George RR Martin: every book Game of Thrones author is working on from Winds of Winter to Fire & Blood sequel

Game of Thrones fans have been waiting for The Winds of Winter, the next instalment in the A Song of Ice and Fire (ASOIAF) novel series on which the HBO show was based, to be published for more than a decade.

However, the penultimate novel in the series is far from the only book set in the world of game of thrones that  75 year old author George RR Martin is working on.

The scribe has plans for several other spinoffs from his bestselling ASOIAF series which was adapted into the hit HBO show Game of Thrones, which ran for eight seasons from 2011-2019.

Although Martin initially expected to finish Winds of Winter before the TV show overtook the story, we still don’t have a publication date almost five years after the series came to an end. And what’s more, Martin has a whole host of other novels in the works that fans are waiting for.

Which books is George RR Martin working on?

The Winds of Winter

Sequel to A Dance with Dragons, which was published 13 years ago, rumours about the possible release date of the supposedly forthcoming ASOIAF novel Winds of Winter have abounded for almost as long. Martin first optimistically said he thought the book would be out in 2014 - well we’re a decade on and it’s still not on bookshelves.

In terms of plot, we know that Martin plans to open the novel with two big battles that he has been gearing up to in the last couple of books, one in the far north and the other in Meereen. He also hinted that the book could be the bleakest of the series so far, with some of the characters in very dark places.

A Dream of Spring

We know even less about A Dream of Spring than we do Winds of Winter. It is supposed to be the final ASOIAF novel and will resolve many threads that have run through the previous books. Martin suggested that the ending will be similar to Lord of the Rings, and not everyone will live happily ever after.

It is not clear if Martin has even started A Dream of Spring yet, and he has previously said that he is not sure which of his planned novels will be next on his left after he finishes Winds of Winter. So we could be waiting a long, long time for ASOIAF to come to an end. 

Blood & Fire

Blood & Fire is the planned sequel to Martin’s fictional historiography of House Targaryen, Fire & Blood, which was published in 2018. The first volume presented a general history of the Targaryen kings of Westeros from Aegon the Conqueror to the regency of his sixth successor Aegon III.

Blood & Fire is expected to cover the rest of Aegon III’s reign and that of all of his successors up to and including the last Targaryen King, Aegon II, the ‘Mad King’ whose death took place around 16 years before the events of Game of Thrones. This is another book we don’t expect to arrive until Winds of Winter is finished, although given its clear structure it should take considerably less time for Martin to write.

Tales of Dunk and Egg

Martin has planned to write another six novellas in the Tales of Dunk and Egg series. The first three, published collectively as A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms in 2015, follow the early adventures of the future Lord Commander of the Kingsguard Ser Duncan the Tall, and Egg, his squire and the future King Aegon V.

Martin has stated his plans to tell the complete story of Dunk and Egg’s lives through the rest of his short stories. The provisional titles for the upcoming stories are: The She-Wolves of Winterfell, The Village Hero, The Sellsword, The Champion, The Kingsguard, The Lord Commander.

Wild Cards XXXIII

Alongside his work on Game of Thrones, Martin has also worked as an editor and sometimes contributor on fantasy series Wild Cards, which has so far run for 33 volumes since 1987. The Wild Cards series is set in an alternative post Second World War America in which some citizens have been turned into mutants by a ‘Wild Card’ virus. Those who gain special abilities become known as Aces, whilst those who are crippled by the virus are called Jokers.  

The latest book in the Wild Cards series, Sleeper Straddle, was published in February 2024, and more instalments are expected. If another Wild Cards book is confirmed, Martin will likely continue in the role of editor.