Game of Thrones writer George RR Martin releases extract from new book

The book will offer readers a rich and detailed history of the world and the characters from the television series and the novels

An excerpt from George R.R. Martin’s forthcoming book has been published on the Game of Thrones writer’s website.

The sample from ‘The World of Ice and Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones’, entitled ‘Aegon’s Conquest’, tells readers about the life of the Targaryen king.

The extract was shared on Martin’s site and also details the King's dragons and conquering the Seven Kingdoms.

"Of the five dragons who had flown with Aenar the Exile from Valyria, only one survived to Aegon’s day: the great beast called Balerion, the Black Dread."

Aegon is one of Daenerys’ ancestors and in the television show she has three of her own dragons.

The book is a companion to the HBO series and will serve as a guide to the rich history of the medieval world Martin has created. It covers the period from the Dawn Age to the struggle between the Starks, Lannisters, Baratheons and Targaryens for the Iron Throne.

According to a description on Amazon, the book will be “lavishly illustrated” and recount “epic battles, bitter rivalries, and daring rebellions”.

Martin has worked with the founders of Westeros.org, Elio M. García, Jr. and Linda Antonsson, to create the book.

‘The World of Ice and Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones’ is set to be released on 28 October this year.

Game of Thrones is an adaptation of Martin’s ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ novels. The first book in the saga was published back in 1996 and slowly began to develop cult status ever since.

However, Martin was only propelled into mainstream global success when the novels were adapted by HBO into the globally popular television series.

The author has produced five hefty tomes and is working on ‘The Winds of Winter’, which is the next instalment of ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ series.

Season 4 of Game of Thrones is being broadcast on Sky Atlantic in the UK and the next episode ‘Breaker of Chains’ will be airing on Monday 21 April at 9pm.