George R.R. Martin

New threats emerge to endanger the future of the Seven Kingdoms, as Daenerys Targaryen, ruling in the East, fights off a multitude of enemies, while Jon Snow, Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, faces his foes both in the Watch and beyond the great Wallof ice and stone.

A Dance with Dragons

fira

He would have given much and more to know that he was doing the right thing. But he had gone too far to turn back.

I have no way to save her, he thought, but I could kill her easy enough. No one would expect it. I could beg her for the honor of a dance and cut her throat. That would be a kindness, wouldn't it? And if the old gods hear my prayer, Ramsay in his wroth might strike me dead as well. Theon was not afraid to die. Underneath the Dreadfort, he had learned there were far worse things than death.

João Ribeiro da Silva Soares

It was many years ago, as a young teenager, that I found a copy of Feast for Crows in a used bookstore and bought it. I didn't know the story, and didn't realize I had grabbed the 4th book in a series. I then spend many more years slowly collecting the first 3 and final 5th novel second hand to add before I read the series. 

Today, a year after picking up book 1, I have finished this colossal book series and wow was it a journey! I genuinely love this series, and I can hope along with everyone else that GRRM will publish at least one more book to help tie up the story, but alas, we may never know. These 5 books have lived with me for the past year and I will be returning to this series again and again in the future I'm sure

Emma Lechner

It was many years ago, as a young teenager, that I found a copy of Feast for Crows in a used bookstore and bought it. I didn't know the story, and didn't realize I had grabbed the 4th book in a series. I then spend many more years slowly collecting the first 3 and final 5th novel second hand to add before I read the series. 

Today, a year after picking up book 1, I have finished this colossal book series and wow was it a journey! I genuinely love this series, and I can hope along with everyone else that GRRM will publish at least one more book to help tie up the story, but alas, we may never know. These 5 books have lived with me for the past year and I will be returning to this series again and again in the future I'm sure

1: Dreams and Dust

A Dance With Dragons

I loved the concept of this book geographically running adjacent with A feast for crows. Loved that some other characters stories developed more. Fantastic seres of books overall and this one is definitely up there in top 3 for me👌

0cchi

Coleman McCormick

I'm so deep in this series now, I can't help but enjoy each of these entries.

But this one, like A Feast for Crows, is spreading itself a little thin with story spread across so many characters. It lacks the depth and specificity of the first three novels, with their fewer POV characters and focused locations. And though I do enjoy the nastiness and brutality of the novels (which is a huge contributor to the series' popularity), A Dance With Dragons is absolutely packed solid with horrible people, bad news, and worse situations. Hopefully the next entrant has at least a shred of positivity.

Now I get to eagerly await the next release! I wonder how many years away it is?

Briar's Reviews

Wynter

I can't believe it took me almost nine months to read this book. Me - the most ASOIAF obsessed person there is! This book was not one of Martin's shining moments. When people say that A Feast for Crows is the weakest book, I beg to differ. This one was too long, too slow to keep up with its predecessors. I understand that Martin wanted to set things up just right before the big showdown, but it took five books since "winter is coming" was first muttered to see a white crow. I just read a thousand pages, but I haven't advanced much within the plot. Two major things happened to Dany. One to Jon. Cercei literally walked across town and was done. I am now joining the ranks of people whining for book 6. If it is not released next year, I will most likely start re-reading the series.

Michael Springer

Tyrion Lannister's horse was rubbing him raw as they rode onward, the branches of the trees above them swaying in a branch-like way. Ravens flew about among them, and clouds of dust hovered like halos around the hooves of their steeds. 

Wiping sweat from his brow, Tyrion spoke to yet another minor character you've never seen before. "I hear that the Morvin and the Shornpel clans have sided with Darvus Farier from the great city of Bee Eff Eee, and are pushing forward late king Baratheon's bastard's scullery maid's uncle's melanoma as the true heir to the throne."

The minor character chortled as he spooned up some of the newt egg soup. It had been spiced with cloves and the lightest touch of pepper, and leaves of cilantro floated like corpses upon its surface. Eating a side of braised elk spleen and a hunk of bread with a cheese sauce, the minor character said, "If so, even more of the action is likely to shift away from the viewpoint characters, and THEN we'll see whether any of the characters from the first volume even make it to the final book, A Trample of Turtles."

 "But," Tyrion pondered aloud, eating inch-long prawns from a trencher filled with a hot butter sauce, "If the Starks send nine hundred of their men from the outer borders of ThatoneplaceImentionedOnce, and they move down toward the Lannister forces on Dragon's Fjord before the Lannister forces can unite with the Great Army of the Unwashed Men, perhaps they can defeat the bunjillion soldiers in the south now being ushered in the general direction of King's Landing by that one other guy. I can't remember his name. You know, the one?"

