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I am only familiar with Robert Jordan’s first Wheel of Time book, but I would say that Martin’s are vastly superior. The writing quality is not so different perhaps, but the scale and scope of the story, the richness in characters, character development, plot twist, outright surprises (such as killing off characters whom you believed he would NEVER kill off), puts Martin’s series on a level that Jordan can’t really touch.

If you like fantasy, you might want to look into Patrick Rothfuss’ The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle). Excellent book.

I can’t say on that comparison, vet, because I have not read or heard of the Wheel of Time series.

Regarding martin’s books though, my brother bought me the first 4 of the available 5 for my birthday, and I thought to myself, dammit, I do not want to read this, the author is some idiot liberal.

But knowing he would make sure I read them, I began to force myself to read one chapter per night so as to not be rude to him by rejecting his gift.

By the end of book three, I had to find ways to prevent myself from reading more than 6-8 chapters a day so that I would not consume them too quickly, and then when I got to the end, I started over at the beginning and began to buy the HBO series on blu ray.

The books are a long, slowly developing arch about a number of people who desire the power of a throne but are unfit to wield that power, and about the schemes and plots they devise to acquire that power.

The beauty of the books lies in the staggering depth of the characters. I have never come across characters this well developed in any book that I’ve ever read. The way the chapters are presented lends to this in that each chapter is seen through the eyes of one of the key characters with each chapter being named after one of those characters.

If you ever read them, vet, I highly recommend doing so in a digital format such as Kindle, because while the novels are cheaper, the print is small and compact, and it is not easy on my aging eyes at all. The Kindle has a space between each line of text which makes reading it so much easier.

I haven’t seen the show or read his books. How do they compare to Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series?

They are considerably better. I say that as a one-time huge fan of Jordan who became incredibly disappointed at the way he lost his way in too many irrelevant plot lines after the fourth book and also the way he depicted all of his female characters into perpetually angry harridans, as if that was supposed to be some sort of feminist statement. Actually, I think he was just writing down the way his wife talked to him. :)

Brandon Sanderson made a heroic effort to salvage the Wheel of Time series, but fell short - as there were just too many plot lines and no real way to end them all satisfactorily. After hearing for years from Jordan that the first thing he wrote was the final scene of the final book, we were expecting it to be something epic. Nope...

George R. R. Martin is a different kind of writer - no artificial politeness or fake chivalry from him. He spares the reader nothing of the human experience, though HBO adds some gratuitous sex scenes that go beyond what Martin actually wrote in the books. Still, and despite some minor plot changes, the HBO series is a nearly miraculous adaptation of a huge work of fantasy - something I never thought I would see attempted by a major cable network.

My only warning would be - if you are the kind of reader (as so many FReepers seem to be) that requires black-and-white characterizations of good and evil in you fiction, then go watch a John Wayne western, instead. Martin's characters defy classification, and even the "heroes" have significant flaws. If not, then I encourage you to read "A Song of Ice and Fire" - just be warned, that the rest of the fantasy genre will seem trite and insipid by comparison when you are finished!

I think that the Wheel of Time was uplifting, interesting and came alive. Martin is dark and disturbed. If there are 3 directions the story can take, he will take the worst path. The one thing I will say in Martin’s favor is that I think that he is very compelling. Once in the story, no matter how disgusting, it is hard to put it down, kind of like looking away from a train wreck.

Is Martin the next Tolkien? In my opinion a big No.

How does it compare to WOT? Not nearly as good.

I read Martin Once - *shrug* - but Jordan captivated me in ways that I can't even articulate. Those who complained about the depth, breadth, and richness in detail didn't read the series more than once.

I've read the entire series 6 times (all 14 books!) - and the ending roused me so much that I read it in a day - all 900+ pages - and thinking about it still chokes me up.

The last book, while getting to it, had moments - but as a writer as well, I thought was spot on whiz bang on point.

I don't need in your face taboo like Martin writes for me to appreciate a complicated plot.

Tolkien? I love his writing to bits, moreso because he wrote as a love of creation on which the fantasy genre derives from still.