Reading book three right now and loving the series. The books are huge and the all encompassing detail of the world Martin has created make this series a bit intimidating. But it is worth the read. I recommend watching the first episode of the HBO series prior to reading the books. That will just give you an idea of who the characters are, so that when you start reading you aren't completely lost. Because let me tell you, they can get confusing. Martin writes each chapter from the point of view of one character. And within each book he write from about 5 to 10 characters. So as the reader, it is like reading the history of World War II from 5 different countries point of views. It gets to be alot. And books that are written like this sometimes get on my nerves. Because within reading a chapter you get invested in that characters story and at the end something exciting or bomb-dropping happens and then leaves a cliff hanger to which you won't get an answer for another 5-10 chapters.
I have read quite a few series, and it seems the ones that are most successful have a single character that it follows. So the reader becomes personally involved in that characters life. Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The house of night novels, True Blood, The Maze Runner, Eragon, The Mortal Instruments, The Golden Compass, Twilight, etc. All are written from one characters point of view. Personally I like that style of writing better... it keeps me more engaged, to the point where I can't put a book down. I love Game of Thrones, but I have to admit, it doesn't bother me to put it down and do something else for awhile. Especially since I like about half the characters and am bored with the other half. So the chapters from the characters I like, I'm all about... the rest of the chapters feel more like work. Something I have to get through to get to the good stuff. I'm not gonna lie... I do skim through a lot of it too. Martin just writes with so much DETAIL!!! A lot of it doesn't really add anything to the story... its just detail. Don't get me wrong... I am thoroughly impressed with how his mind works and this masterpiece of a world that he has created, but as the reader I could do without all the explaining everything. As his editor I would have cut the books down by 100-200 pages, getting rid of all the unnecessary stuff.
But even with all that, Martin has written a must read for anyone that enjoys fantasy, history or reading in general. My hat goes off to you, George Martin. Well done.
2 comments:
I like the fact that GRR Martin is able to create surprising twists with every "chapter," without losing track of the plot and making it appear blown-up. On the contrary, it's better to read before watching since you lose a lot of subplots in the TV version. But the rendition makes the story all the more enlightening. Can't wait for season 2!!
Michelle Pendlelton
I def agree that you should read the books first, I was only suggesting watching the first episode or two, to get a feel for the characters. Its helps me when reading a book with this many players to already have a face to them. For example in the first couple chapters, Martin refers to Eddard Stark as Lord Stark, Eddard, Ned and the Lord of Winterfell. It got a bit confusing. But yes... season 2 should be amazing!!!
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