Apparently "winter" will not be coming this year, specifically "The Winds of Winter" volume of "A Song of Ice and Fire" epic by George R.R. Martin, which is the source material for the popular TV show "Game of Thrones."
Fans speculate that the book's plot is too complex to be finished, that is why the author is having a hard time wrapping it up. To add to the confusion, the show adaptation from HBO has already cracked some of the longest-kept secrets and twists of the books and is already veering away from the source. All this is what fans assume to be halting the progress of "The Winds of Winter," which is the sixth novel in the "A Song of Ice and Fire" saga.
As such, the release date of the book is still pending, and Martin is not showing any signs of finishing it soon, much to the dismay and impatience of fans. It can also be assumed that the pressure Martin is facing right now has piled up many folds since the "Game of Thrones" is also set to end next year in its final eighth season with a plot that is different from the books but is still close to it in terms of outcome, meaning a lot of things could be spoiled.
A recent Reddit user named radraz26 also received thousands of upvotes for his comment saying "Why is The Winds of Winter taking so long to write? Because GRRM wrote himself into a corner with a thousand moving pieces that can't be resolved easily. The introduction of dorne, Young Griff, and the ironborn really adds a lot of stuff that cannot be resolved simply. Not to say that these aren't awesome subplots, but they add a lot of complexity to an already dense story."
Meanwhile, Martin has stated that he will first be publishing "Fire and Blood," which is a companion book about the history of the Targaryens, before the novel book "The Winds of Winter." "Fire and Blood" is also set to have two volumes, the first will be published before "The Winds of Winter" while the second will be published after. Regardless, the wait will be long and indefinite for the next book and might take quite a few winters even.
