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I'm gonna be all over it. There's even been talk of a nerd party for the premier. And the long trailer looks fantastic.
I have two problems, though. 1) I won't pay for HBO and 2) I've lost *all* faith in Mr. Martin by this point. The latter diminishes my hopes that the series can possibly realize itself, unless there're some wildly talented writers tucked in the production's pocket. I'm not optimistic on that count, though.
Just like A Dance with Dragons, I've been alternately getting super excited and then trying to forget about this entirely since it was some time until it would be finished, and also so I wouldn't be too disappointed if it wasn't good.
Now that it's nearly here I can hardly contain myself
so, the books (and perheps the series) are worth checking out? i have to admit im not well versed at all in fantasy literature, but ive been meaning to get into it, because i really like sword & sorcery. so far ive only read lotr and 'his dark matters'. my understanding is this is a little more 'gritty', which is fine by me.
without spoilering, are there strong female characters and perhaps gay themes? i always enjoy these.
that one guy looks totally doable... wiki tells me his name is Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and his character is Ser Jaime Lannister.
so, the books (and perheps the series) are worth checking out? i have to admit im not well versed at all in fantasy literature, but ive been meaning to get into it, because i really like sword & sorcery. so far ive only read lotr and 'his dark matters'. my understanding is this is a little more 'gritty', which is fine by me.
there are different types of "strong characters", but yeah there are strong female characters in most senses of the word there are no obvious gay themes except a few people who are described to love men or boys, but there are some subtle hints that portray a gay couple in important position.
that one guy looks totally doable... wiki tells me his name is Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and his character is Ser Jaime Lannister.
so, the books (and perheps the series) are worth checking out? i have to admit im not well versed at all in fantasy literature, but ive been meaning to get into it, because i really like sword & sorcery. so far ive only read lotr and 'his dark matters'. my understanding is this is a little more 'gritty', which is fine by me.
without spoilering, are there strong female characters and perhaps gay themes? i always enjoy these.
that one guy looks totally doable... wiki tells me his name is Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, and his character is Ser Jaime Lannister.
I would add the caveat that the fourth book received a very mixed reception by many readers, myself included. After enjoying 2,435 pages to get to it there is no doubt you will read it. But if the fifth book is bad too, it will be hard to recommend the series to everyone.
Also bear in mind that at the current pace, the novels will finish being written in 2023.
Yes, to me A Feast For Crows is not quite canon. And since A Storm of Swords came out in 2000?, it will have been eleven years since we found out anything new about (most of) the good characters. This has been a big reason for my ambivalence, as I don't see this series getting finished before GRRM has a heart attack and dies.
None of this would be such an issue if the first three books weren't so good, but they were, and there is little if nothing else out there similar to this series. Nearly every "great" fantasy book I hear about turns out to be poorly written, boring/predictable, full of ridiculous amounts of magic, terrible names, etc.
I need to read the rest of the series, as I recently finished "A Game of Thrones." Ambivalent about the HBO adaptation, but I'm willing to check it out.
so, the books (and perheps the series) are worth checking out? i have to admit im not well versed at all in fantasy literature, but ive been meaning to get into it, because i really like sword & sorcery. so far ive only read lotr and 'his dark matters'. my understanding is this is a little more 'gritty', which is fine by me.
Without having read His Dark Materials (I did see the not-so-good movie), I think the work is probably a deconstruction of the theology of Christian writings such as Lord of the Rings, while The Song of Ice and Fire Trilogy deviates from LOTR in having black and grey morality in its earthly characters rather than black and white.
Since the series deconstructs the virtues of chivalry and throws them completely out of the window, you can expect a lot of scheming women and weaklings. Homosexuality does exist in the SoIaF universe, but exists almost exclusively to make the setting a little more colourful.
(If you're looking for that try Tanith Lee or Clive Barker).
IMHO for once a somewhat unrealisticly looking sword would have been justified (given the exotic magical material that the sword is supposed to be made from). It still doesn't look bad in the trailer.
An important theme in the setting at the beginning of the story, is that although magic exists, it has subsided/ been forced so much into the background, that at the beginning of the story the reader wonders if it exists at all.
