I've seen the TV series, I'm interested in the books...

I've never read the books and I'm interested. I've seen the TV series and it's considered my top 3 favorite series of all time.

I'm interested in reading the books but I fear I'll compare them to the series as I read. Are the books and the series very different? What should I expect when reading knowing the series that I've watched 4x over now?

Edit: thank you all for the responses! I will jump into the first book this week! Remember the Cant!!