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Bleh, just finished A Dance with Dragons. Now to wait and hope desperately that GRRM doesn't die before The Winds of Winter is finished. Also, I can't wait for Qyburn's experiments to be talked about in detail. Just that little bit in the epilogue about Ser Robert Strong was great.
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Dec 17, 2011 04:47
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Joramun posted:That's often what happens when pre-established characters become POV characters. Same goes for Cersei and Jaime, for example. Ugh, I'll agree with the other one you listed, but I hate Cersei as much as ever and the only thing I looked forward whenever reading one of her chapters was the possibility of it ending the way Catelyn's final chapter ended. Still waiting for that, btw.
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Dec 17, 2011 06:07
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Fog Tripper posted:But, the prose man. I think you just need to work on your critical thread reading skills. You could work on actually making worthwhile posts.
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Dec 17, 2011 06:10
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I finished A Storm Of Swords Part 1. Great end chapter, I hate Ygriette so much. I was stoked when Jon got away. Beric Dondarrion is such a boss too.
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Dec 18, 2011 11:12
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What didn't you like about her? I don't remember anything offensive about her
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Dec 20, 2011 04:05
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Ashrik posted:What didn't you like about her? I don't remember anything offensive about her The Jon liking her thing came out of nowhere. Like, she has hosed teeth and wide apart eyes yet Jon likes her? I was kinda wanting more stories of the giants and other mysteries of the wildlings more than a love story I guess. But Im only just at the start of book 3 part 2 so maybe Im rushing things for myself.
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Dec 20, 2011 21:52
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Veg posted:The Jon liking her thing came out of nowhere. Like, she has hosed teeth and wide apart eyes yet Jon likes her?
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Dec 20, 2011 22:13
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Also, redheads are his type. You just know Melisandre is going to tap that so hard if he survives til TWOW.
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Dec 20, 2011 22:16
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Veg posted:The Jon liking her thing came out of nowhere. Like, she has hosed teeth and wide apart eyes yet Jon likes her? He doesn't at first though. He wants nothing to do with her until Mance Rayder puts him in a situation where it's essentially gently caress Ygritte or be seen as a traitor. Jon thinks about how she's not attractive unless compared to the other wildling warriors, he's taken oaths, and a bunch of other hand wringing. It's only after they've been together for a little bit that he starts wanting to tell her what's up and then he jumps on a horse and rides away instead. [SOS.1]
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Dec 20, 2011 23:29
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Jon is in a foreign environment with tens of thousands of people who at most don't give a poo poo about him, but more likely want him dead, and there's one person out of the masses who is not only nice to him but seems to actually like him, and she happens to be a not completely unattractive girl who wants to bone him. I don't exactly know how them getting together "came out of nowhere"; in fact, I'd say it was pretty much inevitable. Also I think it's funny that the only justification you gave as to why you think he shouldn't like her is she has two unattractive physical features.
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Dec 21, 2011 05:27
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Conduit for Sale! posted:Also I think it's funny that the only justification you gave as to why you think he shouldn't like her is she has two unattractive physical features. lol you know nothing
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Dec 21, 2011 05:55
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I found Ygritte's YKNJS x 1000 quite annoying and don't miss the character. I thought maybe we hadn't heard the last from her but Jon burnt her body so I dunno, perhaps she'll come back in ghost form?
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Dec 21, 2011 20:47
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Does anyone know where the "Tower of Joy" appellation comes from? It's labeled as such in the ADWD maps, but the term was in common use long before then. I watched for it in my last reread, but didn't run across the name anywhere. Is this just one of those fan nickname becoming canon situations, or did I miss a reference somewhere?
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Dec 21, 2011 21:43
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cemaphonic posted:Does anyone know where the "Tower of Joy" appellation comes from? It's labeled as such in the ADWD maps, but the term was in common use long before then. I watched for it in my last reread, but didn't run across the name anywhere. Ned dreams about it in AGOT IIRC. That's where he fought the last of Aerys' Kingsguard to get Lyanna back, right?
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Dec 22, 2011 00:38
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DrPop posted:Ned dreams about it in AGOT IIRC. That's where he fought the last of Aerys' Kingsguard to get Lyanna back, right? Yeah, the events at the tower are referenced in several of Ned's memories in AGOT, but (unless I missed it) it's not named anything, it's just a tower, described as "long fallen" and located somewhere in the vicinity of Dorne. It's just an odd name if it started out in fandom, and people throw the term around like it should be common knowledge.
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Dec 22, 2011 02:42
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pants cat posted:I found Ygritte's YKNJS x 1000 quite annoying and don't miss the character. I thought maybe we hadn't heard the last from her but Jon burnt her body so I dunno, perhaps she'll come back in ghost form? Yeah, found them annoying as well, and her character in general. I had been hoping Jon would develop a functional romantic relationship, which may happen yet. I've read the second and third books in the series and stopped there, found the style too dry, uneventful and depressing. Martin seems to have one trick up his sleeve, which is "Shatter the reader's hopes and dreams." I'm genuinely curious why it's become such a huge success. Any guesses, folks?
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Dec 22, 2011 04:17
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Kemchimikemkem posted:Yeah, found them annoying as well, and her character in general. I had been hoping Jon would develop a functional romantic relationship, which may happen yet. I loving love bullshit politics and dragons
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Dec 22, 2011 06:40
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Fair enough. Me too. It just seems that at the top tier of fantasy there should be something more, something better. IMO there's nothing particularly ingenius about ASOFAI, which may not be the best of criticisms, but I expect a lot from the best of fantasy drat it.
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Dec 22, 2011 08:45
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GRRM writes really enjoyable characters. I hesitate to say "good", but all his characters, even the ones you hate, are very entertaining to read about and he's really good at getting you involved with them and their lives. His worldbuilding is first class - I didn't even realize this until I started reading another fantasy book, but within probably the first half or 2/3 of the first book you've been immersed in a very detailed and incredibly lifelike world with a rich history. And it only gets better from there. He is - or was, depending on your point of view - pretty good at pacing and plotting as well. The first 3 books never seemed to drag, at least for me, but I know some people were put off by the first 100 pages or so of the first book. I did kind of dislike how the first 3 books seemed to be "backloaded" ie the first 2/3 of each book is fairly mundane but sets up the last 1/3, which is crazy as hell. One thing I really liked is that magic and the supernatural exist in the world, but it's more or less been "lost" at the beginning of the series. So you know when someone possesses magic or something supernatural is happening that it's not just an everyday occurence, it's a big loving deal. I also like that not all the POVs are people in the military or people with a lot of power. I know most people hate them, but I really liked the POVs from like Sansa and Bran. I like seeing how events affect the bystanders and not just the main players. I also hate "badass" characters, so it's nice that the most "badass" people are horrible monsters like Gregor Clegane. And like Veg, I love bullshit politics and dragons.
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Dec 22, 2011 08:47
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Does AFFC get better after the 200 page mark? Cause that's where I've been stuck for the last couple of weeks. There is just nothing going on and it doesn't help that I was spoiled about some things a while back. Cersei is incarcerated and Jaime doesn't help her, Arya and Samwell Tarly meet up and she ends up blind because she did something she wasn't supposed to.
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Dec 22, 2011 09:11
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I also like the subdued approach to magic. In fantasy like Harry Potter it's kinda over the top, but when it's more rare, yeah, it actually feels magical. Agreed on the characters, especially of course Tyrion. One possible criticism is the villains all seem one dimensional: they're all extremely abusive. Not a lot of subtlety to their badness when they're constantly screaming the worst of insults at people and/or raping/murdering/torturing them. Most of the villains felt very interchangeable in their personalities. And one thing that irked me is what I thought was a lack of assertiveness in the main characters, who put up with a lot of poo poo. I mean, a few times there some asshat was in Jon's face, and yeah there might have been repercussions, but he should have knocked him the gently caress out. It's almost like Martin's own insecure ego was washing off on his characters who are constantly trodden on and failing (which may be a plus cause people love underdogs), except for Dani who really kicked rear end. The names bug me with their overuse of "ae" and "y." Aegon, Varys, Daenerys, Petyr Baelish, Lysa, John Arryn, Maesters, Margaery. Some names are homeruns though, Gregor Clegane.
