How long did it take you to finish A Game of Thrones?

[alexhurry]

and how long on average do you read each day?

I finished it in two days and read for about 4-7 hours each day.

 

[Tyranus]

Less than 30 hours.

 

[nixie]

Game of Thrones took me about 5 days reading about 2 hours a day.

On average I read between 1-2 hours a day,but when i'm not at work I can read for about 10 hours

 

[AryaUnderfoot]

Gosh, I can't remember how long it took me the first time I read it. The real issue is that life seems to get in the way when I read now. I used to stay up all night reading, read on the schoolbus, read secretly under my desk at school, read during meals, etc. Now that I'm in the "real world" it's interfering with my reading time!

I usually read between one to two hundred pages an hour, depending on how good the writing is and how easily it flows.

 

[Direwolf]

Well, between books, periodicals, and various computer screens, I'm pretty much reading constantly; most of the day anyways. As for the amount of time I spend with works of fiction... that varies considerably from week to week, and month to month.

As for the GRRM novels, I don't think I read quite as fast as many of the rest of you. I like savoring each moment. But I just recently reread the series, and I think the three books took about a week each. I seemed to sacrifice more and more sleep with each passing day. Until the end, that is, and then the withdrawal symptoms started to kick in. This forum has been kind of like a support group, in fact, easing the transition back into normal life. Thanks, everybody!

 

[Jay]

When I first read it (which was some years ago), 3-4 hours with cigarette breaks- probably faster now wince I dont smoke anymore

Who would have known it was going to change the epic fantasy landscape!

 

[nixie]

When I first read it (which was some years ago), 3-4 hours with cigarette breaks- probably faster now wince I dont smoke anymore

Who would have known it was going to change the epic fantasy landscape!

Why would you need cigarette breaks? Should have just kept an ashtray at the side of you

 

[Jay]

Why would you need cigarette breaks? Should have just kept an ashtray at the side of you

I don't smoke whiel I read, it's a great way to ruin a book/quicken deteriation. Plus if Ihappen to be indoors I don't smoke in my home, the smell is absolutely unbearable.

 

[Culhwch]

I usually read between one to two hundred pages an hour, depending on how good the writing is and how easily it flows.

Seriously? Two hundred pages an hour? Are you a speed reader? If this is true I'm very much in awe...

Prob took me two-three days first time through AGoT, shorter of ACoK, slightly longer for ASoS. But this was when I was at uni, so I had plenty of leisure time. At the moment I read on the train on the way to work, about half an hour each way, and then maybe another half-hour to an hour at night. But it really depends what I am reading. If it's something good, I read more, if I'm not to into it, it can be a trial and take me forever. So it varies. But Martin I can always sit down to and lose hours at a time - Wednesday morning, fo instance, rereading The Sworn Sword....

 

[AryaUnderfoot]

Seriously? Two hundred pages an hour? Are you a speed reader? If this is true I'm very much in awe...

Haha, well... my parents raised me in a home without television, in a small town. I was tearing through as many books as I could get my hands on from an early age.

"The Sworn Sword" - what's that? Where can I get it? I'm collecting as many GRRM books as I can get my hands on.

(Speaking of which, does anyone know how many Hedge Knight comics are out now? I only have the first one and I want more!)

 

[Winters_Sorrow]

There's 6 Hedge Knight comics as far as I know, Arya. All comprising 1 story, how Dunk met Egg & the death of Baelor, the Kings Hand

The Sworn Sword was a short story released by GRRM in a compilation called "Legends II"

 

[Culhwch]

I'm still in awe, Arya. I did the math (because I'm a geek). That's roughly eighteen seconds a page, sixteen words a second. Be careful, your eyes might blow out....

I wasn't much enamoured of The Sworn Sword the first time through but I quite enjoyed it on the second run. The history dotted in about the Blackfyre rebellion is great. Would love a series on this. Not gonna happen, of course, but still, I can hope. Anyone know of a published concordance or anything planned for the near future? That would be almost as good...

 

[Frey Slayer]

My jaw is still agape at the rates of speed Im seeing here. I **thought** I was a fast reader (and my wife often accuses me of skimming rather than reading ) but I cannot even begin to come close to these speeds.
Im more like Direwolf when it comes to GRRM. I often pause to savor scenes, speeches and characters. I just started aSoS again and reread Tywin & Tyrion's scene near the beginning several times just to enjoy it, getting it "right" in my mind.

 

[Direwolf]

Im more like Direwolf when it comes to GRRM. I often pause to savor scenes, speeches and characters. I just started aSoS again and reread Tywin & Tyrion's scene near the beginning several times just to enjoy it, getting it "right" in my mind.

It's nice to know I'm not the only one. I'll often stop mid-chapter and just sit and think about what the characters are up to and why. Especially scenes with Varys and Pycelle and other complex characters who lack POV chapters. Do the rest of you not do this? Based on the insightful comments, there's obviously a lot of thought going into what you're reading, but when the heck do you find the time?

 

[LadyFel]

First time it took me two days, I literally never put it down during waking hours...Clash of Kings took me about three...

For Storm of Swords I actually cancelled all dates to go out, dropped all other unnecessary stuff and spent about 36h in bed with food and coffee next to me...

Then I slept for 18h

 

[Winters_Sorrow]

The first time I read it, I knew I was hooked.
It was the very definition of a "un-putdownable" book

I savoured it more second time round, but the first time I couldn't wait to turn the next page (although I remember staring blankly with disbelief at certain pages to make sure I'd read what I thought - *cough, cough, Ned & Joffrey, Red Wedding, cough cough* )

 

[Culhwch]

Yeah, I was the same way. That first time through was almost a frantic devouring. The next three or four or fifteen were for savouring.

 

[AryaUnderfoot]

I have to say I read a lot slower on the re-reads. Especially after joining here- I had to go very slowly just to make sure I wasn't missing any details. Thanks guys.

 

[Winters_Sorrow]

thats the best thing about these forums

somebody spots something totally obvious and you're like, damn! why didn't I see that - and you re-read to get some insight!

 

[Jay]

What I find - and it's a true testement of the quality of the series, is that people absolutely love the series and not know anything about it in regards to the foreshadowed bits or the plots beneath the surface of the story.


*Possible SPOILERS below if you haven't read the series*

Over the last few years I can't even remember how many people I recommended the series to, who loved it, without knowing the trust gist of it - then asking them there thoguths on things like origin of Jon, Tyrion, Dany's Vision, Tywin's situation, Rhaegar and Lyanna, Arya's facless man fore shadowing etc etc and it just blew their mind.

Great series and Martin deserves a lot of credit for breathing fresh life into Epic fantasy.