This book is absolutely absorbing! It is truly an experience of another time and place. It is a very intense tale filled with subplots and the fact is the times were cruel and harsh. There are some supernatural elements occurring, as well, that are spooky moments, but they are just beginning and a small part of this first book. The first few chapters I thought I may have trouble keeping all the characters straight, but it quickly pulled me into these lives so thoroughly that was not a problem. This is not my usual genre, but this is an experience not to be missed. I loved it! It does end set up for the next book, but I was satisfied with how things wrapped up well enough that it is not urgent to read the next. However, I am looking forward to diving back into this world!

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A fabulous beginning to an exceptional series. Epic in scope and rich in political intrigue. Highly recommended!

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I've read some negative reviews of this book and I have to say, I don't understand them at all. They talk about how all the good guys die, how depressing it is, and how nobody would want to live in the world that is coming. Sure some characters die, but that is a major contribution to the continuation of the story. I personally loved the first book and just started the 2nd. Things can be a bit bleak at times but I found myself fully engrossed in what each character was going through. If this book sounds up your alley, don't pay attention to the bad reviews. This book is a great start to what is shaping up to be a great series.

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I found that reading this book was a lot like watching a television show and then I realized why once I read the author's history. It's a really interesting story, but I think that this author really loves do things to shock the reader and leave cliff-hangers that will just make you wonder what will happen next. He's not the type you want to pick up and read and bond with a character because you never know what he intends to do with them. ;P

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A game of thrones is a book based on the lives of several people through the events of one kingdom. Bran Stark, Catelyn Stark, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Jon Snow, Eddard Stark, and Daenerys Targaryen. The book is called Game of Thrones due to a battle for the throne of the land in the past, and the battle that will be in the near future.

The Starks have a saying, "Winter is Coming," because in this land, while this current summer has lasted years, normally summers are short, and winters are brutally long. Winter is coming for all those in this land, and they'd better be ready.

Game of Thrones is an interesting book. If you're not used to jumping POV's, this book might not be for you. All of the people I mentioned above each get their own chapters in the book, and it switches POV from chapter to chapter. For example, one chapter will be Catelyn's, and the next will be Jon's POV. Having read a different series that had a tendency to do this, I wasn't bothered.

Game of Thrones is an epic book. And I mean epic as in, epic sagas of the past (i.e. Beowulf). The books are a massive undertaking, each being around 1000 pages each, but it's a super quick read. George R.R. Martin is an amazing story-teller, and I can't wait to get into the second book, A Clash of Kings.

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I enjoyed it, but for as long as there is a television show, I will watch that instead. This book took forever to finish and I could have read 3 or 4 other books in the time it took me to finish this one. Eddard and Catelyn are my least favorite characters and too much time is spent on their characters.

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I love young adult fantasy and fiction. I have read many books in this genre over the past several years. I know that the Game of Thrones series has really taken off, and has gained much acclaim through the television series (which I must admit I have not watched). However, I really struggled with this series. After plowing through the first 1000 page book, I decided, since I had already invested that much time, that I would finish what I thought was three more 1000 page books. Imagine my surprise when I found that that wasn't even close to the end of the saga. Six months after starting the first book, I decided to contribute no more time to this series. While the story line is intricate and amazingly woven, I found it too dark and sinister for my taste. I read to escape and get very involved with the stories I am reading, so I found that this series was a little too disturbing to complete. I would have enjoyed discovering how the series resolved itself, and how each well developed mini story connected with the others, I just couldn't justify devoting that much time to such a dark subject when there were many other fascinating books to digest.

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What a great read! So many wonderful characters, exciting plot, lots to keep track of!

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