Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

[Starba]

I'm reading A Game of Thrones right now. Honestly I only got it because all my friends are wild about this series and everybody says it's top-notch. I'm up to page 50 or so and as far as I'm concerned it's standard fantasy fare, but high-quality none-the-less. The cast of characters is massive. I'm glad the chapters are starting to fold in on each other because otherwise I'd be at my wit's end trying to keep track of them all. o_O The trite attention to describing abnormal eye colors is starting to get on my nerves, though...


Any one else reading this? Pretty good stuff.

[TheHonorableRyu]

Re: Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

I'm quasi-in-the-middle-of reading Game of Thrones right now. I started it awhile ago, got sidetracked, and intend to finish the rest of it this summer (I actually looked for and found my copy for this reason just yesterday).

I think your assessment is correct: it's standard fantasy fare done very well.

The preoccupation with abnormal eye colors cannot be as bad as the sheer number of times a character in Harry Potter "blushes", "flushes" and/or turns color at the face or ears.


Right now, as far as reading fiction goes, I'm in the middle of re-reading the Gormenghast novels (namely the first two, Titus Groan and Gormenghast) by Mervyn Peake. If you haven't read these already, and are looking for creative Dickensian grotesques for characters and hyper-descriptive-and-thoughtful writing, you should start reading these. At once!

[tjoris9]

Re: Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

I love Game of Thrones, I just haven't had time to read it much lately. I'm surprised there hasn't been a topic on this series 'till now.

The last book I read was Isaac Asimov's Caves of Steel, and that was a few months ago.

Good to see you back, Starba.

[Loki]

Re: Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

I strated to read Game of Thrones, but... meh. I eccho your statements. It seems like really well writen standered fantasy fair. And I just can't get into standered fantasy.

Which is why I too and a big fan of Peake's novels. Ryu is my new best friend, so EVERYBODY JUST BACK OFF!

[Shard]

Re: Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

I'm a sucker for standard fantasy faire. I don't read it a lot so I love when it's done well. I've finished the fourth book of this series...the plot begins to expand very rapidly (but not uncontrollably), and Martin's characterizations are extremely well-done, especially given the size of the cast. I like that there are real consequences for people on all sides. There are some events that are fairly predictable, but others that blindside you, and I love that. There are times I find myself rooting for the "bad guys". Also, Martin's dark sense of humor translates very well on the page. He strips a lot of the vanity and fairy-tale sheen off the fantasy genre, which isn't something I've encountered a lot.

[Fushigi na Renamon]

Re: Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

Right now, as far as reading fiction goes, I'm in the middle of re-reading the Gormenghast novels (namely the first two, Titus Groan and Gormenghast) by Mervyn Peake. If you haven't read these already, and are looking for creative Dickensian grotesques for characters and hyper-descriptive-and-thoughtful writing, you should start reading these. At once!

I saw the Gormenghast TV series once late at night, and I was fascinated by it. I'd love to read the books sometime, but I haven't gotten around to it - I went to the bookstore and looked for it, but they only had one huge compilation of all the stories that cost a ton of money.

[Loki]

Re: Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

Try your local libary, you probibly won't find the individual books on their own in a bookstore. The books are much better than the BBC series, but also far more difficult.

[Fushigi na Renamon]

Re: Any George R. R. Martin fans out there?

Ooh, I definitely could do that! Thanks.

I loved the series, from what I saw of it, but the book did look like heavy reading. Steerpike rules though! I hope I spelled that right.