The Princess and The Queen, or, The Blacks and The Greens

by George R.R. Martin

The Princess and The Queen, or, The Blacks and The Greens is a novella published on December 3, 2013 as part of the Dangerous Women anthology, edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois. It replaced the fourth in the series of "Dunk and Egg" stories tentatively named The She-Wolves of Winterfell. It is the history of the civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons as written by Archmaester Gyldayn of the Citadel of Oldtown.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Short Stories, Novella, Dragons, Audiobook, Epic Fantasy

107 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

George Raymond Richard "R.R." Martin was born September 20, 1948, in Bayonne, New Jersey. His father was Raymond Collins Martin, a longshoreman, and his mother was Margaret Brady Martin. He has two sisters, Darleen Martin Lapinski and Janet Martin Patten.

Martin attended Mary Jane Donohoe School and Marist High School. He began writing very young, selling monster stories to other neighborhood children for pennies, dramatic readings included. Later he became a comic book fan and collector in high school, and began to write fiction for comic fanzines (amateur fan magazines). Martin's first professional sale was made in 1970 at age 21: The Hero, sold to Galaxy, published in February, 1971 issue. Other sales followed.

In 1970 Martin received a B.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, graduating summa cum laude. He went on to complete a M.S. in Journalism in 1971, also from Northwestern.

As a conscientious objector, Martin did alternative service 1972-1974 with VISTA, attached to Cook County Legal Assistance Foundation. He also directed chess tournaments for the Continental Chess Association from 1973-1976, and was a Journalism instructor at Clarke College, Dubuque, Iowa, from 1976-1978. He wrote part-time throughout the 1970s while working as a VISTA Volunteer, chess director, and teacher.

In 1975 he married Gale Burnick. They divorced in 1979, with no children. Martin became a full-time writer in 1979. He was writer-in-residence at Clarke College from 1978-79.

Moving on to Hollywood, Martin signed on as a story editor for Twilight Zone at CBS Television in 1986. In 1987 Martin became an Executive Story Consultant for Beauty and the Beast at CBS. In 1988 he became a Producer for Beauty and the Beast, then in 1989 moved up to Co-Supervising Producer. He was Executive Producer for Doorways, a pilot which he wrote for Columbia Pictures Television, which was filmed during 1992-93.

Martin's present home is Santa Fe, New Mexico. He is a member of Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (he was South-Central Regional Director 1977-1979, and Vice President 1996-1998), and of Writers' Guild of America, West.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/george...

Reviews

[Markus · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Dance of the Dragons is the flowery name bestowed upon the savage internecine struggle for the Iron Throne of Westeros fought between two rival branches of House Targaryen during the years 129 to 131 AC. To characterize the dark, turbulent, bloody doings of this period as a “dance” strikes us as grotesquely inappropriate. No doubt the phrase originated with some singer. “The Dying of the Dragons” would be altogether more fitting, but tradition and time have burned the more poetic usage into the pages of history, so we must dance along with the rest.

Almost two centuries prior to the events of A Song of Ice and Fire, the most legendary civil war in the history of Westeros was fought between rivalling claimants to the Iron Throne of the Targaryens. It would be known to posterity as the Dance of the Dragons.

This is one of the best novellas I have ever read. Many brilliant fantasy authors have problems writing novellas and short stories set in the worlds of their sagas, but George R.R. Martin does not disappoint. The Dangerous Women anthology as a whole was a disaster, but this made it all worth it.

Scheming queens and spymasters, huge battles and duels on dragonback – this novella has it all and more. Exquisite writing in normal GRRM fashion, interesting characters like Lord Commander Criston Cole the Kingmaker (couldn’t help but using the full title) and a setting that’s quite unlike the Westeros we know from later times. Anything an ASoIaF fan could want.

