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4.51 AVERAGE
4.51 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This series continues to amaze me. I’ve never had to put a book down to sit and think about what I’ve read so much. The “Red Wedding” was brilliant, I loved how the chapters were uncharacteristically short around this part, really building up the tension. The Mountain Viper fight was probably the most tense scene I’ve ever read.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
** SPOILERS **
This was the ASOIAF book that I was waiting for. I enjoyed the rest of the series thus far especially book 1 and the Tyrion portion of book 2 but I had lofty expectations and I felt that they fell slightly short of them. This book cleared my expectations and then some.
This book finally brought some good Catelyn chapters even if it was at the cost of her life. The writing in the red wedding chapter was incredible. The short sentences create tension from the get go and the subtle hints throughout; nervous laughter here, a person missing there all build into the big twist as the music peaks and they unleash their crossbows. What a chapter the panic, confusion and utter chaos was great. I liked Robb Stark a lot and was sad to see his demise especially with an underhanded betrayal. I also finally came around to Catelyn at the end and really felt for her here. What a stunning scene and depiction that is written so masterfully you feel as if you are in the banquet hall with them.
Jamie continues to climb as one of my favourite characters with another great outing in this half of the book, saving Brienne from the bear was great and continues to serve into his redemption arc he has going on. I really enjoyed his return to King's Landing and his self reflections of his life will writing his account in the Kings guard book. The reveal with Tysha at the end and freeing Tyrion was actually heart-breaking for both characters and definitely one of the most emotionally impactful moments of the series. The regret and self loathing Jamie feels hits home.
Arya was also a big improvement in this book for me, this was mostly due to The Hound being one of my favourite characters but the chapters themselves were more interesting that just travel, capture, travel, capture on repeat. I again loved her chapter at the red wedding finally so close to seeing her family again only to arrive minutes too late to see them (although this most likely saved her life) was heart breaking. I cannot wait for the revenge arc on the Frey's. I also really thought she died at the end of the chapter where The Hound axes her to the head. The other standout chapter was fighting and killing The Tickler and retrieving Needle at long last. I always love seeing The Hound fight and his protectiveness for Arya and Sansa before him. The Hound's demise? was the only issue I had with this book it felt unsatisfying to me and I felt his character deserved not a better send of as for most of the series he was a terrible person but a more memorable / impactful death. One of my favourite non - POV characters for sure.
Can't wait to see Arya in the free cities and meet up with Jaqen H'ghar.
Bran also was improved on in this book although he had only 2 chapters I believe they were both interesting and moved his plot forward in a way that I was excited to read again which I had lost since the first book really. Seeing him think Samwell Tarley was a monster climbing out of the well was hilarious and I loved the conversation between them and cannot wait to read about his quest past the wall in the rest of the series.
Dany continued being one of my favourite characters with some great chapters in this book. Strong Belwas slaying the besieged cities champion was a standout moment for me written so well and found it hilarious when he shat on his corpse. The descriptions of the babies crucified on the poles was abit much for me but felt extremely satisfied when she did the same to the slavers.
The reveal of Barristan and Jorah in the same chapter was another big moment in her story. I was happy for Barristan to be able to start a revenge arc while at the same time being disappointed in Jorah as I enjoyed his council and dynamic / backstory with Dany. Loved her ending in this book deciding to be a queen for the people rather than a conqueror.
Davos is still one of my favourite characters I loved his role and elevation to King's hand in this book, all of his conversations with Stannis and Mellissanre were brilliant. He is such a good person and I just love reading his perspective so much I wish he had more chapters. I sorely hope he does in the next couple of books now that Stannis is at the wall. His kidnapping of Edric Storm to save the boys life was also a great call back to his smuggling days and making Stannis do the right thing.
Jon was probably the best POV in this book. I finally got the battles I wanted from this series in this book. The wildings siege on both castle black and the wall were some of my favourite chapters in the series. The epic high fantasy battles that I have come to love from the genre were sorely lacking in this book until these. Executed so well seeing Jon excel leading the wall and holding castle black was incredible. Martin really shows he can write battles to parralel any of the greats in the genre.