The minor character shrugged, tearing a piece from his bread bowl and dipping it into a small puddle of balsamic vinegar. "You forget about the people beyond the wall, and the dragons in the east, and Bobbert, King Robert's mechanic. He now claims to have been conceived with the king's own cum, and thus has a claim to the throne."

Tyrion scratched his chin. "That does throw a new light on how convoluted things are becoming." 

They continued riding, their horses traveling gradually. More branches passed overhead. It felt as if the traveling had gone on indefinitely, and the audience was more than capable of empathizing. Tyrion munched on fresh radishes and drank a bold red wine from a skin hanging from his belt. The wine was rich, with plum flavorings and an oaky aftertaste. 

"But," said Tyrion, suggesting another possible set of things that could happen. He made reference to an event that happened nine-hundred pages ago, but remembered it wrong, then postulated what the possible outcome could be. They rode onward. Minor Character munched on some pine nuts. 

SUDDENLY, SOMETHING EPIC WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN!

Chapter 2

Eudaknow An Eudongivafuck, minor noble from Shelbyville, rubbed his temple, filled with anxiety at being introduced as a new viewpoint character 9,600 pages into the series. How would he live up to the amazing characters who had come before him and died so tragically? Perhaps because he had a valid claim to the throne, Having been the barista in King Robert's favorite coffeehouse. Yeah, that was the ticket. Riding his steed/ship across the desert/glenn/ocean/alley, he traveled gradually, wondering when he would arrive. Discussing with the others upon the ship, he theorized about possible outcomes of the conflicts in Westeros, all the while eating a succulent pomegranate, red juices running down his chin like he'd just been chewing on afterbirth. 

SUDDENLY, SOMETHING AMAZING WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN!

Chapter 3

The titties tittied, jiggling with much breastful bosomliness. The oiled girls with Brazilian waxes down below wrestled and licked each other's areolas, but it was only to help you become immersed in a realistic depiction of the ancient world. As the breasts bosomed with titful abandon, Tyrion ate shark flank. It had been buttered, cooked for twenty minutes at 345 degrees, then drizzled with a lemon sauce and allowed to cool for five minutes. The flavor was only mildly fishy, and Tyrion burped, taking another drink of the white zinfandel before digging into the raspberry crepes with a chocolate fondu. "But still, Measter, you must understand the possibilities of that event rely on Stannis placing all of his trust in the moody lords of the upper northwest. They are known for being fickle and not holding to their oaths, and Stannis is more likely to try and seize the Port of Skulls. Will the king's ninth bastard even survive that battle? If so, at what cost to Stannis? Plus, what happens if the Lannisters and the Starks team up, and get Batman to join them, and Stannis can only get Iron Man? What then?"

Measter laughed at the dwarf. "That may be, dwarf. You might be short and a dwarf, but you have a mind as sharp as a blade. But you are very tiny, in case that had escaped anyone's notice. Even so, if Stannis enlists Dumbledore, Gandalf and Belgarion, he will be more than a match for the team-up of Lannister, Batman and Stark. Even if they get Rocky Balboa and Wesley Willis on their side."

Tyrion watched the boobs. "But what about Joshua Lyman? Because he could totally take Dumbledore, and maybe Iron Man." 

Tyrion ate a lamb gyro, thinking back to the exciting thing that happened after the last chapter ended, thinking of it in an ambiguous and incomplete way. Since it had been 100 pages since his last chapter, you had entirely forgotten what the exciting thing at the end of the chapter was anyway, so it was not much of a loss. "Well," he said, "Now that all of the titties have jiggled sufficiently, we must needs be back on the road."

They rode their steeds along a road, hooves raising up halos of dust, the ravens flittering about in the branches and saying what words they had picked up from the conversation. 
"Death!"
"Dumbledore!"
"Titties!"

The half-man, who was short and a dwarf, wiped the sweat from his brow.

SUDDENLY. . .