Surprisingly, the novella also managed to introduce two of my favourite characters in the whole ASoIaF franchise. First out was Rhaenyra Targaryen, the lawful heir to the crown of her father Viserys. The usurpation of the Iron Throne by her younger half-brother Aegon unfortunately causes her to go a little mad. A little meaning that she turns into something of a fantastic combo of Cersei and the Mad King. Fortunately, she makes up for it by being an absolutely magnificent character.

And as if that wasn’t enough, poor Rhaenyra is nowhere near being the most fascinating character in this novella. That award goes to her uncle, who is also her husband (these are Targaryens we’re talking about). Daemon Targaryen is so ridiculously awesome he goes straight into my top list of ASoIaF characters (in fact almost straight to the top spot). Warrior, dragonrider, wielder of Dark Sister - Daemon is almost too fabulous to fit into this short tale.

”Over the centuries, House Targaryen has produced both great men and monsters. Prince Daemon was both.”

The only curious thing, considering that this is a GRRM story with a huge cast of characters, is that there is really only one side of the conflict the reader will end up cheering for. Not only are all the best characters on one side (excepting the fabulous Lord Commander Criston Cole the Kingmaker), but Rhaenyra’s claim to the Iron Throne is obviously the strongest one. Even her antagonist brother Aegon realises this and proclaims her the true queen in the beginning of the story, but unfortunately his mother (may she burn forever in the Seven Hells) forces him to usurp the throne of his sister.

I would recommend this to all ASoIaF fans. It’s a real treasure. I would also strongly recommend listening to the audiobook, wonderfully narrated by everyone’s favourite Iain Glen.

[Ayman Gomaa · Rating 4 out of 5]

English & Arabic Review :
The story of " The Dance of the Dragons" Between House Targaryens Brother and Step-Sister or The Black and The Greens .

All events lead to This civil war was told in The Rogue Prince Story and here it's review :
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

"It was a war marked by stealth, murder, and betrayal as well, a war fought in shadows and stairwells, council chambers and castle yards, with knives and lies and poison."

The War starts after The Deaths of king Viserys over his throne between his heir Princess Rhaenyra and his son Aegon II

The Blacks led by Rhaenya and Her husband Daemond Targaryens

The Greens led by Aegon II And Queen Alicent highwater

Nobles Commanders and Belligerents as usual choose their sides too in the war :


The story was a hell of a war was between 129 AC - 131 AC with thousands of deaths and the bloodiest sea battles in all of history of Westeros

The Fight under the God's Eyes between Aemond the king slayer \ Daemond the rogue prince was the most exciting moments ever and was a hell of a fight xD

** Some Facts and info about the war :

-I had Counted 62 kills between princes , princesses , lords , nobles And 17 dragons kills in this war .
-The Battle in the Gullet was the bloodiest sea battles in all of history 90 ships \ 28 survived .
-History calls the struggle between King Aegon II and his sister Rhaenyra the Dance of the Dragons, but only at Tumbleton did the dragons ever truly dance.

*** Same as The Rogue Prince , The story deserve 5 stars but i gave it 4 coz it was like a history lesson and one of the most things i missed was the conversations between his characters and the dialogue .

BTW : My loyalty Goes to Rhaenyra as she is the heir and Daemond coz he is really badass xD.

Arabic Review :

عودة الى عالم ويستروس و فانتازيا جورج.ر.ر.مارتن و هذة المرة مع اكبر حرب اهلية وقعت بين التارجيريان بما سميت" رقصة التنانين " و التى كانت بها بداية ضعف حكم التارجيريان و التى سوف يتم اقتباس منها المسلسل القادم عام 2022 " House Of The Dragon " .

الحرب بين الملك ايجون الثانى و اخته غير الشقيقة رينيرا تارجيريان حول العرش الملكى و كل الاسباب التى ادت الى الحرب التى تكلمت عنها فى مراجعة قصة الامير المحتال

و كان يرمز ل رينيرا و زوجها دايمون ب اللون الاسود \ ايجون الثانى و الملكة أليسنت هأيتور زوجة الملك الراحل

و كعادة كل حرب لها حلفائها و البيوت التى تعلن ولائها لكل طرف و موضح فى الصورة فوق البيوت و انتمائها و ايضا قادة الحرب لكل طرف .

