Game of Thrones creator George R.R Martin hints at his grand finale plans…

Four years, people. That's how long fans of the 'Song of Fire and Ice' series have waited for the latest book from Game of Thrones creator George R.R Martin.

While there's plenty of speculation around the release date for the novel 'The Winds of Winter' - as well as the fate of a certain character - the author has been speaking about his plans for the series' grand finale. Warning: Spoiler alert as always... 'A Dream of Spring' is the title for Martin's final instalment and he revealed some interesting nuggets of information during this interview with The Observer. "I haven’t written the ending yet, so I don’t know, but no. That’s certainly not my intent," said Martin after he was asked whether there will be a bloody apocalypse. "I’ve said before that the tone of the ending that I’m going for is bittersweet. I mean, it’s no secret that Tolkien has been a huge influence on me, and I love the way he ended Lord of the Rings. "It ends with victory, but it’s a bittersweet victory. Frodo is never whole again, and he goes away to the Undying Lands, and the other people live their lives. "And the scouring of the Shire—brilliant piece of work, which I didn’t understand when I was 13 years old: “Why is this here? The story’s over?” But every time I read it I understand the brilliance of that segment more and more. "All I can say is that’s the kind of tone I will be aiming for. Whether I achieve it or not, that will be up to people like you and my readers to judge". The anticipation is killing us...