Game of Thrones' TV series is officially skipping the books' best twist 

\'Game of Thrones\' TV series is officially skipping the books\' best twist

Warning: Spoilers from George R.R. Martin\'s "A Song of Ice and Fire" book series -- but apparently not the "Game of Thrones" TV series -- are contained in this article.

"Game of Thrones" book reader fans got in a tizzy after the Season 4 finale when a character known as "Lady Stoneheart" failed to make an appearance. Many were convinced that she would arrive either in the Season 3 or Season 4 finales, and with her continued absence from the TV show, it seemed all hope of having her be a part of the series was gone.

But there was still a chance for Lady Stoneheart to show up in the show. For the uninitiated, "Lady Stoneheart" is Catelyn Stark brought back from the dead by Thoros of Myr after Arya\'s direwolf Nymeria rescued her from the river where the Freys unceremoniously dumped her dead corpse. Her face is bloated and gross and she is unable to speak due to her slit throat, but the books\' Lady Stoneheart is on a vengeful streak across Westeros to kill those who wronged her and her family.

The reveal of "zombie Catelyn" at the end of "A Storm of Swords" -- the same book where she and Robb Stark are murdered at the Red Wedding -- is the best twist of the entire series. The reason why fans kept anticipating Lady Stoneheart\'s arrival at the end of the past two seasons is that, like in the books, it\'s a perfect twist ending that promises of great things to come. But like Jojen Reed\'s definitive death at the end of Season 4, it seems the absence of Catelyn Stark means she likely has no great purpose to play in "A Song of Ice and Fire."

That\'s a tough pill to swallow, but apparently is the case. Michelle Fairley spoke with Entertainment Weekly about her character\'s demise on "24: Live Another Day," and she confirmed that Catelyn\'s Red Wedding death is her final one.

"The character\'s dead," Fairley says. "She\'s dead."

When asked if she was upset about Catelyn not getting her resurrection, the actress states, "You respect the writers\' decision. I knew the arc, and that was it. They can\'t stick to the books 100 percent. It\'s impossible -- they only have 10 hours per season. They have got to keep it dramatic and exciting, and extraneous stuff along the way gets lost in order to maintain the quality of brilliant show."

This means there will be some big deviations in terms of future characters\' storylines. Even if Catelyn didn\'t appear in the same manner that she did in the books, both Brienne of Tarth and later Jaime Lannister end up crossing paths with Lady Stoneheart. In fact, by the end of the most recent "ASoIaF" novel to come out, "A Dance With Dragons," both characters are last seen with her.

Some "Game of Thrones" bloggers have come out and said that they didn\'t like the Lady Stoneheart twist in the novels and are happy with its absence on the show, but for me it\'s one of the most validating moments in the entire series. David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will surely come up with some clever way to write the character out and still make the story move forward for Jaime and Brienne, but a "Game of Thrones" adaptation without zombie Cat shines just a little duller in my eyes.

"Game of Thrones" Season 5 is slated to begin production in July and premiere in spring 2015. The HBO fantasy series is renewed through Season 6, with a planned seven-season arc.

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