الحرب التى بدات عام 129 و انتهت 131 و خلفت الاف القتلى و اكبر الحروب الدموية التى شهدتها ويستروس و كان اشهرها موقعة الحلق البحرية التى صنفت اكثر حرب دموية فى تاريخ ويستروس و موقعة عين الاله العظيمة بين قائد البلاك الامير دايمون تارجيرين و تنينه كاركس \ ايمون تارجيرين اخو الملك الدموى و تنينه فايغار .

لقد قمت باحصاء القتلى بين الامراء و الاميرات و الملك و اللوردات و كانوا 62 قتلى و ايضا 17 تنين فى حرب انتهت اخيرا و معها كان انقراض التنانين .

و بما ان لابد من ولائك يذهب لاحد الاطراف ف ولائى ذهب الى رينيرا تارجيرين و الامير المحتال بما ان الملك اراد ان تكون وريثة العرش فى حياته و مماته .

* مثل القصة السابقة
القصة تستحق 5 نجوم و لكن نجمة ناقصة لانها كانت اشبه ب درس تاريخى عن هذة الفترة و افتقدت اكثر ما يميز اسلوب جورج و هو الحوارات بين الشخصيات .

[حسین · Rating 5 out of 5]

خواندن این کتاب جان‌افزا بود؛ چه متنِ دشوار و استخوان‌داری داشت. البته جورج مارتین همیشه دشوارنویس بوده، اما در این رمانِ کوتاه داستان ننوشته؛ بلکه «تاریخ‌نویسی» کرده و به همین خاطر از حدِ معمول هم دشوارتر نوشته.ـ
اسمش را به نظرم باید این‌طور ترجمه کرد:ـ
شاهدخت و شهبانو،ـ
یا
سیاه‌ها و سبزها
در بابِ تاریخِ خاستگاه‌ها و علل و نبردها و خیانت‌های مصیبت‌بارترین خونریزیِ عالم که به رقصِ اژدهایان مشهور است، مطابق با روایتِ حکیمِ کبیر گیلداین از اَرگِ کهن‌شهر (به کتابتِ جورج ر. ر. مارتین)ـ

[Ehmed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, if you want to learn more about history of Westeros and The Dance of Dragons, then you should read it. Otherwise it's a waste of time. The only part enjoyed was when a city riot occurred unlike anything we saw on TV or other books. Wish we had more of that in the story. The ending was so boring xD I can't imagine how he managed that.
I'm gonna read the excerpts from The Winds of Winter next!! I'm so excitedexcited!

[Gavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is the history of the civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons as written by Archmaester Gyldayn of the Citadel of Oldtown. It was written in a very different style than the main ASoIaF series, and actually did read just like a "fake" history lesson. Despite the lack of witty dialogue that we are accustomed to from the main ASoIaF series this novella was as equally engaging a read.

It was the tale of a Targaryen civil war. The power struggle for the Iron Throne by Rhaenyra Targaryen and her brother Aegon II Targaryen. The story was as bloody as you might expect. Especially as back in this time the Targaryen's had dragons to call upon!

Rating: 5 stars. Fantastic story. Cannot wait to read the rest of the Westeros novellas.

Audio Note: This was read by Iain Glen who plays Ser Jorah in the GoT TV series. He does as good a job with this audiobook as he does in the TV show.

[Manisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual review: 3.5

Had this short story been written more as a 'story' rather than a 'summary', it would have had a higher rating from me. Yes, I know that this story is meant to be a summary because it's written by a Maester who told the infamous story of 'The Dance with Dragons' as he saw it and yes, I understand that any dialogue was just simply used as a tool (after all, the history is written by the victors). However, it doesn't change the fact that I would have loved to read this story (because it was ridiculously entertaining) rather than hear about it.