Ygritte's death and her final words of "You know nothing Jon Snow" hit really hard and was some of the most sombre I have felt reading a death. I think I had expected her to live somehow and that is why.
The ending as well with Jon being made the fucking Lord Commander of the Wall was so great I cannot wait to see where this makes him fall with Stannis and what he can achieve in this position for the rest of the series.
Samwell was again amazing in this book with great POV chapters that supported Jon in the later stages of the book after their reunion but also held his own in other chapters. Love this character
Sansa and Tyrion's chapters continue to amaze me with how much I love the King's Landing arc. They interwove in this book perfectly with their new dynamic of trying to be husband and wife but both failing miserably. I love Tyrion's gentle treatment of the Sansa and wish she could see the kindness in him.
The purple wedding was a massive shock to me it was so unexpected but I was sooo fucking glad to see Joffery choke (get poisoned) the most deserved death in the series thus far so glad that vermin is gone for good. I felt less than zero remorse after treating Tyrion like a dick at the feast too.
I will say the food descriptions that become very familiar in a Martin book did feel a tad overwhelming with the 77 course meal taking up a 2 page spread of food but I guess it added to the atmosphere.
Then the next few chapters were a flurry of action.
Sansa's escape with Dontos and his murder at the hands of Littlefinger how spirits her off the Eyrie. We get the reveal that he is the reason for essentially the whole plot and then kisses Sansa and murders Lysa Arryn (Fuck that bitch so deserved) was unexpected but amazing.
Tyrion's trial felt like the whole world was crashing down on him with all the witnesses putting him in a mindset where he was certain of death only to be given a glimmer of hope when the Viper duels the Mountain for him. This duel was expertly written and felt so tense and just when the Viper was about to win he throws it all away and Tyrion throws up unable to stomach his food knowing his fate is sealed.
Just to have Jamie and Vary's rescue him and so he can assasinate Tywin for destorying his first marriage. Incredible.
I love Tyrion so much and cannot wait to see where he goes and what plots he schemes next.
The epilogue left me with many questions really turning up the fantasy scale of the books.
Cannot wait to dive into the next book this really was a treat and is rightly considered one of the greats among fantasy books. I will be beyond impressed if either of next books can top this.
6/5
This was the ASOIAF book that I was waiting for. I enjoyed the rest of the series thus far especially book 1 and the Tyrion portion of book 2 but I had lofty expectations and I felt that they fell slightly short of them. This book cleared my expectations and then some.
This book finally brought some good Catelyn chapters even if it was at the cost of her life. The writing in the red wedding chapter was incredible. The short sentences create tension from the get go and the subtle hints throughout; nervous laughter here, a person missing there all build into the big twist as the music peaks and they unleash their crossbows. What a chapter the panic, confusion and utter chaos was great. I liked Robb Stark a lot and was sad to see his demise especially with an underhanded betrayal. I also finally came around to Catelyn at the end and really felt for her here. What a stunning scene and depiction that is written so masterfully you feel as if you are in the banquet hall with them.
Jamie continues to climb as one of my favourite characters with another great outing in this half of the book, saving Brienne from the bear was great and continues to serve into his redemption arc he has going on. I really enjoyed his return to King's Landing and his self reflections of his life will writing his account in the Kings guard book. The reveal with Tysha at the end and freeing Tyrion was actually heart-breaking for both characters and definitely one of the most emotionally impactful moments of the series. The regret and self loathing Jamie feels hits home.
Arya was also a big improvement in this book for me, this was mostly due to The Hound being one of my favourite characters but the chapters themselves were more interesting that just travel, capture, travel, capture on repeat. I again loved her chapter at the red wedding finally so close to seeing her family again only to arrive minutes too late to see them (although this most likely saved her life) was heart breaking. I cannot wait for the revenge arc on the Frey's. I also really thought she died at the end of the chapter where The Hound axes her to the head. The other standout chapter was fighting and killing The Tickler and retrieving Needle at long last. I always love seeing The Hound fight and his protectiveness for Arya and Sansa before him. The Hound's demise? was the only issue I had with this book it felt unsatisfying to me and I felt his character deserved not a better send of as for most of the series he was a terrible person but a more memorable / impactful death. One of my favourite non - POV characters for sure.
