A Storm of Swords: The Illustrated Edition: The Illustrated Edition: 3 (A Song of Ice and Fire Illustrated Edition)

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it is an easy series to get addicted to. there are some problems, for sure, some of the writing occasionally can be cliched, and there is some repetition that is a little tedious, but overall, this is a character-driven series that has great scenes of action, is genuinely funny in a lot of places, and the strategies of characters are worth it. remember that as you struggle through the lyrics to "the bear and the maiden fair" for the hundredth time.

Let me use Jaime and Tyrion as my examples here: Jaime became one of my favorites: understanding where he's coming from and seeing him humbled by his experience changed him from a monster to a deeply flawed but ultimately sympathetic man. (What he did to Bran was terrible - but child's play in comparison of all the other mindf***ery GRRM gives us in this book. What he does with his sister - gross, but they are competent and consenting adults, and it's not my place to judge them).But the cow could row. Beneath her roughspun brown breeches were calves like cords of wood, and the long muscles of her arms stretched and tightened with each stroke of the oars. Even after rowing half the night, she showed no signs of tiring, which was more than could be said for his cousin Ser Cleos, laboring on the other oar. A big strong peasant wench to look at her, yet she speaks like one highborn and wears longsword and dagger. Ah, but can she use them? Jaime meant to find out, as soon as he rid himself of these fetters. George R. R. Martin is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of many novels, including those of the acclaimed series A Song of Ice and Fire-- A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast for Crows, and A Dance with Dragons--as well as related works such as Fire & Blood, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and The World of Ice & Fire, with Elio M. García, Jr., and Linda Antonsson. Other novels include Tuf Voyaging, Fevre Dream, The Armageddon Rag, Dying of the Light, Windhaven (with Lisa Tuttle), and Dreamsongs Volumes I and II. As a writer-producer, he has worked on The Twilight Zone, Beauty and the Beast, and various feature films and pilots that were never made. He lives with his lovely wife, Parris, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Con este volumen me ha quedado claro que en la Edad Media las guerras no solo se ganaban con grandes batallas o caballeros heroicos, sino también por medio de bodas; bodas, que servían de alianza para evitar los desacuerdos, las traiciones y la hambruna en general. Entre más hijos tenías, más posibilidades tenías de tener aliados. Allí, es cuando uno empieza a comprender porque los matrimonios antes eran impuestos. Con tantos riesgos a que te mataran en cualquier momento, o a que agonizaras de hambre, lo más lógico era usar el matrimonio como una herramienta para sobrevivir, y no para ser feliz. Si podías estar vivo, ¿a quién le importaba con quien te casaras o con quien se casaban tus hijos? Lo primordial era la supervivencia, y sin alianzas en ese mundo inhóspito y lleno de crueldad, lo más natural era que perecieras más pronto de lo que creyeras. Es una situación importante que nos hace recordar que las prioridades que tenemos en nuestra vida siempre son diferentes para cada época, y que, sin importar que tus descendientes piensen que eras un «animal» por cometer tales decisiones tan injustas e inmorales, lo importante es nuestro presente y la forma como intentamos adaptarnos a él. A veces vemos las situaciones siempre desde la perspectiva de la víctima, que en este caso serían los comprometidos en matrimonio, pero también es importante entender por qué se requirió la necesidad de ejecutar dichas acciones. Lo vemos con el matrimonio, con sus costumbres, la manera en que asesinaban, su constante necesidad de tener sexo, el honor, el compromiso, etc. Los personajes continúan siendo excelentes como siempre. Me gustaría extenderme en esta sección infinitamente nombrando la cantidad de conversaciones que me han sorprendido, pero sobretodo que me han hecho reír como loco. Amo el humor cruel, el sarcasmo y la ironía, por lo que leer a personajes profesionales en hacerlo es un placer total. Me parece increíble que algunos personajes que no parecían importantes, o que simplemente no me simpatizaban, resultaran ganándose mi agrado por completo. No puedo decir nombres, pero seguramente quienes hayan leído este libro lo entenderán, y quienes no lo han leído lo comprenderán si llegan a hacerlo. Debió ser súper difícil para Martin escribir estos libros. Debió serlo porque cada capítulo viene con una visión del mundo, sentimientos y pensamientos tan diferentes, que es complejo pensar en cómo una sola persona puede plasmar tantas personalidades y puntos de vista distintos sin liarla en el intento. Lo hace con tanta maestría, que en un capítulo podremos catalogar a X personaje como malvado, pero si por casualidad llegara la oportunidad de narrar la historia desde aquel ser X, entonces entenderíamos que quizás no es tan malo y que solo es un escudo que usa para sobrevivir en este maldito juego de tronos. Si lo analizamos con calma, nos percataremos de que estos personajes son como cualquier ser humano de la vida real: Muestran una cara, presentan una máscara o un escudo para protegerse, pero al estar en un lugar seguro, con sus amigos, familiares y/o con sí mismos, cambian de personalidad completamente y se muestran tal y como son. Eso hace muy especial leer estos libros. En una adaptación te podrán decir los mismos diálogos, los actores y actrices podrán interpretarlos excelentemente, pero sus pensamientos no se pueden plasmar de ninguna forma. Leer esos pensamientos, leer la forma de controlar sus emociones para preservar la vida, leer su verdadero ser, eso, sinceramente, es una puta genialidad.No. Do you deny your sex? If so, unlace those breeches and show me.” He gave her an innocent smile. “I’d ask you to open your bodice, but from the look of you that wouldn’t prove much.” i started reading this while i was re-watching the first season of the wire, which is an exercise i strongly recommend. there are so many parallels, in the way that characters operate within the parameters of "the game," and their individual codes of honor and behavior, and in the rises and falls of characters that are predicated upon such seemingly inconsequential events. the long drawn-out cause-and-effect situations, they are masterful and span seasons/books, which is such a delight to a fan. While the second book had multiple kings rising to power and fighting for their piece of the Iron Throne, this book took the story in an entirely different direction. What goes up must come down. In this epic saga full of scheming and betrayals, the power players are constantly changing. 'A Storm of Swords' completely changes the landscape of this story yet again. George Raymond Richard "R.R." Martin was born September 20, 1948, in Bayonne, New Jersey. His father was Raymond Collins Martin, a longshoreman, and his mother was Margaret Brady Martin. He has two sisters, Darleen Martin Lapinski and Janet Martin Patten.

