Wednesday, January 11, 2006

A Feast for Crows

Well, I squeezed it in, just under the wire. Even if it took me until 2 in the morning.

I finished A Feast for Crows last night and I have to say, I’m a little disappointed.

The story was fantastic. The characters just keep improving. I think that adding the points of view that he did really added richness to the story. Everybody has a motivation and, right or wrong, you can see how they came to it.

My disappointment comes from the fact that it took Martin this long between A Storm of Swords and A Feast for Crows and even if he finishes A Dance with Dragons within the next two years, it’s likely going to be four years after that before the next one comes out. I think that some of my favourite storylines won’t be continued for six years.

Nothing that happened in this story surprised me. I didn’t see any of it coming but I never do. On the other hand, I’ve come to understand Martin’s writing style a little more and there were no shocks.

There wasn’t a real ending to this book. I mean, in A Game of Thrones, you had Ned, A Storm of Swords had the Red Wedding and Tywin Lannister on the crapper. (I don’t really remember A Clash of Kings and its ending very well but I think there was something with Jon Snow beyond the Wall). That said, what I’ve read has made me want to read A Dance with Dragons, very much.

Now.

46 to go!

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

The fact he gives chapters from every major character's viewpoint is one reason why, for me anyway, his series kills The Wheel of Time. Anyway, I look forward to reading this latest one.

Liam J. said...

I dunno. I like Martin for what he does but everything's so goddamned cynical. Anyone who's in love is clearly an idiot and a very ignoble end is waiting just around the corner.

That much misery is rough.

I like Jordan because of the epic struggle between good and evil. Sure, the minor players are blurred but there is a definite good and a definite evil and they're going to clash.

I understand that Martin has brought realism to his stories with nobody being truly evil and everything being just a point of view. I appreciate it. I also really appreciate Jordan's storytelling. It's not as close to reality but, hey, this is fantasy.

Sean Woods said...

I'm a big fan of "shades of grey."


What I garner from this bit of conversation is that I should pick up some of Mr. Martin's novels.

Anonymous said...

I dunno', I probably prefer Martin's novels, at least in part, because aside from a few books I've read, I'm not a huge fan of the fantasy genre in general. So, I found myself becoming a little frustrated with Wheel of Time, because it seemed like a lot of things happened in that book "Just...because they happened like this! Yeah!" It fell back on fate a little too often for my liking. But, the guy CAN write, especially descriptions of scenes.

Anyway, if I ever get some time, I can polish off the book I'm currently reading, then start on Feast for Crows.

Liam J. said...

Time is for chumps.

I disagree that he falls back on fate too much.

Granted, the taveren thing allows for some cheesy escapes but I think that Jordan has resisted temptation in that and actually used it to hinder his characters as much as help them. I don't think that his story is fake in terms of causation, just in terms of GOOD and EVIL.

But that's just me.

Anonymous said...

I FINALLY had some time to read last night...curse you, Liam, and your inspiring tales of the joys of literacy!

The only other major complaint I had about the Wheel books was...it seemed like he'd write about 800 or so well-paced pages, then suddenly realize "Oh, crap, this is gettin' long!", have every major character pop up in one town, a big battle, and that's the book in the final 100 or so pages. The pacing of the endings seemed to be a little off.

And for Chrissakes, at some point, some of these people have to DIE. They've all suffered so many mortal wounds, they no longer contain any functional body organs!

Liam J. said...

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree.

I think that the buildup to his climaxes is quite good. Book 3 tended to be a little forced, with everyone ending up at the Stone of Tear all at once but I really like the way it was done.

After that, everyone's pretty much split up throughout the series.

Did you get past book 3?

Anonymous said...

Well, like I said, the BUILDUP part is done quite well...then everything just asll seems to happen in about 25 pages. Oh well.

I made it through book 4, then just gave up. It was one of only 2 times a book(or series of books) has defeated me.

Anonymous said...

Hey, if it means anything, I DID enjoy those 4 books better than my other literary defeat, Bill Clinton's horribly written piece of crap autobiography!

On another sort-of Robert Jordan note...there was a picture of George R.R. Martin in the Journal yesterday with a short interview. I was amused to notice he looks almost as hickish as Robert Jordan does. I guess, the more backwoods rube-like your fantasy author, the better his material.

Liam J. said...

Hmm... good point. I should work on my beard...

Anonymous said...

You also need one of those weird hats those guys wear. You know...they really can't be described as anything but a 'hick hat'. Oh, and overalls, too. A stalk of grass or wheat in your mouth wouldn't hurt, either.

Liam J. said...

Greg Keyes, who wrote The Briar King and The Charnel Prince is a hick. Like a God's-honest hick. And he's a good writer.

That's it, I need me a thingy of wheat.

Anonymous said...

And a banjo. That's a must.

A reasonable substitute would be a fiddle. Or a washboard. Doesn't get hickier than using a washboard for music.

Anonymous said...

Having read half of Feast for Crows, I'm diggin' it. Although, I do miss Tyrion.