A Dance with Dragons

A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 5

By: George R.R. Martin

Narrated by: Roy Dotrice

Length: 48 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

Dubbed the American Tolkien by Time magazine, George R. R. Martin has earned international acclaim for his monumental cycle of epic fantasy. Now the number-one New York Times best-selling author delivers the fifth book in his spellbinding landmark series - as both familiar faces and surprising new forces vie for a foothold in a fragmented empire.

In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance once again - beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. In the east, Daenerys Targaryen, the last scion of House Targaryen, rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has three times 3,000 enemies, and many have set out to find her. Yet, as they gather, one young man embarks upon his own quest for the queen, with an entirely different goal in mind.

To the north lies the mammoth Wall of ice and stone - a structure only as strong as those guarding it. There, Jon Snow, 998th Lord Commander of the Nights Watch, will face his greatest challenge yet. For he has powerful foes not only within the Watch but also beyond, in the land of the creatures of ice.

And from all corners, bitter conflicts soon reignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all.

Enchanted? Check out the rest of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series.

©2011 George R.R. Martin (P)2011 Random House

Critic reviews

"Filled with vividly rendered set pieces, unexpected turnings, assorted cliffhangers and moments of appalling cruelty, A Dance with Dragons is epic fantasy as it should be written: passionate, compelling, convincingly detailed and thoroughly imagined." (The Washington Post)

"Long live George Martin...a literary dervish, enthralled by complicated characters and vivid language, and bursting with the wild vision of the very best tale tellers." (The New York Times)

"One of the best series in the history of fantasy." (Los Angeles Times)

Need more readers

If you could sum up A Dance with Dragons in three words, what would they be?

I wish they would add narrators to this story.
There are so many characters that even with his best attempt, the narrator has a hard time separating the characters and its hard to tell who is speaking. The female voices all sound like the same old hag and as they attempt to create the old English dialect for the men, it ends up sounding like some bad pirate “Arrrrrr Matey”

Would you listen to another book narrated by Roy Dotrice?

Roy does a fine job, See Above

Haven't had so much fun listening to a book since Harry Potter.

Haven't had so much fun listening to a book (all five) since Harry Potter. Exciting. Well narrated by Doltrice. Easy to follow. Fun to listen and watch series at same time. Looking forward to Book 6!

Terrible production of a good story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Recommended with reservations. If the audiobook is the best way for you to experience the story, go for it. If you have the time to read it, however, you'll enjoy it better.

Did Roy Dotrice do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

This is far from Dotrice's best work. Daenerys especially sounded nasal and annoying. Also frustrating was the lack of tonal differentiation between the spoken word and thought. This can lead the listener to think that internal dialog is being spoken and understood by other characters, completely changing the nature of the conversations.

Frankly, Dotrice made it sound as though he was bored, and would rather be elsewhere. He failed to being any life into the story this time around.

Any additional comments?

The general production quality of the book is wanting. It's frustrating enough that it's not whispersync enabled, but the audiobook chapter markers don't even align with the physical book chapters helping the reader to switch between media. I like to listen in the car, while at home or during lunch breaks I read instead, but trying to align one with the other is tiresome.This is inexcusably sloppy work on the part of the publisher.

Best book of the series so far

really enjoyed this one the 4th book was a little slow and almost lost me interest. glad I stuck through it and finished can wait for the next book. interesting how it compares to the TV show may things are different

Give me more quick!!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This is a daunting series to start but it is actually an easy listen. I am so addicted to this series that I was really sad when I started this book and a little curious to see how the author was going to wrap up all of the complex story lines in just one more book. What I found out...he wouldn't! This isn't the last book. I was very excited.

What did you like best about this story?

The characters in this story are amazing. The story lines are so complex and interesting it is hard to even realize that it is 100's of hours long if you wanted to listen to the whole series. I love the series and all the treachery and twists and turns.

Have you listened to any of Roy Dotrice’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

The narrator is excellent generally in this cries. It is a bit annoying that he changes the voices and pronunciations from one book to the next, but you can live with that easily because he is great at giving life to these characters.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I wanted to listen to this all day.

Any additional comments?

When is the next one coming out? I have been listening to the series one after another not knowing that it wasn't finished. Now I am totally addicted and am waiting in great anticipation for the next book.

spell binding

Great book, great series definitely worth the time to read. Can't wait for the next book in this series.

Really good but dragged a bit.

If you could sum up A Dance with Dragons in three words, what would they be?

I liked it.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Dance with Dragons?

When Cersei Lannister was made to walk the streets in shame.

Which scene was your favorite?

When Cersei Lannister was made to walk the streets in shame.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

no

Any additional comments?

I love the story and i cant wait for the next one! This one did drag for me a little bit but that's GRRM for ya. I don't know why everyone is complaining about how Roy Dotrice changed his pronunciation on some things. I actually liked it and thought it was an improvement.

Roy Detrice is committed

What did you love best about A Dance with Dragons?

I love this narrator! He has done most (if not all) of these audio recordings, and he is amazing! They even put him in the show as a cameo character! Great voices.

What did you like best about this story?

I love this series as a whole.. this one is decent, but I liked the first 3 4 better.

Have you listened to any of Roy Dotrice’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes! You can tell he's getting old, but still does a great job.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Shit hits the fan!

Great story as ever

Roy did a great job reading this story, however it did seem that he forgot what some of his characters sounded like from time to time. some characters were unrecognizable from earlier installments. otherwise, a very enjoyable experience.

Whats next

Cant wait for Winds of Winter and season 6 of course. wonder how it will all end