Woot! I finally finished this! I'm SO sorry you guys, it took me way too long to read this chunky book. It was 1128 pages, and normally that wouldn't take me two weeks... but it did. What can I say, I've been busy and also a slacker all at the same time.
So for those not already familiar, this is the 3rd book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series by Martin, the first of which was recently turned into an HBO show. Therefore, this might be a bit spoiler-y and you should really read the other two books first, kay?
So, at the start of this book a lot of shit has just gone down. Four kings are still clamoring for power in the kingdom of Westeros - Robb Stark, Balon Greyjoy, Joffrey Baratheon, and Stannis Baratheon. Stannis kind of got his ass handed to him during the big battle at the end of the 2nd book. Oh yeah, and Daenerys is still protecting her dragons and attempting to amass an army so that she can go to Westeros and try to take the throne.
Meanwhile, in the North at the Wall, major bad crap is happening. The Others (the zombies that are really cold and have bright blue eyes) are killing folk. And the Wildlings are getting ready to breach the Wall and fight the Night's Watch and come live in Westeros.
Those are pretty much two big things in the book - the war going on in the North trying to keep the Wall safe, and the war everywhere else trying to claim the throne. For me, this wasn't quite and plot & intrigue heavy as the last book. That was a good thing - it was easier for me to follow along. However I think I liked this book slightly less than the first two only because it seemed a little heavy on the "filler" material. Some stuff just got a little too repetitous - yes, I know this one chick has bright red hair and that's supposed to be lucky. I don't need to be reminded every time she's mentioned.
Anyhoo, this book boasts an impressive TEN different character POV's. Once again, I am amazed that with so many different points of view and storylines in the air, I don't get them mixed up. But everyone is so different and has such a distinctive voice that it's actually just super awesome. Here's the characters that you read along with...
- Jaime Lannister: This is the first time the infamous Kingslayer gets his own chapter. (He's Tyrion AKA The Imp's older brother, Cersei's brother/lover, and Joffrey's father/uncle.)The first two books kind of make you hate him, because he seems really blood-thirsty and you know... he's a Lannister. They're kind of not good. But I actually ended up kind of liking Jaime. Sure, he's a bit arrogant but you also kind of get why he is the way he is, and how much the whole Kingslayer thing bothers him.
- Tyrion Lannister: Dude, I still love The Imp. And man he had it rough in this book. He gets kind of messed up in that big battle at the end of book two, and has a rough time of everything throughout this book. I hope he's around through all four of the next novels.
- Davos Seaworth: He was in the last book too - he's Stannis's man, and while he's a good guy, he's borrrring. His only real use is to give us glimpses to what Stannis is up to.
- Catelyn Stark/Tully: Catelyn has also bored me to tears in the past. Okay, not to tears, but she's not an enjoyable character. Granted, she's had a lot of grief piled on her.
- Daenerys: She's not as annoying in this book as in the last one. In fact, she's getting to be pretty crafty and she's growing more assertive in her quest for power. Not a great thing, but still.
- Jon Snow: I really like Jon. Even though he was Eddard Stark's bastard and bastards are apparently naturally deceitful and sly, Jon is a pretty honorable guy. He tries to do the right thing, he knows how to man up, but still be compassionate to his brothers of the Night Watch. Yay for Jon.
- Bran: Honestly, there was too little storyline for Bran here. He's not as whiny as in the last book, but throughout the whole book him and his friends didn't really do much. His chapters could have stood to be cut completely.
- Sansa: I still don't really care about Sansa. I don't wish bad things on her, but I wouldn't be broken-hearted if something bad did happen to her.
- Arya: Is AMAZING. I love Arya, she's a total little tiny badass. I'm really excited to see where her story goes.
- Samwell Tarly: Sam is a friend of Jon's in the Night's Watch. He's a total wuss (and apparently quite a chunkster), but he's really sweet and can do things well, once he gets over his nervousness and fear. Sam really grows a lot as a character in this book, I'll be happy if he still gets his own chapters in the next book.
So that's bout it. Sorry for those of you who haven't read the series yet, cause this isn't very exciting for you. But I get really caught up in these characters as I read. I find myself thinking about them when I'm not reading. That's always a good sign.
So, I love this series and I really want to read the next one, A Feast for Crows, but I think I'm going to wait awhile. These books are hella long and I need to get some other reading done.
Sarah Says: 4 stars
