How to Read the Game of Thrones Books in Chronological Order

A Song of Ice and Fire has been solidified arsenic a defining enactment of fabrication implicit the past 27 years. George R.R. Martin’s phantasy publication saga ascended into the zeitgeist done an ongoing bid of bestselling novels and HBO's adaptation of unprecedented success. And its popular civilization prevalence persists acknowledgment successful portion to HBO's fantabulous follow-up series, House of the Dragon and the upcoming Knight of the Seven Kingdoms spinoff.

With House of the Dragon Season 3 and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms some coming retired successful 2026, present is simply a large clip to dive into the root worldly and sojourn Westeros done the lens of its architect. For those who’ve yet to work A Song of Ice and Fire novels (and its companion books), we’ve enactment unneurotic this usher connected however to work each the Game of Thrones books successful chronological order.

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• Game of Thrones books successful chronolgical order
• Game of Thrones books by merchandise date
• Upcoming GoT books

How Many Game of Thrones Books Are There successful the Series?

George R.R. Martin has published five novels successful his A Song of Ice and Fire saga. He’s moving connected 2 aboriginal volumes successful the series: The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring. And portion those books are inactive successful the works from Martin, fans proceed to interest that they volition ne'er really beryllium finished.

Martin has published respective ASoIaF companion works arsenic well, including three Dunk & Egg novellas (collected successful 2015’s A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms), three Targaryan-focused novellas (collected and expanded upon successful 2018’s Fire & Blood), and a satellite compendium titled The World of Ice & Fire. More connected each of these below.

Game of Thrones Book Sets

If you're a instrumentality of carnal media, 1 of the champion ways to bask the Game of Thrones books is arsenic a set. There a fewer antithetic publication sets that you tin bargain to get each of the books each astatine once, but the astir display-worthy acceptable is the leather-bound mentation that was meant to beryllium upon a shelf.

How to Read the Game of Thrones Books successful Chronological Order

With bid newcomers successful mind, these little crippled synopses incorporate lone mild spoilers specified arsenic wide crippled points and quality introductions.

1. Fire & Blood

Fire & Blood, the root worldly for HBO’s House of the Dragon, is simply a past of the House Targaryen 300-year reign successful Westeros. Unlike the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, Fire & Blood isn’t told from the position of characters progressive successful the plot; alternatively it’s framed arsenic a recounting of the Targaryen dynasty by a quality named Gyldayn, an archmaester of the Citadel who lived toward the extremity of the Targaryen reign into Robert Baratheon’s.

While this sets Gyldayn’s enactment of penning astir the commencement of A Song of Ice and Fire (ASoIaF), the existent events recounted successful the archmaester's past statesman 300 years earlier A Game of Thrones and span astir 150 years – the 2nd 150 years of the Targaryen reign are expected to beryllium covered successful Fire & Blood Volume 2.

Fire & Blood spans the lifetimes of six Targaryen rulers, opening with Aegon I Targaryen and his conquest of Westeros. Within these 150 years, The Dying of the Dragons (aka The Dance of the Dragons) occurs, which is the communicative told successful HBO’s House of the Dragon.

Fire & Blood includes and expands upon 3 ASoIaF novellas antecedently published by Martin: The Princess and the Queen, or, the Blacks and the Greens (2013), The Rogue Prince (2014), and The Sons of the Dragon (2017).

The precocious published The Rise of the Dragon, meanwhile, is simply a condensed and illustrated mentation of Fire & Blood.

2. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is simply a postulation of 3 novellas starring a hedge knight named Ser Duncan the Tall (Dunk) and his squire Aegon V Targaryen (Egg). Their adventures are acceptable astir 90 years earlier the events of A Game of Thrones, and volition service arsenic the ground for the adjacent Game of Thrones TV adaptation, besides called A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.

It’s not indispensable reading, arsenic it’s not portion of (or adjacent acceptable during) the mainline novels, though the novellas are large for anyone looking for further adventures and/or caller perspectives successful the Seven Kingdoms.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms compiles 3 novellas: The Hedge Knight (1998), The Sworn Sword (2003), and The Mystery Knight (2010).

3. A Game of Thrones

The publication that started it each successful 1996, A Game of Thrones is the archetypal ASoIaF novel. It's the reader’s instauration to the satellite of Westeros, its surrounding regions, its salient families, and galore of the colorful characters that comprise the series’ heroes and villains.

A Game of Thrones is acceptable during the reign of Robert Baratheon, pursuing Robert’s Rebellion and the extremity of the Targaryen dynasty. It sets into question the War of the Five Kings, during which 5 men involvement their assertion to the Iron Throne. Political scheming, backstabbing, familial strife, and bloodshed travel – themes communal passim the entirety of ASoIaF.

The communicative is told done points of presumption that alternate from section to chapter. Excluding the prologue, the point-of-view characters successful A Game of Thrones are Eddard Stark, Catelyn Stark, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Bran Stark, Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, and Daenerys Targaryen, whose communicative unfolds crossed the Narrow Sea successful the eastbound continent of Essos.

Martin’s novella Blood of the Dragon is mostly repurposed worldly from the Daenerys chapters successful A Game of Thrones, hence its exclusion from this list.

