Oh, George, you ol’ scallywag, you! In the wake of what feels like an unrelenting torrent of “Finish the book!” and “A Song of Ice and Fire is RUINED now! Thanks a LOT, Game of Thrones!” outcries from George R.R. Martin‘s adoring fans, the maestro at the heart of the Known Realm has, it seems, figured out a way to keep us all interested in both forms of the story: by formulating a new twist to his epic tale—one that the HBO series cannot replicate. And that means it’s time to fall down the rabbit hole! Ready? Major spoilers, book and TV-wise, lie ahead!

In an interview with IGN, good ol’ Mr. Martin stated that he had decided to go ahead with a twist he was considering writing for The Winds of Winter when he spoke with Entertainment Weekly last year. This time around, he confirmed the twist was indeed in the works, adding that “It’s fairly obvious because it is something that involves a couple of characters, one of whom is dead on the show, but not dead in the books. So the show can’t do it, because they have killed a character I have not killed. But that doesn’t narrow it down much because at this point there are like 15 characters who are dead on the show who are still alive on the books.” He also added that the twist in question “seems very organic and natural” and involves “three, four characters.”

Now, in an earlier blog post on his LiveJournal announcing the non-release of The Winds of Winter (a.k.a. book six), Martin already alluded to such a development, saying:

“Just consider. Mago, Irri, Rakharo, Xaro Xhoan Daxos, Pyat Pree, Pyp, Grenn, Ser Barristan Selmy, Queen Selyse, Princess Shireen, Princess Myrcella, Mance Rayder, and King Stannis are all dead in the show, alive in the books. Some of them will die in the books as well, yes… but not all of them, and some may die at different times in different ways.  …  Meanwhile Jhiqui, Aggo, Jhogo, Jeyne Poole, Dalla (and her child) and her sister Val, Princess Arianne Martell, Prince Quentyn Martell, Willas Tyrell, Ser Garlan the Gallant, Lord Wyman Manderly, the Shavepate, the Green Grace, Brown Ben Plumm, the Tattered Prince, Pretty Meris, Bloodbeard, Griff and Young Griff, and many more have never been part of the show, yet remain characters in the books. Several are viewpoint characters, and even those who are not may have significant roles in the story to come”

That’s an insane amount of characters ripe for the speculatin’ about. Which is exactly what we did in the gallery below! Now, keep in mind that Martin said these are theories people haven’t considered before, so with that in mind we’re not going to go into Cleganebowl or Stoneheart or Jon Snow Twin theories.

So let’s take a deep dive into the likelihood and possibilities that await us in this ASOIAF-exclusive twist, shall we? And don’t forget to leave your own theories in the comments below!

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Image Credit: HBO
GIF Credit: Giphy

Alicia Lutes is Managing Editor at Nerdist. Follow her Thrones-obsessed ranting on Twitter (@alicialutes).

And since you’re here, be sure to check out our deep dive into the new images from season six: