A Dance with Dragons

A Dance with Dragons
A Dance with Dragons  
A Dance With Dragons US.jpg
Author(s) George R. R. Martin
Cover artist Larry Rostant
Country United States
Language English
Series A Song of Ice and Fire
Genre(s) Fantasy
Publisher Voyager Books (UK) & Bantam Spectra (USA)
Publication date July 12, 2011 (US, UK)[1][2]
Media type Print (Hardcover & Paperback)
Pages 1040 pp (US Hardcover)
ISBN ISBN 0-553-80147-3 (978-0553801477)
OCLC Number 191922936
Preceded by A Feast for Crows
Followed by The Winds of Winter (forthcoming)

A Dance with Dragons (published in 2011) is the fifth of seven planned novels in the epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire by American author George R. R. Martin.

A Dance with Dragons was originally intended to be the title of the second novel in the sequence, when Martin still envisioned the series as a trilogy. Some early US editions of A Game of Thrones (1996) list A Dance of Dragons as the forthcoming second volume in the series. The 1998 anthology Legends, which features the novella The Hedge Knight from the same universe, lists A Dance of Dragons as the fourth installment of the series. Like the previous four volumes in the Ice and Fire series, the book includes a lengthy appendix, with the volume running a total of 1,022 pages.

On March 3, 2011, publishing imprint Bantam Spectra announced that the novel would be released on July 12, 2011.[1] Martin delivered the manuscript to his editor on April 27, 2011;[3] however, as early as 2006, Martin made sample chapters available on his website[4][5][6] and at Amazon.co.uk.[7] Additionally, the German branch of Amazon.com (Amazon.de) released a reported 180 copies two weeks early by mistake.[8] The US hardcover was officially published on July 12, 2011, having gone back to press for six printings (totaling more than 650,000 copies) prior to the 1,000+ page novel being available; 298,000 copies in print, digital, and audio formats were sold that first day alone, becoming publishing giant Random House's biggest book of 2011 and a runaway bestseller. The book was the second in the series to debut at the #1 position on the New York Times bestseller list[9]. A few weeks after publication, A Dance With Dragons went on to be #1 on both Publisher's Weekly and USA Today Bestsellers lists.

Contents

Plot introduction

Set in a fictitious world reminiscent of Medieval Eurasia in which magic exists and the seasons can last for many years, A Song of Ice and Fire follows the violent dynastic struggles of an empire in turmoil. A Dance with Dragons continues the events of A Storm of Swords (2000), the third novel in the series. The first part of the book runs concurrently with that of its predecessor, A Feast for Crows (2005), while the second half gives a resolution to some of the storylines begun in A Feast for Crows.[10]

Synopsis

The War of the Five Kings in Westeros seems to be winding down. In the North, King Stannis Baratheon has installed himself at the Wall and attempts to win the support of the northmen. This is complicated by the fact that the Lannisters have installed Roose Bolton of House Bolton (loyal to the Iron Throne) as Warden of the North, and much of the west coast is under occupation by the Ironborn. On the advice of Jon Snow, Stannis seeks and receives the support of the hill clans and captures Deepwood Motte from Asha Greyjoy. He then chooses to march south to confront the Boltons at Winterfell, but his army becomes snowbound.

On the Wall itself, Jon Snow has been elected the 998th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, but the young man has enemies both in the Watch and beyond the Wall. After making a peace with the wildlings, he lets them through in large numbers to reinforce the Wall against the Others. The Red Priestess Melisandre shares many of her visions with Jon, telling him repeatedly that he has enemies in the Watch and warning him of daggers in the dark. Her prophecy comes to fruition when Jon is attacked by his Brothers and stabbed several times. The narrative closes with Jon losing consciousness.

Meanwhile, having killed his father Tywin, the dwarf Tyrion Lannister is smuggled to Pentos by Varys where he is sheltered by Magister Illyrio. Tyrion is sent south, on which journey it is revealed Varys and Illyrio have hidden the supposedly-dead prince Aegon Targaryen, with the intention of reinstating him as the rightful King of Westeros. After travelling with Aegon halfway across Essos, Tyrion is kidnapped by Jorah Mormont, who intends to deliver him to Daenerys. Later, Tyrion and Jorah are shipwrecked and sold by slavers to a Yunkish merchant as a part of a jousting dwarf grotesquerie. After reaching Meereen, Tyrion escapes in the mass confusion of the plague ravaging the Yun'kai army, and signs on with the Second Sons mercenary group and plans to switch their support to Daenerys.

