'The Winds of Winter' release date, plot rumors: Author says book might come out this year

"The Winds of Winter," the highly anticipated sixth installment of the immensely popular "A Song of Ice and Fire" series, should have been released ages ago, but it still hasn't seen the light of day. Fans are always on the lookout for what little updates George R.R. Martin can share through his personal online blog.

Replying to a fan's comment asking for an update on the progress of the upcoming novel, Martin teased that he was not done yet. Although he has made some progress, he admitted that it's not as much as he had hoped it would be last year, when he thought he should've been done with it already.

"I think it will be out this year," Martin further wrote, echoing the commenter's words, before jabbing at the unreliability of his own words by adding, "But hey, I thought the same thing last year."

So when will "The Winds of Winter" be out? It seems that the only person who truly knows is Martin himself. Could it be that he has hit some major blocks in the writing of the story? Although this could really delay the release of the forthcoming book, it might also serve as a challenge for Martin to come up with more compelling turn of events that will get the story going.

However, this is not to say that the author has not been hard at work these days. Vulture has recently spotted an Amazon listing for a fantasy anthology titled "Book of Swords," which bears a brief description that has given fans of Martin's epic fantasy series something to be excited about.

The book will include 15 original stories set in the golden age of sword and sorcery, and it will include a new tale set in the world of "A Game of Thrones" penned by Martin himself.

The book will be released on Oct. 10, but it is already available for pre-order on the Amazon page.