Book Review: Feast For Crows (A Song Of Ice & Fire Book #4) by George R.R. Martin

“Most have been forgotten. Most deserve to be forgotten. The heroes will always be remembered. The best. The best and the worst. And a few who were a bit of both.”

― George R.R. Martin, A Feast for Crows

The fourth book in American author George R. R. Martin's epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire, A Feast for Crows, is one of seven planned books. The book was initially released in the United Kingdom on October 17, 2005, and then in the United States on November 8, 2005. Martin and his publishers decided to divide the still unwritten manuscript for A Feast for Crows into two books due to its size. As a consequence, two books with separate casts of people are taking place at the same time, rather than the text being divided in half chronologically.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

 Bloodthirsty, treacherous and cunning, the Lannisters are in power on the Iron Throne in the name of the boy-king Tommen. The war in the Seven Kingdoms has burned itself out, but in its bitter aftermath new conflicts spark to life.

The Martells of Dorne and the Starks of Winterfell seek vengeance for their dead. Euron Crow's Eye, as black a pirate as ever raised a sail, returns from the smoking ruins of Valyria to claim the Iron Isles. From the icy north, where Others threaten the Wall, apprentice Maester Samwell Tarly brings a mysterious babe in arms to the Citadel.

Against a backdrop of incest and fratricide, alchemy and murder, victory will go to the men and women possessed of the coldest steel and the coldest hearts.

My reaction to this novel...

After reading Storm of Swords, I’m definitely looking forward to reading this novel. I instantly switched to the next book and was eager to read it. After hours of reading, I found it unfamiliar because most of the characters were new to me, and because the novel differs significantly from the TV series, I became puzzled about the majority of the book’s content.

I noted that George R.R. Martin lowered the pace of the plot in this fourth installment of A Song of Ice and Fire. He presented a lot of characters, therefore as a reader, I need to acquaint myself with those characters in order to grasp the flow of the tale. I was surprised by Lady Stoneheart, and before reading this chapter, I expected more points of view from her, but I don’t know what emotions to express since part of me was delighted and a little perplexed because of what happened to Brienne and Podrick, two of my favorite characters. And, as a fan of George R.R. Martin, I know that he has the ability to evoke a wide range of emotions in all of his readers, and I experienced this myself. He has so many surprises that even while I’m reading his works, I want to close my eyes because I’m so terrified. I can’t stand his kind of suspense, yet I adore him for it.

This novel introduced me to Princess Arianne. She quickly became one of my favorites. I like the way she thinks, and I can picture how anxious she is to get her hands on what she truly desires. Her character is powerful, which makes me wonder why she wasn’t featured in the TV series because, in my opinion, she is more essential than Prince Trystane. They should also include the scene in which she attempts to flee Dorne in order to deliver Princess Myrcella to King’s Landing. I’m not sure why they left that out, but it would do greater honor to Dorne and Princess Myrcella’s character. So I’m quite glad since I’m learning more about Game of Thrones by reading this novel.

Reading from Cersei and Jaime’s points of view was another one I adored about this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and learned a lot about Cersei, including how much she adores her kids. Although I still find her annoying, I can see how she has changed and how she will use this book set to further her bad intentions for her children and herself. She was incredibly terrible, and I wanted to know more about her horrendous deeds.

This novel was a little sluggish for me, and I observed that many of the important characters weren’t there in this installment. I’m thinking the next book will be a lot darker than this one. However, I still adore this book, and I heartily urge everyone to read the entire set because it is far better than the TV series. 

My Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐✨(3.5/5)

“Every man should lose a battle in his youth, so he does not lose a war when he is old.”

For me, this is true. It's not something to be embarrassed of to lose. In actuality, it will shape us and impart a lesson on us that not everyone will understand. Losing when we are young is OK because we will learn from it, cling onto it, and carry it with us when we are older, ensuring that we will do our best when we reach the point that we are confronting in that sort of circumstance.

“Words are like arrows. Once loosed, you cannot call them back.”

Words may be lethal. Perhaps not physically, but emotionally. Therefore we must be cautious about what we say because once we say it, we cannot undo or reverse it. They said that words are more painful than a slap on the face since the mark made by the hand may be healed with time, but the mark left by the words cannot be erased and will be felt every time that person recalls the one who said it.