The Art of George R R Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, volume 2

 

by various artists, 189 pages

I just read Volume 2 of the Game of Thrones art series, and I realized why I hadn't heard of many of the artists. Most of the art was commissioned for the Game of Thrones game cards, which explains why so many of the artists are from Europe, as in outsourced. A good number of the images are from A Feast for Crows, which is the fourth book of the Song of Ice and Fire series. I am starting to be able to pick out some of my favorite artists by their style. I especially like the scenes painted by Michael Komarck and Christine Griffin.

If you are a fan of fantasy art in general, or a fan of Martin's, you should be interested in this series.

Above: Ned Stark by Michael Komarck and Sansa Stark by Christine Griffin

A Clash of Kings

Book Two of A Song of Ice and Fire, 761 pages
by George R.R. Martin

Mini-spoilers!

Volume 2 picks up right where A Game of Thrones ended. The title is spot on, because there are at least 5 contenders for The Iron Throne. Starks, Lannisters, Baratheons, a Targaryen and assorted clans are all jockeying for control of Westeros (also known as The Seven Kingdoms). Martin is an expert with interweaving intrigue, violence and even bits of mysticism in his novels. He is most deft, however, with arcane plots and wanton wickedness. Kind of an Anti-Tolkien, if you will.

HBO has picked this up for a second season, and the latest in the series, A Dance With Dragons, was just released. Martin's novels read like historical potboilers, or as I like to joke, The Borgias with Dragons. Just be prepared to wait and wait for the next installment. Better idea....go read The Name of the Wind and The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss while you're waiting. You won't be disappointed.

About the artwork: noted fantasy artist John Howe has done artwork for the series, though most people know him from the Lord of the Rings books and films. I go online and pick out alternative covers, usually from the UK editions, for most of my reviews.

Game of Thrones

Volume 1 of A Song of Ice and Fire

by George R.R. Martin, 694 pages

I started this a while ago on a friend's recommendation, but got distracted. With Sean Bean starring in the debut of the HBO tv series, I had more incentive to finish it, and I am glad I did.

Martin has created vivid settings and varied cultures, and a byzantine plot line. The Tudors and Borgias don't have anything on the corrupt rulers of the Lannister family. Opposite them you have the flawed but compelling characters of the Stark family, Lords of Winterfell in the icy North. One of the Stark mottoes is Winter Is Coming, which doesn't quite evoke the dire warning it is. In the Seven Kingdoms, the seasons can last a dozen years or more. As the novel opens, summer is waning, and winter is coming.

Someone told me that Martin was inspired by the War of the Roses in Britain, and the houses names sound similar, Lannister for Lancaster and Stark for York. The armies clash, plots are hatched, rulers dispatched while up in the far north beyond The Wall, a malevolent force is on the move...south.

I enjoyed the complexity of the plot--you are never sure which characters will prove true-hearted or not. I am already into the next book, A Clash of Kings. One warning: the series isn't finished yet, and Martin is famed for keeping his fans waiting....and waiting.