A Feast for Crows is in the unfortunate position of having to follow right after
A Storm of Swords, which was almost all unrelenting action. There needed to be a bit of a cool down period to help create some juxtaposition and explore the characters we haven't gotten to know much yet, like Samwell and Cersci. I think it's purpose is to also help flesh out the religion of the Seven a little bit more and perhaps sow the seeds of a growing citizens uprising against the Lords whose petty wars has exhausted the food supply that was needed for the coming long winter.
As far as
A Dance with Dragons is concerned, what I liked most about it is that so many of the characters have experienced large arcs and personality changes in a way that can only be described as epic.
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