Few authors can honestly claim to have created a world so rich and detailed that it is wholeheartedly believed by the reader, but George R. R. Martin has done just that. In A Game of Thrones, he has masterfully blended the typical romance and adventure, the battle of good and evil, and monsters and magic with mystery and intrigue. Eddard Stark and his family have served for generations as the Lords and Wardens of Winterfel, a harsh and forbidding holding on the Northern frontier. They, along with the Brotherhood who man the Wall, keep watch for the evil that lurks further north in the Frozen wastes. The Starks are a serious, diligent family. Their motto, "Winter is Coming," a constant reminder of where their duty lies. But trouble doesn't always come from the direction you expect it, or does it? And it often doesn't come at you singly, but all at once.

This is a wonderful story! I enjoyed how real the land and the people became with the turn of the first page. Such characterization reminds me of Jordan, and the richness of the detail makes the story's unique history come alive. There is magic, but it is so subtle as to be even more sinister and powerful than if the author had followed the generic formula for sorcerers and sorceresses in the genre.

I want to tell you so much more about this book, but I fear I would give away too much of the plot. Suffice it to say that a kingdom's stability lies in the balance and enemies gather both within and without its borders. The Starks must do all they can to keep the kingdom safe. This was a wonderful eight hundred-and-seven page read. It may sound long, but the story carries you smoothly through to the end. There is some strong language and sex, but the author includes it to make the good guys good and the bad guys really bad.

A Game of Thrones is the first book in the A Song of Fire and Ice series. Book two, A Clash of Kings, is due out in April. The book is published by Bantam-Spectre.