A Game of Thrones is by no means a new book, first published in 1996 GRR Martin’s award winning fantasy novel has been an essential part of every fantasy buff’s library for well over a decade. However, because of the book’s new found popularity, which is thanks to both the Emmy nominated mini-series on HBO, and the release of the fifth book in the series A Dance with Dragons, the time to look back at the first installment in the Song of Ice and Fire saga has never been better.
Though the shortest in the series, A Game of Thrones is a long book. The paperback edition is well over 800 pages, so the book may not be one that can be read in a single weekend, but that does no mean it is heaving reading. Martin’s style is very smooth, natural, and somewhat quick paced, though at times he can over do it with descriptions.
Martin’s books (just like all popular fantasy books) are often compared to Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, and no one would deny that that the two have much more in common than the eerie similarities of the authors first initials. Both authors have been able to successfully write fantasy, a genre typically reserved for D&D and WoW player, and make it accessible to a very broad audience. At this point Tolkien has become such a pervasive force in the world of fantasy writers, that any success is going to be compared to him - he set the standard for which fantasy is judged. That being said, Martin’s novel does not read like it was written by an English professor in the 1950s, it reads like a Tom Clancy political thriller set in the middle ages.
What really sets Martin apart from other popular writers is his use of characters. The cast of this novel is so diverse and so colorful that readers can’t help but to choose characters with whom they relate and root for them throughout the book. Of course, since Martin is known for causally killing off main characters without warning, this can cause fans to experience small personal tragedies when their character dies unexpectedly or unfairly. It is certainly the characters of this book that has caused it to become so loved. Sometimes the characters, and their family allegiances, can be hard to keep track off, so it may be advised to utilize the family trees that can be found in the back of the book or one of the dozens of fan sites online.
Overall A Game of Thrones is an exciting and character driven fantasy epic that rightfully earned GRR Martin the title “the American Tolkien.” And after reaching A Game of Throne’s cliffhanging climax ending, the fact that Martin plans to use six more thousand page novels to finish the story no longer seems impressive - it seems necessary.
Rating: 8.9/10
-Taylor Lackey
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