fantasy books

Top Ten Tuesday: A Song of Ice and Fire: Characters I Have a Love/Hate Relationship With

allison burris, , , , , , , , 7 Comments

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Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature brought to you by The Broke and the Bookish.

So I am fairly obsessed with both the book series A Song of Ice and Fire and its HBO counterpart, Game of Thrones. I’m used to a new season coming out at the end of March, so imagine my not-so-happy feelings at learning I would have to wait all the way to April 24! And I realize that this is not really a problem or issue in the way that other, more real things are, but it was disappointing nevertheless.

Instead of writing up a list of characters I hate (there aren’t that many), I thought I’d put some of the more well known characters on a spectrum from hate to love and see what we get. I’ve tried to keep commentary to a minimum as I know some people aren’t caught up with the books/series. If you haven’t read these books/seen this show, and you like fantasy then just quietly pick up the first book. You’re welcome.

Loathe, Revile, Detest:

  • Joffrey Baratheon evil little cockroach
  • Ramsay Bolton a new level of evil, scarier than white walkers

Hate:

  • Gregor Clegane scary dude
  • Cersei Lannister I know you’re in a rough position, but I just can’t make myself like you
  • Petyr Baelish vile
  • Stannis Baratheon he may be the rightful heir, but he’s a nut
  • Tywin Lannister for someone who cares a lot about family, you’ve sure done a terrible job with yours…
  • Roose Bolton only slightly less scary than his son
  • Melisandre and I disagree about basic things–like she calls what she does sacrifice, and I call it murder

Dislike strongly:

  • Theon Greyjoy I have some sympathy for the guy, but it would be a lie to say I liked him
  • Lysa Arryn so annoying

Fed up with:

  • Catelyn Stark just. stop.
  • Jorah Mormont please. stop.

Frustrating:

  • Jaime Lannister I want to like him, but he drives me nuts
  • Robb Stark we were finally getting somewhere before you started making really dumb decisions

Ambivalent:

  • Daario Naharis and pretty much every other person Daenerys comes into contact with who’s not on her staff she meets some real winners..not
  • Myrcella Baratheon not enough information to form an opinion, but she seems cool
  • Tommen Baratheon poor kid was always destined to be a pawn

Has their moments:

  • Sansa Stark why does she have to be so frustrating sometimes?
  • Margaery Tyrell there’s certainly more to her than meets the eye
  • Sandor Clegane the Hound is harsh but sometimes likable
  • Lord Varys so wise
  • Oberyn Martell I really admire how developed this character is in proportion to how much page/screen time he gets

Mostly good vibes:

  • Khal Drogo pretty cool dude
  • Eddard Stark died too soon
  • Davos Seaworth one of the most honorable characters
  • Grey Worm tough and loyal
  • Jeor Mormont a great commander

Wish I could hug them (or on second thought, maybe not):

  • Bran and Rickon Stark those poor little Stark boys…
  • Ygritte— it’s no wonder that Jon fell in love with you
  • Brienne of Tarth can’t think of anyone more deserving of the title ‘knight’
  • Bronn makes me laugh
  • Missandei is a good juxtaposition to Daenerys and smart and spirited in her own right
  • Samwell Tarly I feel like if I was a man of the night’s watch, I would definitely be Sam–he’s probably one of the characters I identify with most

These characters make the series:

  • Daenerys Targaryen hail to thee, mother of dragons
  • Tyrion Lannister you complex wonder, you
  • Jon Snow words cannot describe my deep love for you
  • Arya Stark determination, grit, resilience, and general awesomeness–what’s not to love?

If you’ve read the books, or seen the show, does your list align with mine? Which characters do you disagree about? Did I leave off one of your favorites/least favorites? Let me know in the comments.

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 Love Quotes from Fantasy Books

allison burris, , , , 4 Comments

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Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature from The Broke and the Bookish.

It was not easy to pick a topic for this post. I had several ideas, but they all led me to dead ends. When I finally decided I wanted to do quotes, I wasn’t sure what to pick. Shakespeare? Classic lit? Awkward lines from romance novels? But then I thought, love is fantastical, fantastic, and some (though definitely not me) consider it to be a fantasy altogether. So what better genre could there be for picking quotes about love? And it’s just nerdy enough to make me really, really happy… so add these quotes to your Valentine’s day card, send them in a text to people you care about, read lines from these books out loud to your pets–celebrate however you choose, but don’t forget that you don’t have to invent words of love. Writers have been reinventing it for years, and are doing it as we speak.

  1. “Perhaps we all give the best of our hearts uncritically–to those who hardly think about us in return.”–T.H. White, The Once and Future King–because the best love is freely given.
  2. “Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.” –J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire–because love is about hope.
  3. “Do I love you? My God, if your love were a grain of sand, mine would be a universe of beaches.”–William Goldman, The Princess Bride–because a good metaphor is always appreciated.
  4. “And he took her in his arms and kissed her under the sunlit sky, and he cared not that they stood high upon the walls in the sight of many.”–J.R.R. Tolkien–because sometimes a little PDA doesn’t go amiss.
  5. “You know nothing, Jon Snow.” –George R.R. Martin, A Storm of Swords–because he doesn’t, really.
  6. “…But when I see the way that mankind loves…you could search to the furthest reaches of the universe and never find anything more beautiful. So yes, I know that love is unconditional. But I also know it can be unpredictable, unexpected, uncontrollable, unbearable, and strangely easy to mistake for loathing.” –Neil Gaiman, Stardust–because love is hard to define and easy to mistake.
  7. “Take me with you. For laughs, for luck, for the unknown. Take me with you.” Peter S. Beagle, The Last Unicorn–because love is about being there.
  8. “As he kisses her, the bonfire glows brighter. The acrobats catch the light perfectly as they spin. The entire circus sparkles, dazzling every patron.” –Erin Morgentern, The Night Circus–because a kiss can be magical.
  9. “I’ll be looking for you, Will, every moment, every single moment. And when we do find each other again, we’ll cling together so tight that nothing and no one’ll ever tear us apart. Every atom of me and every atom of you… We’ll live in birds and flowers and dragonflies and pine trees and in clouds and in those little specks of light you see floating in sunbeams… And when they use our atoms to make new lives, they wont’ just be able to take one, they’ll have to take two, one of you and one of me, we’ll be joined so tight…” –Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials–because your connection is on the atomic level.
  10. “Always.” –J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows–because simple wins.

 

Have a favorite love quote from literature? Be sure to leave it in the comments!