He had very understandable reasons for doing what he did to one of the main characters in the first book, and he is mainly reviled by the people for breaking his knightly oath to his former king and killing him even though said king was so insane he probably would have
torched half the city and his subjects in it just to get at his enemies.
None of this would be such an issue if the first three books weren't so good, but they were, and there is little if nothing else out there similar to this series. Nearly every "great" fantasy book I hear about turns out to be poorly written, boring/predictable, full of ridiculous amounts of magic, terrible names, etc.
that actually sounds pretty good, too. not making an issue of it, just having it as 'a thing that exists', just like in real life. (if thats what youre saying.)
ot: 'his dark materials' is clearly written for teenagers. it has very prominent philosophical concerns (as opposed to being mainly about escapism). its a good read, although theres a lot i would critisize - its very reactive (its defining characteristic is that its against certain things), and as the trilogy goes on, the story takes some baffling turns. and yes, the movie was pretty much botched despite its stellar cast.
that actually sounds pretty good, too. not making an issue of it, just having it as 'a thing that exists', just like in real life. (if thats what youre saying.)
In my 'real life', it's homosexuality that is the mainstay of my life and heterosexuality that's the exotic ornament.
(If you're interested in Fantasy that is written from a homosexual perspective I can recommend anything by Clive Barker. Here the homosexuality is not tacked onto an otherwise very heterosexual story.)
Having said this, the treatment of sexuality is far more extensive than is usually the case in fantasy. Prostitution and rape are extensively described, and the sexual relationships between the characters are also described in this way.
Nothing I've disclosed goes beyond the introduction of the characters in the first few pages of the first book.
The back of the paperback reveals a lot more.
IMHO for once a somewhat unrealisticly looking sword would have been justified (given the exotic magical material that the sword is supposed to be made from).
afaik valyrian steel in the book is (physically) only described to be very sharp, hard but light at the same time. there is nothing about a "spectacular" look or similar.
kinda if you compare a paul binns blade to some other crap replica that you can buy at a medieval fare
Richard Morgan's The Steel Remains might be worth mentioning here. It's neither a great book nor his best (see Altered Carbon) but the premise is welcome.
The tone is gritty like asofai. There's more magic. And the main character is a pulp-style barbarian ala Conan only he's gay.
I didn't really like the first book, but I'm more of a sorcery guy than a sword. I'd definitely be picking up the tomes/textbooks in a fantasy world, not the armor. But anyway...I'm not sure he will ever finish the series. At his current pace and with his health, I don't think anyone can be certain of its completion.
afaik valyrian steel in the book is (physically) only described to be very sharp, hard but light at the same time. there is nothing about a "spectacular" look or similar.
kinda if you compare a paul binns blade to some other crap replica that you can buy at a medieval fare
I didn't really like the first book, but I'm more of a sorcery guy than a sword. I'd definitely be picking up the tomes/textbooks in a fantasy world, not the armor. But anyway...I'm not sure he will ever finish the series. At his current pace and with his health, I don't think anyone can be certain of its completion.
Magic exists in Westeros, but it comes at a very high price and is considered a horrific practice even by people who spend their whole lives pillaging, murdering and raping.
As the series progresses the daughter of the King murdered before the story starts finds a way to bring the magic back and uses this to organize a military expedition to win her empire back. At the same time a fire priestess uses human sacrifice to overpower Westeros, and the only real reason she had for that is to battle the necromantic elves that live beyond the hopelessly understaffed 'Hadrian's Wall'-like structure at the boundary of the nation.
There's also alchemy in Westeros, but it doesn't work too well because it's largely dependent on magic.
But it is wielded by the Starks. Even their stronghold is plain looking. They are very often described as not caring or wearing much jewelery, ornaments or other accessories.
The ornaments of the other named weapons in the book are described in great details - so it is safe to assume that "ice" is rather simple.
](/images/smilies/bang.gif "Brick wall ](*,)")
The latter diminishes my hopes that the series can possibly realize itself, unless there're some wildly talented writers tucked in the production's pocket. I'm not optimistic on that count, though.
