Wow, this was great!
It took me quite a bit to get through this. Not only because it's over 800 pages long, but also because there's only a certain amount of drama and intrigue I can take.
It was very impressive that the author decided to let bad things happen to the "good" characters and that he killed of some people you never thought would die. But that makes it more believable. The world Martin built is hard and cruel :(
I loved Daenerys. To me she's the strongest character, the biggest fighter and she had the most interesting story. Her love for Khal Drogo moved me and her last chapter was just O___O
I want to go and get the next book as soon as possible. Martin did a good job to built in cliffhangers for every important character in the story so no matter who is you favorite, you want to read the next volume.