Joined in 2023 
82 
63 About this deal
Alrighty, I am going out some real heavy hitters at the end of the year. I really need to go ZEN with this one. Dragons and Cultures!!!Yes, channelizing my streams of consciousness towards these words. Fire and Blood has been aptly described as Martin’s version of The Silmarillion, providing a pseudo-scholarly review of the history of the world (or rather, an exceedingly narrow slice of the world) made famous by A Game of Thrones and its progeny. In 1970 Martin received a B.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, graduating summa cum laude. He went on to complete a M.S. in Journalism in 1971, also from Northwestern.
Voy a romper una lanza en favor de este autor y decir que este libro me parece espectacular. La enorme riqueza y grandeza de este mundo de fantasía y cómo lo exprime. Cuando salió lo criticaron por escribirlo en vez de sacar el que todos esperan. Y lo entiendo muy bien. Lean and efficient and slyly seductive and instructive . . . The text is filled with such a wealth of incident and so many colorful characters.” — LocusI remember what it felt like to sit down one day as a boy and open 'The Silmarillion.' I was holding the Bible of the Elves. It was a piece of that world. It was a text that might have been read by a scholar in Minas Tirith. It was magic. Martin has the chance to give us this now. Imagine being Samwell Tarly, sitting in the Citadel's library, opening up this ponderous and magical tome about the history of the Targaryens for the first time.
his summons. Lastly he descended upon the seat of House Doggett, reducing it to ash. The fires claimed the lives of Ser Joffrey’s father, mother, and young sister, along with their sworn swords, serving men, and chattel. As pillars of smoke rose all through the westerlands and the riverlands, Vhagar and Balerion turned south. Another Lord Hightower, counseled by another High Septon, had opened the gates of Oldtown during the Conquest, but now it seemed as if the greatest and most populous city in Westeros must surely burn. So there’s a rather eclectic bunch of characters chronicled here. And I can’t fault it whatsoever. For the three days I spent reading this I forgot the outside world existed as I learnt more about my favourite house. I loved hearing about Maegor the cruel, how he got his name and how absolutely ruthless he was towards his own family. Buffs of Westeros lore will know how he met his end; it is referenced a few times in A Game of Thrones so I’ve not bothered with a spoiler warning. But as ever with Martin’s world nothing is quite simple. His death appears straight forward, he was found with his wrists slit having died from exsanguination after cutting himself on the throne. Though this seems exceedingly suspicious; the man was a renowned warrior and tactician, he would not have gone down so easily and stupidly. Someone murdered him, no doubt, because of his tyrannical ways. His history, and that of Aegon’s original conquest, were the most interesting sections for me.I have chosen to cast aside my frustrations over the long overdue Winds of Winter and to not let it affect my rating of this book. As annoyed as I am (and as annoyed as many of you are), I urge you to read and enjoy this for what it is. That's all we can do. So happy reading! Read what you can! Who cares what people think! Life is shorter than we think! Have fun peeps!
Martin's present home is Santa Fe, New Mexico. He is a member of Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (he was South-Central Regional Director 1977-1979, and Vice President 1996-1998), and of Writers' Guild of America, West. Lord!! Have Mercy on my Soul!! A Whole Goddamn Story on the Targaryens!!I really like the cover:).I have no problem bending the knee for this one!!! WARNING: This book is NOT a novel. It is written like a history book with no dialogue, and everything is all tell and no show. With all the scope and grandeur of Gibbon’s The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Fire & Blood is the first volume of the definitive two-part history of the Targaryens, giving readers a whole new appreciation for the dynamic, often bloody, and always fascinating history of Westeros. But I’m not here to bemoan what Martin does with his free time. Strike that. I won't bemoan it any further. And at a certain level, I can’t begrudge him wanting to spend his generational wealth in the manner that pleases him most. Thus, I have done my honest best to read Fire and Blood with an open mind, and not toss it on the slag heap simply out of spite.Centuries before the events of A Game of Thrones, House Targaryen—the only family of dragonlords to survive the Doom of Valyria—took up residence on Dragonstone. Fire & Blood begins their tale with the legendary Aegon the Conqueror, creator of the Iron Throne, and goes on to recount the generations of Targaryens who fought to hold that iconic seat, all the way up to the civil war that nearly tore their dynasty apart. Please accept this book for what it is, rather than complaining about what it does not aim to be. And what exactly is it? An artefact from Westeros. It should be read not as a book Martin wrote, but one he transcribed, from the original text by Archmaester Gyldayn. It will require some work on the part of the reader. The lines have been drawn, and we are being asked to fill in the colors with our imaginations. This participatory reading is what can make history so engaging—it takes work, but the work pays off. The last part of the book is about the Regency during the minority of Aegon III after the Dance, telling the story of the rule of Cregan Stark until the last regent of the Council of Regents and Aegon III becoming of age to rule alone. This part is the most tedious, uninteresting and mostly self-indulgent. Not new, either.
Great Deal 
New Comment