Feast for Crows Book Review

FEAST your eyes on today's Book Review!

and again, SPOILER FREE Review (just for you guys!)

So before I even begin, I'll tell you what I wish someone told me,  this book is really like Book 4: Perspective 1.   The Dance with Dragons is the second perspective.  The books both occur at about the same time, but they differ in the perspectives of the characters who are used.

The reason I say this first is that one of the biggest complaints about this book is the poor quality of the characters.  I won't deny that accusation.  Almost all of the characters in a Feast for Crows are painful to read about.  There ARE some characters that aren't awful, but those were the ones that would have been merely decent in the last 3 books.

Also, the book has a few one or two-time characters, which is different from the other books, as in those books, you had a few characters that you read the whole way through.  I really enjoyed the fresh perspectives, but as they were only 1 or 2-time characters they were very poorly developed.  As the one of the Song of Ice and Fire's strongest suits has been its character depth, I thought this strategy took away from the quality of the book.

But moving past the characters, a Feast is also different in that it really works to develop its theme.  The main theme is... wait for it... wait...

Related to the TITLE! WOAH! 

A Feast for Crows!  The previous three books have left a lot of death and destruction and what's left is a feast for crows.  Martin uses this post-apocalyptic setting to emphasize the idea that what really matters is how you live, as the crows will treat you the same in death.  This theme is stated bluntly and frequently, but it fits well in the context and helps to make up for the lack of action.

Action in A Feast for Crows

And speaking of lack of action, this book is REALLY slow.  This is not because Martin is slipping in his writing though, rather it has more to do with the fact that there is a lot of wrap up and set up that needs to happen.  Storm of Swords was CRAZY, and in order for the Winds of Winter (Book 6) to be AWESOME, he's going to need to take some time to set it up.  That being said though, it definitely does stink to read through all the wrap up and set up...

AND WHAT ABOUT THE ENDING?! You might be wondering, as these books ALL have crazy endings! ... Right? Well... It's not too bad, but it's by far the most tame ending to a Song of Ice and Fire book.  It's interesting, but it's not the same MIND BOGGLINGLY INSANE ending that we have enjoyed in the previous three books...

ALL IN ALL

A Feast for Crows is a slow read, but it's emphasis on its theme and development of the Song of Ice and Fire's story makes it a worthwhile read.

Happy Reading (and Holidays)!

Enjoy,

Chris