# A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin

5 Hacker News commenters recommended A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin and 4 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 4 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended for its political approach to fantasy and strong characters and themes, though the prose is uneven and the series is unfinished.

## Why people recommend it

- Books more memorable than the show (2 comments): "People will remember the Song of Ice and Fire books." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47067940)) "the books are better than the show" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47332059))

## What people warn about

- Unfinished series, uncertain completion (2 comments): "The novels are unfinished though and I hardly believe they will be completed by him" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46387761)) "I would never start a series I know it is unlikely to be completed." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46390429))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Discworld by Terry Pratchett](https://hackerapproved.com/p/discworld-series.md): 33 recommend
- [Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling](https://hackerapproved.com/p/harry-potter-series.md): 28 recommend
- [The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan](https://hackerapproved.com/p/wheel-of-time.md): 20 recommend
- [The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson](https://hackerapproved.com/p/stormlight-archive.md): 12 recommend
- [Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson](https://hackerapproved.com/p/malazan-book-of-the-fallen.md): 7 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0008118264?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780008118266) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin", https://hackerapproved.com/p/a-song-of-ice-and-fire/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).