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Dec 22, 2011 09:30
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Kemchimikemkem posted:Agreed on the characters, especially of course Tyrion. One possible criticism is the villains all seem one dimensional: they're all extremely abusive. Not a lot of subtlety to their badness when they're constantly screaming the worst of insults at people and/or raping/murdering/torturing them. Most of the villains felt very interchangeable in their personalities. I don't really know what you're talking about. Who are the "villains" you're referring to? I guess people like Gregor Clegane would fit what you're describing, but he's just an agent of the Lannisters, as are most of the people like him just agents of someone else.
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Dec 22, 2011 09:40
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I mean many of the characters in antagonistic roles gave me that impression, whether big characters or one time encounters. Sandor (not always bad though) said the same stuff as Cersei as the Bolton guy as the Frey guy. And I don't think they're all that way; some felt like they had more depth like Tywin, one cold, cold guy.
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Dec 22, 2011 09:50
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Conduit for Sale! posted:He is - or was, depending on your point of view - pretty good at pacing and plotting as well. The first 3 books never seemed to drag, at least for me, but I know some people were put off by the first 100 pages or so of the first book. I did kind of dislike how the first 3 books seemed to be "backloaded" ie the first 2/3 of each book is fairly mundane but sets up the last 1/3, which is crazy as hell. I just came here to ask this. I'm about a fifth of the way through Game of Thrones. When do things start happening? I already want to stop reading and dedicate energy to other books. There's nothing to hold interest; reading about how life sucks from a bunch of different points of view has gotten old already.
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Dec 22, 2011 17:09
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Cyphoderus posted:I just came here to ask this. I'm about a fifth of the way through Game of Thrones. When do things start happening? I already want to stop reading and dedicate energy to other books. There's nothing to hold interest; reading about how life sucks from a bunch of different points of view has gotten old already. I mean this in the least rude way possible: if you can't make it more than 200 pages into GoT without getting bored, just quit. It's not the most fast-paced book in the series but it's also far from the slowest.
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Dec 22, 2011 19:32
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I finally finished ADWD. Man GRRM, why you gotta be like that?
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Dec 22, 2011 20:04
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TheJazzMess posted:Arya and Samwell Tarly meet up and she ends up blind because she did something she wasn't supposed to.
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Dec 22, 2011 20:26
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TheJazzMess posted:Does AFFC get better after the 200 page mark? Cause that's where I've been stuck for the last couple of weeks. There is just nothing going on and it doesn't help that I was spoiled about some things a while back. Cersei is incarcerated and Jaime doesn't help her, Arya and Samwell Tarly meet up and she ends up blind because she did something she wasn't supposed to. No. And ADWD is even worse.
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Dec 22, 2011 21:36
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TheJazzMess posted:Does AFFC get better after the 200 page mark? Cause that's where I've been stuck for the last couple of weeks. There is just nothing going on and it doesn't help that I was spoiled about some things a while back. Cersei is incarcerated and Jaime doesn't help her, Arya and Samwell Tarly meet up and she ends up blind because she did something she wasn't supposed to. The latter half of AFFC is incredible.
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Dec 22, 2011 21:51
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Cyphoderus posted:I just came here to ask this. I'm about a fifth of the way through Game of Thrones. When do things start happening? I already want to stop reading and dedicate energy to other books. There's nothing to hold interest; reading about how life sucks from a bunch of different points of view has gotten old already. AGoT doesn't really start moving until the last quarter of the book, but once it does it gains enough momentum to last for about 2000 more pages. The entire first three-quarters of AGoT is table-setting, for the most part. I felt the same way you did initially, and put it down for nearly 3 years, but once I picked it up again and forced my way through it became awesome.
