David Barr Kirtley

If you're planning on hanging out with any cool geeks this summer, you definitely won't want to admit that all you've read lately is Fifty Shades of Grey. And now that Game of Thrones is an HBO show, no one's going to be impressed that you've heard of A Song of Ice and Fire. So here's a list of some of this summer's most buzz-worthy geek science fiction and fantasy books. Drop a few of these into casual conversation, and it'll establish beyond any doubt that you're a true geek who's up on the latest trends.

In this week's episode of Game of Thrones, Theon Greyjoy gives a stirring speech in the face of certain doom, Daenerys Targaryen gate-crashes the House of the Undying Ones, and the Night's Watch encampment at the Fist of the First Men gets some unexpected dinner guests. Which one of those developments proves the most disappointing for fans of George R. R. Martin's books?

The large number of new characters reportedly coming to Game of Thrones next season should give fans hope that the television series will hew more closely to its vaunted source material. Here's a breakdown of what the casting news portends.

This week's installment of Game of Thrones marked a big change from previous episodes. The books that the show is based on, the epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, are full of large-scale battles, but until now the show -- which plainly struggles to present the rich tapestry of Martin's world on a TV budget -- has avoided showing any such engagements.

When fiction writer Jennifer Egan takes to Twitter this evening, she won't be tweeting about the latest headlines or her favorite nightspot. Instead, she'll be doling out her new short story "Black Box" at the rate of one tweet a minute.

In this week's episode, Brienne undertakes a cross-country road trip, Arya gives Jaqen the name of her third and final victim, and Cersei tries to use Tyrion's whoring ways against him. But mostly we get a bunch of characters who don't act quite as smart as they do in the George R. R. Martin books upon which the HBO series is based.

In this week's installment of Game of Thrones, Jaime Lannister gets some company in his prison cell, Theon Greyjoy goes hunting for Bran and Rickon, and Jon Snow tries not to have naughty thoughts about the pretty redhead he's keeping on a leash. But does the HBO series do the right thing when it strays from George R. R. Martin's epic fantasy novels?

In this week's installment of Game of Thrones, Theon Greyjoy learns that leading the ruthless Ironborn is harder than it sounds, Jon Snow discovers that the lands beyond the Wall hold more surprises than he thought, and Tyrion Lannister slaps his very first king.

There's been a strong correlation between skin and suckiness on HBO's hit show, which is based on George R. R. Martin's epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire. That held true this week, as the total lack of nudity corresponded with one of the stronger episodes in recent memory. Still, there's room for book nerds to quibble.

In this week's installment of the hit HBO series, Daenerys Targaryen finds refuge in the far-flung city of Qarth, Tyrion Lannister hires a pair of prostitutes, and Davos Seaworth watches in horror during an unusual birth. So, how wildly did the episode deviate from George R. R. Martin's novel A Clash of Kings?

This week's episode of HBO's hit show remains relatively faithful to George R.R. Martin's A Clash of Kings. But have no fear -- there are plenty of decisions in "What Is Dead May Never Die" for die-hard fans of the books to second-guess.

In "The Night Lands," TV viewers get several more deviations from George R.R. Martin's epic fantasy novels. One of the changes is strikingly effective, but all divergences from the beloved A Song of Ice and Fire source material bear scrutiny.

HBO's hit television show stays pretty true to George R.R. Martin's epic fantasy novels. Still, the Season 2 premiere deviates from A Clash of Kings' brutal source material in some key ways.

Few television shows ignite the geekosystem like Game of Thrones, HBO's bloody adaptation of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire novels. With Season 2 of the series premiering Sunday, here's what fans of Martin's books want to know.