Key themes
- Power, honour and the fatal gap between them
- The world as it is — not the heroic fantasy the characters imagine
- The cost of war on those who don't choose it
About this book
Noble houses scheme for an iron throne while an ancient threat stirs in the north; ruthless, intricate epic fantasy.
Published in 1996, A Game of Thrones grew from a novella Martin had begun in the 1990s. The TV adaptation made it a global phenomenon. Martin has not yet published the sixth volume of the planned seven-book series.
Discussion questions
- Ned Stark operates by a strict moral code in a world that doesn't share it. What is Martin saying through the consequences of Ned's honour — and does the novel ultimately endorse or mourn his values?
- The novel has many point-of-view characters, including several children. How does Martin use these different perspectives — and what does seeing the political world through a child's eyes achieve?
- Martin subverts fantasy genre conventions — the 'good' characters don't win, noble sacrifice doesn't pay. What is he saying about the genre he's working in?
- Westeros is a world of systemic injustice — women have almost no political agency, the smallfolk are cannon fodder. How does Martin's portrayal of this differ from simply replicating it?
- A Game of Thrones is the first volume of an unfinished series. How does reading it knowing it may never be completed affect your relationship to the novel — and to Martin's fictional world?
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