I am attempting to go back and read some of these older books to bring up my ratio, but unfortunately I can't find a copy of this in my library system! I will not be reviewing it apologies :(

Two stars and a “meh” for me. I e read Martin before and liked her stuff but this was a mix of too many ideas and not enough follow-through on them.

Definitely points awarded for an innovative emoticon system but the rest is a mess. Uneven pacing, infodumps, dull characters and repetitive dialogue. I finished this but I won’t be futhering my read into this particular series. I look for more creative plots in fantasy novels and Martin relies almost entirely on outdated tropes in this starter.