Fire & Blood
(Libby/OverDrive eBook, Kindle)

*Starred Review* Martin has done it again. Delving even deeper into the already deeply explored world of the Song of Fire and Ice series (which began with A Game of Thrones , 1996), he has composed a broad, sweeping exploration of the Targaryens, one of the most prominent families of the Seven Kingdoms. Fire and Blood is a history of the only dragonriders to escape The Doom of Valyria, beginning with King Aegon I and extending to the coming-of-age of Aegon III, some 130 years later. Presented as the transcription of an archmaester's writings, this first volume of the History of House Targaryen of Westeros reads a lot like Thomas B. Costain's Plantagenet histories. Rather than a dry recitation of dates and names, the dragonriders' history is brought to life with carefully chosen facts alongside brief descriptions of conflicting sources and stories where those facts are in dispute. This leads to a beautiful weaving of the wars, marriages, deaths, dragons, and politics that shape the world Martin has created, leaving the reader feeling like this is a true history rather than a piece of fantasy. This is a masterpiece of world-building, with much attention given to intricate details about the colors of the dragons, the clothing people wore on certain memorable occasions, and how the battles they fought played out. The tangled web of intrigues is laid out clearly, noting how each succeeding generation navigated the turbulent political landscape. While not structured like a conventional novel, the book tells a coherent story, and it does not require that the reader have a familiarity with previous books in the Song of Fire and Ice series; on the other hand, the maps found in Martin's nonfiction The World of Ice and Fire (2014) are very helpful when trying to picture where events occurred. Beyond Martin's legions of fans, anyone with a taste for richly, even obsessively detailed historical fiction or fantasy about royalty will enjoy this extraordinary work. HIGH DEMAND BACKSTORY : It's not the long-awaited sequel to A Dance with Dragons (2011), but Martin fans who can get over their disappointment will be rewarded with a richer, deeper exploration of the world of Westeros and this is just volume one.--Rebecca Gerber Copyright 2018 Booklist

Martin's evocative storytelling style and gift for gripping narrative are mostly absent from this dry history of the blood-drenched Targaryens, one of the central dynasties of the land of Westeros (setting of the Song of Ice and Fire series and the HBO show Game of Thrones). Beginning with the Targaryens' fortuitous escape from the destruction of Valyria and Aegon Targaryen's subsequent conquest of Westeros, and concluding with the ascent of young King Aegon III to Westeros's Iron Throne some 130 years later, Martin gives equal weight to each member of the Targaryen family. The deliberately inbreeding Targaryens share a number of characteristics through the generations-chiefly brutality, snobbishness, and the single-minded pursuit of power-and it can be hard to keep track of who's who. Brief sections are dramatic ("the golden dragon devoured the queen in six bites") or salacious ("it aroused the princess to watch the men disporting with one another"), and there are entertaining snatches of dialogue and detailed depictions of battles, but they only last a few pages before a return to brisk summary. The conceit of the history being written by one Archmaester Gyldayn ("author" of several other works of Westerosi scholarship, most recently The Sons of the Dragon) mostly gives rise to images of unhappy Westerosi schoolchildren being forced to study this weighty textbook. Fans hungry for the next Song of Ice and Fire novel will find this volume whets, but does not satisfy, their appetites. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Fantasy master Martin (The Ice Dragon, 2014, etc.) provides backstory for the world of Westeros, extending the story of the Targaryens centuries into the past.Martin aficionados are used to eldritch epochal terms such as the Doom of Valyria and the Dance of the Dragons, here evoked as defining points in the emergence of his Targaryen dynasty of effective if often very unpleasant rulers. Over the span of 700-odd pages, he recounts the deeds of King Aegon and his two same-named successors, dragonmasters and occupiers of the Iron Throne, neither of them jobs to be taken lightly. As in his Song of Ice and Fire series, Martin's characters are somewhat larger than life but with the foibles and misgivings of humans: Aegon the first, for instance, "was counted amongst the greatest warriors of his age, yet he took no pleasure in feats of arms, and never rode in tourney or melee"and this despite wielding the "Valyrian steel blade Blackfyre" and riding "Balerion the Black Dread." It doesn't take more than a couple of dozen pages before Aegon is the lord of "all of Westeros south of the Wall" save for the thorn-in-the-side lands of Dorne, leading to a series of Dornish Wars that ends on something of a whimper, more of a skirmish against "the minor son of a minor house with a few hundred followers who shared his taste for robbery and rape." Alas, those tastes are widely shared indeed, and there aren't many role models in Martin's pagesthe third Aegon is pretty creepy on some scores, in fact, muttering that if the "smallfolk" don't love him for the food and peace he provides, then he'll serve up other diversions: "Someone once told me that the commons love nothing half so much as dancing bears." Dancing bears aside, there are plenty of fierce dragons, impaled bodies, and betrayals to keep the storyline moving along briskly.A splendid exercise in worldbuilding and a treat for Martin's legions of fans. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

