Book Review: Fire and Blood BY gEORGE r.r. mARTIN
FIRE AND BLOOD by George R.R. Martin is the 754-page alternate history book for his fictional setting of Westeros. Specifically, it is a lengthy history of the Targaryen dynasty most notably known for Daenerys Stormborn on the Game of Thrones show. With the coming of House of the Dragon to HBO, I felt now was as good a time as any to start reviewing some of the non-A Song of Ice and Fire material for the setting. I don't know if The Winds of Winter is ever coming out but now seems to be the time to discuss some of the better spinoff works.
Obviously, this is not an indie novel, so I hope you'll beg forgiveness that we're reviewing it here on Epic Indie. However, sometimes you just want to take a break from it all to indulge in a massive cross-company franchise that everyone knows. It's the same logic we use to review games like The Elden Ring after everyone on the site played it.
Fire and Blood's premise is that it is a guidebook to the four-hundred-year reign of the Targaryens from Aegon the Conqueror to King Aerys the Mad. It goes into a lot more detail than the previous The World of Ice and Fire supplement but is also more focused on the dragon riding monarchs. I'm more of a Stark man than a Targaryen man so I'm a bit disappointed all the other houses get glossed over. Still, they're in Fire and Blood and there's quite a few revelations about their origins.
The biggest thing to note about the book is that it is not a novel. It is a basic description of events, characters, and happenings in the Seven Kingdoms as narrated by one of the Maesters of the Citadel. It goes into impressive detail on these events, but no one ever really sits down to have a conversation. As such, unless you are REALLY into Westeros history and a superfan of the Game of Thrones or A Song of Fire and Ice series then this book will probably not be for you.
Nevertheless, I am a Game of Thrones super fan, so this is exactly up my alley. I love hearing about all the trashy, treacherous, and craziness that is a George R.R. Martin royal court. I loved seeing each dynasty deal with their own collection of treacherous bootlickers and sordid scandals. Things like a royal princess running off to become a harlot, kinslaying, incest (a lot of incest), and the various petty wars the Targaryens fought in-between the big ones like the Dance of the Dragons or Blackfyre Rebellions.
The biggest drawback of picking this book up if you're a Game of Thrones super fan is the fact it will surely spoil the hell out of the upcoming House of the Dragon. It might also spoil the upcoming Dunk and Egg series if it ever gets made. If you don't mind knowing the future of these shows or don't intend to watch them, I strongly recommend this. But only if you are someone who truly loves Westeros and reading about history both.