A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 3)
by George R.R. Martin
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Book Summary Information
Author: George R.R. MartinEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2003-03-04
ISBN: 055357342X
Number of pages: 1216
Publisher: Bantam
Book Reviews of A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 3)
Book Review: Unabated Frustration Costs Martin One Star
Summary: 3 Stars
I've read through some of the other reviews of the first three books of this series and I think it time to address a few of the most commonly cited complaints.
First: the sex. Yes, there is a lot of graphic sexuality in these novels. But, you know, there's a lot more warfare, fighting, murder and mutilation. These books are about warfare and political intrigue. If you're bound to be offended by anything graphically described, then these are not the novels for you as the pages are rife with blood and gore. Sex, in comparison, is kind of a friendly diversion even if it is described in terms devoid of romance and rose petals. If, on the other hand, you are offended by sexuality but not by graphic violence, then there are more pressing questions for you to consider than which fantasy novel to read.
Second: character deaths. Yes, there are a lot of character deaths. Too many? Not enough? Hmm... I'd say just about right. It keeps things healthy, to have cared-for characters die every so often: it keeps you on your toes. Also, given the aforementioned subject matter, war and intrigue, it simply wouldn't make sense not to have death now and again. Finally, there are so many characters and so many plots running around that death is a nice way of keeping things rather more in hand. I do have a complaint regarding the character deaths, however, which I will come to soon.
Third: the gray morality. Yes, the characters are round and multi-faceted. Everyone has virtues, everyone has flaws. (Well, okay, I'd be hard-pressed to find the virtues in some of them, like Gregor or Joff, but still...) But, you know, that doesn't mean that the characters can't be seen as heroic or villainous. Just because Hitler loved animals and was a vegetarian (which is true) doesn't mean he didn't have some rather defining characteristics. C'mon-you know who the heroes and who the villains are. And, while our opinions do sometimes change (Jaime's character, for instance, starts to change over the course of this book), the reason that they do so is not because there is no morality present, but precisely because there is. But here, I again have my own complaint, which I shall deal with presently.
Having dealt with the gripes of others, it's now time for me to develop my own. My problem with Martin's morality is that he makes it appear that, roughly, good = stupid. If there were a hard and fast rule in his world, it would seem to be that being an honorable person will certainly lead to pain, humiliation and death. Often, the problems that the more heroic characters encounter are of their own devise, and it usually comes from blindly trusting and acting honorably to the more villainous characters. And so, Ned warns Cersei of his discovery instead of immediately taking action. Robb releases Theon to his home. Rodik refuses to attack on Winterfell until too late, trusting in his enemy's honor (despite knowing his enemy to have none). Catelyn releases Jaime. Renly and Stannis refuse to attack King's Landing, again until too late. Loras pledges himself to Joffrey instead of striking him down. Cate and company trust Frey. Sansa trusts, well, everyone she shouldn't. Time after time, the heroes have the ability and the opportunity to win the day, and time after time they drop the ball and allow villainy to succeed. It has been said that all it takes for evil to win is for good men to do nothing. In this series, good men often surpass doing nothing by doing extremely stupid things to the advantage of the evil. And this is not to mention Tyrion, who is a heroic character completely enthralled to his villainous family and keeping them alive and kicking more than any other. The villains in this series would have no hope of winning at all if it were not for the active interference (sometimes unwitting), in their favor, of the heroes. It's like reading a big, adult Series of Unfortunate Events populated by several Mr. Poes who continually place orphans in Olaf's hands and refuse to hear their warnings (much like Ned dismissed Arya's warnings, just prior to his being arrested/decapitated). And that is a little frustrating, the difference being that this frustration is primarily what Snicket intends-I am less sure as to Martin's intention.
My second gripe, concerning characters deaths, as promised, is that: the deaths don't always seem to be part of some master plan. Sometimes, the deaths just feel kind of tacked on, either for shock or for "realism." And, actually, this is part of a greater concern, the apparent lack of a master plan. As a for instance, way back in book one, you remember how Sansa's wolf, Lady was killed, and how that felt significant? As though, eventually, it would somehow matter that Sansa didn't have her wolf with her? Well... Sansa hasn't really gone through anything better or worse than any of the other Starks, and she's much more alive than some, including one who kept his wolf all the way to the end. It rather seems that Lady's death wasn't particularly significant. And that's the way a lot of the events feel including, sadly, character deaths. Again, this could be viewed as "realistic." But I prefer it when realism is subordinated to drama-when fictional events seem to have form and shape and direction as opposed to the chaos and borderline randomness of the real world. When a character dies, I want there to be a compelling reason for the death, being as it is such an inherently compelling event. Martin sometimes seems to kill his characters out of a sort of whimsy.
