‘The Winds of Winter’ Release Date, Spoilers: Fans Still Need Remaining ‘ASoIaF' Books Even If ‘GoT’ Finishes First

To this day, fans still do not when “The Winds of Winter” is going to be released. The HBO series “Game of Thrones” is apparently going to finish first before George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” book saga. However, book fans still have reasons to wait for the completion of the books even though the TV series is expected to end in 2019.

Before the Worldcon 2018, George R.R. Martin joined illustrator John Picacio for an onstage interview. During the event, the “A Song of Ice and Fire” mastermind indirectly told fans why they should still be reading the remaining books in the saga, including “The Winds of Winter,” even after “Game of Thrones” concludes.

According to WinterIsComing.net, Martin told the audience that HBO’s “Game of Thrones” does not outline how the events will unfold in “The Winds of Winter.” This means many things are going to happen differently from what was shown on the small screen.

He then briefly talked about the deaths that will occur in “The Winds of Winter.” Without giving away any spoiler, Martin revealed that some characters who did not make it in the TV series will actually live through the end of the book saga.

Two books — “The Winds of Winter” and “A Dream of Spring" — are expected to be released before “A Song of Ice and Fire” formally ends. These book titles are supposedly covering events included in “Game of Thrones” season 7 and 8, respectively.

“Game of Thrones” season 7 completed its seven-episode run last year while “The Winds of Winter” is definitely not going to arrive in 2018. The author is still mum about the said book's release date but there are daring speculations that it could be dropped in 2019.

With that, some might be asking whether "The Winds of Winter" is still worth the wait if the TV series is going to close the story within a year from now. With Martin’s recent hints, the obvious answer is yes.