Rating: 
Summary: You will wish this book was longer.
Review: Since it is no longer legal to write a review of any fantasy novel without mentioning him, I'll get it over with...Tolkien. There. I'm done. And I'd just as soon not mention him again, because this is better. Martin takes all the things he did well (Vast, detailed setting, compelling plot, interesting premise), sees them, and raises them the things he did not do so well at all (complex, three-dimensional characters, subtle and realistic antagonists, complex psychological and social interplay). The real strength of this story lies in the depth and richness of its characters. Martin switches viewpoints more frequently than a senator in an election year, but each individual he follows is so interesting and distinct that this habit is pleasant rather than irksome. One certainly has no trouble at all keeping them straight. Each thread-switch is, in fact, greeted with the pleasurable anticipation that we will now find out what happened to so-and-so next. Martin's characters are not only interesting but, rarely enough for this genre, highly believable. Martin has shunned the easy and unrewarding path, so common in fantasy writing, of separating the world into lily-white heroes (yay!) and evil nasty villains (boo!hiss!). Instead, characters behave in believeable ways, for believeable reasons, and it is up to the reader to decide whether we love or hate them. Sometimes, with his most memorable creations, we find ourselves doing both. After following memorable individuals through original and entertaining plot twists over some five hundred pages, one may find that the best thing about this book is that there are currently two sequels, with more on the way. Now why are you still reading this?
Rating:
Summary: This is what all fantasy should aspire too!
Review: Instead of ramming magic and sorcery down your throat, this book illustrates that fantasy can be superb by simply creating characters that we truly care about. In fact, besides the limited role of The Others, it's not until the very last page of the book that we are told of a truly supernatural occurrence. Most of the novel involves good old sword fighting and the battle for the throne. Excellent book!
Rating:
Summary: The Best Fantasy Novel of All Time
Review: This book is so good that I am writing my first book review for it. The plot is amazing, caracters developed perfectly, and there are many suprizes! This is by far my favorite book of all time easly beating out Lord of the Rings.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best fantasies since The Lord of the Rings
Review: When I began to write this review, I thought I would make a list of the top reasons A Game of Thrones impressed me. I sat there thinking about it for about three minuntes. When this amount of time had elapsed, I decided that numbering the list would be impossible, as I kept thinking of more and more impressing things. So here they are, in no particular order: The writing style. This book flows, as would be expected from an author of Martin's experience. Moreover, it's proselike, but not in the way that Tolkien is prose. It's blunt, hard writing that still manages to be poetic. The characters. A good author will let you identify and care about the characters. However, character rapport can often take the whole book, or the whole series, to accomplish; Martin makes you care from the first chapter onward. You feel horrible when Bran falls from the tower; you feel as frustrated as Arya. But Martin does not make his characters angels or gods (or complete demons). While there are characters who have better motives than others, they are all very human, and make human mistakes. Even the evil characters have more than one dimension, and you can often identify with them. (Cersei may be cold-hearted, but by golly, she loves her children). Martin's use of history. A Song of Ice and Fire is based loosely on the War of the Roses, something that you recognize right away. But Martin definitely does not limit himself to history, and it makes for a more interesting series. (Would you really want to read an entire series that followed entirely the York-Lancaster succession quarrels?) Martin's world building skills are top-notch. He manages to take a often-used fantasy setting--the middle ages kingdom--and give it a new twist, instead of dragging out the same old ideas developed by players of Dungeons and Dragons decades ago, and he also takes a hint from Tolkien and leaves magic in the background, making it a mystery instead of explaining his take on the magic system. I could go on and on (and on) but I won't. I will say that it you are a reader of fantasy, and haven't read this book yet, you are not only missing a really good read, but the chance to witness the making of genre history. A Game of Thrones is an instant classic.
Rating:
Summary: Refreshing (real)fantasy
Review: A Game of Thrones is the first volume in a series six books. I took a chance and bought the first two volumes at the same time -before I ever read a review of the books and I have honestly never regretted this act. A Game of Thrones introduces the reader to a vast history of humanity, inhumanity and everything in between. The book(s) is full of captivating characters, both horrific and heroic. Encounters within it's pages shape the history of the world and the reader is spoiled in every possible way when it comes to delivering an intriguing plot. You will never know what hit you - but suddenly have to flip back several pages to reread the unfolding events you just saw, heard, smelled and tasted through Martin's wonderful prose. There is little left to say. Martin has created a masterpiece and to try and explain all the good parts of this book(s) will surly take as long as the 700+ pages of the book(s) itself. Make sure to check these series out...Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed
Review: I picked up this book with a lot of anticipation. When I read that it is much like English history during the Wars of the Roses, I couldn't wait to get started. After I read the Prologue, I still felt that I had made I good choice. But after a few chapters, I was disappointed. The book never did take off. I did finish the book because I kept waiting for something exciting to happen. It just never did. The characters are flat and unbelievable. Not only that, there are so many that I constantly referred to the appendix in the back of the book just to keep them straight. But that didn't really help because many characters are listed more than once under different family names. The reason that I gave the book two stars instead of just one is because of the writing. It is very good prose. In fact, it's better than most prose in today's mass market fiction. However, even the excellent writing isn't enough to save the book. I will also admit this: I rarely read fantasy. To me, the benchmark of fantasy is The Lord of the Rings. Perhaps I compared it too much with that story. I won't be investing time or money with the other books in the series simply because there are no charaters that I cared about.
