The War of the Five Kings reaches its most devastating phase. Robb Stark's campaign in the Riverlands faces a critical betrayal. Stannis Baratheon licks his wounds after the Battle of the Blackwater. King's Landing prepares for a royal wedding while Tyrion finds himself increasingly marginalised despite having saved the city. Jaime Lannister, a prisoner for much of the war, begins an unexpected journey that challenges everything readers thought they knew about him. Widely regarded as the series' high point, A Storm of Swords contains several of the most shocking and consequential events in modern fantasy fiction. The book was so long that some international editions split it into two volumes.