A Dance with Dragons 1

Kshitij Bantupalli

Another amazing installment to the Game of Thrones series. Just one more book left, I'm excited and upset at the same time because it would be ending.
It gives me the same vibes I had when I read the last part of Harry Potter.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • THE BOOK BEHIND THE FIFTH SEASON OF THE ACCLAIMED HBO SERIES GAME OF THRONES Don’t miss the thrilling sneak peek of George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire: Book Six, The Winds of Winter Dubbed “the American Tolkien” by Time magazine, George R. R. Martin has earned international acclaim for his monumental cycle of epic fantasy. Now the #1 New York Times bestselling author delivers the fifth book in his landmark series—as both familiar faces and surprising new forces vie for a foothold in a fragmented empire. A DANCE WITH DRAGONS A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE: BOOK FIVE In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance—beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. In the east, Daenerys Targaryen, the last scion of House Targaryen, rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has thousands of enemies, and many have set out to find her. As they gather, one young man embarks upon his own quest for the queen, with an entirely different goal in mind. Fleeing from Westeros with a price on his head, Tyrion Lannister, too, is making his way to Daenerys. But his newest allies in this quest are not the rag-tag band they seem, and at their heart lies one who could undo Daenerys’s claim to Westeros forever. Meanwhile, to the north lies the mammoth Wall of ice and stone—a structure only as strong as those guarding it. There, Jon Snow, 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, will face his greatest challenge. For he has powerful foes not only within the Watch but also beyond, in the land of the creatures of ice. From all corners, bitter conflicts reignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all. Praise for A Dance with Dragons “Filled with vividly rendered set pieces, unexpected turnings, assorted cliffhangers and moments of appalling cruelty, A Dance with Dragons is epic fantasy as it should be written: passionate, compelling, convincingly detailed and thoroughly imagined.”—The Washington Post “Long live George Martin . . . a literary dervish, enthralled by complicated characters and vivid language, and bursting with the wild vision of the very best tale tellers.”—The New York Times “One of the best series in the history of fantasy.”—Los Angeles Times

A Song of Ice and Fire: Book Five

Jackie Keiser

Jowanza Joseph

Enjoyed a lot more than the 4th installment.

Izza

I can't freaking believe what happened towards the end of this book. What. The. Fuck?!

Loved it though. Better that 'A Feast for Crows' in my opinion.

Fleur van Ravesteijn 

What a monstrous book this is! It’s easy to lose yourself among the countless minor characters and I was kind of sad to be away from some of my favourite characters for such a long time. I’ve never been a fan of Jon’s POV but I did always enjoy Daenerys’s. Not so much in this book though. The whole ordeal with the Sons of the Harpy and Mereen felt a little dragging to me. Too many people I couldn’t tell apart and wasn’t necessarily interested in. Jon’s part felt really slow. But man, I am in complete awe of George’s imagination. Absolutely phenomenal. I truly feel like I’m right in the middle of the story when I read, and I especially love the thoughts and internal dialogues of the characters. I will say that for such an enormous book I felt it was relatively uneventful and more slow paced than its predecessors. Either way, I loved the story and have an enormous respect for the author.

Sarah S

I finally finished this monster at 5am. A Dance With Dragons is easily my least favorite book in this series. There were too many chapters of people I don't care about or hate which made it incredibly difficult to get through this book. I was really happy that Melisandre got a chapter though and to my surprise a few other characters I like, but I can't give it more than 2.5 stars.

George R. R. Martin

Danza de dragones

Mary Garza

Lo primero a veces sentía las ganas de meterme y cachetear a Daenerys y gritarle ve a poniente, joder que esperas!! a comparación de los demás libros si fue muy lento sentía que no avanzaba mucho la historia cosa que me desesperada. A la espera del siguiente

Mohammed Moussa

This book was really long, filled with events, names and history it took me a really long time to comprehend it, but it was amazing and shocking there isn't even one dull chapter. I am really turn apart between which is my favorite book in the series, this one or Storm of Swords. I can't really wait for Winds of Winter, George RR Martin you sir are a genius.

Ofelia

** spoiler alert **
           Uhm, come mi sento cattiva a dare a Martin un voto del genere.
Dopo aver chiuso il libro mi sono concessa un pò di tempo per pensarci comunque, perché se mi fossi lasciata andare ai sentimenti del dopo libro probabilmente gli avrei dato anche qualcosa in meno. Pensandoci bene poi volevo azzardarmi ad attorondare a tre stelle, perché questa è una saga che seguo da un pò e che amo e stoncarla non mi è facile ed anche perché non posso dire che Martin scriva da due.
Ora però sono piuttosto convinta, questo libro è da due e non merita per me neanche mezza stella in più. Le motivazioni sono molte, partiamo con il fatto che questo libro è troppo davvero troppo lungo anche per i canoni di Martin. Fosse giustificato lo capirei, ma davvero non lo è. Provate a fare un riassunto del libro, delle cose che veramente valeva la pena di leggere e non arriverete neanche a quattrocento pagine come è possibile che Martin abbia voluto allungare il brodo fino a questo punto? è puro masochismo verso il povero lettore questo, oltre che una colossale presa in giro. Si perché se io vedo quel malloppone penso che sia una storia corposa ed interessante, non che siano più di mille pagine di niente. 
Lo stile di Martin poi a me è sempre piaciuto ma anche qui non riesco a capire cosa avesse in mente. Alcuni POV sono proprio i suoi, scritti come gli altri libri, in altri sembra averci messo poca voglia, poco interesse, poco tutto insomma e sono deboli, fiacchi, non sembra neanche averli scritti lui.
E i suoi personaggi? Una noia mortale. Salvo davvero pochissimi POV, ammetto di avere da sempre un debole per i Martell quindi ho adorato il POV con le Serpi e sopratutto il sapere che almeno di Tyene e Nymeria sapremo qualcosa in più nei prossimi libri (sono abbastanza tranquilla per la loro incolumità, visto che Martin non sembra affatto in grado di uccidere personaggi femminili del suo libro e se lo fa tanto poi li resuscita vedasi Cat). All'inizio sopportavo i POV di Dany, mai potuta digerire, solo per la presenza di Quentyn (grazie mille Martin a proposito, ma era davvero necessario far fuori pure lui?!) ma ora proprio non so come farò a leggere ancora di lei nei prossimi libri. Anche le poche cose positive che aveva negli altri libri, Daenerys non le ha assolutamente più, è una lagna mortale davvero. E anche Tyrion, non riesco a non annoiarmi nei suoi POV, ma quando è diventato noioso pure lui?
Siamo al libro cinque Martin, lo hai notato? E dovevano essere pure tre nella tua idea di base, eppure ancora i draghi sono dove li avevamo lasciati e più che ballare a me sembrano sonnecchiare.