In the far east, Daenerys Targaryen, believed by most to be the sole heir of House Targaryen, has conquered the city of Meereen, but struggles to maintain peace within the city and prevent military defeat at the hands of her many enemies. Daenerys marries the noble Hizdahr zo Loraq, hoping this will stop a series of insurrectionist murders and avert a planned attack by Yunkai and Volantis. The fighting pits are opened shortly after the wedding. Daenerys happens to avoid an attempt to poison her with honeyed locusts kept in her private box at the fighting pits. The games are interrupted when Daenerys' black dragon (Drogon) attacks the fighting pits. Daenerys climbs on Drogon who flies away from the chaos in the pit. Afterwards, Barristan Selmy removes Hizdahr from power when he is implicated in attempt to poison Daenerys. Having ventured across the world in a failed attempt to marry Daenerys, Quentyn Martell, Prince of Dorne, attempts to steal one of other dragons to bring back to Westeros. Instead, he suffers fatal burns and both dragons are unleashed upon the city. Meanwhile Drogon flies Daenerys to the Dothraki Sea where Dany eventually encounters the khalasar of Khal Jhaqo.

Aegon Targaryen lands in Westeros with the Golden Company, a mercenary army in order to recover the Iron Throne. Varys, still in King's Landing, steals in and murders Kevan Lannister and Grand Maester Pycelle. Revealing his support for Aegon, and that Kevan was shoring up Tommen's power base, Varys declares that with Tommen back in Cersei's control, the kingdoms of Westeros will spend their strength fighting each other while Aegon prepares to conquer the Seven Kingdoms.

Characters

The story is narrated from the point of view of 18 different characters,[11] including two minor one-off point-of-view (POV) characters featured in the prologue and epilogue.[12] All but two POV characters were identified before the book's release.

In the North:

  • Varamyr Sixskins (prologue), a skinchanger and one of the surviving wildlings north of the Wall.[13]
  • Jon Snow, the 998th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch and bastard son of Eddard Stark.
  • Bran Stark, rightful heir to his brother, the late Robb Stark. Seeking an old power beyond the Wall, believed dead by his own family.
  • Davos Seaworth, former smuggler and Hand of the King to Stannis Baratheon. Has recently learned his letters.
  • Reek, The Prince of Winterfell, The Turncloak, A Ghost in Winterfell: Theon Greyjoy, presumed-dead son of recently deceased King Balon Greyjoy of the Iron Islands, a captive of Ramsay Bolton and now tortured, starved and barely sane.
  • The Wayward Bride, The King's Prize, The Sacrifice: Asha Greyjoy, niece of King Euron Greyjoy of the Iron Islands, lately fled from the isles.
  • Lady Melisandre, a mysterious shadow-binder from Asshai and a devoted priestess to the red god R'hllor, advisor to Stannis.

In the eastern continent of Essos:

  • Daenerys Targaryen, heir to the Targaryen dynasty which ruled Westeros for 300 years until their deposition 15 years before the first novel. Self-proclaimed Queen of Westeros, she now rules the city of Meereen.
  • Tyrion Lannister, dwarf and uncle to the King Tommen of Westeros, a fugitive wanted for kinslaying and regicide. Recently fled the Seven Kingdoms.
  • The Merchant's Man, The Windblown, The Spurned Suitor, The Dragontamer: Quentyn Martell, eldest son of Prince Doran Martell of Dorne, traveling into the East on a mission for his father.
  • The Lost Lord, The Griffin Reborn: Jon Connington, one of the former Hands of the King to Aerys Targaryen and one of Prince Rhaegar's closest friends. Exiled, and falsely believed dead. His identity as a narrator was kept secret throughout the book's pre-release process.
  • The Queensguard, The Discarded Knight, The Kingbreaker, The Queen's Hand: Ser Barristan Selmy, the former Lord Commander of Robert Baratheon's Kingsguard, and the first of Daenerys's Queensguard.
  • The Iron Suitor: Victarion Greyjoy, Captain of the Iron fleet, recently gone on a quest to find Daenerys and use her for the Ironborn's own ends.
  • The Blind Girl, The Ugly Little Girl: Arya Stark, hiding in the Free City of Braavos, where she has taken on the identity of the "Cat of the Canals" and continues her training as an assassin by the House of Black and White (The Faceless Men).

