A Dance with Dragons (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 5 mini-review)

This isn’t a new review, though it is making its Substack debut. I was originally posted to my old Goodreads profile on December 1, 2013. I hope you enjoy it.

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Courtesy of back flap:

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.

My sincere apologies, if you were expecting one of my typical in-depth reviews. This isn’t one of them. At the time, I had every intention of diving deep into the mammoth installment that is A Dance with Dragons, but for whatever reason, it never happened. You can, however, read my initial reaction upon finishing it:

“More than twelve hours later, and I am still stunned!!! Just what the hell just happened? Did I REALLY just read that!?! Needless to say, my mind's still reeling, and I plan on posting a review soon. For the time being, I'm giving Dragons 4.5 solid stars..”

UPDATE: May 10, 2024:

The more I’ve thought about in the eleven years since I read it, I might have been somewhat over enthusiastic about the book in general, and my rating might be different if I was reading it today. Nevertheless, I remember liking it a lot. Certainly more than I did A Feast for Crows, but not more than my favorite in the series, A Storm of Swords (Book 3.)