I just finished re-reading George R.R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones. Reading it reminded me why I like his books. The series had the potential to be one of the greatest fantasy series ever. Martin’s characters felt real and the story wasn’t a retelling of The Lord of the Rings or another hero’s tale of a boy finding hidden powers, getting the girl, and saving the world.

I curse George R.R. Martin because it is unlikely he will finish this series any time in the next decade. The first book, A Game of Thrones, came out in 1996. He followed that with A Clash of Kings in 1998, and then A Storm of Swords in 2000. But that high level of productivity on this series died after A Storm of Swords. Book 4 in the series, A Feast for Crows came out in 2005 and he has yet to finish book 5. The problem is that in 2005, when A Feast for Crows came out, he said he was about half way done with book 5. Now, 4 years later, he still hasn’t finished.

I wish Martin would focus his energies on this series and HBO version of the series. But I can only wish. 

In the mean time, I’ll have to look for more interesting books to read.