A Storm of Swords is, in my opinion, an undisputed high point of the series so far. It expanded the story in delightful, wonderful ways. It gave it a truly epic feel. It delivered the cruel punch in the gut with the Red Wedding (excuse me as I go and cry myself to sleep) and reinforced the axiom that nobody is safe in the world GRRM created. (*) * It was heartbreaking, gut-wrenching, and unexpected. But it was necessary, even if just to remind how cruel and brutal this world is, and how little choices can have huge consequences.

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Of course, not all the viewpoint characters are created equally. Sansa Stark finally has things to do (and finally rejoins the plot; she has basically stood mute since betraying her father Eddard in A Game of Thrones), but she is still dumber than a garden gnome. Martin finally convinced me that Davos Seaworth, loyal to royal pretender Stannis Baratheon, is an important character; unfortunately, his importance does not make him interesting. Like Eddard Stark before him, Seaworth’s square, dogged sense of honor – shorn of wit or pragmatism – makes him an uninspired character. An east wind blew through his tangled hair, as soft and fragrant as Cersei’s fingers. He could hear birds singing, and feel the river moving beneath the boat as the sweep of the oars sent them toward the pale pink dawn. After so long in darkness, the world was so sweet that Jaime Lannister felt dizzy. I am alive, and drunk on sunlight. A laugh burst from his lips, sudden as a quail flushed from cover.