My Favourite Book

Yes, I have to admit that I probably would have never started to read these books if it hadn't been for the excellence of the TV adaptations. I think that the sheer size of the first book in the series (about 1200 pages) is daunting enough, but when you realise that there are 7 books (and counting) it looks to be an almost insurmountable task.

 The series is based in the fictional world of Westeros, a medieval land where Knights and Lords vie for position and rank. The 'game' referred to in the title is the struggle between various protagonists for control of the 'throne' and the kingship of the lands. There are plenty of sword fights, jousts and 'tourneys' where they all display their banners and generally have a rolliking good time.

It soon becomes obvious that many of the characters are less than pleasant. Within the first few chapters we discover that one of the couples involved are actually twins, she is married to the present King and he is one of the King's knights. When they are caught 'in flagrante' at the top of a tower by a young boy, the brother just grabs the boy and throws him through the window (crippling him in the process). The poor lad is then the target of a murder attempt while he lies in his sick bed!

There are children of displaced former kings wandering in the desert, a dwarf of high birth who manage to stay alive, and in the 'game', by his wits alone (he is my one of my favourite characters), sadistic Barons, whores and stable-boys a plenty to say nothing of the Horse Lords and their ways.

So, while at first glance it seems like a more adult, sexed up version of Lord of the Rings, it is, in fact, a political thriller where the characters stab each other in the back both physically and metaphorically with alarming regularity.

And as the author is not averse to killing off swathes of the main characters, he leaves the reader totally unsure as to who might, or might not, survive the game!

For further information about the television adaptation of the books, and a treatise of the beginnings of the third season

N.B. All the images are from the HBO TV series that is broadcast on Sky Atlantic.