Book Review: 'A Feast For Crows'; George R.R. Martin.

Wowee, I've been so busy over Christmas and had so little time to read! Due to this I've only just finished this colossal book, but I did really enjoy it! I don't even mind that it took me so long, socialising at Christmas has to come first I'm afraid! I'm also entering this into the 'Monthly Motif' Challenge.

SOURCE: Gift
TYPE: Paperback

TITLE: A Feast For Crows
AUTHOR: George R.R. Martin
SERIES: A Song Of Ice & Fire (#4)
PUBLISHER: Harper Voyager
PAGES: 778
GENRE: Adult, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy

RATING: 4.5/5 Stars

Blurb:
The war in the Seven Kingdoms has burned itself out, but in its bitter aftermath new conflicts spark to life. The Martells of Dorne and the Starks of Winterfell see vengeance for their dead. Euron Crow's Eye, as black a pirate as ever raised a sail, returns from the smoking ruins of Valyria to claim the Iron Isles.

From the icy north, where Others threaten the Wall, apprentice Maester Samwell Tarly brings a mysterious babe in arms to the Citadel. As plots, intrigue and battle threaten to engulf Westeros, victory will go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel and the coldest hearts.

What I Liked:

• Martin's ability to hold a story together will never fail to impress me. From the very first book I have repeatedly praised the ingenious way in which he incorporates so many characters and story-lines into one plot, and it just works. Somehow I remember who everyone is, somehow he's drilled into me their respective pasts, feelings, relationships and motives for their actions.
• I loved hearing from a few newer voices! MCs like Jon Snow, Danaerys Targaryen and Tyrion Lannister remained unheard from apart from brief mentions and some of the quieter voices from the series stepped forward to take the limelight: Samwell Tarly, Brienne of Tarth, Houses Greyjoy and Martell etc. It was a lot of fun to hear from those previously unheard from and get a few fresh perspectives along the way.
• Martin's writing style remains consistently superb and exciting. It is a whole new level of maturity that can be difficult to achieve in Fantasy, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I'm always blown away by Martin's fantastic world-building and this book was no less profound in the way that it described newer locations to me. Perhaps watching the show helps, but I can see a lot of the places in my mind's eye thanks to such wonderful imagery.

What I Disliked:

• I can't say that I really disliked anything about this book, though in terms of action and plot twists, it was not nearly as arresting as the last that I read: 'A Storm Of Swords: Blood & Gold'. I know that so much happened in that installment that it makes sense for more build-up but that is the reason that I deducted half a star. A few more twists and turns would not have gone amiss, though the few that there were did produce a few audible reactions from me!

Overall Conclusion:

I don't think that I can really praise this series enough. It's been one of the most consistent that I've read and enjoyed, and I've never given any of the books a bad score. It is rather long and for those who are easily bored or distracted, it may be difficult to get through. This particular installment was a good read in terms of fresh perspectives and a whole host of new characters to read from, but lacked in plot twists compared to the previous book that I read. Still, I really did enjoy it a lot and despite it being a slow read, it was certainly worthwhile.