A Dance with Dragons (original 2011; edition 2011)

Amazing, amazing, amazing! I couldn't put this book down, and now I can't wait for the next in the series! ( )

My Review: 2 - Below Standard

First thing's first: OMG!!! I'M FINALLY CAUGHT UP ON THIS SERIES!!!! WOO-HOO!!!!!

*coughs*

Now that that's out of my system, can I just say that a whole lot of nothing happened in this book? It's weird: I was all prepared for A Feast for Crows to be the absolute worst, but save for a few POV sections, I was actively engaged in what was happening. I figured A Dance with Dragons would be the same, just with the POVs I missed from A Feast for Crows.

Not so. Jon Snow's arc was the only one that really engaged me, as did the very few snippets we got from Arya, Jamie, and Ceresi. Okay, Reek's sections were interesting too, but the rest? Even Daenerys' chapters were full of WTF-ery. Maybe it's because I've slept since reading A Storm of Swords, but her motivations are completely muddled to me, and I can't say I agreed with a single thing she did. She's reversed as a character, lost some of her hard-earned growth from A Storm of Swords. There is one, just one, awesome moment for her, but it's minimized by her last chapter in the book.

And Tyrion's sections? Totally anti-climatic. I'm serious: NOTHING HAPPENS. We learn an interesting factoid about another legit contender in the Game of Thrones, but really, I can't say I'm invested in how it plays out: it'll either end badly for the contender, in which case, why did Martin even BOTHER, or it'll end well, which feels like I've wasted a lot of time for a character I didn't meet until now to win. No, that's not a spoiler. If you want spoilers, and if you want a really good breakdown about what's WRONG with this book, you should read fantasy author Marie Brennan's post here. Seriously, it's really good, and far more articulate about the glaring problems (and why they're there) than I can be.

But I can say this: as a unpublished writer who's been through many a workshop, who's had many a critique, I've often been told that every chapter needs to move the story FORWARD in some way. If it doesn't move the story forward, the chapter isn't doing it's job and needs to be cut and/or reconsidered. I've always took that advice with a grain of salt: I think there's room for chapters that allow for character growth only, but here, with Martin? THIS IS WHY THE RULE IS IN PLACE!!!! If Martin were in my shoes, or any other unpublished writer's shoes and getting workshopped, he'd be raked over coals for this crap.

Oh, I could go on and on. I'll say this: I didn't believe in the cliffhanger, if that makes sense. I also don't mind waiting however many years for the next installment. I need the break, and I'm not even worried about forgetting stuff: very little of importance happened. A very few choice things happened that were awesome: that one moment for Dany, and Arya's arc is becoming very satisfying. A few other tidbits of interest, but all of that's already forgotten due to the pages upon pages of description of food, of heraldry and banners and armies, of rumors from different people saying the exact same thing. Of a single character's mantra being repeated over and over in all of their chapters, and each character has their own mantra. This was a drudge of a book, and it felt like it took forever to read (possibly symptomatic of reading it on the Kindle -- there were lots of formatting issues there too). This book could've been a novella for what little really happens, and that's a shame. At this point, I just want to know where it all ends up. At this point, I'm starting to think the HBO show will do it better. But despite my dissatisfaction, I'll probably keep reading. It's just that the excitement is gone, so I'm in no hurry.

I guess that's a good thing, considering the publishing schedule…. ( )

Amazon preorder

If such a thing could be done, I'd give this book 3.5 stars. It's definitely better than A Feast For Crows, but beneath the rest of the series. Unlike it's predecessor, it started out better than it finished. While I loved the ending of A Feats For Crows, this one sort of peters out in the last few pages instead of going out with a bang. It's hard to rate Martin's books, however. At their worst, they're above most books I've read. So, how many stars I give them should really be considered only in relation to one another. Anyway, I can't help feeling a lot should have been edited out. A Feast For Crows and A Dance With Dragons hold material for one very large book, not two huge ones. And still, the langage is beautiful and the world enticing, and I can't wait for the next one! ( )

I was so excited that this book finally came out! You can read my thoughts over at my blog (major spoilers ahead as it's more of a commentary than a formal review): http://www.rulethewaves.net/blog/?p=2554 ( )