Rating: 
Summary: Excellent complexity
Review: Another great book in this promising series. The sheer mass of characters, all with individual personalities and motives, makes for an incredibly realistic tale. Martin maintains an excellent pace, swithcing from character to character to show how the whole story unfolds from a variety of viewpoints. Only problem with I found is that with so many characters, it's hard to jump right into the second book without rereading the first. All in all, a great fantasy book.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Fantasy of a hard and cruel past.
Review: Martin uses a great writing style when bouncing from one character to another and keeps the reader informed while letting the reader really get into the characters. Every type of person is shown in a the quest for power. Honor, ruthlessness, courage, and just plain sword-fighting are needed in order to win against what seems to be insurrmountable odds. The slight magic twists in the story allow the unlikely to become possible. This is one of my favorite books of all time. The fight scenes are my favorite, with grisly swords, bows, warships, mauls, axes, and heroes enough to weild them all.
Rating:
Summary: Gritty No Holds Bared Storytelling....
Review: This follow up to The Game of Thrones does well in its attempts to keep the reading truly engrossing. While their is a slight fall off in the story, I was kept enthralled by the elaborate world and its many characters. All the characters are faulted to a degree, and each moves within their own personal motives and sense of righteousness. While some of the scenes are a bit harsh and crude, I believe it would have difficult to developed the characters nature without the often raw and crass script. Prehaps Martin could have made some adjustments to appeal to a wider base of readers, but he took a chance and decided to provide a no holds bared look at a corrupt world and its often corrupt characters. I am eager to read the next installment.
Rating: 
Summary: Too disgusted to finish the book.
Review: This would have been a great book - if the author had allowed his talent to flourish rather than selling out to sex and profanity. I don't remember the 1st one being so vulgar, and am disappointed to find that this one was. Completely unnecessary to the plot and seriously detracted from the enjoyment. George - you just lost yet another reader. I got rid of this one, and will definitely not buy any more by this author.
Rating:
Summary: This is definetly a series to keep an eye on.
Review: This series is one of the best I've read. The beginning is a little slow, but once you've gotten into it, it's hard to put down. I would highly reccomend this to anyone looking for a good scifi fantasy novel.
Rating:
Summary: How the knights of old REALLY acted!
Review: I cannot say enough good things about this book. In most fantasy you get the idea that the protagonists NEVER have to go to the bathroom, the bad guys are BAD and the good guys are GOOD. In this book none of the sides are good. Even some of the bad guys you can root for.One of the bad guys is Tyrion, a dwarf, his father hates him, his sister hates him, and his brother hates him. He is still loyal to them, because he does not have a choice. One wrong move on their part and he is dead, so he has to make sure his family does not make any wrong moves. Another character is a 12 year old girl, Araya. She has been taught how to fight with a sword. In a normal fantasy novel she would kick butt and take names. In this one she finds out that six foot six men in armor weighting hundreds of pounds can normally beat a fifty pound girl with a short sword. Thoughout the book, what you expect to happen, doesn't. Noble causes do not always win. Not all men serving a noble cause are nice guys. Not all evil men are totally Evil.
Rating: 
Summary: did not finish. would be very good is good keep swearing out
Review: martin is a very entertaining writer but i was disappointed at the vulgarity that was totally unneccesary. any reference to sex has to have the 'f' word. i hear enough garbage each day and find it refreshing when a writer can communicate without swearing. many books contain a lot more bad language than this book but it turned me off. george you lost a reader for what it is worth. so long for this book and any you write.
Rating:
Summary: I demand that you read this!
Review: I was totally blown away by the scope of "A Game of Thrones" and likewise by "A Clash of Kings." Martin's work does not cover a very long period of time but the detail involved with Clash is amazing. I read this over the course of a week or two becuase I needed the time to digest just the amount of detail presented. I found Clash spellbinding and at the end of this 700+ page novel, I wanted more. You have to read this.
Rating:
Summary: amazing...
Review: This is an incredible author--by far the absolute best I have ever read. His characters reflect not classical good vs evil but a full rich cast that shows everyone is capable of and motivated by both. They are complex but easy to follow through each of the plots. I love the dwarf! I can't wait until the next one is out and I wish to God that they would republish his old works-especially the jokers...I've had a tough time finding them.
Rating:
Summary: 5 Stars plus - There is a new leader in today's fiction!
Review: I've read the comments of readers that criticized the brutality in this volume and to those readers I say, "shame on you". Martin has created a brutal world in Clash of Kings - true, but it keeps you rivoted because of the realistic characters that fight to survive, and fight for justice in that world. Martin does not shy away from writing the death or misfortune of characters that he spends a great deal of time developing, regardless of whether that time was spent getting us to like or hate them. His "evil" characters show flashes of integrety, and his "good" characters show moments of self-serving, shameful behavior. He doesn't forget to include the neutral characters that are often swept along and sometimes buried by the dramatic events he weaves. Martin's grasp of human nature gives a real feel to the drama and politics of the world he has created and his sagacious use of magic is just the right touch to keep the mysterious and the improbable within reach. Excellent. I will store this series away until the next volume surfaces. When it does I will go through them again just to relive the experience.
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