a game of thrones by george r.r. martin is a book that rick had spoken highly of (or perhaps it was one of the other books in the series).

it is a pretty amazing fantasy book — a huge cast of characters, and a densely woven plot full of intrigue. each chapter is told from the point of view from a different character, and though the plot is densely woven as a whole, it takes time for some patches to actually get filled in. the back story and setting is doled out in small doses, to great effect.

i am trying very hard to not see any connection between spending most of my weekend reading this book and the film i also saw.