A Song of Ice and Fire reading order
Start here
A Game of Thrones
1996
George R. R. Martin’s ASOIAF novels in publication order, where Dunk and Egg and Fire & Blood sit, and why the unfinished later books are not a reason to start with a history.
Short answer · Start here
A Game of Thrones
It is book one (1996). Fire & Blood is a later history. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a later-published look backward. Neither is an on-ramp.
Five novels published in the main sequence. Later volumes have been discussed for years. This page will not invent a date for The Winds of Winter. The HBO / MAX show is a cousin that outran the books; show order is not a reason to skip to A Dance with Dragons.
The published novels
| # | Title | Year | Notes | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  A Game of ThronesStart here | 1996 | Start here. | |
| 2 |  A Clash of Kings | 1998 | ||
| 3 |  A Storm of Swords | 2000 | ||
| 4 |  A Feast for Crows | 2005 | Split timeline with book 5. Still fourth. | |
| 5 |  A Dance with Dragons | 2011 |
Publication order is the only first-read path. Feast and Dance overlap in time and split cast. Read Feast then Dance. Combined-order fan charts exist for a reread. They are not required, and they are easy to spoil yourself with.
Dunk and Egg, Fire & Blood
| Title | Year | Notes | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|
 A Knight of the Seven KingdomsDo not start here | 2015 | Collects the Dunk and Egg novellas. After the five if you want more Westeros. Not book one. | |
 Fire & BloodDo not start here | 2018 | Targaryen history. After the novels, or after House of the Dragon curiosity. Not an on-ramp to A Game of Thrones. |
Contested order, labeled: chronological charts put Dunk and Egg and Fire & Blood first. That is a historian’s reread. For a first read it hands you names the novels are designed to introduce as the point.
The Rise of the Dragon is an illustrated companion, not a novel. The World of Ice & Fire is a reference book. Neither is book 0.
Common mistakes
- Starting with Fire & Blood because of House of the Dragon.
- Starting with A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms because the adaptation is newer.
- Reading Dance before Feast.
- Waiting for Winds before opening A Game of Thrones.
What to read next
- The First Law (Joe Abercrombie) — If you want another grim door that actually published its later arguments.
- The Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan) — If you want a finished long epic.
- Book of the Fallen reading order (Steven Erikson) — If you want another large cast that will not explain itself in chapter one. Short door: where to start Malazan Book of the Fallen.
- Roots of Chaos (Samantha Shannon) — If you want another political dragon shelf whose 2019 door is Priory, not the later prequel.
- Stop after Dance. The unpublished books will still be unpublished tomorrow.
FAQ
Show first?
The show diverges and finishes. The novels still start at A Game of Thrones.
Feast or Dance first?
Feast, then Dance.
Is Fire & Blood required?
No.
Winds of Winter?
Not a book you can put in this table yet.
Sources
- George R. R. Martin — author site. Opened 2026-09-13.
- HarperCollins, A Game of Thrones — publisher page for book one. Opened 2026-09-13.
Same shelf
