Monday, 21 November 2011
I Take It Back
A while ago I complained that, on re-reading, George R R Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire was not quite as good as I remembered it, probably because I read too much Gene Wolfe. But you know what? I'm half way through A Dance with Dragons, and it's good. It's flawed in so many ways (bland prose, Dan Brown School of Chapter Endings cliffhangers, silly names, a vastly unwieldy cast of characters that makes you go "who's that again?" every single damn page) but I've not been this hooked on a book for quite a long while.
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ReplyDeleteIt's funny I agree with everything you said in that parentheses and felt exactly the same way. It's a rare read these days that can keep my drawn in that way for hundreds of pages at a time.
ReplyDeleteMartin is so frustrating, because his books are simultaneously enthralling and frustrating. He's obviously a Pygmalion figure, having fallen in love with his creation. That's why we have these long indulgent travels by his characters, to show us the world he has created. And I feel that there are so many drawn-out scenes. But then I'm reading his words and how he writes is so wonderful, I'm tearing my hear out!
ReplyDeleteYup, I could really do without all the detail about the "free cities" that we're getting in the latest book; all the interesting stuff is in Westeros. I wish he'd get to the fucking point with Daenerys so we don't have to hear about Yunkai and whatnot anymore. (I'm sincerely hoping this does happen by the end of the book - I'm on about page 600 now.)
ReplyDeleteI've read it. I'm entirely mystified regarding its cult status, and even more with the continual comparisons with Tolkien. The two writers could hardly be more different, in their styles and in their creations.
ReplyDeleteI think the reason mainstream critics compare him with Tolkien is basically because they haven't really read much fantasy. For anyone with any familiarity with the genre, the two writers are almost at opposite ends of the spectrum.
ReplyDeleteIf you like Martin but don't like the bloat, I seriously recommend looking up his sci-fi stories if you haven't already read them. The better ones that he writes once he finds his voice are really good (although a tad emo at times) and the Tuf Voyaging collection is still my favorite bit of Martin since it's hilariously funny, which Martin doesn't do as often as he should since he's good at it.
ReplyDeleteI think the comparisons with Tolkien have to do with the presence of the fantasy world, not any specific style similarities. They arrived there via different routes but they both ended up with breathing worlds.
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