HBO has announced the renewal of a popular drama series, Entertainment Weekly reports. Coming back for a third season will be the fantasy “Game of Thrones,” which is no surprise considering the series’ second season premiered recently to record ratings and held steady in week two.

The story notes: “The third season is expected to be more or less based on the first half of George R.R. Martin’s ‘A Storm of Swords’ — the third novel of his ‘Song of Ice and Fire’ series of fantasy best-sellers. Long a fan favorite of the book series, ‘Swords’ has several dramatic twists and confrontations. … Given the book’s length (the paperback edition is 1,216 pages) and action-packed content, producers plan to break up the novel into two seasons. HBO is not confirming if season three is another 10-episode order.”

“Game of Thrones” is averaging 3.9 million total viewers for its debut episodes, the story notes, with the second-season premiere amassing a total of 8.3 million viewers so far for its multiple airings.