George R.R. Martin’s “The Winds Of Winter” is taking years to finish and one can very well imagine the amount of frustration it has caused to the GOT fandom. However, the author managed to pacify his fans when he recently took to social media and posted an update on the progress of the novel. GRRM said that he is still months away from getting the book out. This announcement has come as a relief to many who have waited for years for an update.

The author also confirmed that he is no longer working on the five “Game of Thrones” spin-offs so that he could focus more on the novel. Martin said that there are a lot of dead “GOT” characters that are still alive in the book.

“GOT” storyline is different from the book

In a recent interview, Martin said that “The Winds Of Winter” and the TV adaptation “go their separate ways.” “On the screen, characters are killed right and left," he told Metro US. “About twenty of them have died already, which are quite alive to me and will appear in a new book.” We know that most of the Starks have been killed in the previous season of “Game of Thrones” including Eddard, Catelyn and Robb.

King Robert Baratheon had been also killed as well as his son (not really) Joffrey and a lot more. Actor Sean Bean who played the role of Eddard “Ned” Stark has left the show in Season 1 when King Joffrey beheaded his character for treason.

Who are the surviving characters in the book?

This is one reason why fans are getting impatient with the release of “The Winds of Winter.” They are curious to know more about the story in the TV adaptation. When Ned Stark was beheaded, most fans were disappointed because they believe that there are still a lot of things he could have done. There have been speculations that he might return soon through Bran’s super powers. There is no telling as to which characters are alive in the book, but most fans are hoping that the Starks are one of them.

Possible release date

Everyone has been anticipating “The Winds of Winter” since day one, but because of GRRM’s busy schedules, he is still not done writing the book but is apparently working on it at this time. When the author announced that he is still months away from getting the book out, fans suggest that it’s possible that he might be able to deliver it early in 2018, if not this year. He also said that he might be able to release not just one book but two. We’re pretty sure that one of these books is the “WoW.” Hopefully!

Which dead characters in “Game of Thrones” do you think will survive in “The Winds of Winter”? Let us know in the comments below.