Where do I start?

[Justin_B]

Hi,
A little advice please.
I've read a lot, from Eddings to Clarke and in between.
Only joined this forum recently & know nothing of GRRM.

Who would you liken him too, in terms of style and prose?

If I were to take up GRRM where do I start?
An easy introduction or plunge in headfirst?

 

[viZion]

Pretty simple, just start with the A Song of Ice and Fire series. The first book is called A Game of Thrones.

 

[biodroid]

If you search the forum, there are lots of topics on this but A Game of Thrones is the 1st book and is an excellent read.

 

[Pyan]

"Start at the beginning, go on until you get to the end, then stop."

There's really no other place to start the series...if you do, you'll be baffled by the characters and plot . Even the synopses at the start of the next ones in the series aren't a lot of help.

 

[Koopa]

Well, he can always read GRRM stand-alone titles, it is not like asoiaf are his only works. By the way, while i haven't read Clarke, so i don't know how he writes, i should warn you that GRRM is definitely no Eddings. Far from it.

 

[Clansman]

What the bird said, Justin. Eddings is pretty fluffy and light, Martin is HUGE, dark, bloody, violent, very real (looks like a chunk out of history), and grabs you by the guts. In other words, Eddings is left far, far behind in the dust.

I loved Eddings when I was 15, and its the kind of story I would give to a someone around 12 to read to get into fantasy. Martin is a purely adult story, a much more intelligent and challenging read, which is pretty much what I demand nowadays.

You could try his Fevre Dream to see if you like his style without committing to a big series.

 

[Corn! Corn! Corn!]

Read A Game of Thrones man.

Just...read it.

 

[The Imp]

My take on GRRM

There are author's who are wonderful storytellers but can't write, and there are author who are great writers but can't tell a story. GRRM Is as close to 10 out of 10 on both counts as I have read. His stories are intricate and well crafted, with multiple storylines happening simultaneously, sometimes dovetailing with each other, other times not. His prose is rich and there's a lot of it. When a character walks into a room you know what that room looks like, who is in it, what it's decorated with, etc. His characters are more than just words on a page. They are as alive as any fictional characters could be. Each chapter is written from the point of view (POV) of one of a character. While POVs are usually based on "main" characters this is not always the case. The stories are filled with twists and turns and events so surprising and shocking that you'll be hard pressed to find anything that rivals what GRRM does.

The downside? He takes forever to publish his books. We are all WAITING and WAITING for the 5th book of ASOIAF to be finished. Also, the books are VERY long. If you like fast reads, or don't have a lot of time to devote to reading don't even start ASOIAF. If you have the time and can handle waiting this is a GREAT series. A true masterpiece.

 

[ratsy]

Well spoken Imp.

I don't mind the wait I suppose. It gives me a chance to do a reread since I have only read them once!!

Best books I have ever read...And to fill in the time between his books I recommend Robin Hobb. Who is a great author and pushes them out every year!

 

[viZion]

You could try his Fevre Dream to see if you like his style without committing to a big series.

I'd recommend not doing this. The ASOIAF series is by far his strongest work. I liked Fevre Dream but it wouldn't inspire me to read more of his work if I hadn't read ASOIAF first.

I've got a better idea. How about reading The Hedge Knight first? That's only about 70(?) pages long and is easily as good as the rest of the series. It'll serve as a great example of what the main series is about and how it's presented. There's plenty of gritty realism to go around in that 70(?) pages. If you like it, then head directly for A Game of Thrones.

The only minor problem might be actually finding The Hedge Knight. However, I was able to find several copies of Dreamsongs Vol. II in my local library if not my local bookstore.

 

[Ursa major]

I've got Dreamsongs (Book Two) on loan from the library - I live in the UK - and can thoroughly recommend it, based on what I've read so far. As well as examples of Fantasy and SF, there are some interesting essays.

 

[Koopa]

A stand-alone book that i liked from GRRM is Windhaven (co-written with someone). I recall the book being more adult then Eddings, but having a 'good' ending. Though some might say that some of the things that happen to the main characters are somewhat sad.

 

[J-Sun]

A stand-alone book that i liked from GRRM is Windhaven (co-written with someone).

Lisa Tuttle.

I'm kind of weird in that I don't pay much attention to fantasy and think of Martin mainly as a short-form science fiction author. So you could always get one of his several collections that would quickly familiarize you with much of his style and range - though I don't know what he's like these days and how much his short fiction relates to that.

 

[TK-421]

Welcome JustinBentley and thanks for the interest in GRRM. The more people we can corrupt the better. Just kidding of course.

I agree 100% with The Imp's assessment. He is by far the best FANTASY (sorry J-Sun but GRRM is mainly known for his fantasy and not SF work) authors I have ever read. Many would argue that his work borders on straight fiction if its wasn't for the few fantastic elements in it. He does have some and thus qualifies him for the category of a fantasy author but they are certainly not as prevalent in comparison to an author like Erickson.

The POV format works so well for his type of storytelling. Yes, there are alot of characters to follow but the richness of the plot and subplots is outstanding. Go with A Game of Thrones and don't give up until you get to the end. It just keeps getting better beyond that.

 

[Barristan's Squire]

leave it to The Imp to word it perfectly.

There is however another downside to reading GRRM.

I call it "the comfy chair issue"

If you go to buy a chair and sit first in the most comfy and best chair in the place.
No other chair compares and no other chair will do.
So you either Drop the $1500 for the chair or you go home.

(worked a place that sold furniture once.. I didn't buy the chair. )

in other words. I have yet to find an author that fills the void.
I am CHAIRLESS.
well .. I take that back.. I am in my old reliable chair..
ZELANZY. good chair.

 

[Hilarious Joke]

If GRRM's A Song of Ice and Fire series is a chair, it's one of those awesome leather ones that massages all over, even your legs!

 

[Wiggum]

Allow me to write a chair allegory.

Since I haven't been all that active in the forum lately.

GRRM's SoIaF, has nothing to do with a chair.

I admit, poor allegory, oh well.

It does, however, have to do with your comfy pillow that you find something sharp therein.

Happily laying, head comfortably askew, with the proper cushion under the cabasa.

Then you turn your head in an unfortunate angle, and something tries to stab you through the temple.

 

[Ursa major]

Surely ASoIaF is a couch, as in so far so good....







(And sorry for the thread-hijacking. )

 

[Clansman]

Argh! I'm bear-ly groaning!

Wiggum's allegory is bang on. Stabbed in the temple, aye. While reading this series, I so often hopped out of my reading chair, FURIOUS at what Martin had just done to someone to whom I had become rather attached.

I even feel sorry for the bad guys sometimes. No one is safe.

 

[soulsinging]

Argh! I'm bear-ly groaning!

Wiggum's allegory is bang on. Stabbed in the temple, aye. While reading this series, I so often hopped out of my reading chair, FURIOUS at what Martin had just done to someone to whom I had become rather attached.

I even feel sorry for the bad guys sometimes. No one is safe.

I was going to add that one needs to be careful about spoilers. During one or two of my more discouraging moments I read a few things online to see where things were going and whether or not I wanted to stick with it. I did decide to do so and loved CoK and SoS... but I can't help wishing I'd had a little patience and restraint. I can't imagine the kind of reaction a certain development in SoS would have been if one was totally caught off guard by it!