My favorite living writer’s best book (well, one of my favorite) is going to HBO!!! Normally I’d be wringing my hands of the impending travesty, but HBO did Band of Brothers and Rome, so I trust their pedigree to make something appreciable. (IMHO obviously.) George RR Martin keeps up the action and romance in the novels, so HBO shouldnt have to ‘sex it up’ too much.
For those out the loop, A Game of Thrones is the first book in a seven book series (four are out currently) that follows the political intrigue, epic warriors, and arcane mysteries of Westeros. It’s epic fantasy, but it’s not hack and slash. Rather, it’s a dense, expansive, ‘old’ world, threatened as much by the animosities of its own history, as by any mythic beast or tyrannical king. (Although both exist…kind of.) Its also a world of magic, but not of visible magic. Superstition clouds any genuine arcane power and arguments and made and settled by words, swords, and poison. Altogether, George RR Martin continues the long and respected tradition of Chanson de Roland, La Morte de Arthur, and the Iliad.
A Game of Thrones has been one of my favorite books since I first read it, oh, nearly a decade ago and if you haven’t read it yet, better start now. Each of the four books are long. Think Harry Potter, but dense. They’re well worth the time spent though and I’m eagerly await both the next book in the series and now this HBO miniseries.
Awesome!
For a better review: SF Site: A Game of Thrones