In the South:

  • The Watcher: Areo Hotah, Captain of Doran Martell's guard.
  • Ser Jaime Lannister, the Kingslayer, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard; currently occupying Riverrun.
  • Cersei Lannister, the Queen Regent, currently imprisoned in a tower cell, awaiting trial.
  • Ser Kevan Lannister (epilogue), head of House Lannister in light of his brother's death, and current regent to King Tommen. His identity as a narrator was kept secret throughout the book's pre-release process.

Chapters for several POVs, which may include Sansa Stark, Samwell Tarly, Aeron Damphair, Arianne Martell, and Brienne of Tarth were written for the book, but they will instead tentatively appear in the next book, The Winds of Winter.

Map

The book includes a new map of the previously unmapped area of the Free Cities on the eastern continent (in addition to maps published in previous books).

Split in publication

According to Martin, his manuscript for the fourth novel in the series had become too large to publish in a single volume. Rather than simply split it in half and publish it as essentially "Part 1" and "Part 2," Martin decided to split the book by character and location. Published in 2005, A Feast for Crows is narrated primarily by characters in the South of the Seven Kingdoms and in the new locations of the Iron Islands and Dorne. A Dance with Dragons features characters in the North and across the narrow sea, although Jaime Lannister, Cersei Lannister, Arya Stark and Victarion and Asha Greyjoy appear in both volumes.

Approximately one-third of the published A Dance with Dragons consists of material that had been written for the pre-split A Feast for Crows, although much of this has been rewritten by Martin.[14]

In 2009, Martin confirmed that, contrary to earlier statements, Sansa Stark would not appear in A Dance with Dragons; Sansa chapters initially slated for the novel have instead been pushed back to The Winds of Winter, which is planned to be the sixth book in the series.[15] In early 2010, Martin noted that his intent for A Dance with Dragons was for the first 800 manuscript pages to cover the alternate characters in the same time span as A Feast for Crows, and that "Everything that follows is post-Feast, so that's where some of the cast from the last book start popping up again."[10] Stating that "I wanted to resolve at least a few of the cliffhangers from Feast," Martin also mentioned the possibility that some of his finished chapters might get pushed to the next novel, The Winds of Winter, depending on the length of the finished manuscript for A Dance with Dragons.[10]

Road to publication

Despite original, optimistic predictions of possible completion in late 2006, Martin finally completed the novel in April 2011, nearly five years later. During this period, Martin's blog featured sporadic updates on his progress, and in January 2008 he posted an update affirming his vigilant commitment to finishing the novel.[16] In early 2008, publisher Spectra Books (a division of Random House) announced that A Dance with Dragons would be released on September 30, 2008,[17] but Martin stated this would only be possible if he finished writing by the end of June, before his trip to Spain and Portugal;[18] he did not meet his goal.[19]

On February 19, 2009, Martin posted on his website: "I am trying to finish the book by June. I think I can do that. If I do, A Dance with Dragons will likely be published in September or October."[15] On June 22, 2009, the author expressed "guarded optimism" with respect to his progress on the novel, while still not confirming a publication date.[20] When asked in a July 2009 interview with FREE! Magazine how the book was going, Martin stated, "It is going pretty well, actually. I am hoping to finish it by September or October; that is my goal."[21] On October 6, 2009, Martin said that his working manuscript for A Dance With Dragons had just exceeded 1,100 pages of completed chapters, plus "considerably more in partials, fragments, and roughs."[22] He noted that this made the upcoming novel longer than his earlier books A Game of Thrones and A Feast for Crows, and nearly as long as A Clash of Kings.[22]

On March 2, 2010, Martin remarked that he had reached 1,311 manuscript pages, making Dance the second-longest novel in the series at that point, behind only the 1,521-page manuscript of A Storm of Swords.[23] On July 8, 2010, Martin spoke at a conference and confirmed the current length of the book to be 1,400 manuscript pages. He expressed his disappointment that he was unable to completely finish the novel by the conference, although he would not speculate how soon the book would be completed after his return home on July 11.[12] At the same conference, Martin also confirmed that he has written one Sansa, one Arya, and two Arianne chapters for the planned sixth novel, Winds of Winter, and had transferred two Cersei chapters from that book into A Dance with Dragons.[12] On August 7, 2010, Martin confirmed that he had completed eight POVs, excluding the prologue and epilogue.[24]

At the New York Comic Con on October 10, 2010, Spectra senior editor Anne Groell announced that Martin had only five chapters remaining to finish, with sections of the chapters already completed. She stated her desire to have the manuscript completed by December.[25] In a December 2010 interview with Bear Swarm, Martin stated that he almost had A Dance With Dragons completed.[26]

On March 3, 2011, the publisher announced that the novel, though at that point still not completed, would be officially published on July 12, 2011.[1][2] Martin claimed this July 2011 publication date was different from the previous publication dates mentioned, in that this was "real," as opposed to earlier "wishful thinking, boundless optimism, cockeyed dreams, [and] honest mistakes".[27] On March 12, he revealed that the unfinished manuscript had exceeded A Storm of Swords in length, making it the longest volume in the entire series.[28] On March 27, he announced that the manuscript had exceeded 1,600 pages.[29] On April 27, 2011, it was announced that Martin had completed A Dance with Dragons.[30][31] Almost a month later, on May 20, 2011, Martin further announced that after incorporating requested changes made by his book editor and her staff copy-editors, suggested final draft notes from trusted friends, and his own final "sweat" (a line-by-line reread done to tighten and eliminate any unnecessary "fat" remaining in the manuscript), that the final draft had been reduced to 1,510 pages; this made Dragons the second-longest novel, by a narrow margin, to volume three, A Storm of Swords. The novel was now ready to meet its announced July 12, 2011 release date.

