The first book in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series is officially old enough to drink in America. A Game of Thrones first came out 21 years ago on August 1, 1996.
It’s also older than Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen are in the books. Although both the novels and Game of Thrones the show play fast and loose with timelines, Jon and Daenerys are both young teens in A Game of Thrones — thirteen and fourteen, respectively.
The first three books in A Song of Ice and Fire came out at deceptively regular two-year intervals. A Game of Thrones was published in 1996; A Clash of Kings two years later in 1998; A Storm of Swords two years later in 2000.
So far, so good. Seemed pretty normal for a fantasy series. The long waits began with A Feast For Crows, which was published five years after its predecessor in 2005. Then A Dance with Dragons came out six years after that, in 2011. The Winds of Winter — which currently has no publication date — will come out seven years after its predecessor if Martin manages to finish it in time for a 2018 release.
Going off that timeline, the conclusion to A Song of Ice and Fire series, A Dream of Spring should be published in 2026, around 30 years after A Game of Thrones came out.
Here’s what the cover of the first edition of A Game of Thrones looked like:
A Game of Thrones first edition
Game of Thrones Season 7 is currently airing Sunday nights on HBO.