GRRM writes good political history. He shows how belief in a person could be misplaced due to the narrative told by those who have something to gain. He also makes it a point to state how history was warped by those who followed it.

(I really need Book 6 right now)

[Aleena · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best novella I have ever read. The Princess and the Queen is the story of the Dance of the Dragons, between the years 129 to 131 AC. I had gone into this thinking I would dislike it, given that it is written as a recount of events by Archmaester Gyldayn, rather than a traditional narrative. Fortunately, I was proven wrong.

To characterize the dark, turbulent, bloody doings of this period as a “dance” strikes us as grotesquely inappropriate. No doubt the phrase originated with some singer. “The Dying of the Dragons” would be altogether more fitting, but tradition and time have burned the more poetic usage into the pages of history, so we must dance along with the rest.

The story follows two rival groups of Targaryens, after the death of King Viserys. Viserys declared his eldest child, Princess Rhaenyra as the heir to the Iron Throne, although his wife, Queen Alicent, has other ideas. Alicent wishes to place her son, Aegon, on the throne. The fallout between the groups (known as the Blacks and the Greens) sparked a bloody war for succession.

Whilst George RR Martin's primary series is based off the Wars of the Roses, The Princess and the Queen parallels The Anarachy. The Anarchy was the English civil war between Empress Matilda and Stephen and is a fascinating period of history in itself (which would have been even more epic had there been dragons).

This novella has everything I love about ASoIaF, from the politics and power struggles to the battles with dragons. Martin's writing style, as usual, is outstanding and made me root for all the characters he introduced. Reading it from the Archmaester's point of view gave a fresh perspective, especially given Gyldayn debates the truth of certain events throughout.

For the most part, the story centres on Rhaenyra. It was easy to sympathise with her struggles as a woman trying to rule in a patriachal society. What made her character more compelling was the mistakes she made and their far-reaching consequences.

Another character that shone was Rhaenyra's husband, Daemon. An intelligent warrior, he had some of the best battle sequences, and I would love to read a longer backstory about him.

From the start I was rooting for Rhaenyra's side, although Martin did not neglect Aegon's character. Everyone suffers from setbacks and defeats of both large and small scale. Even the smallfolk had their part to play in this war.

The only negative I really have is that I would have preferred to read this as a full-length novel. As this was so short, we didn't have the opportunity to gain a deep understanding of character motivations.

Overall this was a very enjoyable read and I recommend this to any ASoIaF fan as a great companion to the primary series.

[Chris Haught · Rating 5 out of 5]

From my Dangerous Women review in September of 2014.

...Though I will say that the GRRM story included is one of the best things I've read all year. It has a much different tone than his A Song of Ice and Fire novels, or even the shorter Dunk & Egg stories. It's set in the history of these others and has a tone more like The Silmarillion. But it worked very well for me, fitting into the Westeros canon perfectly.

[Sara Jesus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Esta história narra a guerra civil conhecida como a "Dança dos dragões". Explora o universo da família Targaryen e dos seus dragões. É um conto fascinante que nos demonstra de onde surgiu toda a determinação de Dany em recuperar o trono. Afinal os Targaryen são os herdeiros legítimos do Trono de Ferro.

[Malinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3-3.5 stars

This story takes place about a 160 years before the TV show events. It involves a fight for the throne between 2 members of the royal family, Rhaenyra Targaryen and Aegon Targaryen II (who are half-siblings). Rhaenyra was the oldest child of the King and his chosen heir. When the King dies however, some of the lords of the realm don't like the idea of a female on the throne and back her younger, half-brother (Aegon II) instead. This story describes the civil war that resulted as the Lords of the realm chose who they will support between the 2 contenders for the throne.

I love the Game of Thrones TV show and, when I borrowed this anthology to read a few of the stories, I figured I'd try this one as well. This was a good story but I will say that it's complex...there's a lot of names of people, places and dragons that get thrown at you in the story and TBH, I had a bit of trouble keeping up with everything at times (but I'm more than willing to admit that my memory isn't the best). The whole story was about 3.5 hours long and there's a lot of info to absorb during that time. I kind of had to just go with it and take in what I could. Still, it was interesting to read about the early Targaryens...even if it's also a bit sad. (We are talking about a civil war here...people and dragons die...)

* note - I listened to the audio version of this story as part of the Dangerous Women anthology. The narration was done by Iain Glen, who plays Jorah Mormont in the Game of Thrones TV show, which I found to be very fitting (and very well done). :)

[Trish · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be fair, my edition is a pdf file created from the text the author put online quite a while ago (before the story was supposed to be part of an anthology) and therefore has only 57 pages.
But they are glorious 57 pages!
As with the 3 stories about Ser Duncan the Tall and Egg, I enjoyed this novella about the World of Westeros and Essos tremendously.
The writing style seems to always be great with this author and the stories themselves are very well throught through. Moreover, I do believe that there is some key information to the solution of some of the mysteries in the main story arch.
Hopefully, there will be two more novellas relating to this one as promised and hopefully all 3 will be published in one extra book like the others! That would be awesome!

[Kitty Red-Eye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two thoughts - first, this story shows the Ice and Fire fandom just how damn crazy dangerous those dragons are. They're awesome and terrible, whereas the people who ride them are more terrible than awesome, really.

Second, I like how Martin can change his writing style, from his Ice and Fire books I only know his way of writing through various characters' eyes, whereas the style and perspective of this story was completely different. Not all writers can do this. I'm impressed with his "range of abilities" (no idea how to put it, really).

[Raffaello · Rating 4 out of 5]

La Danza dei draghi, dicono...sarebbe meglio chiamarla la strage dei draghi. Nonostante il racconto sia scritto a mo' di cronistoria, si fa leggere con piacere. Gli eventi e i colpi di scena sono talmente tanti che ci si diverte (e ci si angoscia a vedere quanti draghi sono morti durante questa sanguinosa guerra di successione). Martin non risparmia dettagli nel creare la sua "storia dei sette regni", il fantasioso background da cui si svilupperanno le Cronache del ghiaccio e del fuoco. Bella lettura.

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes I'd much rather have the Winds of Winter. I reread this cause a pod cast I listen to was going it. I actually liked this so much more this time around (I'd read the Rouge Prince 1st). The dragon battles alone make this worth reading. Plus I like the back round stories.

[Eggp · Rating 3 out of 5]

More senseless killing
both so sure they're in the right
a waste of dragons.

[Ash · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story from the book "Dangerous women".
This story is about Targaryens and the "Dance of the Dragons" that happened in the past when dragons existed. This was an amazing story that gives you a glimpse at the time when Targaryens ruled and fought wars using their dragons. There are wars, treacheries, turncoats in this story and I enjoyed reading it. Must read for fans of ASOIAF series. But I am so confused with all the names, I badly need to go through the family tree and read it again in order to completely understand this story.

[Amine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blood and fire, this was a good read, although an actual story of it would be much more welcome, instead of a record of events.

[Chelsea]

okay yeah that hurt me but it’s better this way so I’m prepared for the show 😭😭

[Khulood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rhaenyra : Dear brother. I had hoped you were dead.
Aegon II : After you. You are the elder.
Rhaenyra: I am pleased to know that you remember that. It would seem we are your prisoners...but do not think that you will hold us long.My leal lords will find me.
Aegon II: If they search the seven hells, mayhaps"


I never thought that I would enjoy reading this story that much ! , I was hooked from the beginning and finished it in one setting ! , even though the narration wasn't a favorite of mine (I don't trust/like Measters ) .



it was a very interesting, typical Targaryen story full of conspiracies and threats and battles and flying and fire and blood .


I think most of you even those who didn't read it yet are familiar with the story because it was mentioned alot in ASOIAF , its about the tragic war over the iron throne between the children of king Viserys I Targaryen and to be more specific his daughter from his first wife, Rhaenyra Targaryen and his son from the second, Aegon Targaryen.




I think the reason why I gave it 4 rather than 5 is because I was still hungry when I finished ! I wanted more , I really wish we had POV chapters it would have been more fun and more detailed , you can't be sure when you're reading the words of a measter who wasn't there.

the thing that really surprised me while reading is that I saw that the dragons were not strong enough like I imagined before ! like the way the four dragons who died at the dragons pit by the small folks !! or the way the mighty Vaghar died !! for such creatures I thought they were stronger than that.

this dance of dragons was nothing but a tragic that cost the Targaryens so much,and omg the number of dragons who died fighting in this war !! the people who were burned and killed ! Just imagine the difference if one of the sides was like " hey my beloved brother/sister, this throne is really uncomfortable and besides I have children to raise and I have no time for it so please come and take it " !! aughhhhh !!



ahhh what can I say ? Daemon Targaryen was an utter badass , I really wish that there was more of him in the story ! and I hope that he's really happy at last away from this troubles,with Nettles *_*




if there's one reason that will make me pray they turn this into a movie or a tvshow is because of The Dance over Harrenhal! ohhh the way it was described and ahhh when Daemon jumped from Caraxes's back to land at Vhagar's to kill Aemond was just EPIC!!



ahhhhhhh !! its just terrible !!Rhaenyra's fate was just brutal ! she saw it coming from the beginning ! why go to war you know you can't win ?! , and I get why Aegon did what he did to her at the end but damn you ! did you have to do it in front of the poor child ! this is what froze me the most when I read this,is that her son was forced to watch his mother burn to death ): I get why he hated dragons later and wanted to get rid of them

I recommend this to the readers of ASOIAF, and I really recommend that you read The Rogue Prince, or, A King's Brother before reading this , its the prequel to it and it will help you understand the story better and be familiar with the characters .

[Bookhode · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second, longer and more important prequel novella (coming after The Rogue Prince), and it details the history of the great Targaryen civil war called Dance OF the Dragons. Just like its predecessor it is basically a quasi-historical text attributed to certain Archmaester Gyldayn. It deals with the events of almost 200 years ago, which have no direct bearing on the main ASOIAF storyline. And despite having a ton of narration and very little dialog, and working with a bunch of unfamiliar characters, this novella turns out to be much more fun, exciting and interesting read than Martin's latest novel, Dance WITH the Dragons. Which is actually quite sad, when you think about it.

The Princess and the Queen starts off with the death of old Targaryen king Viserys I, which leaves the realm caught in dangerous rivalry between the supporters of Princess Rhaenyra, his daughter from his first marriage (and also his official heir), and the supporters of his second wife who bore him 3 sons. Both Targaryen factions believe they have the law on their side, both have a bunch of influential lords in their ranks, they both have dragons, and very little desire to reach any kind of compromise. Pretty soon, the war erupts on land, on sea and in the air, covering the realm with fire and blood.

Martin does a great job of portraying both sides in this conflict with shades of grey, there are no clear good guys or bad guys here, as even the characters who at certain points seemed to be the most sympathetic or the most resourceful, sooner or later fall victim to wrong decisions, lust for power, or betrayal. The novella takes its time to describe the fate of every important player in this conflict, and as they keep on dying in most gruesome, heroic, tragic or stupid ways, we soon realize that we are actually witnessing a spectacular end of the old Targaryen dynasty and, more importantly, the end of their supremacy over other houses based on the power of dragons. And while a few younger Targaryen princes will survive the conflict, and their heirs will continue to rule the realm all the way up to Robert's Rebellion, the dragons were not that lucky. Only 4 smaller and weaker beasts have seen the end of this war, and no other healthy dragon was hatched afterwards, so in a few decades that followed the magnificent creatures have perished from Westeros completely, as the world moved from the age of myth and magic, into the age of cruel medieval reality.

The Princess and the Queen audiobook was read by Iain Glen, who provides a good authoritative and mature voice to the text. Like I said, I enjoyed this novella very much, it is probably the second best of all Martin prequels so far (behind The Mystery Knight), and it left me with desire to learn more about the world and its past. That is, of course, after the old chap finally puts his best effort and completes the original saga.

[Philina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everybody dies in the most brutal way would be a fitting title for this story.

It is a good story, though, a lesson that civil war should be avoided at all costs.
Having grown dragons of different glowing colours clash in battle is wonderful for cinematic scenes in the head; I so hope they make a GoT spinoff for this or Aegon's Conquest. Besides, this story contains some new insight into dragonlore which I greatly appreciated.

Still, it does not fit the anthology's title "Dangerous Women". The "Queen" is an old woman really appearing only in the beginning to sit at a table and scheme against the "Princess", who herself never sees any battle action, but sits in a room clutching her children and swearing vengence much like Cersei in the Battle of Blackwater. The only women with a tiny bit of action are a bastard girl becoming a dragonrider, a "Queen who never was" and the daughter of the Princess' husband. BUT, all these actions are only about two pages each - the rest is done by men.

Thus, a very good but sad story which does not deal as much with female action as promised.

[Петър Стойков · Rating 2 out of 5]

Джордж Р.Р. Мартин написа 2 хубави книги (първите две от поредицата Песен за огън и лед) и след това се носи на крилете на славата, словоблудствайки по невъобразимо досаден и най-вече продължителен начин на същата тема, върху хиляди и хиляди страници, които феновете му поглъщат с настървението, с което торни бръмбари поглъщат кравешка фъшкия.

Настоящата книжка е поредната, описваща историята на земята, където се развива действието на книгата (и на сериала Игра на тронове). Явно авторът правилно е предположил, че да направи света, който е създал по някакъв начин "историографски достоверен" с невъобразимите подробности от потеклото на всяка от фамилиите, ще е много интересно на масата читатели и ще му донесе много пари.

На мен обаче не ми е интересно да чета сказания в "исторически стил" (а не в разказвателен) за някакви хора, които имат толкова слабовата връзка с описаното в основните книги, че направо я няма.

[laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

the dance of the dragons is an incredibly dark, twisted and interesting conflict and to learn about it was great! so this story was not at all lacking in its plot. however, the history-book nature of its style results in a tale that lacks the emotion needed for me to experience it at its fullest or to truly connect and care about the unquestionably compelling events.
i feel like this story was merely a summary of what i hope is to come with hbo’s house of the dragon (and in luck also with fire and blood itself), and now that i know the bulk of the story i really am looking forward to it!

all that being said i’ve just found out that this was used as a replacement all those years back (almost a decade!) for what was to be the fourth dunk and egg story and now i have no choice but to hate this one for what it took for me!!!!! no amount of gory info dumping history will repair the last 12 years pass 😔😔

[Terence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: I had to resubmit this because Goodreads changed the previous edition of this book to a Dangerous Women kindle edition for some reason.

My original review on 12/7/13:
I love getting the history lesson on The Dance of Dragons from an Archmaester's researched account. The history is interesting and lets you see that things were even more brutal than the current storyline because of the dragons involvement.

I feel a big part of The Princess and The Queen is a teaser for The World of Ice and Fire that is supposed to be released in Oct 2014 with an even more thorough history of The Dance of Dragons along with I believe the whole history of Westeros.

All in all this story certainly had enough intriguing elements to be a book series on its own. I definitely enjoyed it.

[A. Dawes · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5*

After reading all the stories of this superb anthology, the King of Fantasy failed me at the end. I understand George RR Martin's intentions: this is an experimental history rather than a well-composed narrative. And while the history would be beautiful in a fleshed out story, here it's just a series of colourless facts and events as we race through the narrative timeline. As such, I didn't have any emotional connection with the characters at all. I'm a huge George RR Martin fan, but this isn't anywhere near the quality of let's say an excerpt from the similarly styled, The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien - it's even a story I'd suggest to leave off your reading menu. The anthology, however, as a whole is first class. Kudos to George RR Martin & Gardner Dozois for making it so.

[Володимир Кузнєцов · Rating 4 out of 5]

Вдруге перечитую, і вдруге переконуюсь, що ця мікро-серія з двох повістей - найкращі твори ПЛіП - вни містять все те, що було закладено в основну сагу, але без розтягувань і топтань на місці. Ще й з драконами, звісно.
Друге відкриття - вирішив під час читання таки спробувати подивитися "Дім Дракона", який успішно ігнорував до сьогодення. І з подивом з'ясував, що це - пряма екранізація Принцеси і Королеви, і що з її появою, лаври "Гобіта" Пітера Джексона якщо не забрані, то принаймні оскаржені. Шоуранери вирішили, що натягнути сто сторінок повісті на 8-годинний серіал - це офігенна ідея, докинувши також, що ще крутішою ідеєю буде переписати діалоги і образи персонажів) Та й таке, я вдовільнився переглядом першої серії, і моя думка на долю серіалу не вплине ніяк.

[Kevin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Let me save you some time: dragons can be killed, and how! Where the Dunk and Egg novellas were some of the best writing in the Fire & Ice world (read those!), this is certainly the worst. Not so much a story as a list of fights that happened with dragons. Would only recommend for die-hard fans who feel compelled to read every last printed word in the Fire & Ice realm. As they're the only ones likely to seek this story out, I'm sure my warning will only fall on deaf ears.

[Велислав Върбанов · Rating 5 out of 5]

Интересна и динамична новела, описваща най-кървавите междуособици в историята на дома Таргариен от "Песен за огън и лед"! Тук напълно оправдават девиза си "Огън и Кръв"...

[Razi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Westerosi history in all its bloody, treacherous glory.

It was great and I loved the slow-motion trainwreck that was a Targaryen civil war brought about by barefaced greed. But I feel I must have listened to an abridged version because it's more than a bit confusing being bombarded with so many names belonging to so many characters that are hardly fleshed out. Iain Glenn did a fantastic job, but I might give this story another go with the e-book to see if it's more my speed.

___________

I read the main books of A Song of Ice and Fire in high school and have been awaiting the sequels ever since (though my hopes are now greatly diminished). I was enthralled by this awesome world he has created ever since GoT, but I'm also left to wonder if some of the more troubling criticisms of his work ring truer than I had initially wanted to believe.

That troubling criticism being that it's more than possible that I am being led on through these stories by the expectation that this multitude of characters and plot points will somehow be resolved in some neat and satisfying conclusion, a prospect that is becoming less and less likely with every passing year that the series is left unfinished.

Grand as ASOIAF might be, I'm concerned that it's all just a neverending fantasy soap opera where the noble houses and mysterious organizations and ungodly forces are all just spokes on a perpetually rolling wheel with no true beginning and no true end.

Ah, who am I kidding. I'd read it anyway.

[Ahmed Elsawy · Rating 4 out of 5]

هنا الحكاية بتاعت الحرب اللي كان إسمها dance of dragons
وتأثير ده على التارجيريانز والتنانين بتاعتهم والصراع على العرش في عصر ما بعد آيجون، كتابة جميلة جدا جدا، وكل ما ترجع بالتاريخ بتاع ويستروس وعالم جايم أوف ثرونز عموما كل ما الموضوع يبقى ممتع أكتر، وبيخليني أستمتع أكتر بالجزء اللي الكتب الأساسية والمسلسل بيغطوه، بيديله غنى وبيثب رجليه أكتر