Scan barcode
golden_lily's review
3.0
Read This Review & More Like It At Ageless Pages Reviews
A Flight of Sorrows collects eight essays based on George R.R. Martin's ASoIaF series, written by the superfans at Tower of the Hand. TotH is my favorite ASoIaF fanpage, and I've thoroughly exhausted their archives, so I was very excited to see new theories with information up through A Dance With Dragons. Unfortunately, while most of the actual essays were well thought out and introduced some new discussion topics, the overall book felt stretched and more interested in selling me podcasts and cookbooks than whether Dany is the Stallion Who Mounts the World.
I will say Under The Bleeding Star was one of the best fan essays I’ve read. It took a much discussed topic, prophecy, and really examined it from a new perspective. I would say that chapter alone made the book worth reading. Likewise, Daggers In The Dark was well researched and added new depths to the ADWD Jon Snow debate. These two essays started the book off on a very high note and I was eager to continue on.
Unfortunately, I really didn’t like Every Case is Different, Every Case is Alike and You Win or You Sit on the Bench and I had to skip The Telltale Knight as I haven’t finished the Dunk and Egg tales yet. That really dragged my enjoyment down, especially when I was then confronted with the afterword written about the Feast of Ice and Fire cookbook, (which I own and is phenomenal, but is not thought provoking theories,) and the appendices on the Tower of the Hand website and the Podcast of Ice and Fire.
Overall, there just wasn’t enough content to pull a whole book out of. Two excellent essays, three good essays, two poor essays, and one I can’t grade are padded out with a lot of filler. I just don’t think it’s necessary to have an intro, foreword, afterword, and two appendices in a single, slim volume. For the die hard fan of ASoIaF, there are things to like here while waiting for The Winds of Winter, but I recommend ghostlovesinger's After the Feast series on Tower of the Hand first. There’s more quality and it’s free.
A Flight of Sorrows collects eight essays based on George R.R. Martin's ASoIaF series, written by the superfans at Tower of the Hand. TotH is my favorite ASoIaF fanpage, and I've thoroughly exhausted their archives, so I was very excited to see new theories with information up through A Dance With Dragons. Unfortunately, while most of the actual essays were well thought out and introduced some new discussion topics, the overall book felt stretched and more interested in selling me podcasts and cookbooks than whether Dany is the Stallion Who Mounts the World.
I will say Under The Bleeding Star was one of the best fan essays I’ve read. It took a much discussed topic, prophecy, and really examined it from a new perspective. I would say that chapter alone made the book worth reading. Likewise, Daggers In The Dark was well researched and added new depths to the ADWD Jon Snow debate. These two essays started the book off on a very high note and I was eager to continue on.
Unfortunately, I really didn’t like Every Case is Different, Every Case is Alike and You Win or You Sit on the Bench and I had to skip The Telltale Knight as I haven’t finished the Dunk and Egg tales yet. That really dragged my enjoyment down, especially when I was then confronted with the afterword written about the Feast of Ice and Fire cookbook, (which I own and is phenomenal, but is not thought provoking theories,) and the appendices on the Tower of the Hand website and the Podcast of Ice and Fire.
Overall, there just wasn’t enough content to pull a whole book out of. Two excellent essays, three good essays, two poor essays, and one I can’t grade are padded out with a lot of filler. I just don’t think it’s necessary to have an intro, foreword, afterword, and two appendices in a single, slim volume. For the die hard fan of ASoIaF, there are things to like here while waiting for The Winds of Winter, but I recommend ghostlovesinger's After the Feast series on Tower of the Hand first. There’s more quality and it’s free.
academianut's review
4.0
Some of the essays were stronger than others, but all were intriguing and a great read! Felt like a good conversation about the series - in-depth and silly and philosophical by turns.
nickhandfield's review
4.0
The Tower of the Hand, along with westeros.org, The Podcast of Ice and Fire, Not a Blog, and the Boiled Leather Audio Hour, is an amazing spot for ASOIAF fans. For years, the contributors have been writing family trees, chapter summaries, theories, and essays for us dedicated fans. Now, with the release of their first essay collection, "Tower of the Hand: A flight of Sorrows", they once again ignite the passion and imagination for the thousands of fans.
The collection contains 8 essays from prolific figureheads of the ASOIAF community, including Podcast of Ice and Fire hosts Amim Javadi and Mimi Hoshut, Stefan Sasse from Boiled Leather, and Alex and Johnny from the Tower of the Hand itself. Essay topics range from the implications of Aegon VI Targaryen to top players in the game of thrones to the parallels between the Dunk and Egg novellas and the series proper. And unlike many other essay collections, which discuss topics associated with the series (like the concepts of truth and honor), this one looks at the actual events in the books and tries to make sense of it all.
It is a highly engaging read for someone like me and other truly devoted fans, however, I could imagine more casual fans having some trouble understanding some of the things discussed. For example, the details of the Blackfyre Rebellion or the Azor Ahai prophecy often go missed by a casual reader; they could have a hard time grasping some of the theories mentioned in this book without the more advanced understanding. That in mind, this is a book for the most intense fans.
With no end in sight for the completion of "The Winds of Winter", "Tower of the Hand: A Flight of Sorrows" is a great way to make the wait bearable. During my read, I began to re-evaluate my previous assumptions and theories, as well as looking at things I had not considered. It was interesting, exciting, and fun, for it brings us one step closer to finally solving the gargantuan jigsaw puzzle that is "A Song of Ice and Fire."
The collection contains 8 essays from prolific figureheads of the ASOIAF community, including Podcast of Ice and Fire hosts Amim Javadi and Mimi Hoshut, Stefan Sasse from Boiled Leather, and Alex and Johnny from the Tower of the Hand itself. Essay topics range from the implications of Aegon VI Targaryen to top players in the game of thrones to the parallels between the Dunk and Egg novellas and the series proper. And unlike many other essay collections, which discuss topics associated with the series (like the concepts of truth and honor), this one looks at the actual events in the books and tries to make sense of it all.
It is a highly engaging read for someone like me and other truly devoted fans, however, I could imagine more casual fans having some trouble understanding some of the things discussed. For example, the details of the Blackfyre Rebellion or the Azor Ahai prophecy often go missed by a casual reader; they could have a hard time grasping some of the theories mentioned in this book without the more advanced understanding. That in mind, this is a book for the most intense fans.
With no end in sight for the completion of "The Winds of Winter", "Tower of the Hand: A Flight of Sorrows" is a great way to make the wait bearable. During my read, I began to re-evaluate my previous assumptions and theories, as well as looking at things I had not considered. It was interesting, exciting, and fun, for it brings us one step closer to finally solving the gargantuan jigsaw puzzle that is "A Song of Ice and Fire."
levi's review
3.0
Mostly high-quality writing, although one essay was so bad I couldn't finish it.
The good far outweighed the bad, though, so I'd recommend this to all ASOIAF fans.
The good far outweighed the bad, though, so I'd recommend this to all ASOIAF fans.
More...