THE PACIFIST BEHIND THE BLOODSHED

ONE of the greatest ironies is that this bloody saga was dreamt up by a conscientious objector who refused to fight in the Vietnam War.

Indeed, it was George RR Martin’s hatred of the glorification of war that led him to depict it so brutally in his books. The American, 70, — who identified himself with Sam Tarly, a stout and bookish character in GoT — started out as a youngster writing monster stories for other children, but had to stop when their parents complained they were having nightmares. He built a tower featuring windows with GoT emblems opposite his New Mexico home to house his vast book collection.