A Clash of Kings

( em português → sol2070.in/2023/08/A-F%C3%BAria-dos-Reis-Cr%C3%B4nicas-de-Gelo-e-Fogo-2)

"A Clash of Kings", by George R.R. Martin, is the second volume of the "Song of Ice and Fire" series (adapted into the acclaimed Game of Thrones TV show). In this book, I felt that I had really made up for diving into the bricks (this one is almost a thousand pages long, in the english pocket version) of this literary series, after being hooked by the adaptation and wanting to prolong the experience of the saga. Not that the first volume is bad, but the HBO series follows it so faithfully that the book wasn't as gripping for me.

For those who loved "Game of Thrones" and read, it's a must. One challenge of the on-screen experience is that, because there are so many parallel plots, some profound developments have inevitably been dealt with summarily - otherwise, something like 12 seasons would have been necessary. For example, Bran Stark's transformation — this is one of the stories I liked the most and, in the book, (the beginning of it) is much better explored, bringing a whole dimension of pantheistic natural spirituality that hardly appeared on screen.

There are also several very interesting events that were completely left out of the adaptation, such as some involving Arya, one of the most captivating characters. The dialogues — which are already long on screen — also expand, along with the psychological perspective, especially when it involves intense antagonism.

Inevitably, I'm comparing everything to the adaptation. But even if I hadn't seen "Game of Thrones", it's likely that this series will be the best I've ever read, due to its exceptional mythology.

I've learnt already that I'm rather alone in liking A Clash of Kings more than the first one. I suppose it is due in a great part to the appearance of fantastic elements in what felt so much like a historical novel series to start with.
I'm still unconvinced of how great this whole series is, maybe because I heard so much praise that I just expected A Song of Ice and Fire to be more than it could ever be. A new Lord of the Rings. Which it frankly isn't.
Also I first came to know Mr Martin as the Lord of the Hints: I don't believe myself to be an extremely meticulous reader when I read "just for entertainment", or just for myself. But to call these things mere foreshadowing which proceed every surprising turn would be understatement.
This all said, I still gave this book four stars - so you should be able to figure out it wasn't all that bad and unbearable. ;-)

I think that one of the things that makes this serious utterly engrossing, is the attention to detail.

The universe is so well fleshed out, and the characters who live in it do so in a completely believable way. For example, with the notable exception of Joffrey, I don't think there are any "bad" guys in this story. There aren't any "good" guys, either. There are just people, with deep and complex motivations and goals, and everything they do or say fits in with those motivations, and their circumstances in the world. If I put myself into any one of their shoes, I cannot say that I'd do anything different.

This book is actually better than [b:A Game of Thrones|13496|A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, #1)|George R.R. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1436732693s/13496.jpg|1466917], in my opinion. There's a lot more action... and a LOT of stuff happens. Unfortunately, I can't tell you very much of it for fear of spoilers, but I will say that many of our favourite characters return, and quite a few very important characters die. Oh, and there be dragons.

Something else that I thought was pretty cool: I read Game of Thrones three months ago, and there were a few minor details I'd forgotten. [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg] does such a wonderful job of explaining each character's place in the world as we first meet them, that it was a pleasurable experience when the memories of each came flooding back. I'd almost (ALMOST) say that it's not necessary to have read the first book in the series to enjoy the second. But I think you'd miss quite a bit.

I was not sure for the entire first book if I liked that book or not. This book took about 500 pages to get moving. Those first 500 pages were very slow and took me over a month and a half to read. The 2nd 500 pages went quite quickly and I read in the past week or two.

The characters are fabulous. There are ones you don't like, ones you like, ones you love to hate, and the twists are really good. I am often surprised at what happens next. Martin does not follow "the rules" which irked me at first, but it is growing on me. I still don't like that his book seems to just end and you have to read the next book already. I have several other books I need to read and get moving on their spirals, as well as books to read before I give it to my daughter and son to read.

Of course, I am moving onto the next book in the series and will probably read the series out, assuming Martin finishes it.