Thursday, May 5, 2016

Book review: A Storm of Swords is a must-read

Hello everyone. I'm back after a long absence. I've got some books to review with all of you. The first one today is A Storm of Swords.
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Story:
War continues to rage across the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. Tyron Lannister has managed to repel the forces of Stannis Baratheon, and is left with nothing after his father and nephew take all the credit. Robb Stark continues to work to avenge his father, but his actions are causing problems in the ranks of his own men. Meanwhile, beyond the Wall, Jon Snow is trying to learn the plans of Mance Rayder, the King-Beyond-The-Wall, while he ends up getting too close to the wildling Ygritte. Arya Stark is still trying to get back to her mother and brother, but ends up having to deal with outlaws and bandits who have their own plans for her. Meanwhile, across the sea, Daenerys Targaryan is building an army of slaves and sellswords to sail to Westeros to take back the Iron Throne. In amongst all this conflict there is betrayal, conspiracies, schemes, and assassinations around every corner. Every man is looking out for himself while all around them the Storm of Swords rages on.
This book took me over a month to read, but it was worth every second. George R. R. Martin is a modern-day master of fantasy, stepping on the foundation that both J. R. R. Tolkien and history itself has laid, and combined the two of them to create one of the most realistic worlds in the realm of fantasy. In Westeros things are not black and white. There is a lot of grey in there, and you can see that in the people and the reasons they give for doing what they do. Characters you care about are not safe from the ravages of war and evil, and we see that even good people do bad things. His descriptions are very detailed and he really explores the psychological processes in each of his characters. So pick up a copy and be sure to join the adventure.
Caution:
Heavily language, including multiple use of the F-word. There is explicit sex and nudity, and often you'll have to skip entire pages before you can continue again. There is a lot of gore and violence, which would probably shock your parents if they could see the images your imagination projects with this book. Some terrifying moments.
Lessons:
As soon as men get a little power, they will exercise unrighteous dominion. Be careful of who you trust. Doing what is right sometimes means telling others no, and getting scorned for it.

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