The Winds of Winter: Everything We Know About the Next Game of Thrones Book

The highly anticipated sixth installment in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, The Winds of Winter, remains one of the most eagerly awaited books in fiction. Its development began after the release of A Dance with Dragons (Book 5) in 2011. Since then, HBO has aired eight seasons of Game of Thrones and two seasons of its prequel, House of the Dragon.

This overview compiles all known information about The Winds of Winter, covering Martin's comments on its length, publication timeline, characters, and key differences from the television adaptation.

Key Points:

• Release Date: No official release date has been announced. Martin's past estimations have proven inaccurate. His most recent statement suggests he may not complete it in his lifetime.

• Length: Martin expects the book to be approximately 1,500 pages, potentially making it the longest in the series. As of November 2023, he had completed 1,100 pages.

• Story Details: The Winds of Winter will resolve cliffhangers from A Dance with Dragons and A Feast for Crows. It will feature major battles in the ice and at Meereen. Daenerys Targaryen and Tyrion Lannister's paths will converge, and significant events will unfold at The Wall. Martin promises a darker tone, stating "things will get worse before they get better." He also teased an "interesting take on unicorns."

• Characters: Returning point-of-view characters include Tyrion Lannister, Cersei Lannister, Jaime Lannister (and/or Brienne of Tarth), Arya Stark, Sansa Stark, Bran Stark, Theon Greyjoy, Asha Greyjoy, Victarion Greyjoy, Aeron Greyjoy/Damphair, Barristan Selmy, Arianne Martell, Areo Hotah, and Jon Connington. Daenerys Targaryen is almost certainly confirmed. Other potential POV characters include Davos Seaworth, Samwell Tarly, and Melisandre. Jeyne Westerling will appear in the prologue.

• Book vs. TV Series: Significant differences exist between the book and the show. Characters' fates will diverge; some who died in the show will live in the books, and vice versa. New characters will be introduced, and existing ones will have expanded roles. Martin specifically highlighted the differences between his versions of certain characters and their HBO counterparts.

• A Dream of Spring: The planned seventh and final book is also anticipated to be lengthy, with Martin hinting at a bittersweet ending. No release date is available.

Martin's other projects include a second volume of his Targaryen history, additional Dunk and Egg stories, and ongoing work as an editor and producer for various television series.