As you might've noticed, Game of Thrones' ending, the backlash to which rather increased the hope and desire to see the novel come to fruition. Even as we reach 14 years since A Dance with Dragons, I remain (perhaps foolishly) optimistic about the book's release.

Certainly, there's credit to Martin for not rushing - no one could ever accuse him of that. The Winds of Winter is taking so long because of so many other commitments, yes, which I understand can irk people, but there's also a clear commitment to getting it right. The struggle in doing so, because this story is now so vast and complex, adds to the delays, but should also - again, hopefully - make it worth the wait (A Dream of Spring, the seventh book, is perhaps a separate conversation).

Still, waiting for The Winds of Winter can't all be re-watching Game of Thrones and re-reading A Song of Ice and Fire - or at least, I have to force myself to not do that. There are plenty of other great fantasy books, of course, but this is the closest I've personally found to scratching the ASOIAF itch while delivering a unique experience.

The Two-Book Fantasy Series That I Think Is Perfect If You Like A Song Of Ice & Fire

It's Not Just A Copycat, Which Makes It Even Better

For me, the best replacement I've found for A Song of Ice and Fire is The Kingkiller Chronicle. That's perhaps no surprise, as Patrick Rothfuss was influenced by Martin, and there are some similarities in their styles. The Kingkiller Chronicle, which comprises two main books plus some spinoffs, takes place in the fictional world of Temerant. Using a story-within-a-story framework, it sees Kote, an innkeeper, telling the story of his past as Kvothe, a trouper who goes to university to study magic, and becomes not only a talented wizard (or arcanist), but somehow the eponymous "Kingkiller."

The Kingkiller Chronicle has a few key similarities with A Song of Ice and Fire, even if it's not quite as high fantasy or epic in of its locations and characters. Rothfuss' prose is often beautiful, even poetic. He does a great job with worldbuilding and make Temerant feel like a unique, lived-in place, while drawing inspiration from history (albeit with more of a Renaissance influence than the grim, violent nature of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros).

Both series have fascinating structures that play around with storytelling: in ASOIAF, that's the point-of-view style; in Kingkiller, it's the story-within-a-story. There's a lot of strong character work and detail in Rothfuss' series that recalls what I love about how Martin develops his characters, and Kvothe's story, because he's an unreliable narrator, is both following the hero's journey and subtly subverting it, not dissimilar to how Martin deconstructs many fantasy tropes that arose in so much post-Tolkien literature.

The Kingkiller Chronicle feels like a perfect mid-point between Harry Potter's low fantasy, with its singular hero and magical school, and ASOIAF with its more detailed world and densely layered narrative.

Still, these books aren't too similar, so it doesn't just feel like a retread or a lesser version of A Song of Ice and Fire. For me, and this is a big reason I love it, The Kingkiller Chronicle feels like a perfect mid-point between Harry Potter's low fantasy, with its singular hero and magical school, and ASOIAF with its more detailed world and densely layered narrative. Having grown-up with Potter and then first read A Song of Ice and Fire in my early 20s, it's a comforting blend of the two that's familiar and new at the same time.

The Long Wait For Both Fantasy Book Sequels Is Absolutely Worthwhile

It's Not Just About The Destination

Of course, the other similarity between A Song of Ice and Fire and The Kingkiller Chronicle is the long wait fans have had to suffer through. Like A Dance with Dragons, the most recent book in Rothfuss' series, The Wise Man's Fear, released in 2011. And, similarly, the wait for The Doors of Stone, the planned third and final installment, goes on and on.

So why am I recommending another unfinished fantasy series? Maybe I'm just a glutton for punishment and only want sagas that are potentially never going to end (which, in a way, also means you can never be disappointed by the ending). But it is also that, for both series, the journey is worthwhile regardless of the destination.

If we never get The Winds of Winter, is that going to make me regret reading A Song of Ice and Fire? Absolutely not.

If we never get The Winds of Winter (or we do, but don't get A Dream of Spring), is that going to make me regret reading A Song of Ice and Fire? Absolutely not. The countless hours spent reading it, reading about it, and writing about it, have provided enough value many times over. Similarly, the enjoyment of reading The Kingkiller Chronicle, and the ability to escape into another great world, is worth it even if the books aren't finished, because that, to me, is what fantasy is all about. But an ending sure would be nice all the same, eh?