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Dec 22, 2011 22:14
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Handsome Wife posted:I mean this in the least rude way possible: if you can't make it more than 200 pages into GoT without getting bored, just quit. It's not the most fast-paced book in the series but it's also far from the slowest. This is stupid. Don't be stupid. The first 200 pages of every ASoIaF book are very slow (not uninteresting, just slow), AGoT being the worst. Tons of people have been bored after the first 100 pages or so, but then later came back, gave it another try and liked it. Myself included. Cyphoderus posted:I just came here to ask this. I'm about a fifth of the way through Game of Thrones. When do things start happening? I already want to stop reading and dedicate energy to other books. There's nothing to hold interest; reading about how life sucks from a bunch of different points of view has gotten old already. Like I said, every book is basically 2/3 setup for the last 1/3. Personally, I've always found the last part to be totally worth the wait, at least for the first 3 books. I'd say if you have the time and energy at least finish the first book. It's a quick read and not terribly long for a fantasy book. TheJazzMess posted:Does AFFC get better after the 200 page mark? As with everything, take what IRQ said and what Azure_Horizon said, split the difference, and you'll have something closer to the truth.
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Dec 23, 2011 01:15
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cemaphonic posted:Yeah, the events at the tower are referenced in several of Ned's memories in AGOT, but (unless I missed it) it's not named anything, it's just a tower, described as "long fallen" and located somewhere in the vicinity of Dorne. It's just an odd name if it started out in fandom, and people throw the term around like it should be common knowledge. There's a line in AGOT where Ned thinks to himself about how Rhaegar called it that Tower of Joy but Ned has only bitter memories of it.
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Dec 23, 2011 01:58
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Watch the tv show before reading book one I reckon. It lets you cotton on to ideas better but you still get pleasant wee suprises. King Renly ohholyfuck
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Dec 23, 2011 03:22
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Veg posted:Watch the tv show before reading book one I reckon. It lets you cotton on to ideas better but you still get pleasant wee suprises. I refuse to believe Renly is gay. He's the manliest of men after Stannis.
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Dec 23, 2011 06:26
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Octy posted:I refuse to believe Renly is gay. He's the manliest of men after Stannis. How is he not manly? He fucks men. None of that sleek girly feminine poo poo, he wants to gently caress a man man.
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Dec 23, 2011 06:55
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Octy posted:I refuse to believe Renly is gay. He's the manliest of men after Stannis. Gay men are manlier than straight men.
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Dec 23, 2011 08:06
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The Renly/Loras relationship always struck me as one of the more romantic ones in the series, I got a bit misty-eyed when the latter flew into complete rage and went on a homicidal rampage after the former got killed and later fought in his armor. True love.
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Dec 23, 2011 09:53
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Vivek posted:There's a line in AGOT where Ned thinks to himself about how Rhaegar called it that Tower of Joy but Ned has only bitter memories of it. Yep: "Ned had pulled the tower down afterward, and used its bloody stones to build eight cairns upon the ridge. It was said that Rhaegar had named that place the tower of joy, but for Ned it was a bitter memory." Martin, George R.R. (2003-01-01). A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One (p. 356). Bantam. Kindle Edition.
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Dec 23, 2011 19:55
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Im about 150 pages into SOS part 2. I feel sick. Robb, Caitlyn and Arya all dead? Jesus gently caress gently caress. One thing confused me, the paragraph where GRRM said ravens were picking at her face? Actual ravens or a weird way to say she was being shot in the face by more arrows?
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Dec 26, 2011 01:51
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Veg posted:Im about 150 pages into SOS part 2. Literal ravens. Also 
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Dec 26, 2011 02:11
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