5 characters from the 'Game of Thrones' books left out of the show

You may think keeping track of the many characters in "Game of Thrones" is already tough, but the reality is there are even more in the original books.

In order to make the series more digestible for a television audience, the HBO showrunners had to leave out many side characters. 

We rounded up five abandoned book characters fans were looking forward to seeing onscreen for the HBO adaptation, but wound up never making an appearance. Keep reading to learn more.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones," including un-adapted book material.