James Baquet In 1996, with little fanfare, American author George R. R. Martin (known to fans as “GRRM” and called by some “the American Tolkien”) published a novel called “A Game of Thrones.” It was meant to be the first in a trilogy called “A Song of Ice and Fire”; the concept has now grown to seven books. Five are finished; Martin is working on the sixth; and the seventh has not yet seen a start. “A Game of Thrones” and its sequels were big hits; an eight-season TV series is based on them. Besides the main series, Martin has written several prequels and references about the series. The books are inspired by several historical and quasi-historical sources, including England’s “Wars of the Roses” (a series of civil wars that lasted over a century); “The Accursed Kings,” a series of French novels about the French monarchy in the 14th century; and Sir Walter Scott’s novel, “Ivanhoe.” “A Song of Ice and Fire” is set in an imaginary world (not connected to any real-world geography) that resembles Europe’s Middle Ages. The main continent is Westeros (in the west, more or less where we would find England); unlike England, Westeros extends far to the north, into “The Land of Always Winter.” Its rival is Essos (in the east, like the location of the European mainland). The story has three main threads, all woven together. The first, to which the title “Game of Thrones” mainly refers, is a dynastic war among several families or “Great Houses” for control of Westeros, including House Stark, House Lannister, and House Baratheon. Robert Baratheon occupies the “Iron Throne” as the story begins. A second thread is the ambition of Daenerys Targaryen, sometimes called the “Mother of Dragons,” to regain the throne her father lost. She is the daughter of King Aerys II Targaryen. House Targaryen once held all of Westeros through their ability to control dragons. The third thread is about the threat of a group of supernatural “others” called “the White Walkers,” who threaten to come over the Wall in the far north that protects the kingdoms. The books, so far totaling a whopping 4,244 pages, have been translated into more than 30 languages. Vocabulary: Which word above means: 1. regarding the sequence of rulers 2. somewhat, partially 3. intend to do harm 4. books or films that follow another 5. advertising push 6. enemy 7. large, impressive 8. books or films that come before another 9. doomed, the opposite of blessed 10. combined into a connected whole | 