I'm not usually a fan of "knights and dragons" fantasy, but George R.R. Martin transcends the genre with this first volume in his A Song of Ice and Fire series. Although I was frustrated with the language at first (too many realms, visages, destriers, etc.), I soon became absorbed in the large cast of complex, flawed, and interesting characters. Martin's fantasy world is very realistic in the sense that without proper medical care, even a minor wound can be fatal — and he's not afraid to kill a major sympathetic character if the story demands it. After 200 pages or so, I was so absorbed that I didn't want to put it down.

There are several more books available in this series (and at least one or two that remain to be published). I'm very interested in revisiting this fictional world, and if the other books are half as good as this one, I'll eventually read them all.