the winds of winter

George R.R. Martin Releases New Winds of Winter Excerpt to Remind Us All That Dorne Doesn’t Suck in the Books

For one, this guy’s still alive. Photo: HBO

Does George R.R. Martin choose his Winds of Winter preview chapters as a way to subtly critique Game of Thrones? Probably not, but there’s clearly something going on: Two years ago, Martin released an Arya chapter before snippets of its dialogue could be used in GOT’s season four premiere; last year, he released a Sansa chapter set in the Vale a few weeks before the show dramatically changed her story line; and on Wednesday, he released an Arianne Martell preview chapter, just as everyone has been complaining about how bad the show’s version of Dorne is. Hmmm. The chapter’s not completely new, as Martin read it at an event back in 2011, but unless you’re the type of person to obsessively follow his every public utterance, it’s new to you. Martin also swears that the new chapter should not be taken as an indication that TWOW is done, but hints that it’s “growing,” and will be coming “one day…” We’ll take it!

GRRM Releases New Winds of Winter Excerpt