"It was never wise for a ruler to eschew the trappings of power, for power itself flows in no small measure from such trappings."

— Melisandre of Asshai, A Dance With Dragons, 2011

Or as one fan called it: ‘Crouching Lion, Hidden Dragon’…

Long Post Alert!

Finally posting some general notes on aDwD which was a novel that arrived with high expectations. It is tough for fans to wait for 6 years for the next part, especially when most fantasy and urban fantasy books arrive every or every other year. (I jumped in later so I cannot say I’ve waited 6 years but still had some high expectations for heavy dragon action!). Still, GRRM delivered here, the polished writing style and the suspenseful techniques he utilized in previous books have become even more sophisticated. However, the fragmentation of the plot lines that began in A Feast for Crows deepens. Characters that appeared to truly matter are given either: no resolution or a quick and heavily contrived resolution, while secondary characters and plot lines receive a great amount of attention. At the finish line this all amounts to GRRM’s failure to leave the corner he wrote himself into. Prepare yourselves for more of the ‘miraculous resurrections’ that he already utilized in A Feast for Crows.  I would rate the novel 4 out of 5 stars but mostly because of the excellent suspenseful style and solid character building.

**Warning: heavy spoilerage included in the following review**

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"The more you give a king, the more he wants. We are walking on a bridge of ice with an abyss on either side. Pleasing one king is difficult enough. Pleasing two is hardly possible."

— Lord Snow, A Dance With Dragons, 2011