Good news everyone! I actually have something to say in this review.
A Feast of Crows is the fourth book in George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire Series, which if you are not familiar with… seriously how?
This book was the turning point for me. I don’t know what changed in it. Perhaps I just took a really long time to acclimatize to Martin’s style. But this was the first book I finished and immediately wanted to pick up the next one. It was a struggle not to. It was also the book I found myself least bored while reading. I think there are a few factors as to why this is.
In this book we are beginning to see the difference between the book and the TV show start to go their separate ways. In a weird way it feels a bit like seeing a small difference in the past butterfly effect into two separate narratives.
But the real clue is in the title. Crows. The proverbial crows have come home to roost in the narrative. The wars are over and they are picking over the bones of the many corpses left in its wake. This was the first time I really felt like the title of the book really meshed with the theme of what was going on. But at the same time, crows are harbingers of bad times to come. In fact that seems to be the contrast of the book – certain individuals think they have one won, but are not paying attention to the carrion birds that have perched around them exactly because of the things they have put into play. This doesn’t get any more literal than with Cersei empowering and ignoring the effects of the sparrows – the religious order. So far the pay off here in the book for that section of the story has been much better than in the TV show.
I really should stop comparing this to the TV show.
It is really starting to become clear why people are obsessed with this series. it’s pretty damn rich, and it does drag you in.
I’ll need to start the next one soon.
Failures in Polymathy 