Books 1, 2, 3...works of genius. Amazing! Spellbinding! Couldn't shut up about them. Book 4? Hmmm. Maybe it's a fluke. Maybe the author has been ill. But here now we have Book 5 and the realization that it's no fluke. Martin has lost his way.

Like every other reader, I want the original characters and families to come back! I want them to evolve, grow up, turn evil, go mad, save the world, destroy the world...anything! I could give two figs about the hundreds of new, irrelevant, window-dressing characters that were introduced in 4 and 5: One-Eyed This, One-Armed That, the Giant, the Forked Beard, Green Grace, Blue Grace, Kindly Man. It's exhausting. If there's a prize for 'Most Useless Characters in a Single Novel', Martin wins.

The power house families have crumbled but rather than rebuild them (Lady Catelyn appears only briefly in Book 4 despite her character's fantastic potential for vengeance and villainry!!) Martin has thrown us bones like Ramsay and Daario, hoping that we will keep gnawing.

Seriously, I love George Martin's writing and he tells a wonderful story but I'm not sure I can endure a Number 6. Maybe we're all better off watching where HBO takes the story.
Books 1, 2, 3... works of genius. Amazing! Spellbinding! Couldn't shut up about them. Book 4? Hmmm. Maybe it's a fluke. Maybe the author has been ill. But here now we have Book 5 and the realization that it's no fluke. Martin has lost his way. Like every other reader, I want the original characters and families to come back! I want them to evolve, grow up, turn evil, go mad, save the world, destroy the world... anything! I could give two figs about the hundreds of new, irrelevant, window-dressing characters that were introduced in 4 and 5: One-Eyed This, One-Armed That, the Giant, the Forked Beard, Green Grace, Blue Grace, Kindly Man. It's exhausting. If there's a prize for 'Most Useless Characters in a Single Novel', Martin wins. The power house families have crumbled but rather than rebuild them (Lady Catelyn appears only briefly in Book 4 despite her character's fantastic potential for vengeance and villainry!! ) Martin has thrown us bones like Ramsay and Daario, hoping that we will keep gnawing. Seriously, I love George Martin's writing and he tells a wonderful story but I'm not sure I can endure a Number 6. Maybe we're all better off watching where HBO takes the story.