I joined this forum a year ago, but I've only lurked and never posted until now. If memory serves, I think I'd read through nearly to the end of the 3rd book before I saw any of the series, seasons 1 and 2 being all there were at the time. Then I finished off the rest of the books fairly quickly before season 3 came out. I'm pretty much just a casual reader of the books and a casual viewer of the series, so am somewhat in awe of the knowledge of others. I am finally re-reading all the books now, and though I know I don't really know much, I occasionally want to post because I am surprised at times by what some people have been saying in reaction to Season 5. I think the biggest thing that surprises me on these forums is seeing which characters some other fans admire and/or dislike. It makes me realise that some other fans have profoundly different values than I do.