A Game of Thrones

A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1

By: George R.R. Martin

Narrated by: Roy Dotrice

Now the acclaimed HBO series Game of Thrones - the masterpiece that became a cultural phenomenon

Winter is coming. Such is the stern motto of House Stark, the northernmost of the fiefdoms that owe allegiance to King Robert Baratheon in far-off King's Landing. There Eddard Stark of Winterfell rules in Robert's name. There his family dwells in peace and comfort: his proud wife, Catelyn; his sons Robb, Brandon, and Rickon; his daughters Sansa and Arya; and his bastard son, Jon Snow. Far to the north, behind the towering Wall, lie savage Wildings and worse - unnatural things relegated to myth during the centuries-long summer, but proving all too real and all too deadly in the turning of the season. Yet a more immediate threat lurks to the south, where Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King, has died under mysterious circumstances. Now Robert is riding north to Winterfell, bringing his queen, the lovely but cold Cersei, his son, the cruel, vainglorious Prince Joffrey, and the queen's brothers Jaime and Tyrion of the powerful and wealthy House Lannister - the first a swordsman without equal, the second a dwarf whose stunted stature belies a brilliant mind.

All are heading for Winterfell and a fateful encounter that will change the course of kingdoms. Meanwhile, across the Narrow Sea, Prince Viserys, heir of the fallen House Targaryen, which once ruled all of Westeros, schemes to reclaim the throne with an army of barbarian Dothraki - whose loyalty he will purchase in the only coin left to him: his beautiful yet innocent sister, Daenerys.

©1996 George R.R. Martin, (P)2003 Books On Tape, Inc., published in arrangement with Random House Audio Group,a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Locus Award, 1997

"Martin's trophy case is already stuffed with major prizes...He's probably going to have to add another shelf, at least." (Publishers Weekly)

"The first volume in Martin's first fantasy saga combines intrigue, action, romance, and mystery in a family saga." (Booklist)

"Grabs hold and won't let go. It's brilliant." (Robert Jordan)

"This novel is an absorbing combination of the mythic, the sweepingly historical, and the intensely personal." (Chicago Sun-Times)

A fantastic tale!

I read a lot of fantasy and sci-fi, and I can promise you that this series of books is among the best.

This tale takes place in a land known as the "Seven Kingdoms." However, these kingdoms are actually ruled by a single King with various Lords under him. The history of these kingdoms is expertly blended into the plot, so that you effortlessly become emersed into the world. I can't overstate the skill with which the author draws the reader into his world. It feels as if this land, with its people, traditions and history is as real as our own.

Magic does exist in this world, but it is rare. It is used to color the plot, not to dominate it. There are hints of other races, but varieties of humans are all we encounter. There is some profanity, but it's fairly rare and in context. There is some sexual content. I wouldn't recommend this book for children.

Large sections of the plot revolve around the "palace intrigue" of the King, his family and the Lords. This is a book about the nobles of this realm and, as the title suggests, the high stake games they play for power. The characters in the book are deep, colorful and simply splendid. Their lives have a depth to them that few authors accomplish. I confess that, when not reading the book, I actually thought about them during the day and laid awake wondering about them at night. In the audio version, the narrator does a wonderful job of giving voice to these vivid characters.

The plot has numerous twists and turns. Sometimes I think the author intentionally speculates about what the reader would expect in the plot of a fantasy novel, and then does something completely different. I gave up trying to predict what would happen, and decided to just enjoy the ride. However, there is an overall "master" plot that is slowly unveiled in this and subsequent books.

If you enjoy fantasy, this is a must read. Even if you usually don't like fantasy, you may very enjoy this one.

Everybody is apparently a chain smoking old man.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. Very much enjoying the whole story. Even tho i have seen GoT on HBO its more interesting to hear the whole story.

Would you be willing to try another one of Roy Dotrice’s performances?

Probably not. Roy is a good narrator to some extent but he is no Jim Dale. His character voices all sound like 3 Pack a day Camel Unfiltered smokers.