Adam

If you don’t want to be spoiled on Game of Thrones on HBO, you probably need to read the books. Book 3 is still my favorite, 4 least favorite. #5 is somewhere in the middle. Don’t want to spoil anything, but to say it follows a lot of my favorite characters.

Arron Kau

Cams Campbell

I enjoyed Feast for Crows a lot more than others seemed to, but this book I found to be a slog. I'm about half-way through part 2 now and it's a bit less of a slog than this was, thankfully. 

I reread books 1, 2 and 3 before reading Feast, then went straight into this one. I was a bit bewildered with the time line. For instance, how come (view spoiler)[ we read of Sam's arrival at Oldtown and Maester Aemon's death in Feast, and then in Dance their back at the Wall about to depart? (hide spoiler)]

To be honest, I'm just looking forward to getting to the end of this so I can get onto something a bit more enjoyable. Sorry GRRM. The wait for me hasn't been worth it so far. I shall of course continue to the end. Will I be rewarded for that as I was rewarded so well with Les Miserables?

This was a hell of a slog, and I'm not really sure it was worth it. 

I loved this series a lot. I read the first three twice and bought them for a few friends as well. But this one just had me wishing it would end so I could start reading something that I might enjoy. I stopped caring. The only bit that I really enjoyed was in the epilogue, but it was a hard slog to get to that part. I'm not sure I even want to carry on with the story to be quite honest. If I do, it'll be because the Arya thread is interesting, but speed it up for God's sake!

2 stars

Rebeca Keren Nuñez

Genial continuación para la saga. Aun habiendo visto la serie y sabiendo que esperar, lo disfrute. Lo recomiendo ampliamente. Necesito que salgan los libros que faltan!!!

In the aftermath of a colossal battle, Daenerys Targaryen rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has thousands of enemies, and many have set out to find her. Fleeing from Westeros with a price on his head, Tyrion Lannister, too, is making his way east--with new allies who may not be the ragtag band they seem. And in the frozen north, Jon Snow confronts creatures from beyond the Wall of ice and stone, and powerful foes from within the Night's Watch. In a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics lead a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, to the greatest dance of all.

Laura

“I rose too high, loved too hard, dared too much. I tried to grasp a star, overreached, and fell.”
#1: A Game of Thrones ★★★★★
#2: A Clash of Kings ★★★★☆
#3: A Storm of Swords ★★★★★
#4: A Feast for Crows ★★★★★
#5: A Dance with Dragons ★★★★☆

I would give it 5 stars if it did not have so much unecessary Meereen drama in it, and if Tyrion had died when he should have. Plus, not enough Jaime and no Alayne at all makes me sad.

...oh my god that ending that ENDING



I was wondering when Varys was going to make an appearance. He was always fond of dramatic ones, after all.

I was slightly disappointed with how Dany turned out, but where she ended up did bring a nice sense of closure to the story. I'll be waiting to see what happens with her in books to come. 

I miss Sansa. And Cat. And Brienne (she's in here briefly. For, like, a page). And Margaery. And, I shudder to admit this, but I was even starting to miss Littlefinger. Littlefinger.

Sigh. Winds of Winter. Come out soon. SOON. /grabby hands

Also can't wait to see what Cersei ends up doing about all of this.

Well, I know there are some mixed reviews out there, but this book sure didn't disappoint.

/waits impatiently for 2016.

A Dance with Dragons

Reviews

Highlights