A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1)

Rating:
Summary: Jordan couldn't carry Martin's Jock-let alone his laptop
Review: I enjoyed this book more than anything in this genre I've tried lately. Good. Not quite, but almost compelling. A clever, twisting plot with lots of red herrings in the foreshadowing. I only guessed right once. Most of the reviews that precede and will follow mine will probably echo some of the same themes - good character development, the difficulty in maintaining a high level of inventive plot lines that hold a readers interest over more the a three volume series, and comparisons to Robert Jordon's bloated drivel. First things first. These are well developed characters, and there are few enough that are developed in depth that you can actually keep track of them. As Martin shifts from chapter to chapter and thus character to character, you can actually remember what they were up to last time they were center stage. Second - I wish Martin luck on maintaining our interest over a long series. We can see clearly two plot lines that can run parallel to the main line - what is going to happen at "the Wall" and how the three dragons will come into play. Probably enough for two more good books. Even if you have a somewhat inventive plot line with a great main character and a solid supporting cast like Donaldson's Covenant double trilogy, you may only be able to produce three or four good books out of the six. Martin might just make it stand up for four. That brings us to the current king hack of fantasy, Robert Jordan. I tried hard to remember from one book to the next what was happening in the needlessly complex plotting, I tried to care about the characters. I tried to feel satisfied after plodding through 500 pages to get to the 3 pages of meat. And at last, I'm trying to remember how many times I checked out the current book, and if I ever read it...but at this point I don't care. Mr. Martin, please learn from the Wheel of Crap!.

Rating:
Summary: Can't beat that with a stick
Review: This has got to be the best book that I have read in my entire life. I encourage anyone who is looking for a good fantasy novel to read this book. Martin creates on of the best fantasy worlds that I have read about. It is so believeable, and oddly realistic, yet totally fantastical. And I just have to say that I think Sandor Clegane is the man. Anyway, read this book

Rating:
Summary: I loved it
Review: This is it. I have found my favorite author. In my readings and I have read a lot. I have noticed that most authors in this genre tend to over emphisize the magic while bogging down the story. George R.R.Martin mentions the magic, describes it where itis nessesary but instead of delving into the how, he explores the why. That is so refreshing. This series promises to be one of the best Fantasy series that I have read. So far I put him up with Tolkien, Heinlein, and Azimov
Wow was my first reaction. The sybolic referances to the War of the Roses, delighted me. I can't elaborate enough how refreshed I was after spending a day reading this book.

Rating:
Summary: Fantasy readers beware, your must read list is about to grow
Review: I have never read anything by George R.R. Martin before, and yet found myself strangely compelled to pick up his new paperback, A Game of Thrones after reading several enticing reviews. For once, the reviewers were right on, A Game of Thrones is one high powered fantasy novel. George Martin is one of those rare writers that can make you go from hating a character to feeling that they are simply misunderstood in less than two pages. The characters are multifaceted and interesting, and I found myself emotionally "bought in" to this book and it's characters by the end of the third chapter. More good news, it's a huge work, so you will have plenty of time to really relate to, hate, love, and despair for the many characters in this far reaching novel. The plot has more turns than the Pacific Coast Highway and will keep you turning the pages for many an hour. Don't look for tidy resolutions, for like life, nothing ever wraps up neatly in time for the end of the book. Look for more to come from George Martin, both old and new fans of the genre will be happy with the discovery of a great new book for their collection.

Rating:
Summary: A very compelling fantasy world to become part of
Review: Unlike many other popular fantasy novels, this book speaks of realism in the lives of the characters without excessive "magical devices" to fill in holes in story lines. This defect in writing is notable in Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" series where magic increasingly becomes an inane part of the story plot. The book also has a good share of painful outcomes and injustices to the "good" characters that leaves you hurting with them. The end of the book with the dragons leaves the reader intrigued and hungering for another book. I wholeheartedly recommend it. David B Southren, Valley Cottage, New York

Rating:
Summary: A superior, richly textured novel that is convincing.
Review: This is one of the most engaging fantasy novels I have ever read. What makes it stand out in my eyes is how it is not sugar-coated. Regrettably many fantasy novels do not have the realistic clarity that they should in fantasy settings. However, this novel has such things. Robert Jordan's epics are not nearly as convincing as this novel; there are illegitamate offspring, family feuds, political alliances that change on a whim, as well as murder and betrayal for self enhancement are very common throughout the novel. The characters are very detailed and Martin convincingly narrates each with an independant voice that is unique to that individual. Also Martin's sense of time though in the begining I thought was chronological on a day by day basis, is not. In fact there may be a period of two months between chapters so he spares you every single detailed minutae of their lives which can be pretty boring and wordy. For lack of better words it's like Melrose Place combined with The Wheel Of Time series by Robert

Rating:
Summary: A good book, but you could fall into the Jordan trap
Review: I liked this book. It has complex and varying characters with varying viewpoints. It offers brutal but honest depictions of a medieval setting with fewer moral hangups than we enjoy today. Most importanly, it has surprising plot twists: the good guys don't always win. However, some characters are unconvincing. A princess, who has been terrorized by her brother and only relative and companion all her life, suddenly turns into a fearless woman who can manipulate her husband and events around her like she had never done anything else. A 14 year old boy, who has never before led a battle or fought in one, suddenly outwits a highly experienced general in large scale military maneuvers. Despite this, the book is entertaining. But such good beginnings present one serious danger: you may want to read the sequels. As Jordan has shown, this can be a pain to do if the flow of sequels never ceases. I believe this book can carry two good sequels, or with a lot of effort, three. But who knows how many Martin has planned?

Rating:
Summary: A must read!
Review: All I can say is that this is the best new
book of the year. Now that its out in paperback,
there is absolutely no reason not to read it.
This book is as good or better than anything
Robert Jordan has written, which is saying A LOT!
If you only buy one book this year,
this is it.

Rating:
Summary: excellent read-a great fantasy epic
Review: I thought this book was a more enjoyable read than Jordan's latest works and right up there with Eddings-it is always very exciting to find a new fantasy author whose next novel you anxiously await and Martin is now one of my favorite

Rating:
Summary: Finally: a fantasy with complex characters
Review: Ever since writers started copying Tolkien, we have been offered fantasy after fantasy where the scenery and the magic are imaginative, but the people are cardboard. David Eddings has cartoons for characters; Stephen Donaldson's characters have no emotional range; Robert Jordan can't write a convincing female character to save his life, and his over-inflated series long ago lost its way. In contrast, Martin tosses off well-developed, multi-faceted characters by the handsful while maintaining a stunningly brisk pace and a fresh, carefully-structured plot. He has an unerring instinct for ending each chapter on a strong note, full of ramifications and emotional power. Each chapter is named for its viewpoint character. Whether we see the Seven Kingdoms through the eyes of a prince, a nine-year-old girl, a teen-age bastard, or a son of royal blood who happened to be born a dwarf, the narrative is convincing. If you want to visit a meaty, satisfyingly complex alternative world in a narrative that moves at double-speed through a plot of epic scale, this is the real deal. Don't miss it