A Feast for Crows

A Song of Ice & Fire, Book 4
by George R.R. Martin
753 pages

This fourth book in the Game of Thrones series is a little thinner than previous volumes.  Many new perspectives appear in this volume, though many are only minor voices.  These voices cover what is happening on the Iron Islands and in Dorne.  I will say that I was intrigued by the Dornish characters and hope to see more of them.  Cersei's and Brienne's perspectives are also shown in this novel.  Cersei proves in this novel that she is not fit to rule because she is short-sighted, impulsive, and stupid.

Many old characters are included as well.  Arya becomes a novice in a Braavosi temple.  Sansa is still posing as Littlefinger's bastard daughter.  Samwell is on his way to Oldtown (with Maester Aemon and Gilly) to become a maester.  Jamie is finally realizing the truth about Cersei and is becoming a better man for it.  All in all, our old favorites are changing and developing.

However, some of our favorites are missing from this novel.  Jon, Bran, Tyrion, Davos, & Daenerys are absent from this novel.  (At the end of the book, Martin explains why they are absent.  However, trying to figure out why all these characters were missing put me through unnecessary stress.)  They will reappear in Book 5.  Apparently, events in Book 4 and Book 5 are happening concurrently because Martin decided to divide the story into two books by character instead of chronologically.