A review by robinwritesallthethings
Fire & Blood by George R.R. Martin

adventurous dark emotional funny sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I feel like it’s only fair to say that I have a vaguely antagonistic mindset when it comes to Martin and his books. While I find his straightforward style refreshing, especially in the fantasy genre, I think his subversion of tropes is simplistic, his representation of women dubious, and his slow writing pace absolutely ridiculous. However, his lore is both interesting and impeccable, so I keep coming back despite my misgivings.

I decided to crack this volume open after watching part of the first season of House of the Dragon because I am now admittedly obsessed with Daemon Targaryen. As a history buff and a lore nerd, I highly enjoyed that this was written as a chronicle. Even though all fans of the series know that the Targaryen dynasty ended during Robert’s Rebellion, it’s still fun to go back and see how it all started. It’s also a bit sobering to realize that no one’s ever done anything but fight over the Iron Throne, but if they didn’t, there wouldn’t be much of a story, I suppose.

If you’re interested in the lore of Westeros, this is definitely something you should read. I’m excited to pick up the second one when it comes out, but I assume that will be at least a decade from now, so I have a while to wait.
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