User blog comment:TheUnknown285/What Other Sci-Fi or Fantasy Do You Like?/@comment-2088100-20130220024355/@comment-1221773-20130220035510

Children of the Sky was okay, but it wasn't the sequel I was expecting. I got the impression he intended to write a much longer book, but halfway through he decided to call it a day and set the stage for a later final confrontation (maybe his publisher made a multibook deal and he has to stretch the material out). But I still say it's worth reading if you liked the other books at all.

And I agree that Martin's storytelling style makes for great drama, but I can't figure out what it's all leading to, the point. Will there be at least one moderately decent guy who wins in the end, or is it a tragedy in the form of an epic? I can't figure out how to approach the series, what mindset I should adopt, and that uncertainty has me putting off a return to it for now.