Just thought I'd send out a warning that Dance with Dragons has been released in Germany and spoilers are already starting to leak out.

Whut? A release in my country and I haven't heard of it? Where'd you find that info?

Thanks for the heads up. I really don't want to know anything big until I read it myself.

Apparently Amazon.eu leaked out 180 copies of the book.

I think they should go ahead and just release the book now then. It's only fair.

I just think it's awesome that there is the chance of getting spoiled. I never thought that day would come.

Just realized, if you preorder on Amazon.com you save $15 and shipping is free...

"/happy panda dance"

I was happy to see that as well, Twn2dn. Usually, I don't buy hardcovers (I just wait for the paperback or possibly try to borrow the hardcover), but that deal was good enough to get me to do it.

Regarding the spoilers.... DO NOT GO TO WESTEROS.ORG!!! I go there from time to time (especially recently for the discussions of the HBO series), and others here might as well. The sidebar of their main page shows the subject line of the most recent forum discussions and right now those subject lines are extremely spoiler heavy. I already feel very spoiled just from one quick glance before I realized what I was looking at.

Thanks for the heads-up with regards to Westeros.org. I suspected as much, so I've been avoiding it. These are dangerous times...

Thanks for the head's up!!! That would be the biggest disappointment ever...

I go to westeros.org often so will be avoiding there for now. I preordered the book yesterday at the local Coles, $39 CDN seems pretty steep, disappointed it is in hardcover only.

Toqtamish said:

i agree completely. i don't understand why they can't do both a hard and soft cover release at the same time (other than they obviously get more money on hard cover sales).

Authors typically make like $0.50 on a paperback sale. They make about $2.50 on a hardcover sale. That's why hardcovers are released first and I have absolutely no problem with that practice. The vast majority of authors can't even make enough to live off of. Authors like GRRM and J.K. Rowling are very rare exceptions.

They spend a lot of time and effort on a book. Fantasy is known for very high word counts and they don't get paid any extra for producing a book that is 700-1,000 pages versus some of the authors that crank out a 2D cardboard cutout story every single year that's around 300 pages.

I see the average video game at around $50, the average Blu-ray DVD is around $25, a deluxe LCG expansion is $25-30 retail. I have no problem spending $25-30 on Dance With Dragons. This series is by far the best series I've ever read in any genre and transcends the genre stigma of poor literature covered in Tolkien-foliage.

Ultimately, it's just price discrimination. People who are penny pinchers will wait several months until the paperback is released. People who are avid fans of the series,don't mind paying a premium for a better quality product that costs more and aren't willing to wait, will buy it as soon as it comes out.

I wish that they could release a "premium edition" paperback at the same time as the hardcover. Personally, I just prefer the paperback any way. It travels much better and is easier on the wrists when you read for long stretches. I'd be willing to pay the $4 or whatever it would need to be above the normal paperback price to support the author and get the book right when it comes out.

Let me preface this: I'm not being sarcastic, so even if it sounds like I am - I'm not.

You should look into an e-reader like the Amazon Kindle or Barnes and Noble Nook touch. It'll give you the portability you want. It's a decent sized investment up front (about $130), but you can get books as they come out for around $10-15. I just don't see publishers ever coming out with a premium softcover at release for $4 more.

I have an ereader, sony, it was only $72 after shipping. So you can find them for a good price. I got mine off of ebay. Works great.