This book is setting a lot of records for me. First of all, at a whopping 1216 pages, it is the largest book I've ever read (the print is small too, it's kind of ridiculous) It has also just topped the list as the best book that I've read this year (Annie...you can take solace in the fact that "The Passage" is now sitting pretty at #2) and maybe the best book I've ever read. The third part of George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series will not disappoint fans and although this epic tale may be dealing with a realm in turmoil, OUR whole world can unite beneath the banner of the one true king, George R.R. Martin, the greatest writer ever...Martin even surpasses another fantasy icon with an R.R. in the middle of his name.
While much of the story continues the gripping tale of faction v. faction violence in a world where no one can truly be trusted and everyone has their price, we are also granted a look into some of the more outlandish corners of Martin's world. Up to this point, the story has taken place on the Euro-inspired continent of Westeros (with the exception of the storyline of fan-favorite Danaerys Targaryan the dragon-blooded exiled princess). Martin begins to show us lands like Dorne, the closest neighbor to Westeros and the only land to hold a truly peaceful relationship with the Seven Kingdoms. We also get to see the exotic and dangerous Slaver's Bay, a series of coastal towns where the major incomes are rooted in the slave trades and betting pits. It is through these lands that we see just how vast Martin's world is, and at this point there is nothing I'd like more than to know everything about it.
We learn even more about the characters that we have come to love, and every character has at least one moment where their fans will cry out (whether in joy or agony depends on the choice of character, but believe me, this book will evoke some emotion). I found myself shouting out loud in my car cheering for a personal favorite of mine during a particularly tense battle scene.
This book also features more than one gamechanger. A gamechanger in any book can throw the reader for a curve, but a George R.R. Martin gamechanger will keep you awake for a week. Those of you who have read the first book know that Martin is not afraid to rack up a body count of major characters and that holds equally (if not more) true in this installment. Some of these turns will shock you to your very core. I happened to be in the grocery store holding a carton of eggs when one of the most shocking moments played over my mp3 player (yes...I had to get a second carton of eggs).
While I've already said that George R.R. Martin's books make up the best series I've ever read, this is the best book in the best series I've ever read. Read it now. Do it. Seriously. Not kidding.
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