George R.R. Martin Hits a Regrettable 'Game of Thrones' Milestone Tomorrow

Tomorrow George R.R. Martin reaches an upsetting milestone: the time between A Dance with Dragons and The Winds of Winter will be longer than the span between A Game of Thrones and A Dance with Dragons. In plain terms, he has now spent as long on The Winds of Winter as he took to publish the first five novels.

The extended delay has deepened doubts among readers that the series will be finished. Martin once hoped to release The Winds of Winter before Game of Thrones Season 6, which aired more than a decade ago, and the publication history shows a clear slowdown: the first three books followed a fairly typical cadence, while A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons broadened the story and lengthened the timeline.

A key complication is the cast itself. Characters such as Aegon (Young Griff), Euron Greyjoy, House Martell, Daenerys, Cersei, Stannis, Littlefinger, Arya, Sansa, Jon and Bran all have parts to play, and many appear to be aiming for the same prize.

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