the second book in the song of ice and fire a series started with the game of thrones converted recently into a hbo tv series
1,455 pages down in the series... ????? more to go!
This book is excellent. The battle scenes at the climax are so detailed you'd think the author were a medieval knight. The only reason it gets 4 stars is that even a quarter way into the book you were still getting more recapitulation than necessary.
Boy, this book twists and turns, as it drives the characters further and further apart. Keeping track of all the characters almost seems a futile effort at times, since they're wont to die pretty quickly, then come back just as quickly, thanks to unreliable narration (which is wielded to great effect).
I think the nerds are right on this one, but why, in this genre, are there so many wise people around. You can get an aphorism from a passing mage, a dwarf or your retarded cousin, and after you blow-off your retarded cousin's comment, the mage will say "he is wiser than you know". I read this on the Kindle, so no maps, but, believe it or not, if you check on the internet there are whole galleries of maps of Westeros.
