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Quick Answer

How Many Game of Thrones Books Are There?

Short Answer

5 published books in A Song of Ice and Fire (the series Game of Thrones is based on). Two more are planned — The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring — but neither has been published. The series is unfinished.

5
Published Books
2
Unfinished Books
~5,200
Pages Published

A Song of Ice and Fire — Complete Book List

#TitleYearStatus
1 A Game of Thrones START HERE 1996 Published
2 A Clash of Kings 1998 Published
3 A Storm of Swords 2000 Published
4 A Feast for Crows 2005 Published
5 A Dance with Dragons 2011 Published
6 The Winds of Winter UNFINISHED TBD No release date
7 A Dream of Spring UNFINISHED TBD Not started

Is Game of Thrones Finished?

No. The book series — officially titled A Song of Ice and Fire — is unfinished. The last published novel, A Dance with Dragons, came out in 2011. The Winds of Winter was expected "soon" for the better part of a decade and has not arrived. George R.R. Martin continues to work on it alongside other projects including the House of the Dragon TV series.

There is no confirmed release date for The Winds of Winter as of 2026. A Dream of Spring (Book 7) has reportedly not been started.

The situation: The HBO series Game of Thrones finished the story in 2019 — with an ending that was widely criticized. The books have not yet reached the events of Seasons 6–8. Martin has said the books will have a different ending. Whether that ending will ever be published in book form is an open question many readers have stopped waiting to answer.

Companion Books and Related Works

Several companion and related works have been published:

Should You Start A Song of Ice and Fire?

The first three books — A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords — are among the finest fantasy novels ever written. Book 3 in particular (A Storm of Swords) is routinely cited as the greatest volume in modern epic fantasy.

Books 4 and 5 are slower — Martin split one intended book into two to handle the expanding cast, and A Feast for Crows in particular frustrates readers who expected the same pace as Book 3. It's still worth reading for what comes next.

Our recommendation: Read the five published books. The series is exceptional regardless of whether the final two ever arrive. Just know you're entering an unfinished story — and that the TV show's ending may not be what Martin ultimately writes.

Get Book 1: A Game of Thrones →