This episode is brought to you by The Economist. The world is complex, but understanding it doesn't have to be.

The Economist connects the dots across politics, business, science and culture, keeping you informed and prepared for what's to come.

When decisions in Beijing shift markets in New York, or a populist wave ripples to your doorstep,

the Economist explains the what and the why before your morning

coffee's brewed. They make complicated issues clear so you can navigate with confidence. Search

the economist and make sense of the world around you. Welcome back to Game of Thrones 2, Electric.

Bukaloo, I'm host Anthony.

Philip Habercern and Padrick McCarron.

Join me for a rap podcast on The Clash of Kings.

We try to tie a bow on some of the characters' themes and plot developments in this second book of the series.

As I've mentioned before, we are taking an interlude from a Song of Ice and Fire to do a few months of coverage of Night of the Seven Kingdoms, beginning with the Hedge Night.

Next week, we'll do a primer for that.

If you'd like to follow along with me, I'm using the Bantam Books Hardback.

If you're a little bit reluctant on jumping into a book, I would just say that the reading level of this book is really like new adult fiction.

I would say just slightly more advanced than Harry Potter, but not by much.

So in prep for next week, you don't have to actually read anything.

It'll just be a

primer on the book. My coverage of this will be about 14 weeks. I'll have various guests, but my

primary guess will be my friend Steve Osborne. Steve, as you know, is a stand-up comic. What you

might not know about him is that he has a degree in literature. And he especially loves short

stories.

So this book comprising three short novellas, I think, will be right up his alley.

...