2005 Author Reviews for
Tiana Luthien

I have to admire Tiana Luthien, because she does something rather risky with her portrayal of Eomer. It's not that she's departed from fanon expectations or radically reinterpreted canon facts. Rather, it's that she's taken riskier elements of Eomer and combined them into a single story. She's made him hopeless, she's made him shrewd, she's made him wise, she's made him distrustful, and she's made him fearful. In effect, she's made him out to be exactly what he tells Inglid he is: human. And then Tiana walks a very delicate balance. Eomer is hopeless and distrustful, but he is never jaded. Ignorance and naivete have been stripped away, but he still clings to hopes that some might consider fantasy. and though he will not trust some, he does trust others. He still relies on his own strength in judgement, which means he hasn't completely given up control of his surroundings. It's a very powerful portrayal of a very powerful but very human character, and I think Tiana for giving Eomer this much-needed characterization. Too often has he been shoved to one extreme or another.