Summary

• Jon Snow's resurrection in Game of Thrones had some problems, but The Winds of Winter can do it a lot better.
• A theory suggests Jon starts The Winds of Winter as Ghost, a smart twist that adds depth to his story and utilizes the direwolves better.
• Melisandre is the likely candidate to bring Jon back in The Winds of Winter, possibly through a dark sacrifice, leading to more complex storytelling.

There were a few problems with Jon Snow’s resurrection in Game of Thrones, and I look forward to seeing how The Winds of Winter fixes them. In particular, there’s one long-running - and compelling - theory about how he’ll return in George R.R. Martin’s sixth A Song of Ice and Fire book that gives me a lot of hope it will be done in a much better way.

The Winds of Winter taking so long, there’s still no answer as to how Martin will bring Jon back, but it’s a fair assumption it will happen given his importance to the story. Thanks to the scope of the books, the POV nature of them, and other differences from the show, the novel can right some wrongs from Game of Thrones season 6 and beyond.

Jon Snow Will Begin The Winds Of Winter As Ghost - Theory Explained

Jon May Have Warged Into His Direwolf Before He Died

The theory about Jon Snow's return that has long been among the most popular - and it's one I certainly love, because it's both a smart way and makes better use of the direwolves (whom, as a dog person who met two of the dogs (called Odin and Thor) who played the direwolves from the show on a tour in Belfast, Northern Ireland, I adore) - is that Jon begins The Winds of Winter warged into Ghost.

The idea is that Jon's body was killed, but his consciousness transferred to his direwolf at the last second. The main thrust of the theory comes from Jon's death in A Dance with Dragons, which at least hinted it may have happened:

"'Ghost,' he whispered. Pain washed over him. Stick them with the pointy end. When the third dagger took him between the shoulder blades, he gave a grunt and fell face-first into the snow. He never felt the fourth knife. Only the cold."

The evidence there is twofold: Jon's last word is "Ghost," calling for his direwolf (whose name itself is pretty telling!), and then that he didn't actually feel the fourth knife, which could be explained by him having warged into Ghost at that point. Jon's warging was never shown in Game of Thrones, and while the books don't explore it as much as Bran Stark's power, it is there. There's also a age from Melisandre in the same book that adds a lot more weight to the theory:

"The flames crackled softly, and in their crackling she heard the whispered name Jon Snow. His long face floated before her, limned in tongues of red and orange, appearing and disappearing again, a shadow half-seen behind a fluttering curtain. Now he was a man, now a wolf, now a man again. But the skulls were here as well, the skulls were all around him. Melisandre had seen his danger before, had tried to warn the boy of it. Enemies all around him, daggers in the dark. He would not listen."

Given that appears to be her seeing his death - enemies with daggers would describe the Night's Watch mutineers - then the vision of him becoming a wolf and then a man again could well be Martin spelling out for readers exactly what's going to happen. A Dance with Dragons also begins with a prologue, of skinchanger Varymyr Sixskins. Notably, he wargs into wolves, and part of the chapter is about him thinking of starting his "second life" as a wolf, leaving his human body behind.

It's an interesting theory, I think, because it's very different to the other resurrections we've seen in A Song of Ice and Fire. Beric Dondarrion and Catelyn Stark both completely died before being resurrected, so it's something that's been done; having Jon technically be alive, in a sense, makes it unique. It also allows for a means of keeping Jon active without bringing him back too soon, as it could have point-of-view chapters following Jon-as-Ghost.

Who Will Resurrect Jon Snow In The Winds Of Winter?

Like Game Of Thrones, Melisandre Is The Most Likely Option

Much like in Game of Thrones, the most likely person to bring Jon Snow back in The Winds of Winter is Melisandre. She's the one with a clear motive, having an established interest in Jon Snow; the potential to have the power, since she's so connected to the Lord of Light; and the proximity as, in the books, she's still at the Wall anyway, having not traveled with Stannis Baratheon. The bigger question is how she will do it.

It's plausible, then, that Melisandre burns Shireen as a sacrifice to bring back Jon, which would make it even more shocking, and add more conflict to his feelings over being resurrected.

In Game of Thrones, it was quite straightforward (not a complaint, really, as it made sense for the narrative). But the books can definitely make it more complex, and perhaps a lot darker, than her just saying the words to revive him. Since she didn't travel to the Battle of Ice with Stannis, then it seems that won't be when or how Shireen Baratheon's death happens in the book. It's plausible, then, that Melisandre burns Shireen as a sacrifice to bring back Jon, which would make it even more shocking, and add more conflict to his feelings over being resurrected.

Alternatively, if not Shireen - which has potential, but is too removed from Stannis' story - there are other options if a sacrifice is needed (not that it necessarily is). This could be the child of Gilly and Craster, who is believed by those at the Wall to actually be Mance Rayder's son - Jon himself switched the babies, in a storyline cut from the show, precisely because he feared what Melisandre might do to a child with king's blood. Of course, given Gilly's child wouldn't have king's blood, there's a question over whether this would even work.

It could also be that Bran and the Three-Eyed Crow have a part to play in Jon Snow's book resurrection. They're both North of the Wall themselves, and as powerful wargs may at least have a sense of Jon-as-Ghost, which could lead to some involvement or even a sacrifice to bring him back. There are definitely more options on the table, and each would bring with them a greater sense of conflict and tragedy, which could make Jon's resurrection more compelling.

