The second season of HBO's Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon wrapped up in early August, starting another long wait before season 3. The show is based on author George R.R. Martin's book Fire & Blood, which is a unique book. Rather than being a novel, Fire & Blood is a fake history book, "written" by a historian named Archmaester Gyldayn who's recording the ups and downs of the Targaryen dynasty years after the fact. Years pass in the space of a page, and we don't have direct access to any of the characters' thoughts. It makes for a challenging adaptation.
The first season of the show did a tremendous job, covering about 20 years in the lives of the characters as they grew up, married, had kids, and warred with each other. The series kicks off with the Great Council of Harrenhal, where it's decided that King Jaehaerys' grandson Viserys will succeed him on the Iron Throne. In Fire & Blood, that event begins around page 344 in my copy of the book. Much happens in the intervening episodes, and seasons 1 ends with the death of Rhaenyra Targaryen young son Lucerys Velaryon, killed by her half-brother Aemond. That happens on page 422 of Fire & Blood. So all told, the first season of House of the Dragon covers about 78 pages of the book, give or take; there are some events described in the book during that stretch that don't happen until later in the show.
The first season was mainly dedicated to setting up the Dance of the Dragons, a brutal Targaryen civil war that tears apart the Seven Kingdoms. The second season kicks off the war itself. How many pages does it adapt?
Far fewer. The first event from the book that shows up in House of the Dragon season 2 is Daemon Targaryen's arrival at the castle of Harrenhal, which occurs on page 412. The book cycles through many events after that, including the murder of Queen Helaena's son Jaehaerys, the Battle of Rook's Rest, and the training of the dragonseeds. The show stops right after the dragonseeds are recruited, before a major battle called the Battle of the Gullet. That means it stops right around page 446.
So House of the Dragon season 2 adapts roughly 34 pages from Fire & Blood, less than half as many pages as season 1. What will season 3 cover? Well, if you listen to Martin himself, season 3 won't much resemble the book. We'll see for ourselves when it airs in 2026.
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