It is never a surprise when George R.R. Martin is taking his time over his books, but many are disappointed that the "The Winds of Winter" release date remains unknown. On his blog, the author hinted that the sixth novel in his "A Song of Ice and Fire" series may come out in 2018.

It has been six years since Martin released the fifth installment, "A Dance With Dragons," so it is understandable that many of his devoted readers feel let down. While the author is a man of few words when it comes to the highly anticipated publication date, he took to his blog to explain the matter.

Martin wrote in his blog, "I do think you will have a Westeros book from me in 2018...and who knows, maybe two. A boy can dream." The American novelist has repeatedly said that he is still writing the sixth book, adding that he already made progress. Though his remarks could mean that it will be out next year, many are skeptical about it, considering that he said the same thing in previous years.

Now that the television adaptation is set to finish with "Game of Thrones" season 8 before the books reach the conclusion, readers are upset that the TV series has spoiled a lot of the major events in the novel. The seventh season already concluded, but Martin has still not published "The Winds of Winter."

Needless to say, Martin assured that the sixth novel will be different in some ways from the show. He then told The Sun that though there are dissimilarities, it "will parallel the show in others."

In the meantime, all readers can do is wait for the official announcement and hope that "The Winds of Winter" release date is set for 2018, just as Martin has teased.