Book Review: A Feast for Crows

"A Feast for Crows", the fourth installment in George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" book trilogy, takes up the challenge of transitioning the narrative from "A Storm of Swords". Readers were left off at the end of the War of the Five Kings, which had drawn havoc to all of Westeros. Throughout the course of this new story, attempts are made to unify the country, but as some relationships are mended- others are torn, and the tale of Westeros continues to grow ever more colorful with Martin's next installment.

The narrative focuses mainly on the happenings of central Westeros, with exclusions to Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen's plotlines (which are saved for the next novel.) Cersei Lannister's youngest son, Tommen Baratheon, now sits atop the Iron Throne, and takes guidance from his family members. Cersei and her children mourn the death of Joffrey and Tywin, whose demise is believed to be at the hands of the family Dwarf, Tyrion. However, even as Cersei attempts to make rational decisions, it becomes clear that her mind is clouded with vengeance.

In light of the fact that Martin killed off a number of main characters in his last novel, he pulls his readers into new storylines such as those with Brienne of Tarth as well as characters in Dorne and the Iron Islands. Arya Stark explores a new story arc in Bravos and all across the realm, religion emerges to have an even bigger impact on the plot. Overall, Martin does a fantastic job of bringing up new plot points and transitioning the trilogy into its next narrative.

I began reading this book immediately after the last, and while it’s true that it isn’t nearly as eventful as A Storm of Swords, the plot is equally as engaging. Players in the game of thrones continue to make political powerplays and hidden sabotages, all the while grounding their feet to climb the ladder of power.

One complaint I have with this novel is that its slow pace contrasts poorly with that of the last installment. Readers were left with suspense and eager anticipation for A Feast for Crows, and while they weren’t entirely disappointed, I felt that the beginnings of this book missed a few major fan expectations. This, in part, is due to the fact that there is a 5-year jump from A Storm of Swords to A Feast for Crows. Of course, some details are clearly left out over such a large gap.

If you decide not to continue with this series, I would recommend trying J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, as it makes up for some of the imperfections with Martin’s work. With all that having been said though, I would certainly recommend continuing on to read this book. Its slow pace may at first deter you from reading, but, from my experience, if you stick through and finish the book, you will be glad to have done so. There are so many rich story-telling devices Martin imbeds into his writing, and paired with the fantastic plot of A Song of Ice and Fire, this book makes for a tremendous read!

Grade 10