*Starred Review* Martin has done it again. Delving even deeper into the already deeply explored world of the Song of Fire and Ice series (which began with A Game of Thrones?, 1996), he has composed a broad, sweeping exploration of the Targaryens, one of the most prominent families of the Seven Kingdoms. Fire and Blood is a history of the only dragonriders to escape The Doom of Valyria, beginning with King Aegon I and extending to the coming-of-age of Aegon III, some 130 years later. Presented as the transcription of an archmaester's writings, this first volume of the History of House Targaryen of Westeros reads a lot like Thomas B. Costain's Plantagenet histories. Rather than a dry recitation of dates and names, the dragonriders' history is brought to life with carefully chosen facts alongside brief descriptions of conflicting sources and stories where those facts are in dispute. This leads to a beautiful weaving of the wars, marriages, deaths, dragons, and politics that shape the world Martin has created, leaving the reader feeling like this is a true history rather than a piece of fantasy. This is a masterpiece of world-building, with much attention given to intricate details about the colors of the dragons, the clothing people wore on certain memorable occasions, and how the battles they fought played out. The tangled web of intrigues is laid out clearly, noting how each succeeding generation navigated the turbulent political landscape. While not structured like a conventional novel, the book tells a coherent story, and it does not require that the reader have a familiarity with previous books in the Song of Fire and Ice series; on the other hand, the maps found in Martin's nonfiction The World of Ice and Fire (2014) are very helpful when trying to picture where events occurred. Beyond Martin's legions of fans, anyone with a taste for richly, even obsessively detailed historical fiction or fantasy about royalty will enjoy this extraordinary work. HIGH DEMAND BACKSTORY?: It's not the long-awaited sequel to A Dance with Dragons? (2011), but Martin fans who can get over their disappointment will be rewarded with a richer, deeper exploration of the world of Westeros—and this is just volume one. Copyright 2018 Booklist Reviews.

Martin's evocative storytelling style and gift for gripping narrative are mostly absent from this dry history of the blood-drenched Targaryens, one of the central dynasties of the land of Westeros (setting of the Song of Ice and Fire series and the HBO show Game of Thrones). Beginning with the Targaryens' fortuitous escape from the destruction of Valyria and Aegon Targaryen's subsequent conquest of Westeros, and concluding with the ascent of young King Aegon III to Westeros's Iron Throne some 130 years later, Martin gives equal weight to each member of the Targaryen family. The deliberately inbreeding Targaryens share a number of characteristics through the generations—chiefly brutality, snobbishness, and the single-minded pursuit of power—and it can be hard to keep track of who's who. Brief sections are dramatic ("the golden dragon devoured the queen in six bites") or salacious ("it aroused the princess to watch the men disporting with one another"), and there are entertaining snatches of dialogue and detailed depictions of battles, but they only last a few pages before a return to brisk summary. The conceit of the history being written by one Archmaester Gyldayn ("author" of several other works of Westerosi scholarship, most recently The Sons of the Dragon) mostly gives rise to images of unhappy Westerosi schoolchildren being forced to study this weighty textbook. Fans hungry for the next Song of Ice and Fire novel will find this volume whets, but does not satisfy, their appetites. (Nov.)