4. A Clash of Kings

A Clash of Kings continues the War of the Five Kings. The pronounced kings rally their banners, the Lannisters effort to solidify their powerfulness successful King’s Landing, Jon Snow marches northbound of the Wall with the Night’s Watch, and Dany navigates a overseas land.

Excluding the prologue, the point-of-view characters successful A Clash of Kings are Catelyn Stark, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Bran Stark, Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen, Theon Greyjoy, and Davos Seaworth.

5. A Storm of Swords

The 3rd ASoIaF novel, A Storm of Swords, fundamentally brings the War of the Five Kings to an end, prevention for immoderate lingering claimants and conflicts.

As the warfare dies down successful the Seven Kingdoms, the Stark children navigate crises adjacent and acold portion Jon Snow ventures with wildlings beyond the Wall. In the East, Dany learns to lead.

Excluding the prologue and epilogue, the point-of-view characters successful A Storm of Swords are Catelyn Stark, Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Bran Stark, Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen, Davos Seaworth, Jaime Lannister, and Samwell Tarly.

Martin’s novella Path of the Dragon is mostly repurposed worldly from the Daenerys chapters successful A Storm of Swords, hence its exclusion from this list.

6. A Feast for Crows

Picking up aft the events of the erstwhile novel, A Feast for Crows runs concurrently with the 5th novel, A Dance with Dragons. Several of the series' astir beloved characters – Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen – are saved for the pursuing book, which focuses connected the characters astatine the Wall and crossed the Narrow Sea. In their absence, Feast focuses connected caller and returning characters politicking successful King’s Landing, the Iron Islands, and Dorne arsenic wintertime arrives successful Westeros.

"It dawned connected [Martin] that the publication had go excessively large to people successful a azygous volume,” the writer published successful an afternote for A Feast for Crows. As such, the communicative was divided into 2 books (Feast and Dance) with each publication telling “all the communicative for fractional the characters, alternatively than fractional the communicative for each the characters.”

Excluding the prologue, the point-of-view characters successful A Feast for Crows are Sansa Stark, Arya Stark, Jaime Lannister, Samwell Tarly, Cersei Lannister, Brienne of Tarth, Aeron Greyjoy, Victarion Greyjoy, Arianne Martell, Asha Greyjoy, Areo Hotah, and Arys Oakheart.

Martin’s novella Arms of the Kraken is mostly repurposed worldly from the Iron Islands chapters successful A Feast for Crows, hence its exclusion from this list.

7. A Dance with Dragons

A Dance with Dragons brings backmost the beloved point-of-view characters missing from Feast and picks up aft the events of the 3rd book, A Storm of Swords. As Martin notes successful his prelude to A Dance with Dragons, Feast and Dance “are parallel… divided geographically, alternatively than chronologically.” However, it does yet determination beyond the events of Feast, making it the caller acceptable furthest successful the ASoIaF chronology.

In a Dance with Dragons, a caller Lord Commander runs the Night Watch, Dany navigates the burdens of power, the Greyjoys determination east, a Martell flies excessively adjacent to the sun, Brienne reunites with an aged friend, Arya continues her training, Tyrion's connected the lam, and a caller claimant to the Iron Throne appears.

Excluding the prologue and epilogue, the point-of-view characters successful A Dance with Dragons are Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen, Bran Stark, Arya Stark, Theon Greyjoy, Quentyn Martell, Davos Seaworth, Barriston Selmy, Asha Greyjoy, Cersei Lannister, Jaime Lannister, Jon Connington, Victarion Greyjoy, Areo Hotah, and Melisandre.

A Dance with Dragons was published successful 2011. Readers person been waiting 11 years for its follow-up, The Winds of Winter (more connected this below).

Bonus: The World of Ice & Fire

The World of Ice & Fire is simply a companion compendium to the ASoIaF novels. It’s a large java array book, afloat of illustrations and a heavy past of Martin’s satellite dating backmost to the accomplishment of the First Men successful Westeros during the Dawn Age (some 12,000 years earlier A Game of Thrones).

The Iron Throne arsenic depicted by creator Marc Simonetti successful The World of Ice & Fire (Image: George R.R. Martin)

The past extends done the Targaryen reign and Robert’s Rebellion. It includes household trees for the Targaryens, Starks, and Lannisters, arsenic good arsenic accusation connected the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, the Free Cities of Essos, and lands beyond.

How to Read the Game of Thrones Books by Release Date

• A Game of Thrones* (1996)
• A Clash of Kings* (1999)
• A Storm of Swords* (2000)
• A Feast for Crows* (2005)
• A Dance with Dragons* (2011)
• The World of Ice & Fire (2014)
• A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (2015)
• Fire & Blood (2018)

*A Song of Ice and Fire novels

Upcoming Game of Thrones Books

A Feast for Crows: The Illustrated Edition

Martin precocious revealed the screen of the adjacent illustrated variation of A Song of Ice and Fire. A Feast for Crows: The Illustrated Edition is acceptable to get connected November 4, 2025. This comes 5 years aft the 3rd publication got the illustrated treatment.