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)

The brogue is a bit much,,,but overall awsome.

The story is superb, the writing flawless, the narration hard to understand (at times) for someone not from the UK, but it does add character, and you get used to it after a while.

I love this series

Have been a fan since the beginning, have read all the titles multiple times, and now listen to the books read on long car rides, Roy Dotrice is now the voice I hear in my head when I read these chapters. I weep at the ending only because the story will not continue until the next book comes out and I have no idea when that will be. 😞 Nonetheless, George R.R. Martin is a master.

great book

great book i love george r r martins books will for sure keep reading them

Waiting for Winter Winds

Absolutely fantastic story can't wait for book number six can't believe how many twists and turns there are in this book

as good as book 3

Refreshing to read book 5 after book 4 which I laboured to complete. It had all my favourite characters-Tyrion, Danny and Jon whose dialogues are more entertaining than book 4 characters such as Brienne, Arya or even Cersei. Having watched the full tv series, it was pleasantly surprising that not all plots between book and the tv series were alike; there was some suspense left in the book. But it would be a big task for the writer to sync all of his plots especially Aegon's. Hopefully it is not too long a wait till the final book gets released now that book 7 is on its way. Roy Dotrice does a great job but does change character voices abruptly-hence, the 4 stars. For example, it was wierd to have Mace Tyrell- whom we all know is not a strong persona- have same voiceover as Euron Greyjoy, in the last chapter.

Exciting!

Targaryen blood is stirring and the world trembles! In the South of Westeros, a King rises and falls and is replaced. A Queen's clumsy plotting shatters her own power. In the North of Westeros, the Black Watch Commander is beset by enemies near and far. A new There Eyed Raven begins to fly. Rumors of Dragons are now accepted as real from across the Narrow Sea and East of Westeros experiences an invasion of a different sort and the Red God's vision defy interpretation by the Red Witch. Scion's of Targaryen are coming and Winter is coming!

Simply elegant.

Wonderfully spoken, he makes the characters come to life. It is difficult to sit down and read but with this APP I crave excellent story tellers.

Fantastic story, absolutely awful narration

George RR Martin has written a fantastic story. Complex characters, intricate plot, excitement, suspense, fun. Superlative! And the books maintain the same quality as the story goes along. Thank goodness Martin wrote such an awesome series , because Roy Dotrice does such an awful job with the narration in this 5th book (as well as the 4th) in the series, that it is only the plot line that keeps me going. I, like many other reviewers, wonder HOW Dotrice could have done such a great job with the first 3 books and mangle the 4th and 5th SO badly?!?! As many noted in Book 4, Aria sounds like an old crone. I didn't like that but it didn't grate on my nerves nearly as much as Daenerys in Book 5. She sounds like a little old (male) leprechaun. Beautiful, sensual, strong, sexy Daenerys! It is possibly the worst narration I have ever heard. All the characters sound male; all sound like uneducated oafs, many (even big, strong knights) sound like squeaky little wimps.

I have a sincere plea for Mr. Martin: You have two more books coming out in this series. PLEASE FIND A BETTER NARRATOR FOR THEM! I'm not sure I can stand to listen to the Mother of Dragons in her squeaky little Irish brogue much longer!

GRRM

great series love them all can't wait until TWOW comes out hope it is soon

Oh my god

tough at first to get into but oh my god. Fourth time I read it. I need more!