Can't wait to see Arya in the free cities and meet up with Jaqen H'ghar.
Bran also was improved on in this book although he had only 2 chapters I believe they were both interesting and moved his plot forward in a way that I was excited to read again which I had lost since the first book really. Seeing him think Samwell Tarley was a monster climbing out of the well was hilarious and I loved the conversation between them and cannot wait to read about his quest past the wall in the rest of the series.
Dany continued being one of my favourite characters with some great chapters in this book. Strong Belwas slaying the besieged cities champion was a standout moment for me written so well and found it hilarious when he shat on his corpse. The descriptions of the babies crucified on the poles was abit much for me but felt extremely satisfied when she did the same to the slavers.
The reveal of Barristan and Jorah in the same chapter was another big moment in her story. I was happy for Barristan to be able to start a revenge arc while at the same time being disappointed in Jorah as I enjoyed his council and dynamic / backstory with Dany. Loved her ending in this book deciding to be a queen for the people rather than a conqueror.
Davos is still one of my favourite characters I loved his role and elevation to King's hand in this book, all of his conversations with Stannis and Mellissanre were brilliant. He is such a good person and I just love reading his perspective so much I wish he had more chapters. I sorely hope he does in the next couple of books now that Stannis is at the wall. His kidnapping of Edric Storm to save the boys life was also a great call back to his smuggling days and making Stannis do the right thing.
Jon was probably the best POV in this book. I finally got the battles I wanted from this series in this book. The wildings siege on both castle black and the wall were some of my favourite chapters in the series. The epic high fantasy battles that I have come to love from the genre were sorely lacking in this book until these. Executed so well seeing Jon excel leading the wall and holding castle black was incredible. Martin really shows he can write battles to parralel any of the greats in the genre.
Ygritte's death and her final words of "You know nothing Jon Snow" hit really hard and was some of the most sombre I have felt reading a death. I think I had expected her to live somehow and that is why.
The ending as well with Jon being made the fucking Lord Commander of the Wall was so great I cannot wait to see where this makes him fall with Stannis and what he can achieve in this position for the rest of the series.
Samwell was again amazing in this book with great POV chapters that supported Jon in the later stages of the book after their reunion but also held his own in other chapters. Love this character
Sansa and Tyrion's chapters continue to amaze me with how much I love the King's Landing arc. They interwove in this book perfectly with their new dynamic of trying to be husband and wife but both failing miserably. I love Tyrion's gentle treatment of the Sansa and wish she could see the kindness in him.
The purple wedding was a massive shock to me it was so unexpected but I was sooo fucking glad to see Joffery choke (get poisoned) the most deserved death in the series thus far so glad that vermin is gone for good. I felt less than zero remorse after treating Tyrion like a dick at the feast too.
I will say the food descriptions that become very familiar in a Martin book did feel a tad overwhelming with the 77 course meal taking up a 2 page spread of food but I guess it added to the atmosphere.
Then the next few chapters were a flurry of action.
Sansa's escape with Dontos and his murder at the hands of Littlefinger how spirits her off the Eyrie. We get the reveal that he is the reason for essentially the whole plot and then kisses Sansa and murders Lysa Arryn (Fuck that bitch so deserved) was unexpected but amazing.
Tyrion's trial felt like the whole world was crashing down on him with all the witnesses putting him in a mindset where he was certain of death only to be given a glimmer of hope when the Viper duels the Mountain for him. This duel was expertly written and felt so tense and just when the Viper was about to win he throws it all away and Tyrion throws up unable to stomach his food knowing his fate is sealed.
Just to have Jamie and Vary's rescue him and so he can assasinate Tywin for destorying his first marriage. Incredible.
I love Tyrion so much and cannot wait to see where he goes and what plots he schemes next.
The epilogue left me with many questions really turning up the fantasy scale of the books.
Cannot wait to dive into the next book this really was a treat and is rightly considered one of the greats among fantasy books. I will be beyond impressed if either of next books can top this.
6/5
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Sooooo good. Definitely picked up from the first part of Storm of Swords!
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes