A Feast for Crows

A Feast for Crows picks up where A Storm of Swords leaves off, and the events run concurrently with the next book, A Dance with Dragons. As usual with the Song of Ice and Fire books, George R.R. Martin’s great use of multiple POV’s weaves a grim tale set within the tumultuous lands of Westeros and Essos.No chapters for Jon, Tyrion, and Daenerys in this one. The story follows the points of view from Cersei, Brienne, Jamie, Sansa, Arya, Asha, Sam, Littlefinger, and more. Brienne of Tarth on her search for Sansa, and Arya’s voyage to Braavos to find the Many-Faced God are some of the best chapters here. Victarion Greyjoy, younger brother of Balon Greyjoy, and Lord Captain of the Iron Fleet, has been mentioned several times throughout the series. He makes his POV debut in A Feast for Crows, and reportedly has a POV in The Winds of Winter. I hope so. This is my favorite chapter, and I'm curious about his role in the next book.A Feast for Crows can be a slow-burn at times. It is a hefty book with 753 pages, appendixes included. But don’t worry, Martin’s masterful storytelling and character development will hook you in. Characters to get invested in, only to be killed off later, is part of the charm. You know it is coming, but it still shocks you when it happens. People say this is the worst book in the series, and I think they are out of their minds. But seriously, everyone is entitled to their opinion, and I can see why, with everybody's favorite trio of Jon, Tyrion, and Daenerys, especially Tyrion for me, not leading the way. Brienne, Jamie, and Arya’s character arcs are some of the best in the entire series. All in all, a great book and a must-have for the diehard!

I had a harder time getting into this book than I did the first three in the series. I started and stopped reading it a few times over a LONG period before I finally committed to finishing it. This had me tempted to give it 4 stars instead of 5.This could be due to personal preferences. Large sections of this book focus on Greyjoy succession drama, which… I just have a harder time caring about compared to most of the other plots.But once I got over myself and truly committed to finishing it, I found myself immersed and enjoying it as much as I did the others.It’s way better than the show was by this point. I’ve even telling people that Book 3 is where you start to see the show going off the rails, but you weren’t quite aware of it yet if you hadn’t read the books.In this book, it’s on full display. The ways in which the showrunners started deviating from the books — and the degrees to which they deviated — sparked the beginning of what turned into the downfall of the show.

A Feast for Crows is likely the most divisive part of the ongoing A Song of Ice and Fire series of books. In developing the sequel to the widely loved A Storm of Swords, George R.R. Martin realized that he wouldn't be able to do the five-year time skip he originally envisioned because there was just too much plot in this deep series. However, because he wanted the fourth book to be shorter than A Storm of Swords (which was the longest book yet, an accomplishment of its own given the door-stopper length of these books), the fourth book in the series would need to be split into two more: A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons. Each needed its own complete story, though, so George R.R. Martin decided to split the plot of the books on geographic location: A Feast for Crows would follow King's Landing and the Riverlands, while A Dance with Dragons would follow the North and across the sea in Essos. This meant that each book would have different point of view characters, and many of the fan favorites ended up in A Dance with Dragons, such as Tyrion, Danaerys, and Jon. However, although some of the fan favorite characters are missing, A Feast for Crows is still definitely an entry in this amazing series, and a worthy one at that.A Feast for Crows follows directly from the end of A Storm of Swords and follows many point of view characters on the south end of Westeros as the War of the Five Kings winds down. Cersei and Jaime are dealing with the loss of their father and taking care of the kingdom, Brienne is sent through the Riverlands to search for Sansa Stark, the Iron Islands lose their king and must find a new one, and Prince Doran in Dorne is also dealing with the loss of his brother in the events of the prior book while other machinations are occurring under his nose. With the expansion to Dorne and more detail in the Iron Islands, a large amount of new point of view characters are brought into play in those areas, though most take up only one or two chapters. Other recurring characters like Cersei and Brienne are now given their own chapters as well, further developing their characters. The plot moves forward in its own way, though it is apparent that this is a middle book. There are no big twists like previous books (the big death of the first book or the Red Wedding of the third), and the plot does often feel like build-up. However, those who enjoy the characters of the series will still enjoy their arcs over the course of the book, while the latter act of the book does build up to some thrilling final chapters that set up the forward progression of the series nicely.Where A Feast for Crow proves that it is still a worthy member of the series, even if not the best, is its characters: they are still deep and wonderfully written. A vast amount of characters exist in this book, but all of them are rich and believable, from point of view characters to side characters like Robert Arryn, Genna Lannister, or Septon Meribald. The point of view characters are well-developed, often in ways that give us new insight into their characters. For example, we get a better idea of Brienne's upbringing and life back home, and we finally learn what goes on in Cersei's head as she rules the kingdom. Cersei is a highlight of the book, not just because she has the most chapters, but because we learn a new perspective on her and learn why she is the way she is, but in a way that still takes care to keep her as unlikable as ever, if not more so. Character interactions and relationships are also still strong, especially the growth of Jaime and the way his relationship with Cersei develops, or breaks, over the course of the book. The deep characters are one of the series' greatest strengths, and that doesn't change here.Another of the series' strengths is strong writing and excellent world building, and both are here. A Feast for Crows continues to have well-written dialogue. Martin is a master at crafting wonderful monologues that hit hard and scenes that close out a chapter leaving us wanting more (only to have to wait until the next chapter from that character). The prose is great as well, whether it is describing drool-inducing meals, gorgeous fashion, or imaginative locations. The world of A Song of Ice and Fire is rich in a way that takes the best cues from Tolkien, but understands what it was that made Middle-earth such a beautiful setting without just cloning Middle-earth. We get new developments about Westerosi culture, from Dorne to the Iron Islands, and even a little bit across the Narrow Sea. This cultural development also continues the intelligent themes and motifs of the series while focusing on some new ones. A Feast for Crows delves into how a medieval society treats women and the roles it puts them, religion, the mystery of magic, and the ever-present politics in ruling a kingdom ("the game of thrones").This is a hard book to rate and review, because many may still have different feelings. Mechanically, the pi...

