I just finished George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, and before anybody jumps on me for one reason or another, namely to scrutinize the series, I'd just like to give my honest review.
Just a disclaimer: I haven't read any book series over this last year, surrounding myself with stand alone famous works, in the frame of mind that aside from a few exceptions, books written in series cannot evoke sincere human emotion and moreover, aren't mentally and psychologically stimulating in the least. So I'm glad that the one series I decided to read was A Song Of Ice And Fire.
For starters, these are not books for the faint of heart. They contain graphic mature content, sexuality and medieval themed violence, recurring all throughout the as of yet 5 published books. But you know what? All of this will pale when compared with the emotions that you will experience at the hands of George R.R. Martin. Would I say that Martin is a stooped over and perverse author? Far from it. He is very ambitious with what he puts forward in his books and it is evident that he is firmly in touch with human nature. Do I wish that he would polish that and dumb it down in such a way that people would feel more comfortable about having them in their schools? No. He describes all the aforementioned elements in brutal clarity, in such a way that each of us, Christian or not, should address the motivation, the lust that we are all akin to, and more than anything the heart of the matter and of us as humans. Now, to delve into setting and characters.
One of the strong points of the saga is the realism, not just in reference to the more extreme elements, but also to the characters and the forces that drive them, for good, for bad, for ugly, and for a constant gooey blend of all three. When you read, you become immersed and the ancient histories of Westeros become YOUR histories; the deeply engraved honor in the family names becomes YOUR honor and YOUR name. And what better genre to give you that delusion than epic fantasy? As to the characters, it’s hard to keep track of the names at first, but even at the end of five with two more books on the way, there’s no way of knowing where the many many (remaining) characters are going, but when they get there, you’ll look back and know the telling signs. Nothing is without reason and no action goes neglected. And what more can you ask for from a narrative than unpredictable but logical flow? That is, logic takes the place of good vs. evil, so if you’re expecting all your favorite characters to get through without making fatal, bad, and morally compromising decisions, don’t even pick up the books. And if you’re expecting all your passionately hated characters to die painful deaths and not experience redemption, I repeat, don’t even bother. Welcome to Westeros.
One more thing I’d like to note is the religious aspect of the series, another thriving point from Martin in my opinion. Each god is well developed and for each sect there are zealots. There’s the northern gods, the Drowned God, the Red God, and the Seven. Now, to all my Christian friends, know this: these books are good for it. Martin doesn’t come out with a half-baked and ignorant take on religion. There are many half-truths to what he brings across, which are directly targeting us as Christians. So rise to the occasion. I for one find the entire infrastructure of lore fascinating, reminiscent of Greek Mythology in that you find yourself wishing they were real. But for the most part, these books are atheistic, and they represent all of the faiths and gods in a way that abides with people who just plainly don’t understand religion. They see several theologies that run directly contrary to one another in an incongruent, sloppy mess. Don’t interpret what I’m saying as a religious rant, but don’t fault people for what they believe or don’t believe.
To conclude, the pacing behind A Song Of Ice And Fire is very solid for the most part: there is build-up, excellent character development, and the big bang and revelation that follows them. I’ll have you know that the least favorite in the series is the fourth, “A Feast for Crows.” At times it can be a trudge, but know that the author understood what he was doing, rightly naming it “A Feast for Crows” which in plain English would just be “The Leftovers.” And lastly, I want to celebrate George R.R. Martin as an author. Every word that comes from his mouth and onto paper is controversy. Some people hate the series and some people love the series, namely the characters he makes and hate to see them go. Naturally, they fault the person who made the characters for taking them away. Not to purposefully get more religious than I have, but Martin at his pen is a parallel to God’s design. In the same sense, every good thing comes from God and every good thing is taken away by him according to his design and purpose. Matthew 5:45 says “For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” So what I’m trying to say is that if you think these books are your cup of tea, don’t hesitate about getting around to reading them. And if they’re not, it’s your preference and your preference is not divine authority, just as mine isn’t. Don’t read books stupid. Don’t turn off your brain for one second and don’t stop questioning the world that we live in. Nothing in Westeros is entirely invented and every fragment of the narrative appears in our world on a daily basis.
And one last thing, aside from all the depth that I’ve addressed, these books are fun. They are good reads and they keep you on the edge of your seat. And the medieval combat and maps and warfare are AWESOME. A Song Of Ice And Fire (Game of Thrones) is not a book series or a TV show, to be honest. It’s an entire virtual universe.
My score: 9.0 on the Richter Scale (Great Intensity)
