Don’t worry, this post is spoiler free.
Perhaps not the next George R.R. Martin book you were hoping for, but the compendium for his A Song Of Ice and Fire series releases today. Martin excitedly reminded fans about the release on his adorably templated Livejournal, where he detailed some of what you can expect to read when you crack open the 300-page book of lore.
This one-of-a-kind coffee table book contains maps, folk lore, detailed family histories, and endless insider information dealing with the world of Westeros. Providing vividly constructed accounts of epic battles tackled by famous heroes, and their journies before becoming important figures in the Song of Ice and Fire series.
This instant must-own for A Song of Ice and Fire fans was co-written by George R.R. Martin along with Elio Garcia and Linda Antonsson – the two superfans who run Westeros.org. On top of the in-depth lore and detailed backstory that you’d expect from Martin, A World of Ice and Fire is also stuffed full of beautiful full-page art including the Iron Throne the way that George R.R. Martin initially imagined it. Mashable has hosted a great little gallery showing off some of the gorgeous artwork featured in the book.
During a reddit AMA yesterday posted in /r/asoiaf, Garcia and Antonsson revealed some interesting details about writing the compendium as well as working George R.R. Martin himself. In particular, they were actually permitted to create their own canon for the extended A Song of Ice and Fire universe, such as the name of many maesters and the stories they told. Of course being the ever perfectionist, there were several cases where bits were dropped and Martin wrote the lore himself, but it blends seamlessly throughout the series of tales.
The two even comically noted that Martin wrote several sections “with amazing rapidity.” There are many great things that George R.R. Martin is known for, but writing quickly is not one of them. Hopefully whatever spurred Martin’s increased writing speed for A World of Ice and Fire carries over as he continues to work on the next installment of the main series.
A World of Ice and Fire is available now on Amazon. The Kindle edition will run you $19.99 and the normally $50 hardcover edition is currently on sale for $29.38.
Last Updated on November 28, 2018.