I had read that "A Feast for Crows" is many fans' least favorite book in George R.R. Martin's epic "A Song of Ice and Fire", and I can understand why. Due to length, Martin had to split his sequel to "A Storm of Swords" into two volumes that take place at the same time. He broke them up geographically, and as a result, the stories of fan-favorite characters like Daenerys, Jon Snow, and Tyrion are left for the fifth book, "A Dance with Dragons." But there is plenty in A Feast for Crows to make it a very good read, even if it's not as shocking as "A Storm of Swords" or as climactic as "A Clash of Kings."Most of "A Feast for Crows" deals with the aftermath of Tywin Lannister's death, though at its heart this book is Cersei Lannister's tale. She's determined to rule all of Westeros as queen regent, fancying herself as a master of the "game of thrones," even greater than her late father. But her brother Jamie probably puts it best: "Their father had been as relentless and implacable as a glacier, where Cersei was all wildfire, especially when thwarted." And the novel bears this out. Cersei is a dangerous disaster, and her list of perceived enemies is long, including all of House Tyrell (with extra venom for the Queen of Thorns), her uncle Kevan, her brother Tyrion--and Jaime to some extent--the sellsword Bron, Varys the Spider, Grand Maester Pycelle, and even the High Septon. All of this makes Cersei into a fitting replacement for Joffrey as the character that readers will love to hate.The most interesting early revelation about Cersei in this book is her fixation on an old witch's prophecy: "Queen you shall be," said the witch, "until there comes another, younger and more beautiful, to cast you down . . ." Cersei's obsession over this prophecy sets up a major conflict between her and her young son Tommen's pretty new wife-to-be, Margaery Tyrell. It also leads to the novel's stunning climax--one that will leave you pining for "The Winds of Winter" to see how it all ends!While Cersei's story steals the show, Jaimie's develops in satisfying fashion as he tries to wrap up the war Robb Stark started after Ned Stark's death. Truth be told, I've found Jaimie Lannister to be one of the more likable characters in the series of late. And it's easy to forget he threw a seven-year-old Bran Stark out a window in the early chapters of the first book.Separate from the stories of Jamie and Cersei, the book follows Brienne's quest to find Sansa Stark, Arya's journey across the Narrow Sea, Sansa's time in the Eyrie after her aunt's murder, and Sam's journey to the Maesters' Citadel with Gilly and Maester Aemon after Jon orders them to leave The Wall for Aemon's safety. (As Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, Jon's fears that King Stannis' priestess, Lady Melisandre, might kill the old Targaryen to use his royal blood in one of her spells.) Arya has been one of my favorite characters in the series, but her scenes in this book are a bit of a letdown. That said, Martin is clearly setting up something big for her, but it's hard to tell where her story is leading. Sansa's tale is also a bit ho-hum, yet through it Martin reveals the purpose behind Littlefingeer's elaborate plots. In short, it looks like Littlefinger may be the true master of the "game of thrones."In addition to these tales, the novel includes two other storylines, both of which are pretty good. The first involves the Ironborn after the death of Balon Greyjoy and the struggle over who will replace him on the Seastone Chair. The second--which was totally unexpected--concerns the land of Dorne and the daughters and niece of Oberyn Martell, all of whom want vengeance against the Lannister's after Oberyn's death at King's Landing. Except the family's patriarch, Doran Martell, has very different plans.Overall, most of this book is setup for what promises to be a dramatic series of events in The Winds of Winter. No storyline is resolved, and the novel ends with a MAJOR cliffhanger. I'll admit that one of the storylines had me furious at Martin, for it seemed like he led a significant character to a senseless and overly cruel death. I was so angry, I jumped onto the internet to see if that was, if fact, this character's end. Fortunately, it may not be, and it sets up yet another cliffhanger that longs for resolution (so GRRM is totally forgiven - for now).In the end, I too ended up liking A Feast for Crows less than the first three books. But the stories involving Cersei and Jamie were so well done, it's ultimately a very good read.