Game of Thrones changed the Three-Eyed Crow into the Three-Eyed Raven.

Jon Snow's Resurrection In The Winds Of Winter Won't Be As Rushed

Game Of Thrones Season 6 Brought Jon Back Within Two Episodes

There will at least be one advantage to Jon Snow’s resurrection in the book, almost regardless of how it happens: the age of time. That’s not just the 13 years and counting since A Dance With Dragons was released, but that it will likely be some way into The Winds of Winter that Jon comes back. In contrast, Game of Thrones season 6 waited just two episodes, meaning it felt like he’d hardly been gone.

That was somewhat necessary for the show, especially as it was approaching its endgame, but The Winds of Winter will be the longest book in the series so far, and has a lot more room to play with. If it doesn’t happen until, say, halfway through (which seems feasible, as Martin is never one to rush story arcs, and it would only actually be a few chapters for Jon’s story), then it’ll feel like a lot more time has ed in-universe, rather than it being a sudden reversal and feeling like a point the show just had to get past.

Jon Snow's Book Resurrection Can Do Better Justice To Ghost's Story

Game Of Thrones Wasted The Starks' Direwolves

Game of Thrones failed the direwolves. As much as I love the show, I’ve long felt this was one of the biggest letdowns in of page-to-screen adaptation. The issue isn’t the direwolves when they were used, which led to some impressive moments, but rather just how little they were involved. In the books, the direwolves feel like extensions of the Starks themselves, you get a clear sense of their personality and there’s a deep-rooted connection, enhanced by several of the Starks being able to warg into them.

The show’s main reasons for not including the direwolves never really washed with me when so much time and money was spent on the dragons.

The show’s main reasons for not including the direwolves - that they cost a lot, and it was too difficult to make them look good - never really washed with me when so much time and money was spent on the dragons. I get that they contributed more to the overall spectacle (and ate up a lot of money), but the direwolves should’ve been just as important and treated like such.

To that end, the books have always done it better, but Jon coming back as Ghost would make them even more so. This would be a direwolf’s biggest, best story yet, making him even more essential to Jon’s story and truly intertwined as part of it, allowing us to understand the mind of a warg - and the wolf - more than ever before.

The Winds Of Winter Can Properly Show How Death & Resurrection Changed Jon Snow

GRRM Is A Big Believer That Coming Back From The Dead Transforms People

Death in Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire is supposed to change people. There’s a reason Catelyn Stark is transformed into Lady Stoneheart, essentially a zombie who is consumed by nothing other than vengeance. Beric Dondarrian loses something of himself each time he comes back; every resurrection makes him a little bit less. The same should have been true of Jon Snow.

Personality-wise, he still mostly felt like the good, honorable, brave and true Jon Snow he’d always been, and there was no suggestion he’d lost part of himself.

You could argue Game of Thrones did attempt to show this with Jon. Certainly, he was even more reckless, like he perhaps had a death wish (“Battle of the Bastards” and his near-death in “Beyond the Wall” are good examples of this). But personality-wise, he still mostly felt like the good, honorable, brave and true Jon Snow he’d always been, and there was no suggestion he’d lost part of himself.

That likely won’t be the case in The Winds of Winter, because Martin strongly believes death changes characters, telling The Sound of Young America podcast [via MaximumFun] back in 2011 that it’s a “transformative experience.” He added that they should be noticeably different, saying:

“My characters who come back from death are worse for wear. In some ways, they're not even the same characters anymore. The body may be moving, but some aspect of the spirit is changed or transformed, and they've lost something.”

Martin is critical of Gandalf’s return in Lord of the Rings for this very reason (rightly or wrongly - one fantasy series debate at a time, please). It’s hard to imagine, then, that he’d bring Jon Snow back in not have him clearly changed in some way. The point-of/view nature of the books will help considerably, as we’ll be given a clear insight into Jon’s state of mind (and perhaps even Jon as Ghost’s).

Jon presumably won’t be changed as much as Lady Stoneheart (if his consciousness does remain alive, versus being left dead in the river for days) nor Beric (since Jon has only died the one time), so the effects may be less severe, but still notable. If he does survive via Ghost, then him being more wolf-like - more aggressive, more instinctual - could be how it happens, but even if not, readers should expect a different take on Jon Snow in The Winds of Winter.

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  David Nutter, Alan Taylor, D.B. Weiss, David Benioff

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  Based on George R. R. Martin's ongoing A Song of Ice and Fire novel series, Game of Thrones is a fantasy drama set in the fictional continents of Westeros and Essos. It follows noble families like the Starks, Lannisters, and Targaryen vying for control of the Iron Throne while a rising threat from the undead looms in the North. The series received significant critical success and amassed a loyal fan base due to its high production values, sprawling sets, iconic characters, and shocking twists.

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  Game of Thrones

  Game of Thrones is a multimedia franchise created by George R.R. Martin. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire is the basis for the award-winning HBO series Game of Thrones, which lasted for eight seasons. After the incredibly divisive final season of Game of Thrones, the series was followed up by the prequel series House of the Dragon, which also received critical acclaim.

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