Excellent book; not suitable for children

I had to cut this book short some months ago when listening with my 12 year old. The sex scenes (including multiple war-related rapes and a long-standing affair between a twin brother and sister) are way too explicit for a child, in my opinion. Having run out of audiobooks, though, I decided to give this one a try again and really enjoyed it. It's long, and stops just as things are really building up, so be warned. Still, it's a very compelling book with a myriad of well-developed characters that make it hard to hit the "stop" button.

Great Storytelling

Listening to audiobook and can't easily pull myself away. The narrator enhances the story. He is fantastic - it's amazing how he brings out the emotions, the snideness and innocence, etc. of characters through his tone and accents. He is a true actor. The author is a gifted storyteller. Unless someone tells me otherwise, I believe this story contains kernels of historical reality - familial love and hatred and hidden loyalties that underlie the winning and losing of royal and lordly power in previous ages. I feel that I'm looking through a window into the past that is more magical and interesting than any other.

Ridiculously awesome

Dear George R.R. Martin,

Your Song of Ice and Fire books have stolen just about every waking hour of mine for the last month. I started with the first book - A Game of Thrones - and didn't stop until I had listened to the entirety of A Dance With Dragons. I am equal parts thrilled to have my life back and heart-broken that it's going to be years before I know how this story ends! Also, Roy Dotrice is an awesome narrator and really brings your characters to life. XOXO!!

Great epic fantasy with a historical twist

If you imagine a hybrid of Tolkienesque fantasy mixed with the political intrigues of England's War of the Roses then you should have a pretty fair idea of what you are in for with this novel. Martin has taken the historical clash between York and Lancashire as a framework to produce a magnificent fantasy epic. I found the reader to be excellent but this may be because I had already read the book in paperback before and thus knew what names were being said. If you are able to follow readings of other epic sci-fi or fantasy novels with complex structure and unusual names (e.g. Dune, LOTR, etc.) then you should enjoy this novel.

Decent book, but would rather watch the series.

Yes, I listened/read the book before watching the series, but wasn't too horribly impressed. There is a lot better books in the fantasy genre, despite this, it's still good. Was very unimpressed with the narration, just sounds like a rambling british man from somewhere in a London slum. He was hard to understand at times, and very sloppy. Sometimes, though, admittedly, it did add to the darkness of the book.

As for the story, it was a little boring throughout the entire book. I feel a lot of it could have been cut out. Some of the character development was great (esp Tyrion and Arya), but a lot of it lacked as well.

Epic and compelling, once you get into it!

I was looking for a new series and a long one at that. I like fantasy-type books well enough, but only high-quality ones... there are endless mediocre books and series to be sure. This series was just what I was looking for though!

It starts out quite slowly; as other reviews mentioned, there is a tremendous host of characters and there are so many simultaneous plots going on! It took me a good 3-4 hours to warm up to the narrator and familiarize myself with the characters and what was going on.

It is definitely worth it though. By the time the momentum finally builds up, you're hooked for the duration. And what a duration! I listened to this for weeks and finally finished it up on a return 20-hour road trip. I can't wait for the next installment.

Great writing, great plot, very good narrator. I wish there was more variation in the voices, but honestly with so many characters I can't fault the narrator for running out of accents and voices. The many varied voices he *does* do are superb and he's dead-on emoting a vast array of character types, moods & emotions. The only way they could have possibly handled it better would be to have another narrator or two just for side characters and/or females or something.

This one will keep you entertained and riveted for quite a long time; and this is just book 1!

I highly recommend it.

A Game of Thrones

This is a very graphic and intricate story line -very long, but worth the investment. As a warning there is more more sexual inuendo than in most stories.

Great Book, Great Reader

With respect to Tolkien, this is simply the best Fantasy Fiction ever written. There are already extensive reviews out there that you can read on how good this book, and series are, so I'll just add to the chorus.

Concerning the audio version, it took about a Chapter or so for Roy Dotrice to grow on me, and after listening to the first 3 books, you will miss him sorely by the time you get to A FEAST FOR CROWS, where the reader changes, due to an unfortunate scheduling conflict. I sincerely hope Mr. Dotrice returns for A DANCE WITH DRAGONS.

I listen to this entire series at least once a year.