Which concept of the story matter most to you?

[WenchofTarth]

The characters themselves are the best part of the series to me, they are truly fascinating. It is all a great read though, the politics, history and customs of the lands being covered, all of it is amazingly well thought out.

He may not want to be compared to Tolkien as they do write different stuff but I do prefer GRRM and his work to Tolkien, the story is more interesting and the lack of black and white thinking makes the books have much more staying power with me.

[Blue-eyed crow]

So what aspect of the story interests you the most?

Characters who, by virtue of the events befalling them, have significantly transformative character arcs. Bran, Sansa, Jaime, Sandor and Arya all come to mind here. The politics between the Houses, and mysterious organizations like the Maesters, ShadowBinders, Faceless Men and the two major religions are also fascinating. The conspiracies of Illyrio and Varys - can't wait to see where they are headed.

Actually, just about everything BUT the Others and the dragons. Their impact at this point is pretty much limited to causing the wildling migration and I had expected them to be the heart of the story based on the series title.

[James Arryn]

Strategy, be it boardroom or battlefield, preferably a mixture, and the crucible of character those involve.

[Knight Of Winter]

Characters and their relationship: GRRM truly did an awesome work here

The whole "crime procedural" aspect, where several important mysteries are slowly being elaborated upon and revealed: Who are the Others? , Who are Jon's parents and how does it affect the story? , What if Faceless Mens' grand plan? etc.

As a big fan of medieval history, I'm also interested in whole setting and worldbuilding Martin has done, be it feudalistic Westeros or e.g. Braavos. World of Ice and Fire greatly helped in that regard.

I also like the military aspect of the series as well.

[Cayrouse]

The realism of the series. The lack of magic that made this series of stories so different from all other fairy tale fantasy works.

The actual emphasis on relationships and strategy between characters that existed at the beginning of the story. I've been looking for something like LOTR in which there is an obvious sense of underlying magic that used to rule the world but that it has faded. Much like the magic of the first and second ages the magic of the COTF and the Age of Heroes/ White walkers are almost gone leaving a vacuum of power for humanity to do what it does best.

Unfortunately in ASoIAF the magic is coming back which I feel undermines the core strength of it all. There will no longer be a place for shrewd Olennas, Cunning Tywins or wisecracking Littlefingers instead we are faced with the prospect of a disney story with beautiful princesses with dragons returning home.

[The Dragons Hand]

The realism of the series. The lack of magic that made this series of stories so different from all other fairy tale fantasy works.

The actual emphasis on relationships and strategy between characters that existed at the beginning of the story. I've been looking for something like LOTR in which there is an obvious sense of underlying magic that used to rule the world but that it has faded. Much like the magic of the first and second ages the magic of the COTF and the Age of Heroes/ White walkers are almost gone leaving a vacuum of power for humanity to do what it does best.

Unfortunately in ASoIAF the magic is coming back which I feel undermines the core strength of it all. There will no longer be a place for shrewd Olennas, Cunning Tywins or wisecracking Littlefingers instead we are faced with the prospect of a disney story with beautiful princesses with dragons returning home.

The magic at the end will still be minor compared to most fantasy series, G.R.R.M has said as much.