Anyone who has already invested hours of their life in the first two Song of Ice and Fire novels will almost certainly want to read this one, and anyone who hasn't would be lost within a few pages, so I'm not sure who I'm writing this review for. This is a good continuation of the series, although it loses focus for a while as everyone wanders around looking lost. But intricate schemes continue to evolve in all quarters, and we're left in an interesting position ready for the next one. (I still feel this is more like one very long book than a series with individual story arcs.)