No one is going to choose to read or not read this book based on my review but if you are considering if it is worth it: it is! (Also if you get bored in the beginning keep going, once the action picked up I couldn't put it down) 
 I waited for years for this book to become available at my library. I was told I could skip Book One because the first season of the television series is an almost direct translation (unlike the newer seasons) but I'm glad I held out. For one thing I found it much easier to remember the secondary characters' names and family houses after having read them. I feel I have a better handle on the huge cast and how they are all connected. Knowing certain plot points that occur later I can see their groundwork in these early chapters which makes me appreciate the author's work more. I actually enjoy picking out how things are different from page to screen and pondering the whys of it. 
 But most of all I like the added insight into the characters I already know and love. I like Jon more and Dany less in the book but I liked most that they are more connected to each other (by way of Houses Mormont and Targaryen) than they are to the main action. That's interesting! I also like Arya more and Sansa less in the book though I feel that is intended. And then there's Cersei who doesn't get a pov but does get to speak the title line and she is simply flawless in her incredibly flawed and mostly horrible self. The scene between Cersei and Ned in the Godswood is easily my favorite part of the book.