In the many realms of modern fantasy there is only one true King, and his name is George Raymond Richard Martin.
 
With A Song of Ice and Fire, Martin has created a world on a scale almost unrivalled by any other single writer. Approaching two million words and still evolving, this genuinely epic series of novels, with its deeply interlocking narratives, finely crafted drama and enormous range of characters, is a creation of extraordinary breadth.
 
So how did a writer best known for short stories come to craft such a gigantic sequence of novels, and what is the key to their extraordinary success? What sources – historical, literary and personal – did Martin draw upon in the writing, and what inspiration did they give him?
 
The Worlds of George R.R. Martin is an in-depth bringing together of the enormous range of inspirations behind Martin’s work ­– from historical borrowings as wide-ranging as the Roman empire, the Wars of the Roses and the Mongol conquests, to diverse literary and mythological texts, and Martin’s own family experience and biography.

Tom Huddleston is an author, journalist and musician based in North London, UK. His novels include several science fiction and fantasy stories for younger readers including the eco-futuristic FloodWorld trilogy. He spent a decade on the Film desk at Time Out magazine and is now a freelance Film & TV journalist writing for, among others, The Guardian and Little White Lies.

A showcase of the huge variety of influences behind the legendary fantasy writer George R.R. Martin

Introduction

The North
The Wall
Winterfell
The Iron Islands

The Crownlands
King’s Landing
Dragonstone
The Twins

West & South
Casterly Rock 
Highgarden and the Reach
Dorne

Essos
The Free Cities
Vaes Dothrak
Slaver’s Bay and Beyond

Epilogue

Bibliography
Endnotes
Index
Picture Credits
About the Author and Acknowledgements