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    A Dance with Dragons Finally Waltzes into Bookstores

    By Robert Dougherty | Yahoo! Contributor Network – Tue, Jul 12, 2011
    This story comes from the Yahoo! Contributor Network, where individuals publish their unique perspectives on some of the world’s most popular websites.
    Do you have a story to tell? Become a Yahoo! contributor

    A Dance with Dragons is actually out in bookstores, although it seemed like it would never happen. But after six years, the dance between dragons and others still standing in George R.R. Martin's series has finally been revealed. Martin's Song of Fire and Ice franchise -- now better known as Game of Thrones on HBO -- has been on ice too long for some fans, yet reviews indicate the frustrating six-year wait was finally worth it.

    TIME's Lev Grossman calls A Dance with Dragons "A masterpiece worthy of Tolkien" six years after calling Martin the American version of J.R.R. Tolkien himself. Meanwhile, the Christian Science Monitor's Megan Watson assures that "No one- not even the most sharp-eyed of Martin readers- will be able to guess where this book is going."

    Those who just finished watching Season 1 of Game of Thrones are familiar with that feeling after they saw just how Martin's work defies expectations, especially with killing off characters. However, fans of the TV show can be assured that favorites like Daenerys Targaryen, Tyrion Lannister and Jon Snow have actually survived to the fifth book and make up a lot of its focus.

    But there are still two more books to go in the Song of Fire and Ice series, so there's plenty of time for the rest of the original characters to meet their end. And now that Martin has actually released A Dance with Dragons after such a long wait, that end could actually be on the horizon before long.

    After teasing fans for so long and gaining new fame with the TV show, Martin likely won't get away with another six-year delay. But there are no clues yet on when The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring will finally wrap up the saga. HBO likely hopes it will come before it finishes adapting the first five books for television.

    Of course, the show has to remain good enough to warrant having seven seasons or more. Yet since the novels were good enough to allow Martin to write seven of them, that is a good sign. Although there were complaints about the fourth installment, A Feast of Crows, the review buzz for the fifth novel seems to have made up for it.

    But Martin fanatics will have the final say, since they have suffered the most in the last six years. Yet for their waiting, they now have 1,040 pages to devour during the summer, and however many years it takes for The Winds of Winter to come out.

    However, newfound Game of Thrones fans still have three more books to read before they can get to A Dance with Dragons, which should pass enough time until Season 2 starts.

    Sources

    Entertainment Weekly- "A Dance With Dragons burning questions answered"

    TIME- "George R.R. Martin's Dance with Dragons: A Masterpiece Worthy Of Tolkien"

    Christian Science Monitor- "A Dance with Dragons, by George R.R. Martin"

     

    2 comments

    • Ty
      Ty  •  10 mths ago
      Im on #4. Got hooked on the show, and started reading the books. What a great story.
    • Tough Love
      Tough Love  •  10 mths ago
      FINALLY!!! Was supposed to be out 2 years ago! Regardless of your HBO series, it wasn't fair to keep your real fans hanging on like this George! Now, get to work on the next one please...
     Post a comment
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