The story begins with Aegon Targaryen, also known as "Aegon the Conqueror." Traveling from the land Valyria to Westeros with his two sisters, Rhaenys and Visenya, Aegon weds both of them, according to Valyrian custom. They land on the coastal land Dragonstone and make their home there with their dragons Balerion, Vhagar, and Meraxes. Aegon turns down a marriage proposal from Argilac Durrandon and offers his companion, and rumored half-brother, Orys Baratheon instead. Argilac angrily rejects his offer, cutting off the hands of Aegon's envoy. Aegon deliberates with his council and announces, via ravens, that he has declared himself king of the realm and that he plans to go to war.
The rest of the section follows Aegon's conquest. He takes an area known as the riverlands. Aegon defeats and kills the lord Harren Hoare, referred to as Harren the Black, by burning him out of his formidable castle, Harrenhall, with dragon fire. Visenya travels to the mountainous region called the Vale, wins a battle, and secures the loyalty of the Arryns. Torrhen Stark, King in the North, meets with Aegon and bends the knee, in an effort to avoid a bloody conflict. The desert region of Dorne proves more difficult to defeat as Rhaenys discovers that all of the castles are empty and the fields burned. Orys and Rhaenys engage in a bloody battle with Argilac, defeating him in single combat. Aegon is crowned king and decides to make his seat at King's Landing, a settlement he had made during his war campaign.
The early years of his rule are marred by various local insurrections. First, Aegon receives Torrhen Stark's assistance in putting down a Northern rebellion in the Three Sisters region. Then, he goes to battle in the Iron Islands, quelling a rebellion among the raiders who live there. He then allows the Greyjoy family to have dominion over the region, if they bend the knee. Aegon then engages in a drawn-out conflict with Dorne. Rhaenys takes Meraxes there once more and the dragon is killed by a flying iron bolt. Rhaenys is also killed as a result. Aegon is enraged and spends ten years fighting in Dorne with scorched-earth tactics. He eventually signs a peace treaty and the remaining years of his rule are relatively peaceful.
After Aegon dies, his son Aenys takes the throne. Aenys is an ineffective ruler who frequently waffles about major decisions and dislikes combat. He puts down several peasant rebellions. He quarrels with his brother Maegor over the issue of polygamy, as it is looked down upon by members of the Faith of the Seven, the main branch of religious power in Westeros. Maegor angrily leaves Westeros and Aenys's rule declines further into chaos. Following Aenys's death, Maegor takes the throne, rejecting the claim of Aenys's son, Aegon. Together with Balerion, Maegor kills Aegon and his dragon in battle, earning him the nickname Maegor the Cruel. His reign is known for its brutality, as Maegor is easily provoked and wrathful.
Aenys's son, Jaehaerys, takes power following Maegor's mysterious death. Jaehaerys has a long peaceful reign and is frequently accompanied and advised by his wife, Alysanne. The realm experiences a period of harmony, as Jaehaerys is widely loved. He succeeds in winning a war against Dorne and solidifying diplomatic relationships all over Westeros. Later in this life, the king loses a number of his children, leading to a succession crisis. In a large council meeting, he selects his grandson Viserys as his successor.
Viserys's reign as king is filled with difficulty and strife. He and his wife Aemma have two children, Rhaenyra and Baelon. Aemma dies in childbirth and Baelon dies shortly after. Viserys names Rhaenyra as his heir and helps her prepare to rule. He then marries Alicent Hightower, the daughter of his advisor Otto Hightower. He has four children with Alicent: Aegon, Aemond, Helaena, and Daeron. Tensions simmer over the course of his reign, as the Hightowers think Aegon should be heir, as he is the firstborn son. After many unsuccessful matches, Rhaenyra marries her cousin, Laenor Velaryon. Viserys’ brother, Daemon, marries Laenor's sister Laena. Laena dies in childbirth and after her funeral there is a fight between Rhaenyra and Alicent's children. The fight concludes with Aemond losing an eye, after he is slashed in the face.
Viserys dies setting off a civil war in Westeros. Aegon declares himself king, styling himself Aegon II, while Rhaenyra, in Dragonstone, names herself queen. The war escalates immediately when Rhaenyra's son Lucerys is killed. Lucerys travels to Storm's End to talk with Borros Baratheon and finds his cousin Aemond there. He departs, after being threatened by Aemond. As they fly over the bay, Aemond attacks Lucerys, killing him and his dragon, Arrax. In retribution, Daemon hires assassins to kill one of Helaena's children. They break into her chambers and murder her son Jaehaerys. The ensuing war is bloody, with heavy casualties on both sides.
Rhaenys, Rhaenyra's aunt, dies fighting Aegon and Aemond on dragonback at Rook's Rest. Aegon is badly wounded from the conflict, which leaves large parts of his body badly burned. Rhaenyra's other son Jacaerys dies in another battle, leaving her bitter and enraged. The tides turn and she successfully takes King's Landing. Many of Aegon's men are killed in the conflicts that follow. Daemon and Aemond die in a battle over a lake called the God's Eye. Riots in King's Landing cause Rhaenyra to depart. She is later captured and fed to Sunfyre by Aegon. In a surprising shift, Cregan Stark is able to marshal Northern forces and seize King's Landing, fending off Aegon's meager defenses. Fearing the worst, Aegon panics and is discovered dead later, possibly with poisoned wine on his lips. Cregan installs Rhaenyra's son, Aegon III, to the throne.
The last part of the book deals with the early reign of Aegon III. He ascends to the throne following the bloody conflict that claimed the lives of almost all of his relatives. It deals with the various assassination attempts that were made on his life.
