The last to be published in the A Song Of Ice and Fire series, George R. R. Martin’s fifth book of the series, A Dance With Dragons was a best seller upon release in 2011. At over 1,000 pages, the book is a brick and picks up the stories of Jon Snow at the wall, Dany Targaryen and her dragons, Tyrion Lannister travelling to reach her, Ramsay Bolton continuing his diabolically evil ways, and Stannis Baratheon marching south to try and claim the kingdom.…. Among several other plotlines.
It’s a dense book with much detail. It’s another awe-inspiring display of fantasy writing that creates not just one new world but several. With many plotlines going at ones, the book changes focus with every chapter. Like the other books, readers can lose track of one storyline while visiting several others. This was particularly true when reading about Jon Snow and his seemingly endless cast of characters.
When the book is good, it’s amazing particularly the clever words of Tyrion and the far too short supply of Arya Stark moments, a favourite character. Fans still await the last two books in the series to close out the characters that have thrilled both book and TV audiences.
8/10
The Light Appears 