A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1)
SynopsisPlot
Winter is coming. Such is the stern motto of House Stark, the northernmost of the fiefdoms that owe allegiance to King Robert Baratheon in far-off King’s Landing. There Eddard Stark of Winterfell rules in Robert’s name. There his family dwells in peace and comfort: his proud wife, Catelyn; his sons Robb, Brandon, and Rickon; his daughters Sansa and Arya; and his bastard son, Jon Snow. Far to the north, behind the towering Wall, lie savage Wildings and worse—unnatural things relegated to myth during the centuries-long summer, but proving all too real and all too deadly in the turning of the season. Yet a more immediate threat lurks to the south, where Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King, has died under mysterious circumstances. Now Robert is riding north to Winterfell, bringing his queen, the lovely but cold Cersei, his son, the cruel, vainglorious Prince Joffrey, and the queen’s brothers Jaime and Tyrion of the powerful and wealthy House Lannister—the first swordsman without equal, the second a dwarf whose stunted stature belies a brilliant mind. All are heading for Winterfell and a fateful encounter that will change the course of kingdoms. Meanwhile, across the Narrow Sea, Prince Viserys, heir of the fallen House Targaryen, which once ruled all of Westeros, schemes to reclaim the throne with an army of barbarian Dothraki—whose loyalty he will purchase in the only coin left to him: his beautiful yet innocent sister, Daenerys.
Story
About this book
A Game of Thrones opens George R. R. Martin's fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire. It is set in a world where seasons last years or decades, and a long summer is turning toward winter. At the centre are the Starks of Winterfell, whose lord, Eddard Stark, is called south to serve as Hand of the King after his predecessor dies in unclear circumstances. He leaves behind his wife Catelyn, their children, and his illegitimate son Jon Snow.
The novel divides its attention among several points of view. In the capital, King's Landing, Eddard enters a court shaped by the wealthy Lannisters, including Queen Cersei and her brothers Jaime and Tyrion. Far north, an ancient barrier called the Wall separates the settled kingdoms from wild country where poorly understood forces stir. Across the sea, the exiled Targaryen siblings Viserys and Daenerys plan their own claim to the throne.
Martin builds the book from rotating chapters, each anchored to one character, so events arrive filtered through one person's limited knowledge. Family loyalty, political calculation, and personal survival pull against one another, while the geography, from cold northern strongholds to open plains overseas, keeps the separate storylines distinct. Publishers Weekly named it a best book of 1996.