Minor Spoilers!AFFC is Martin's 4th book in his Ice and Fire series. Unlike the previous 3 books though, it is only half of one complete story. Martin split the 4th book in two due to length (the other half of the intended story is the 5th book A Dance With Dragons). Instead of just chopping the book in half though, Martin separates the stories geographically. This book primarily focuses on the action at King's Landing, The Iron Islands, Dorne as well as touching on the Eyrie, Braavos and the Riverlands. So if you are looking for any action from Jon Snow, Tyrion or Dany then your going to be disappointed. Jon appears briefly in the book, but their stories aren't furthered until the next book.Its hard to pin down exactly how this book continues the story that was left off with Storm of Swords. The War of the Five Kings is almost completed with Stannis the only rebel left at this point though his ability is limited due to his lack of numbers. This book is about the realm restoring itself after the war, or the lack of stability and goodwill following the war. The primary theme I would say its about is the failure of House Lannister in controlling the kingdom and finding out whats next as the real power players in the "game of thrones" begin to make their moves.The three primary storylines are:-King's Landing: With Joffrey and Tywin dead and Tyrion in exile, Queen Regent Cersei Lannister has become the self anointed defender of the realm and uses her surviving son Tommen as a puppet to allow herself to rule the kingdom. With her father and son dead and Tyrion gone, Cersei is finally the one running the kingdom as she feels is her birthright. But she isn't her father or her brother and despite her confidence in herself, her decisions begins to make more trouble in the realm. Out of jealously to the younger queen Margaery and forgetting her families role in saving King's Landing, Cersei begins to intentionally sabotage the relationship with the Tyrell's. She'll go to whatever lengths she can to hurt Highgarden's position at King's Landing, including trying to manipulate the High Septon and the Faith to her side. But despite Cersei's belief in herself, she isn't her father's true heir.-Dorne: We first met House Martell through Oberyn Martell aka The Red Viper, who came to King's Landing in SOS on his own personal mission to discover the truth about his sister's murder during Robert's Rebellion. With him dead now, factions in Dorne begin to lobby and attempt to manipulate Oberyn's elder brother Prince Doran to retaliate against the Lannister's, including his own daughter Princess Arianne. But Doran is not his brother and is much more calculating, it appears to everyone that he is going to bend the knee to the Lannister's but does everyone know what is really going on?-The Iron Islands: In the last book we found out that Lord Balon Greyjoy, self proclaimed King of the Iron Islands, was killed by falling off a bridge and his exiled brother Euron "Crow's Eye" Greyjoy showed up the next day and claimed his seat as King. The youngest Greyjoy brother, Priest Aeron "Damphair" Greyjoy, believes that his eldest surviving brother is unfit to be King and calls a Kingsmoot (a meeting where all the Iron Lords gather to decide their King) and decides to back his other elder brother Victarion for King. Victarian hates Euron because of what happened between them years ago and its the reason Euron was exiled. He doesn't have any intention of bending the knee to the brother who ruined his life. But Victarion isn't the only Greyjoy who intends to sit in the seastone chair either; Asha Greyjoy, Balon's (presumed) only surviving child believes herself to be the true heir to the Iron Islands and doesn't plan on backing down.Smaller storylines include: Jaime Lannister going to Rivverun and trying to tie up loose ends from the war while trying to maintain his promise to Lady Stark to not bring arms against House Stark or House Tully. Brienne of Tarth searching the Riverlands for Sansa Stark. Sansa herself hiding in the Eyrie under the false name of Alayne Stone while pretending to be Littlefinger's daughter. Sam Tarly leaving the wall and being sent to Oldtown to train to become the new Maester for the Night's Watch and Arya, now in Braavos and working as a servant for the Faceless Men.You have 13 different POV characters in this book (including one prologue character) and unlike Martin's last 3 book's that is one of the most frustrating things about the book. In the previous books you had one character for each part of the story (i.e- Catelyn was the POV character dealing with the Stark Army, Tyrion was in King's Landing, Jon Snow at The Wall, Davos for Stannis army etc.) but now you have so many different POV's for each story that you have a bunch of characters that only have 1-2 POV chapters, some of which you question why they even have chapters in the first place.This problem is especially notable with the story at Dorne. You've g...