Synopsis: Read on Amazon
Author: George R. R. Martin

I spent a very long and quiet time without posting because I’ve been reading this book. I kid you NOT! It is 899 pages of pure awesomeness. I started watched the HBO series based of the books without even knowing there was a book. I have followed every season so far, but only about 6 weeks ago I decided to finally read the book. It was a very, very good decision.

The book is the first installment of a book series known as A Song of Ice and Fire by author George R. R. Martin. The story is told from the point of view of 9 different characters in fictional land where seasons last years and dragons once roamed. Most of the stories take place Westeros a continent composed of “seven kingdoms” under one ruler based in the capital King’s Landing. One of the storylines takes place mainly in the continent of Essos, a land outside of the rule of Westeros with independently run cities.

There three main storylines. The first is the story of Eddard “Ned” Stark, lord of the northern land of Winterfell and his appoint as Hand to the king, his old friend Robert Baratheon after the untimely death of the previous Hand, John Arryn. Under suspicions fould play may have been involved in the death of John Arryn, and with a sense of honor and duty towards the king, Ned accepts the position and becomes involved in the world of scheming and manipulation that is King’s Landing.
The second storyline takes place on the northernmost post of Westeros, The Wall, and large man-made ice barrier structure built to protect the land from the dangerous creatures lurching in these areas. The Wall is manned by the Order of the Night’s Watch, a group of men who swear an oath to protect and serve for life, foregoing any semblance of a life with family, titles, and posessions.
The last of the storylines takes place in the Free City of Pentos and it follows the lives of the last surviving members of the Targaryen dynasty, Viserys and his younger sister Daenerys. The Targaryens were in power in Westeros for hundreds of years until the last ruler Aerys Targaryen is deposed by Robert Baratheon 14 years before the plot of this book.

Whether you have watch the series or not, the book is incredibly enticing. I always knew what would happen and yet that never spoilt the fun of reading! In fact it added to the excitement, especially about how the show captured of the story. Except for the fact in the books some of the PoV characters are actually tweens (been married off and having explicit sexual scenes with older partners), the series has really captured the essence of these troubled people. Except for a couple of scenes here and there, both series and book are pretty much the same thing.

The power play involved here is so incredibly captivating and interesting to read (not too mention some of the racy sex parts), you could easily rename the book “Dirty Politics and boobies”. Although in all fairness, the T.V. series took a lot more liberties in the boobies department than the book did!

Paola’s mood after watching this movie: