Summary

• Lady Stoneheart's absence in Game of Thrones can be redeemed in The Winds of Winter with a potentially expanded role.
• The show's decision to cut her character was explained by the creators to avoid diminishing the impact of character deaths and resurrections.
• The Winds of Winter can give Stoneheart a story with much greater substance than she's had so far, but the character needs to appear in multiple chapters to achieve that.

Game of Thrones decided to cut Lady Stoneheart, but The Winds Of Winter can make up for that by giving the character a bigger role than ever before. Lady Stoneheart is the resurrected form of Catelyn Stark, brought back to life in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books by Beric Dondarrion. Her body was found in the river around three days after the Red Wedding, and Beric sacrificed his life to bring her back.

The reveal of Lady Stoneheart is one of the most shocking plot twists in the books, but was missing entirely from the show: Michelle Fairley did not return as part of Game of Thrones' cast, and the idea of her being resurrected was left out completely. With Martin's The Winds of Winter taking so long on top of the show cutting her, it means there's been a long wait to find out what happens next to the character. The sixth A Song of Ice and Fire novel could reward that patience, so long as it breaks a book trend.

Lady Stoneheart Has Only Appeared In Two A Song Of Ice & Fire Book Chapters

Catelyn First Returned In 2000's A Storm Of Swords

Lady Stoneheart is first revealed in the "Epilogue" of A Storm of Swords, the third book in the series (which was adapted into Game of Thrones seasons 3 and 4). The chapter is told from the point-of-view of Merrett Frey, one of the sons of Lord Walder Frey, who was present at the Red Wedding. He's captured by the Brotherhood without Banners, and eventually is sentenced to hang by Lady Stoneheart, who uncloaks herself to reveal her true identity.

"When she lowered her hood, something tightened inside Merrett's chest, and for a moment he could not breathe. No. No, I saw her die. She was dead for a day and night before they stripped her naked and threw her body in the river. Raymund opened her throat from ear to ear. She was dead.

"Her cloak and collar hid the gash his brother's blade had made, but her face was even worse than he remembered. The flesh had gone pudding soft in the water and turned the color of curdled milk. Half her hair was gone and the rest had turned as white and brittle as a crone's. Beneath her ravaged scalp, her face was shredded skin and black blood where she had raked herself with her nails. But her eyes were the most terrible thing. Her eyes saw him, and they hated."

After that comes A Feast for Crows. Lady Stoneheart and the Brotherhood are given a couple of mentions, but don't actually appear until close to the very end, in the chapter "Brienne VIII." It plays out similarly to the A Storm for Swords Epilogue, with Brienne brought to Lady Stoneheart by the Brotherhood. Her true identity is revealed, much to the shock and horror of Brienne.

"Lady Stoneheart lowered her hood and unwound the grey wool scarf from her face. Her hair was dry and brittle, white as bone. Her brow was mottled green and grey, spotted with the brown blooms of decay. The flesh of her face clung in ragged strips from her eyes down down to her jaw. Some of the rips were crusted with dried blood, but others gaped open to reveal the skull beneath."

Then, Lady Stoneheart offers a choice: Brienne can either betray Jaime Lannister, bringing him to face punishment for the Red Wedding, or she herself will be hanged. Initially, it seems as though Brienne will indeed be killed, as she refuses to make a choice. However, at the very last moment, she shouts out a single word. That's the end of her POV story, but she does appear again at the very end of Jaime's only chapter in A Dance with Dragons, seemingly set to bring him to Lady Stoneheart.

It's believed the word Brienne calls out is "sword," as Stoneheart offered her a choice between the sword (i.e. bringing her Jaime and keeping her oath, fitting with her sword's name, Oathkeeper), or the noose.

Why Game Of Thrones Cut Lady Stoneheart

David Benioff & D.B. Weiss Have Explained The Decision

With such an exciting setup like that, not to mention it being such a massive plot twist, then the question of why Game of Thrones cut Lady Stoneheart is a pertinent one. However, it is also one that the showrunners, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, have answered. In James Hibberd's BTS book, Fire Cannot Kill A Dragon: Game of Thrones and the Official Untold Story of an Epic Series, they gave three main reasons.

1. Because of how Game of Thrones was diverging from George R.R. Martin's story. This was deliberately kept vague to avoid future book spoilers.
2. Because of Jon Snow's upcoming death and resurrection, with Benioff feeling that "too many resurrections start to diminish the impact of characters dying."
3. Because the Red Wedding was such an incredible end for Catelyn, and that bringing Michelle Fairley back "as a zombie who doesn't speak felt like diminishing returns," according to Benioff.

The second and third reasons are pretty clear, but the first is the most intriguing. The show did move away from the books a lot, even before overtaking them fully, and certainly things do play out differently for Jaime and Brienne. That the show didn't go down that route suggests things could be radically different in the books.

Why Lady Stoneheart Needs A Bigger Role In The Winds Of Winter

There's A Lot Of Story To Tell About Brienne And Jaime

With the delays to The Winds of Winter, it means it has been 24 years and counting since Lady Stoneheart's introduction, but her story has hardly moved on. The way Martin has gradually developed her story makes sense, but the next book will need to deliver more substance to go with the shock factor.

Having Lady Stoneheart only appear in one chapter of The Winds of Winter would likely be a disservice to her character and the story as a whole, and risk questions of whether it was worth bringing Catelyn back from the dead.

That's particularly true if, as it seems, Brienne really is taking Jaime to Lady Stoneheart. That's three important characters coming together in an exciting plot, and it needs plenty of page time to be able to do it justice. Having Lady Stoneheart only appear in one chapter of The Winds of Winter would likely be a disservice to her character and the story as a whole, and risk questions of whether it was worth bringing Catelyn back from the dead.

The handling of Brienne's divided loyalties to Catelyn/Stoneheart and Jaime will be complex. It likely won't - or certainly shouldn't be - her simply handing him over, and more twists can be expected. It could still be something as extreme as Stoneheart killing Jaime, or perhaps more likely it's them making some kind of deal that brings vengeance to others but means he escapes with his life. Regardless, that can't be addressed in just one or two chapters, and should be seen from both Brienne and Jaime's points-of-view at the very least.

Will Lady Stoneheart Be A Point-Of-View Character In The Winds Of Winter?

Her Viewpoint Could Be Something Truly Unique In A Song Of Ice And Fire

The Brienne, Jaime, and Lady Stoneheart story could play out in multiple chapters from Brienne and Jaime's POV, but there's another intriguing option on the table for The Winds of Winter: a chapter (or chapters) from the perspective of Lady Stoneheart herself. One wrinkle in this idea is that Martin said back in 2016 (via his GRRM Live Journal page) that he wasn't planning on any new POV characters. Plans could well have changed since then, of course, or there may be a loophole with Lady Stoneheart.

With Stoneheart a vengeful zombie who can hardly speak, it would certainly be a completely unique experience for The Winds of Winter, and give a fascinating insight into her true state of mind.

Catelyn Stark, prior to her death, was a point-of-view character throughout the first three A Song of Ice and Fire books. Even if there are no plans for brand-new POVs among The Winds of Winter's chapters, it's possible Martin could consider a Lady Stoneheart chapter as a continuation of Catelyn's viewpoint, allowing him to write such pages without going against his plans. With Stoneheart a vengeful zombie who can hardly speak, it would certainly be a completely unique experience for The Winds of Winter, and give a fascinating insight into her true state of mind.

A Lady Stoneheart chapter could be among the darkest in A Song of Ice and Fire, given how consumed her thoughts are by revenge. At the same time, it could also be among the most tragic, with an easy contrast to Catelyn's previous POV chapters showing how much death has changed her. Game of Thrones cut her story short, but The Winds of Winter could deliver something better than the show could've done anyway with this.