The Dance....

George RR Martin announces that A Dance with Dragons has a release date.

I'd love to be one of the fans of A Song of Ice and Fire screaming "HUZZAH!!" over this, but...well, I'll read it, sure. I won't buy the hardcover right off the bat, but I'll read the book. Sometime. But it's been so long since the last one came out that I really don't remember a lot of what was going on, so I feel the need to do a complete re-read before I get to Dance. And I can't forget that I wasn't terribly enthusiastic about A Feast for Crows -- especially since Dance tells the rest of the story from Feast, but with other characters. The last one was, frankly, something of a structural mess.

And...well, the thing is, Martin still isn't done with the book. It's not "It's finished, they're editing and it will be out in July!" Instead, it's "I'm really close, so we're just throwing out a date!" This does not inspire confidence. They've announced release dates for Dance before, and yet, it's been seven years since the last one.

Last I checked, the entire series was supposed to end after seven books. Unless Martin is able to significantly get a jump on the next one, I stand by what's been my opinion for several years now: A Song of Ice and Fire will never be finished. At least, not by Martin.