On June 29, 2011, Martin announced that Amazon Germany had mistakenly released 180 copies of the novel early and requested that those who held copies not spoil the book for fans who had to wait. Several A Song of Ice and Fire websites put an embargo in place on their forums with the same intent.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c Hibberd, James (March 3, 2011). "Huge Game of Thrones news: Dance With Dragons publication date revealed! – EXCLUSIVE". http://shelf-life.ew.com/2011/03/03/dance-with-dragons-date. Retrieved March 3, 2011. 
  2. ^ a b Martin, George RR. "Good news for old blighty". Not A Blog. http://grrm.livejournal.com/198534.html. Retrieved March 4, 2011. 
  3. ^ Groell, Anne (April 27, 2011). "Yes, it IS done, Really". Suvudu. http://suvudu.com/2011/04/yes-it-is-done-really.html. Retrieved April 27, 2011. 
  4. ^ "Excerpt from A Dance with Dragons: Tyrion". Not A Blog. Archived from the original on November 7, 2006. http://web.archive.org/web/20061107150652/http://www.georgerrmartin.com/if-sample.html. Retrieved November 7, 2006. 
  5. ^ "Excerpt from A Dance with Dragons: Daenerys". Not A Blog. Archived from the original on November 28, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20071128063403/http://www.georgerrmartin.com/if-sample.html. Retrieved November 28, 2007. 
  6. ^ "Excerpt from A Dance with Dragons: Jon". Not A Blog. Archived from the original on May 1, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080501071648/http://www.georgerrmartin.com/if-sample.html. Retrieved May 1, 2008. 
  7. ^ "An extract from George R R Martin’s A Dance with Dragons: Theon". Amazon.co.uk. http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/feature.html?docId=1000194603. Retrieved March 2, 2010. 
  8. ^ a b "Amazon Screws the Pooch". Not A Blog. June 29, 2011. http://grrm.livejournal.com/224067.html. Retrieved July 11, 2011. 
  9. ^ "New York Times bestseller list". The New York Times. NYTimes.com. http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2011-07-31/overview.html. Retrieved July 24, 2011. 
  10. ^ a b c Martin, George R. R. (February 15, 2010). "Not Done Yet". Not A Blog. http://grrm.livejournal.com/133957.html. Retrieved March 12, 2010. 
  11. ^ Martin, George R. R. (June 27, 2010). "Talking About the Dance". Not a Blog. http://grrm.livejournal.com/217066.html?thread=13719018. Retrieved May 19, 2011. 
  12. ^ a b c "A Dance With Dragons: The Latest Info (inc. pub date!) - A Song of Ice and Fire". Asoiaf.westeros.org. http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/5960-a-dance-with-dragons-the-latest-info/. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  13. ^ "A Dance With Dragons: The Latest Info". Westeros.org. February 16, 2010. http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/5960-a-dance-with-dragons-the-latest-info-inc-pub-date/. Retrieved March 2, 2010. "[Martin] finally confirmed at FargoCon 2009 that Melisandre would be a POV, but there was also another POV as yet unrevealed." 
  14. ^ Patrick (July 28, 2007). "Pat's Fantasy Hotlist: NYC recap (and that little GRRM tidbit!)". Fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com. http://fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com/2007/07/nyc-recap-and-that-little-grrm-tidbit.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  15. ^ a b Martin, George R. R. (February 9, 2009). "A Dance With Dragons". Not A Blog. http://grrm.livejournal.com/74995.html. Retrieved March 2, 2010. 
  16. ^ Martin, George R. R. (January 1, 2008). "A Song of Ice and Fire Update: The Dances Goes On ... and On ... and On". Not A Blog. Archived from the original on January 6, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080106160121/http://www.georgerrmartin.com/if-update.html. Retrieved January 6, 2008. 
  17. ^ "Spectra announcement". http://www.randomhouse.com/book/108334/a-dance-with-dragons-by-george-rr-martin/9780553801477/. Retrieved March 15, 2008. 
  18. ^ "And Speaking of Subterranean". Not A Blog. http://grrm.livejournal.com/39629.html?thread=3586765#t3586765. 
  19. ^ "Made It to Europe". Not A Blog. June 25, 2008. http://grrm.livejournal.com/48068.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  20. ^ "Guarded Optimism". Not A Blog. June 22, 2009. http://grrm.livejournal.com/92848.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  21. ^ "FREE! Magazine » Interview with fiction writer George R. R. Martin". Freemagazine.fi. July 27, 2009. http://www.freemagazine.fi/interview-with-fiction-writer-george-rr-martin/. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  22. ^ a b Martin, George R. R. (October 6, 2009). "Dance, Dance, Dance". Not A Blog. http://grrm.livejournal.com/113041.html. Retrieved March 4, 2010. 
  23. ^ Martin, George R. R. (March 2, 2010). "The Green Light". Not A Blog. http://grrm.livejournal.com/137285.html. Retrieved March 4, 2010. 
  24. ^ "Dancing". Not A Blog. August 7, 2010. http://grrm.livejournal.com/171174.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  25. ^ Kelly Faircloth (October 10, 2010). "George R. R. Martin's A Dance with Dragons is really almost done!". Io9.com. http://io9.com/5660273/. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  26. ^ "Episode 136 – George R. R. Martin and A Song of Ice and Fire » The Bear Swarm! Podcast". Bearswarm.com. http://www.bearswarm.com/episode-136-george-r-r-martin-and-a-song-of-ice-and-fire. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  27. ^ "George R. R. Martin's Blog - Dragon Time - March 3, 2011". Goodreads.com. March 3, 2011. http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/1010785-dragon-time. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  28. ^ "He's STILL a king in his world". Not A Blog. March 12, 2011. http://grrm.livejournal.com/199836.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  29. ^ "KONG". Not A Blog. March 27, 2011. http://grrm.livejournal.com/204875.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  30. ^ "A Dance with Dragons is done". Tower of the Hand. http://www.towerofthehand.com/blog/2011/04/27-dance-with-dragons-is-done/index.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 
  31. ^ "Yes, it IS done. Really. « Suvudu - Science Fiction and Fantasy Books, Movies, Comics, and Games". Suvudu.com. April 27, 2011. http://suvudu.com/2011/04/yes-it-is-done-really.html. Retrieved June 30, 2011. 

External links

v · d · eA Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin
Novels
A Game of Thrones (1996) · A Clash of Kings (1998) · A Storm of Swords (2000) · A Feast for Crows (2005) · A Dance with Dragons (2011) · The Winds of Winter (forthcoming)  · A Dream of Spring (forthcoming)
Novellas
The Hedge Knight · The Sworn Sword · The Mystery Knight
Characters
TV series
Game of Thrones · Episodes · Characters · Dothraki language · Soundtrack
Other adaptations
Overview · Comic book series · Card game · Board game · Role-playing games · A Game of Thrones: Genesis · Role-playing video game
Miscellaneous
v · d · eWorks by George R. R. Martin
Novels
Other
Novellas
Night of the Vampyres · Sandkings · The Skin Trade · The Hedge Knight · The Sworn Sword · The Mystery Knight
Collections
A Song for Lya · Songs of Stars and Shadows · Sandkings · Songs the Dead Men Sing · Nightflyers · Tuf Voyaging · Portraits of His Children · Quartet · Dreamsongs: A RRetrospective
Television
The Twilight Zone · Beauty and the Beast · Doorways · Game of Thrones

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