The question fans of the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series by George R.R. Martin have been asking for years remains the biggest mystery up to this time. When will "The Winds of Winter," the sixth installment in the bestselling saga, be officially published?

A lot of reports attempt to find answer to the longstanding question, all pointing to the possible release of the book early next year, just before the premiere of the sixth season of "Game of Thrones," which is based on Martin's hit novels.

The new season of the HBO juggernaut will be on the small screen by April. In fact, a trailer for the show's upcoming run has already been showcased. But somehow still elusive is concrete release date info for "The Winds of Winter."

It is unclear how far along Martin is in writing the book. It is unknown how many pages the book has and how many of those the 67-year-old novelist has completed. Martin has promised that the book will be out before "Game of Thrones" season 6 premieres but he has also said that he follows no deadline.

Previous reports indicate that the manuscript for "The Winds of Winter" is being readied for translation this month, allowing for an early 2016 publication. There are no details to corroborate this though, and as what Martin has always said, word will personally come from him when it is due to be made known to the public.

Just recently, a report, which will come as bad news for the throng of fans on standby for the book, teased that the sixth volume will be out late 2016. Quoting reliable tipster Jeff aka BryndenBFish, Five Thirty Eight claims that there's only a minimal chance that "Winds of Winter" will be published before "Game of Thrones" season 6 starts.

"He's going to have to submit something in 90 days or it's likely he won't publish in time," the tipster said, adding that the duration of time to be allotted for the printing of the books will also pose challenges in meeting the early 2016 deadline.