A Game of Thrones

A Game of Thrones – George R.R. Martin

Evan’s ESS = 9 out of 10

Erin’s ESS =  out of 10

Content = (Adult Content, Violence, Language, Sexual Content, Nudity, Intrigue, Direwolves)

Why: We have officially set forth on our journey through the acclaimed A Song of Fire and Ice series. Considering that the average book is over 850 pages, our expedition could take a considerable amount of time (we’re literally talking years). Book one already provided us with yet another reminder that reading about powerful kings and queens is much more enjoyable than actually participating in a real life game of thrones. At the very least, your life expectancy will improve...

Any type of comprehensive summary of A Game of Thrones is completely beyond our skill with a keyboard (or IPod Touch). We’re not even going to try. Instead we’ll provide the following to give you a sense of the plot. There’s a King and a whole lot of people who will stop at nothing to become king. There’s betrayal, murder, fighting, biting and a tribe of wandering horse warriors looming ever closer in the distance. And just when you think you have a grasp on the key players, everything changes.... Hope that helps.

Within the first few pages A Game of Thrones had an epic feel (and an execution). We couldn’t help but let ourselves get pulled into the plot despite minor difficulties sorting out all the complex family trees. Some might describe the novel as overly descriptive but we appreciated the many back stories and enjoyed the extra layers they added to the story. The novel often blurred the lines between good and bad and made it difficult to hand pick our hero and heroine. Although, in some cases the choice was brutally clear. *cough* Jamie and Cersie Lannister *cough* (allow us a second to retrieve a throat lozenge).

The novel bounces between many different perspectives and often did so at the most inopportune and suspenseful moments. We felt the balance between plot lines was reasonable and honestly, the novel felt like a twist between The Lord of the Rings and The Pillars of the Earth... only a pinch darker. The prevalence of rape, prostitution, and violence was at times disturbing. Be forewarned.

Another aspect of A Game of Thrones worth pointing out is the imagery of the approaching winter, which was really well done. It was a powerful tool and only made us more apprehensive of the weather about to hit northern Indiana. On the bright side, what appears to be coming to the Seven Kingdoms seems to a whole lot worse than anything we’re in store for. We were also intrigued by the Direwolve pups that were given as pets to several characters. These animals added an extra dimension to the story, and were downright judicious at times. Still, probably not the best family pet...

For anyone who’s already completed this series, are we in for an exciting ride or does A Song of Fire and Ice peak at book 1?