My third and final gripe remains roughly the same as it was with the first two books and is, in a nutshell, this: too damned long. Forget the page count; Martin's writing is good enough to read for ten thousand pages, I mean that he's taking too long to get to the point. This third installment of the series ends in a quick succession of highpoints. It's meant to build interest and steam going into the fourth, which it does (frustratingly so, given the time between releases). But most of the third book, like most of the second and the first before it, are build up. Three thousand pages of build up are simply not welcome, and certainly not in the face of a projected three thousand to come. There was even a point, somewhere near page 600 of this book, where I started to question my investment. After all, do I have any assurance that the next book, or the book after, will offer any satisfaction? How long will I have to wait, exactly, for any sort of a sense of closure on anything? How good is Martin's heart? His cholesterol count? Blood sugar? I suppose, on the bright side, that this series helps a person develop their patience and endurance. But, I'll tell you, couple this with my doubts of Martin's having a master plan, and you have a potential nightmare in the making. Is it still possible that he does have a direction in mind, and that book six will end up with all of the strings neatly tied in a satisfactory bow? Yes-that's still possible. But the hope dwindles with every passing page.
In the end, I will continue. Onwards to book four, I say, and quick about it. Frankly, I may have invested too much to turn back, now, no matter what happens. But I'm punishing Martin with one star less on this novel than I'd awarded the previous two. The book has the same quality as the others in the series, and the last fifty pages or so are rather exhilarating (and the scene with Sansa building the castle in the snow is just awesome-the kind of thing Martin must have had planned for a long time), but the slight problems become large over time, sort of like Malcolm's explanation of fractals and chaos theory in Jurassic Park, or something. Unabated, these problems will choke him all the way down to a single star by series end. I only pray it doesn't come to that.
Summary of A Storm of Swords (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 3)
Of the five contenders for power, one is dead, another in disfavor, and still the wars rage as violently as ever, as alliances are made and broken. Joffrey, of House Lannister, sits on the Iron Throne, the uneasy ruler of the land of the Seven Kingdoms. His most bitter rival, Lord Stannis, stands defeated and disgraced, the victim of the jealous sorceress who holds him in her evil thrall. But young Robb, of House Stark, still rules the North from the fortress of Riverrun. Robb plots against his despised Lannister enemies, even as they hold his sister hostage at King?s Landing, the seat of the Iron Throne. Meanwhile, making her way across a blood-drenched continent is the exiled queen, Daenerys, mistress of the only three dragons still left in the world. . . .But as opposing forces maneuver for the final titanic showdown, an army of barbaric wildlings arrives from the outermost line of civilization. In their vanguard is a horde of mythical Others--a supernatural army of the living dead whose animated corpses are unstoppable. As the future of the land hangs in the balance, no one will rest until the Seven Kingdoms have exploded in a veritable storm of swords. . .
Here is the third volume in George R. R. Martin?s magnificent cycle of novels that includes A Game of Thrones and A Clash of Kings. As a whole, this series comprises a genuine masterpiece of modern fantasy, bringing together the best the genre has to offer. Magic, mystery, intrigue, romance, and adventure fill these pages and transport us to a world unlike any we have ever experienced. Already hailed as a classic, George R. R. Martin?s stunning series is destined to stand as one of the great achievements of imaginative fiction.
Is George R.R. Martin for real? Can a fantasy epic actually get better with each new installment? Fans of the genre have glumly come to expect go-nowhere sequels from other authors, so we're entitled to pinch ourselves over Martin's tightly crafted Song of Ice and Fire series. The reports are all true: this series is the real deal, and Martin deserves his crown as the rightful king of the epic. A Game of Thrones got things off to a rock-solid start, A Clash of Kings only exceeded expectations, but it's the Storm of Swords hat trick that cements Martin's rep as the most praiseworthy fantasy author to come along since that other R.R.
Like the first two books, A Storm of Swords could coast on the fundamentals: deftly detailed characters, convincing voices and dialogue, a robust back-story, and a satisfyingly unpredictable plot. But it's Martin's consistently bold choices that set the series apart. Every character is fair game for the headman's axe (sometimes literally), and not only do the good guys regularly lose out to the bad guys, you're never exactly sure who you should be cheering for in the first place.
Storm is full of admirable intricacies. Events that you thought Martin was setting up solidly for the first two books are exposed as complex feints; the field quickly narrows after the Battle of the Blackwater and once again, anything goes. Robb tries desperately to hold the North together, Jon returns from the wildling lands with a torn heart, Bran continues his quest for the three-eyed crow beyond the Wall, Catelyn struggles to save her fragile family, Arya becomes ever more wolflike in her wanderings, Daenerys comes into her own, and Joffrey's cruel rule from King's Landing continues, making even his fellow Lannisters uneasy. Martin tests all the major characters in A Storm of Swords: some fail the trial, while others--like Martin himself--seem to only get stronger. --Paul Hughes
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