2005 Author Reviews for
elliska

Elliska does not write stories; she creates worlds. She has completely created the world of Mirkwood for me. Mirkwood has always been the elven realm with the least information. I know it was discussed in the Hobbit but the Hobbit was the one book I could not get into. So this is all based on my Lord of the Rings information. Yes, you knew about Oropher, Thranduil, and Legolas, the Elven King from the Hobbit, the spiders, Dol Guldur, etc but there was so many gaps in the information, you felt like you knew nothing. Add that to the fact that Lothl?rien and Rivendell were portrayed in Peter Jackson?s Lord of the Rings and you felt you knew even less about Mirkwood because you had been denied that visual. Elliska has filled that void for me now. I have a mental image of the place as well as the people of Mirkwood. Thranduil came to life in her stories and she took great care in creating the whole character, not just Legolas? dad. She created Oropher through other people?s memories of him not by actually describing him in a chapter. Thranduil?s mother and brother, both original characters, were also complete characters with complexities that made them three-dimensional. His brother is very predominate in the second story and I grew to like him more and more in it. The elleth that becomes his wife at the end of Part 1 is adorable yet very un-Mary Sue?ish. Elliska?s pacing in their courtship was perfect. They did not meet, fall in love, kiss, have sex, and have Legolas before chapter two. Their relationship was so gradually built up the elleth, Lindomiel, was frustrated Thranduil would not kiss her but I thought it was romantic and touching. I also like how the whole story isn?t focused on the romance. Its like every day stuff happens within her story yet she maintains interest throughout. All and all, Ellisk is one of the most captivating writers in fan fiction and I cannot wait to read her new stuff that she is writing.

Elliska Jane, besides being one of the nicest people on the planet, happens to be an amazing talent, writing one of the most maligned and misinterpreted characters in literature. She also happens to do it like no other person can. No one can touch Elliska's Thranduil for elegance, grace and, let's face it, hotness. More importantly, however, Elliska has given one of the only truly excellent accountings of Thranduil's life in her Journey's trilogy. When you read these tales, you come away with a full understanding of why he is the way he is, in what ways he was truly slandered and in what other ways he was simply, yes I'm going to say, sorry, 'Misunderstood.' Elliska is also one of two writers in the whole wide world who's Legolas does not, thank you Peter Jackson, make me instantly picture Orlando Bloom. Not that Orlando Bloom is a bad picture to have, but we all know that he's not Legolas, he's Paris, Prince of Troy. I am rarely able to sit through reading the random Legocentric fic, but Elliska makes me forget all about all that nonesense and I am able to simply picture my own Legolas in my mind and enjoy her wonderful epic. I have to say that no one that I have ever read has done a more precious, Legolas as a child as well. But it is in her ability to conjure Thranduil as a complete and fully realized character rather than a wife beating, child abusing, raging alcholic charicature that her fromidable talent manifests itself in all its glory.

Some authors take minor characters and really make them come to life. I think elliska has definitely done that with the Elvenking from the Hobbit. She obviously has really studied his character and background from not only the Hobbit but also the Unfinished Tales and really has a good grasp of who he is and why he is that way. And she portrays him in a very rich way--his flaws and his strongpoints. And she has created an entire world around him--family of OCs that are very believable and that are unique personalities in themselves. You can see how they could be Thranduil's family or friends but they are not all cookie-cutter characters or just names for Thranduil to interact with. And I like how Thranduil interacts throughout the Interrupted Journeys series to other canon characters, particularly Elrond and Gandalf and Radagast. Her stories are complex yet very readable and maintain a mystery that I am very interested in learning more about.