Draven

Well, at least The Wheel of Time seems to be wrapping up nicely!

Lastblade

I don't think it is fair about his blog/watching football. I do find that he spreaded himself too thin on various projects (now the HBO series) and that delay the series. I suppose he is a victim of his own success.

In any case, I found a good replacement to his series in Steven Erikson's Tale of Malazan book of the Fallen. The last book of the series (10 of 10) will be released in February next year.

Sessa17

I read the first two books and didn't care for them at all. Well written, but terribly paper-thin characters. The number one quality for me in a good fantasy series is it must have at least one or two memorable characters. Joe Abercrombie's First Law series is a nice filler for Martin because its actually a complete series. And like I've mentioned, Way of the Kings is the best first book of a new fantasy series I've read since A Game of Thrones.

Draven

Really? I'm finding Way of the Kings to be a bit of a slog. I enjoyed Sanderson's take on the Wheel of Time, but I put it down for a while. Just couldn't get into it.

I think there were too many new "systems" all at once, and I was having trouble remembering which culture was which and how they related. I'll try to finish it up.

Duran

He's spent the last 8 years or so whoring out the Game of Thrones license to anyone with a pulse and some cash, and then gets pissy when fans want him to finish the damn series already. He's spread himself too thin in a blatant money grab. Which, by the way, I have no problem with; he should make as much money from the property as he can. But don't exploit it to death and then spit in the face of the fans giving you the money.

mgbfan

I don't like that he acts so put out when fans ask if he's ever going to finish what he started (and promised). Poor baby, people want to buy your books, so tragic.

He's made himself into a punchline, unfortunately.

GreenMonkey

I think he's just having trouble keeping it all straight and knowing where all of the stories are going. I'm sure he's had the basics planned for some time (Daenrys, the North, The Winter, etc)...but a lot of the other stuff, I bet, he's having trouble putting it all together.

Lastblade

Fair enough on the characters. Erikson does introduce a lot of characters and don't follow up on them, until much later. For example, after book 3, the characters are continued in book 8! It is pretty crazy to skip 4 books on some major players.

I would suggest you stick with it. I am rereading book 5 (Midnight Tides) now, and the characters are very interesting (some comical). But you gave it a fair shake with 2 books already, so I applaud your efforts. Some of my favorite guys (and gals) in the series are:

Karsa Oolong - Just a badass every which way and will kill a god if he feels like it (and did)

Tehol Beddict - Hilarious genius, a really interesting character in undermining an entire economy. Him and his servant, Bugg have some of the best exchanges in the series

Quick Ben - a crazy mage that's more than meets the eye

Anomander Rake - Leader of Tiste Andii with his sword, Dragnipur. He has some really intense fighting scene and tragic sequences....

Cutter - from a kid to an assassin, struggled with his unrequitted love for Apalsar.

mgbfan

Maybe you should start an Erikson thread.

Sessa17

Most do, that is what makes it so good. There is a ton of set-up, but you have to stick with it. Once you get to know the characters the book becomes incredible.


This is part of why I love the book so much, I'm so tired of books and series that spell everything out to you and simplify everything. This book is 1,000 pages for a reason, there is a lot to take in, but it is all described and set up so well. It really isn't hard to follow at all.

DaveNinja

just caught up on the song of ice and fire series. excellent read. now the wait begins

Gilgamesh1082

I said the same exact thing......4 years ago. You'll end up reading it once more to catch up on it BEFORE he finishes the last 5 chapters of A Dance With Dragons. I swear, he'd better include a hooker with each book sold to take care of the enormous blue balls he's given his fans the last decade.

grrr

After finishing the first book (which I thought fantastic in a way that few fantasy novels have ever been), I was disappointed by A Clash of Kings, which suffered quite a bit from then-this-happened syndrome without any real resolutions or compelling plot points of note.

That feeling continued for the first two-thirds of Storm of Swords, and then early this morning I hit the Red Wedding chapter. It's rare for me to pause an audio book, but I had to sit for a few minutes to absorb that blow. Looking forward to wrapping the book up today before starting in on Feast for Crows.

By the way, Martin really needs to have someone offer better suggestions for book titles. As much as these books are written for adults, the titles are better suited to pulp fantasy.

Nuff

I've said it before in other locations/threads but A Song of Ice and Fire is the best written fantasy I have ever read...and I strongly recommend that nobody read it until/if he finishes it. There are plenty of other series out there that are finished or will be finished in reasonable timeliness.

kvrdave

Agreed. It has been long enough that I won't read Dance of Dragons until the series ends. No hardback sales from me. No paperback sale for me either. I'll pick it up used. I want to read it, but I don't want to reward him. Turn it over to someone else if you are that busy at the buffet.

Lastblade

You will be disappointed with Feast for Crows. Be warned.

kilcher

Amazon has most of these book available for Kindle (not just the Kindle reader but also iOS and Android devices w/ the Kindle app) for $5-7. I picked up A Game of Thrones for $4.99 and am starting the series for the first time. Just hoping to get through the first book before the show starts so that I'm more familiar with the characters.

mugwump

They're good enough to be worth reading even though GRRM is bound and determined to screw his fans over. I figure the worst that can happen is a Robert Jordan type of scenario and even there the new guy (Brandon Sanderson) has totally revitalized the series and pulled me back into it.

RonG617

GRRM just got married, so after taking off for football season, he will be taking off more time for his honeymoon. There is no U.S. release date for Dance, but the U.K. is still clinging to the Sept 29th release. It is sad how my feelings for him have changed so drastically.

Dr. Mantle

I read this series for the first time a couple of years ago. I can wait a while longer for the rest. But I can't imagine the frustration of fans who started reading back in 1996.

If the show does well, then Martin will get pressure to finish from actual artists and HBO execs. And he may not have such an easy time dismissing them as whiny fanboys.

Or maybe, HBO will film the first four books, and if Martin still hasn't finished, they will make up their own ending to the series. That'll get Matrin's attention at least.

mgbfan

Bah, you think pressure will change anything? It's time to face the facts. Martin has no clue where to go with the series. He's lost. He doesn't know what happens next. He pretends he does, but he doesn't. Now he's just stalling.

Nuff

My understanding is HBO has the rights to finish the series however they want when they catch up to the books...so really there won't be any sort of pressure on Martin.

I've said it before and i'll say it again, the first 4 books are probably the best written epic fantasy I have ever read, bar none. However, I cannot recommend that anyone actually support him until he finishes the entire series.

Alvis

And if he can't finish the series, maybe he should find someone who can.

mgbfan

I think I'd rather see it unfinished. Look at what they did to Dune after Frank Herbert died. They turned one of the great series of all time into total trash.

Noonan

Fixed