All five A Song of Ice and Fire books, ranked worst to best

3. A Clash of Kings (Book 2, 1999)

If you’ve seen the second season of Game of Thrones, you know basically what happens in A Clash of Kings. The War of the Five Kings is afoot, and s*it is crazy. Theon Greyjoy heads to the Iron Islands to ask for help on behalf of Robb Stark, but ends up conquering the Stark home base of Winterfell instead. Arya Stark goes to Harrenhal and meets an odd man named Jaqen H’ghar. Jon Snow travels beyond the Wall and meets Ygritte while Sansa suffers under King Joffrey’s cruel hand in King’s Landing. We meet important new characters like Stannis Baratheon, Davos Seaworth, Melisandre and Brienne of Tarth. This book is hopping. It feels alive, vital, fun and brutal.

There are a lot of characters in this book, and a lot of them are spread out in different corners of the world. But everyone gets their time to shine, all of their storylines come to exciting turning points, and Martin is willing to shift focus where needed. For instance, we don’t spend as much time as usual in this book with Daenerys, who is planning her next move in the far city of Qarth. Her story isn’t the crux of this book, so the book doesn’t have to spend as much time on her.

If A Clash of Kings has a main character, it’s Tyrion Lannister, who is at his sly, scheming best as he tries to fortify King’s Landing against an attack from Stannis Baratheon. The Battle of the Blackwater gives the book a big bold set piece to anchor it. Those who have only seen the show will find some fun new details here, like a certain trick Tyrion pulls with a massive chain, and some touching moments between brothers Stannis and Renly Baratheon.

There’s really nothing wrong with A Clash of Kings. But as hard as it hits, the books before and after it hit harder: