George RR Martin: ‘Winds of Winter’ is not coming this year…but another book is

MANILA, Philippines – Game of Thrones author George RR Martin has come clean about the long- (long, long) awaited 6th installment in his A Song of Ice and Fire series, euthanizing fans’ hopes by confirming that the book will not be coming any time soon.

“No, winter is not coming… not in 2018, at least,” Martin wrote in a blog post. “You’re going to have to keep waiting for The Winds of Winter.”

That’s a lot of waiting for Thrones fans, who are also counting the days to the premiere of the final season of HBO’s Game of Thrones series, set to air in 2019.

A Dance with Dragons, the fifth and most recent book in the series that spawned a global cult following was released in July 2011, and ended with cliffhangers and unanswered questions that kept fans eagerly awaiting the follow-up that has now been delayed even further.

As a consolation, Martin is releasing another book, Fire and Blood, which takes a deep dive into the history of Westeros by focusing on the stories of the ancient Targaryen kings.

“This first volume covers all the Targaryen kings from Aegon I (the Conquerer) to the regency of Aegon III (the Dragonbane), along with their wives, wars, siblings, children, friends, rivals, laws, travels, and sundry other matters,” he wrote.

“Oh, and there are dragons too. Lots of dragons,” he added.

According to Martin, the book’s manuscript is 989 pages long, and will have over 75 black & white illustrations by artist Doug Wheatley.

That’s a lot to chew on and pore over for fans of the series – though many remain steadfast in their demands for Martin to get on with it and finally finish Winds of Winter. – Rappler.com