Game of Thrones may be over, but A Song of Ice and Fire fans are still waiting for The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring from George RR Martin. Now a popular new fan theory on the penultimate book in the saga reckons there will be a big twist at Winterfell. What if other Houses turned against House Bolton in the upcoming battle?
Reddit user LennyDeG wrote: “So I wanted to discuss Stannis Baratheon’s current situation as he makes his preparations in taking Winterfell.
“[This] will be crucial for him [for] finally getting a big win after the events that have unfolded for him so far.
“But as House Bolton do have the advantage, will there be a massive twist in the upcoming battle for Winterfell in terms of other Houses turning unexpectedly against House Bolton that turns into a scenario of what is going on type of thing?
“House Manderley did a deal with Ser Davos in support for Stannis as long as Rickon Stark is brought back to the North so the other houses can rally behind House Stark.”
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They continued: “However, Stannis does not know this deal has taken place or that Ser Davos is even alive.
“So Stannis has the mountain clans, whatever men he has, House Mormont and Glover.
“Whereas House Bolton has The Karstarks and other houses to[o] scared to rise up against them.
“And we still don’t know or [are] unsure of House Umber, although I’d like to believe when Rickon turns up they will stand behind him.”
Last week, A Song of Ice and Fire author George RR Martin teased that Game of Thrones had a different ending to what he has planned for the books.
Speaking with Welt, Martin was asked if having seen Game of Thrones finish his story before he could in the books put him under pressure.
The 71-year-old said: “People know an end – not the end. The makers of the TV series overtook me, which I didn’t expect.
“Nevertheless I continue what I’ve been doing for years: I still try to finish first the next book Winds Of Winter and then the follow-up novel A Dream Of Spring. These are the things I concentrate on. After that, we will see.”
The comment that fans have seen “an end – not the end” will come as quite the shock.
After all, Martin has said in previous interviews how the main plot points of his planned narrative for remaining books The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring are what he told the Game of Thrones show runners and what manifested in the final episodes.
So, presumably, the author means that Bran Stark will still become king under an elected monarchy And by “the end” Martin probably means all the details that are his and plans for different secondary characters that we didn’t see in Game of Thrones.
After all, A Song of Ice and Fire’s ending will be his official conclusion to the story without the creative input of HBO or the showrunners.