36 replies to this topic

[YuvalTheVal]

Am I the only one who enjoys them? It's weird, because I do agree this book is too slow and has almost no plot at all. but the most boring chapters in it are those of brienne, arya, and sam. they're extremely boring. in the Iron Islands and Dorne, though, there are some pretty cool sub plot, like the kingsmoot and the prince who locks his entire family in order to maintain peace. I mean, that's pretty cool! don't you think?


(I'll say that I read up to page 500, so if you comment don't spoil anything behind that point )

[The Drunkard]

I didn't find the book boring, but I didn't think it was as good as ASOS (my fave). Cersei's chapters are pretty funny.

[Quentyn Baratheon]

I like them Dornish. The iron Islands stuff add even more confusion in the timeline (who would have thought).

[The Frost Wolf]

Dorne < Iron Islands

The Damphair chapters kill me, I have to stop every few pages for a break and then go back to them. He just natters on about a god that barely anyone cares about

[Death By Fire]

I like them too. Not my favorite parts, but they're certainly better than Brienne's quest we all know is not going well, Sam's boring journey and Arya's. I'm sad that I didn't like Arya's arc and Sansa's arc because I really liked their previous ones. Cersei and Jaime are the best imo. Especially Cersei. Oh, and Brienne's last two chapters are really good, all the rest bore me though.

[ebevan91]

I really enjoyed the Dorne stuff.

I didn't like the Iron Islands, too many characters I don't care about. The Dorne chapters have those characters too but not as many.

Edited by ebevan91, 28 November 2012 - 08:35 PM.

[MerGreyjoy]

I found that the Dorne chapters were the most confusing ones. I mean, we hadn't heard from Dorne pretty much at all up to this, and we had to learn all new names, remember some tales, etc.

However in the Iron Islands everyone is known, and the true important ones are the Greyjoy brothers and Asha. I loved the kingsmoot and how strong Asha is for a woman! She's my favorite character and for one, a strong intelligent woman that doesn't fall for sex or money or whatever. Her sailormen truly respect her and would go to battle with her!

[wildlingrose]

I wasn't a huge fan of the Dorne chapters, but I did like the Iron Islands.  I especially enjoyed Asha and wanted more from her.  Though by the end, Dorne and the Iron Islands are after the same "thing", so I think it will get really interesting.

[Isilud]

Dorne was mostly good, some of it was a bit boring, but not bad overall. The Iron Islands chapters are actually some of the most fun on a re-read, since a lot of interesting things can be found in them. The Damphair's overwhelming fear of iron hinges and Euron, Victarion's meeting with Euron and his hilarious outlook on life, it's all fun. I mostly want to see where Euron's going, since his character has been set up as dark and wild and dangerous and he's probably going to do some important shit in the next book.

[jvmartell]

I think that Victarion's chapters were very good, but Aeron was so boring!
But the bests chapters were Dorne's, Cersei and Jaime one's!

Edited by jvmartell, 21 January 2013 - 06:49 PM.

[Bad Hound!]

I may be the only one who likes Brienne's chapters!?

I loved the voyage to Cracklaw Point, I enjoy reading Meribald and hiw views on war, I like to see what is happening at smallfolk level in Westeros.

[green_caitlin]

No, you certainly aren't the only one. Lots of people defend Brienne's chapters in another thread in the same section (by the way, I enjoyed them, too - I like her and I love how stubbornly she defends other women, even though they look down on her and consider her a freak).
Speaking of Dorne/Iron Islands: the Dorne chapters were wonderful - women of flesh and blood, a sweet and silly knight and, above all, Doran. I also liked how strongly they contrasted with the Ironborn chapters, where everything and everyone is so cheerless and unsophisticated. In a hot and sunny land we have colourful characters, and in a bleak and grey one, mostly gloomy and humourless people.

[Foune]

Am I the only one who loves the Damphair chapters? The only one I find boring in the Iron Islands is Asha, yes I get the fact that she is trying to be a strong independant woman in a world of men but I just don't think there's anything more to make her interresting. Damphair is awesome though, a priest who is not a servant and believes in a sort of dark Valhalla where you feast in the Drowned Gods watery halls when you die. And Victorion is wicked aswell, a true ironborn who crushed anything on the battlefield, I love the battle on the ship when he has his kraken helmet.

I never found Dorne interresting at all, the characters all just seem very boring with me, except for that captain of the guard with the longaxe guy, I always forget his name.

[bede]

I enjoyed those chapters as well.  It was a pleasure to read about areas/customs/peoples of Westeros hitherto hinted at.

I also enjoyed reading Brienne's chapters and feel GRRM produced some of his most provocatively descriptive writing in the POV chapter of the landscape surrounding the Quite Isle.

[jotabe1789]

Asha was one of my favourite characters from the whole book. Not because she is strong and independent (she is), but because she overplays those traits with bravado in order to seize power... because she knows what to do with power. She is the most level headed character of the Iron Islands (admittedly, that isn't an impressive feat), and has the best political grasp.

Then Euron came and cheated her out of her queensmoot with his sorcery and tales of dragons...

[It Only Takes 500]

The Dornish chapters are great, Doran locking away the sandsnakes, he's a really interesting character, as it is he's secretive. Hotah is a boss with that axe btw

[One of Three]

For me, the Dorne and Iron Islands chapters saved the book a lot. I think with it providing new characters we've only heard mentioned before and they're having quite good plots to them made the book a lot less of a chore. I wish there was more Dorne chapters really.

[xylem]

I wasn't that keen on the Dorne chapters, but the Iron Island chapters were pretty good.  I expected more of them... mostly because I really like Asha's cockiness and I expected more of her than I ended up getting, but I was really curious about the kingmoot and that kept me going through the earlier parts of the book, especially.

[xylem]

@ Foune - no, you aren't the only one who liked the Damphair chapters.  Despite the fact that I love Asha best of the Iron-Islanders, I enjoyed seeing things through Damphair's eyes.... partly because of his crotchety way of viewing the world, and partly because his fanaticism was interesting to me.  It's kind of fascinating the way the iron-islander took the drowning ritual so literally... I found the entire iron-island group, anthropologically, interesting.... and Damphair was a really good pair of eyes through which to see their culture up close.

[Foune]

xylem, on 25 January 2013 - 07:06 PM, said:

@ Foune - no, you aren't the only one who liked the Damphair chapters.  Despite the fact that I love Asha best of the Iron-Islanders, I enjoyed seeing things through Damphair's eyes.... partly because of his crotchety way of viewing the world, and partly because his fanaticism was interesting to me.  It's kind of fascinating the way the iron-islander took the drowning ritual so literally... I found the entire iron-island group, anthropologically, interesting.... and Damphair was a really good pair of eyes through which to see their culture up close.

That perspective he sees the world as is extremely inspirational and something very new, he quickly turned to one of my most favorite characters. I kind of understand why the Iron Islanders and Damphair takes their religion and culture so seriously, without it they would just be hardened seafarers who would either live in their own desolation in the Iron Islands or being an active participant in the game of thrones, none of those options would make them interesting to me. Strip away their Drowned God and they are nothing, Aeron was so right when he said that the king of the Seastone Chair had to be a godly man, and Victorian was the perfect man to seat it, he understands the Iron Islanders way unlike Euron whom I hope will get an axe buried deep into his face by Victorian.

I never really understood Asha's faith to the Drowned God, it seems to me that she cares as much about it as Cersei cares about the Seven, she has the best political grasp and problably the one with the greatest wits if they conquer the north, but Iron Islanders are anything but politicians, they do not sow, they take what is theirs and pay the iron price for it, that is the way of the Drowned God.