The author behind the A Game of Thrones series, George R. R. Martin, is adding a new title to the collection. The new book, The Winds of Winter, will be the sixth book to be released in the series. The other five books in the A song of Ice and Fire series include, A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, A Feast for Crows, and A Dance with Dragons. Dreams of Spring will follow The Winds of Winter, becoming the seventh book in the series.
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The new book in the series does not have an official release date yet, but many believe it will be released around October of this year. Since the fourth season of the HBO series ‘Game of Thrones’ began in April, many people and avid fans fear that the HBO series will get ahead of George’s scheduled publication dates.
Like the other books in the series, The Winds of Winter consists of 1,500 manuscript pages, making it a huge task to not only write but edit as well. Recently, George R. R. Martin released a chapter from The Winds of Winter, titled ‘Mercy’ on his website. The chapter release has many fans anxiously awaiting the new book. Unfortunately for Martin, this chapter will not hold fans over for long. Below is an excerpt from the chapter:
“She woke with a gasp, not knowing who she was, or where.
The smell of blood was heavy in her nostrils… or was that her nightmare, lingering? She had dreamed of wolves again, of running through some dark pine forest with a great pack at her hells, hard on the scent of prey.
Half-light filled the room, grey and gloomy. Shivering, she sat up in bed and ran a hand across her scalp. Stubble bristled against her palm. I need to shave before Izembaro sees. Mercy, I’m Mercy, and tonight I’ll be raped and murdered. Her true name was Mercedene, but Mercy was all anyone ever called her…
Except in dreams. She took a breath to quiet the howling in her heart, trying to remember more of what she’d dreamt, but most of it had gone already. There had been blood in it, though, and a full moon overhead, and a tree that watched her as she ran.
She had fastened the shutters back so the morning sun might wake her. But there was no sun outside the wind of Mercy’s little room, only a wall of shifting grey fog. The air had grown chilly… and a good thing, else she might have slept all day. It would be just like Mercy to sleep through her own rape.”
To continue reading the rest of the chapter, go to George R. R. Martin’s website here.