 The author makes a point of grounding his work on a foundation of historical fiction, which he channels to evoke important social and political elements of primarily the European medieval era that differ markedly from elements of modern times, including the multigenerational, rigid, and often brutally consequential nature of the hierarchical class system of feudal societies that is in many cases overlooked in fantasy writing.Even as "A Song of Ice and Fire" is a fantasy series that employs magic and the surreal as central to the genre, Martin is keen to ensure that magic is merely one element of many that moves his work forward, not a generic deus ex machina that is itself the focus of his stories, which is something he has been very conscious about since reading Tolkien; "If you look at "The Lord of the Rings", what strikes you, it certainly struck me, is that although the world is infused with this great sense of magic, there is very little onstage magic.So you have a sense of magic, but it's kept under very tight control, and I really took that to heart when I was starting my own series."