Rating:
Summary: Plot Twists and No Heroes
Review: I'm obviously one of the very few fantasy fans who didn't like this book based on the other reviews I've read for this book. Something about this book just didn't work for me, however. Most of the reviews detail the realistic characters and numerous plot twists as one of the great things about this book, but that's what I saw as this book's downfall. I found myself disliking if not flat out despising nearly every character in this book. Every one of them had serious flaws, be it that they were flat-out scumbags, selfish nobles, or just too dense to do what they should. This may be realistic, but I guess I read fantasy looking to enjoy the story of a hero, not to follow along as character after character shows they're not worthy of being a hero. The number of plot twists left me a little bewildered too. I found myself struggling to keep everything in perspective, as characters I thought were going to be part of the main story suddenly died, leaving me wondering what just happened and why. Was I misreading the earlier part of the book by thinking they were better than they turned out to be? Maybe if I could have forced myself to continue the series it would have made more sense, but after reading this book, I just kind of felt like I couldn't bear any more frustration. So I'd have to say, be very careful if you decide to read this book. You'll see tons of reviews that declare this book and it's follow-ups to be the greatest there is in fantasy literature. Just be prepared to lose numerous characters you liked, and not enough of the ones you didn't, along the way. It's easily the most realistic book I've read in the fantasy genre (that was good enough to make me finish the book, any way), but that doesn't make it the best by any stretch.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book
Review: This is not your typical fantasy. It seems that alot of fantasy is just a wild idea or setting, but this book has good characters, plot and dialogue. I really liked the belgarade and mallorean series, but the characters all seemed too much the same. Not so here. The characters are unique and interesting.
Rating:
Summary: As Good As It Gets
Review: This is a fantastic book. This is a masterpiece. Even saying that feels like I am damning it with too faint praise. I bought it, I read it--no, devoured it--in a few days. Every detail was important. Every sentence communicated something relevant and interesting about the world. I realized early on, even before the story had me by the throat, that I was in the hands of a master. When I was done, I had to run out and devour the next two.
My largest complaint is that it left me depressed. Not only is the story grim, but now I'm left with the horrible realization that until the fourth book comes out, everything else I read is going to be lackluster. This is as good as writing ever gets. Tight. Well-edited. Excellent characters with real flaws. Excellent politics. Unpredictable highs and lows. Coherent and cohesive.
Are there slow parts? A few. But it all depends on your perspective. A lot of readers, for example, will love the adventurous quests of Arya and Jon Stark, whereas love these two as I did, I always wanted to hurry through their sections to get to the "good" political parts. Conversely, those who love the adventure and questing, are probably going to love the Arya/Jon/Dany sections, and tense up at the political onslaught that belong to other characters.
In this way, Martin gives a little bit to everyone without sacrificing the whole of the work. Buy it, but read it slowly. Everything he mentions ends up being important, but more, it's going to be an agonizingly long wait for the next book. And don't dare be frightened by the warnings about graphic and explicit violence and sex. Martin is not squeamish, but he is never, ever, gratuitous. The violence and blood you actually see, you need to see. The sex, what there is of it, is never exploitive or pornographic--it's necessary and character defining. Only in the third book is there an arguably iffy encounter with two female characters that seems not to be strictly necessary. But I trust Martin, and so I trust that by the end of the series we'll know how and why this was required. Also, there's a roster of characters at the back of the book that would have been helpful if it appeared in the front of the book instead. Those of us who write in the fantasy genre should rejoice and despair. We now have a lot to live up to.
Rating: 
Summary: This is NOT your standard fantasy.
Review: I haven't read a lot of fantasy but I've read Robert Jordan, Terry Brooks, and a couple others. Jordan takes 3 books to tell a story fit for one book. Way, way too much describing without a whole lot of plot movement. Brooks is fun adventure storytelling without very deep characters. George R. R. Martin tells a different story. This is not a book for the kids. There's brutal violence, graphic sex, and some naughty words:) Lots of good stuff. If you expect great wizards, magical fairies, and grumpy dwarves on a rollicking adventure, this is not the book for you. This is about family, trust, politics, and war. Like many have said there are no traditional 'good guys' or 'bad guys'. Oh there are evil, bad people and there are brave, honorable folks; sometimes they are one and the same. And don't be surprised if the 'bad guy' saves an innocent life while the 'good guy' takes one.
Ok, the good:
Characters come alive with Martin's wonderful prose yet I never felt bogged down with too much description. You never know who lives and who dies. You will enter the minds of a variety of people including a sharp-witted dwarf, bastard children of rulers, wannabe kings without kingdoms, lords with the weight of the world upon their shoulders, and a young girl with petrified dragon eggs. In other words, there is no central character. This book also keeps a pretty good pace. There is a lot to cover and I felt it was done well.
Now the bad:
If I had to come up with some negatives, the biggest would probably be the sheer number of characters. In the negative reviews this tended to be an issue. You must have a little patience to get through the first quarter to a third. Many characters have similar names and there are a lot of mindbending factions. This can be very daunting for a new reader. People who also expect a lot of high adventure will be disappointed. This is NOT an adventure novel. The closest I can comparte this novel to is Stephen King's "Eyes of the Dragon". There is death and quite a bit of it but this is not a Shannara book. If you are still reading, then you must be interested. Don't let the complexity of the book turn you away because you will not be disappointed.
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