Reviews with content warning for Violence - A Storm of Swords

It took me...so long to finally finish this, mostly due to the sheer length. Super excited to finally be able to move on to AFFC (though I probably should take a break in order to avoid burnout). Though I do have some complicated feelings about some of GRRM's writing choices, I ultimately think he created one hell of an interesting sandbox to play in--especially since I like picking things apart and the intertwining POVs and massive world give me a lot to work with. Even when I found certain POVs somewhat dull or grating, I still found their journeys interesting. For example,

it didn't take very long at all for Tyrion to get on my nerves, but his character journey from AGOT up until this point is pretty heartbreaking--slowly coming to the belief that no one will ever love him, no matter what what he does to try and earn it. Even Jaime, the one person in the world he's absolutely sure loves him, Tyrion learns has betrayed him. Devastating.

I am begging GRRM to finish this fucking series.

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river24's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

5/5
This is a beast of a book!
It’s won its place as my favourite book in the series so far (this is the third) because it was so incredibly captivating from start to finish.
The writing is always so detailed and beautiful, I’m in awe of it !! I think it’s my absolute favourite writing style. The world is so rich and plentiful and I love discovering more and more of it.
There were so many twists and turns, every time you thought things would settle down again another twist struck you in the back of the head (in the best way possible)!!
I discovered a new all-time favourite fight scene in this book, it was written perfectly and was very emotive and powerful, too.
One of my favourite characters finally got a POV ! The characters are always so complex and fleshed out, with ever-changing morals and motivations. One of my favourite aspects of this book was the unexpected friendships and unlikely alliances of certain characters, seeing those unique dynamics was incredible.
I also loved learning more world and family history (I’m a big nerd for all aspects of world-building)
Every inch of this story was jam-packed with action and intrigue and I adored it!! It was very hefty (weighing in at almost 1200 pages!) but 100% worth it :))
Some of my favourite quotes were; ‘We are puppets dancing on the strings of those who came before us, and one day our own children will take up our strings and dance in our steads.’ ‘We look up at the same stars and see such different things.’
As a disclaimer, I do want to say that there’s obviously a lot you have to overlook in order to enjoy game of thrones and I completely understand that some people just aren’t able to do that. Please check trigger warnings before you read !!

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mari_library's review against another edition

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3.75

This book took me an eternity to read! But I did it!

it was honestly a three-star throughout until the last 100 pages. For the good scenes that existed, there was a lot of filler content that didn't seem that important. The story dragged in certain spots and kinda got annoying in others (I skipped two POVs at the end because it was just THAT annoying).

But the last 100 pages?? Iconic. The last Sansa scene had my mouth open. I was shaken.

The wait was definitely worth it for the big reveals and the set-up, but it was still a lot to go through.

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