are so true to who they are are everywhere in the book. My favourite character is probably still Tyrion, mainly for his wit. I liked reading a lot about him and Daenerys in this installment.

Who should read this:

16+, and like I’ve said so many times before, this series is not for the faint-hearted. There is no censorship or euphemisms (go look it up) in this book. However, if you love fantasy this is definitely something I’d recommend. You should also be warned, if you have weak arms I’d suggest looking for this book in two parts, because the version I had was a huge hard-cover and I don’t think my arms have been worked out like this in a really long time...

My rating:

I really liked this book, but I thought I’d like it more, since it focused on two of my favourite characters for a large portion of the story, however I don’t know if I liked the way the author split the two. Still, it was a great read as always. 4/5

Quote:

'A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies,' said Jojen. The man who never reads lives only one.

Read my reviews for the previous books here! 'A Game of Thrones', 'A Clash of Kings', 'A Storm of Swords' and 'A Feast for Crows'