It feels like an eternity since the latest book in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire saga released. That's partly because it almost has been an eternity. A Dance with Dragons released way back in 2011, and the painful wait for the next installment is only amplified by the fact that the book is filled with unanswered questions and cliffhangers that have fans pulling their hair out.
Martin certainly does a great job of keeping readers on the edge of their seats, but the wait for answers is killing us.
So let's all relieve some stress shall we? While Martin has been typing away on The Winds of Winter, fans haven't been idle. They've read the books forwards and backwards in an attempt to deduce what may be coming next. With that being said, let's take a look at six of the big questions we want to see answered in The Winds of Winter, and some of the fan speculation surrounding each.
Spoilers below! Obviously!
Where Is Davos Going?
Last we saw Davos, he was given an important mission by Wyman Manderly of White Harbor: find Rickon Stark. In exchange, White Harbor and House Manderly will join forces with Stannis to take back control of the North. The only problem is Rickon, aided by the wildling Osha, is said to be hiding in a place where men eat human flesh. We don't know for sure where exactly Davos is heading, but most fans believe it to be the northern island of Skagos. Skagos has a nasty reputation for being the home of barbarians and cannibals. In other words, the perfect place for the young Stark to hide.
What Happened to Stannis?
Nobody likes the Boltons, so when Stannis marches his army south to lay siege to Winterfell in A Dance with Dragons, fans rejoiced! But perhaps too early. We know Stannis and his men are being defeated by the harsh winter weather conditions of the North. However, we don't get to see the battle between Stannis and Ramsay Bolton. All we know is Jon Snow receives a letter that appears to be Ramsay's handwriting, claiming Stannis' army has been defeated and the king slain. Is it true? Ramsay could certainly be bluffing, and we all know he loves to play terrible, terrible tricks on people. Let's pray to the Lord of Light that Stannis isn't out of this fight yet.
Can Victarion's Magic Horn Really Control Dragons?
Dany's dragons are finally at the size where they can do some serious damage to entire armies -- if they could be controlled. So far Dany only seems able to control Drogon, leaving Viserion and Rhaegal chained up. But what if some other person could control Dany's dragons? Like someone by the name of Victarion Greyjoy, who just so happens to be in possession of a magic dragon-controlling horn?
The balance of power would dramatically shift to the Greyjoys favor if this magical instrument is what Euron Greyjoy believes it to be. "If," however, is the key word here. It seems far too simple for Victarion to simply show up in Meereen, blow a horn and leave with three dragons, and Dany, in tow.
Is Brienne Doing What We Think She's Doing?
At the end of A Feast for Crows, Brienne is given a choice after being captured by Lady Stoneheart: "sword" or "noose". Sword will have Breinne hunt down and kill Jaime Lannister to prove her loyalty, while noose will result in the execution of Brienne and her squire Podrick. While she initially refuses to choose, seeing Podrick choking and dying appears to have been enough for her to change her mind. Brienne appears briefly in A Dance with Dragons and tells Jaime what we know to be a bold faced lie: that she has found Sansa Stark, but she is being held captive by the Hound.
If Jaime doesn't accompany Brienne alone, the Hound has threatened to kill Sansa. It certainly seems like Brienne is leading Jaime into a trap, but does Brienne have some other plan in mind? It seems hard to believe Brienne, one of the few honorable knights in the seven kingdoms, would betray the man that, over the course of the last few books, has come to be what Brienne might consider a friend. Only the next book will tell.
Did Hizdahr zo Loraq Poison Dany?
Dany's storyline in A Dance With Dragons is filled with political intrigue and shady dealings. She feels forced to marry Hizdahr zo Loraq in an attempt to broker a peace with the Sons of the Harpy, who have been tearing Meereen apart from the inside. Once married the attacks suddenly stop, seeming to suggest Hizdahr and the Sons of the Harpy are somehow linked. When Dany later re-opens the Meereen fighting pits, she is nearly poisoned to death, saved only by Strong Belwas' passion for spiced locusts.
The locusts, it turns out, were laced with poison. But poisoned by who? Barristan Selmy and other Dany supporters believe Hizdahr to be the culprit. After all, his motif seems clear. With Dany dead (or flying away atop a dragon) Hizdahr becomes a king without a queen and the default ruler of Meereen. It remains to be seen, however, if Hizdahr actually committed the crime or is simply a puppet in some larger game.
Is Jon Snow Really Dead?
The big one. The moment many a Song of Ice and Fire reader tossed their hands up in the air and screamed "Why George, why!?" We are of course talking about the "death" of Jon Snow at the hands of his Night's Watch brothers. To many in the Night's Watch, Jon is seen as breaking his vows, as he has allied the brotherhood with the Wildlings and asks Wildling and black brother alike to help him take back Winterfell from Ramsay Bolton. Shortly after announcing his intentions, Jon is ambushed by his brothers-in-arms, who appear to be crying as they stab him, as they whisper "For the Watch."
Jon's chapter ends with him falling unconscious from multiple stab wounds. Does that mean the 998th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch is dead, slain by his own men? Hard to say for sure. Some fans speculate Jon's body may be beyond saving, but that Jon will "warg" his mind into Ghost, his direwolf companion. It certainly seems like a possibility, but we will have to wait until The Winds of Winter releases (or Game of Thrones season six) to find out.
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