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15 Final reviews today - many thanks to those reviews for keeping us
going. Sulriel.

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Title: Anticipation · Author: LOTR_lover · Genres: Humor: Elves · ID:
1092
Reviewer: Marta · 2005-08-30 00:49:28 Score: 2

Oh, this was cute! Combining many cliches with slash and het, and non-
romantic elements as well... well, I can see why Glorfindel was so
frustrated. Very clever idea.

Title: Cold Memories · Author: AmandaK · Races/Places: Gondor:
Vignette · ID: 82
Reviewer: Tanaqui · 2005-08-30 11:52:11 Score: 7
This piece is a charming portrait of Gondor's first family, yet one
which never descends to mawkishness or becomes sickly, thanks to
AmandaK's skilled handling of the material. Faramir's wonder at the
strangeness of snow and his distraction by small details are well
drawn, while Boromir displays the right mix of teasing and concern
for his younger brother. What I like most in her characterisation is
the way AmandaK gives both brothers a mischievous -- but not
malicious -- nature: she does not slip into the common fanfic
conventions of making young Faramir too serious or Boromir too
boyish.

And I, too, held my breath when the snowball hit Denethor… and was
delighted when AmandaK pulled off the rare trick of showing us
Denethor as a loving and considerate father without downplaying his
stern nature, grief or dedication to duty. I am not surprised this
memory kept a special place in Faramir's heart in years to come.

Title: Fear no more · Author: Cuthalion · Books/Time: Post-Ring War:
Gap-Filler · ID: 970
Reviewer: obsidianj · 2005-08-30 15:31:09 Score: 2
This is a nice bittersweet vignette. An original way to convey a
message to Aragorn and Arwen by way of Faramir's dreams. I love the
imagery of the dream with the birds.


Title: Greenery · Author: Forodwaith · Books/Time: Post-Ring War:
Gondor · ID: 14
Reviewer: obsidianj · 2005-08-30 15:41:03 Score: 3
This is a lovely little scene. I can see Arwen being wistful to
escape the protocoll at court and finding refuge in one of the few
green places Minas Tirith has. Teaching someone herblore and not
being recognized as the queen immediately is an added bonus.

Title: Dawn · Author: Acacea · Books/Time: Post-Ring War: Gondor ·
ID: 251
Reviewer: obsidianj · 2005-08-30 15:51:25 Score: 3
I never really thought about Faramir's mood when he rode to his last
battle to retake Osgliath. That maybe his father's parting words may
have contributed to him nearly not coming back. Having Eowyn now
makes all the different for his will to survive a battle. Good
insight into Faramir's psyche.

Title: Not to Beg Any Boon · Author: Flick · Genres: Alternate
Universe · ID: 859
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:21:27 Score: 4
Great story! I enjoyed the way it filled out Boromir's journey from
Gondor to Imladris. Very good gapfiller. And nice characterization,
too. The OCs were full characters in their own right, capable of
standing beside Boromir without being overshadowed, and I love the
quirks each one was given. Boromir himself was well done, and the
narrative had a nice, brisk pace to it that never felt rushed. All
around, very good writing.

Title: Tides of Time · Author: Werecat · Genres: Alternate Universe:
Post-LOTR · ID: 368
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:22:12 Score: 4
I like the uniting of Tolkien's world to the Arthurian legend. I'm a
big fan of both, and this was done simply and believably, with
Gandalf serving as an instrument of both. There was a very distant
quality to this story, too, as if these were legends that really
couldn't be touched. It made them seem a bit more mystical, and I
really liked that. They felt as though they were both remnants of an
older world. Beautiful imagery and a very light touch in the writing.
Well done.

Title: Mind to Mind · Author: Shirebound · Genres: Alternate
Universe: Post-LOTR · ID: 894
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:23:13 Score: 4
Definitately an innovative and imaginative take on the journey back
home. I'd often wondered what would happen if Frodo ever tried to
sense the thoughts of the Three, and it seemed to come in useful,
here. Also useful was the bond between Elladan and Elrohir, and I
liked the expansion of Saruman's Ring-obsession to include forging a
One Ring of his own. Good build on elements already within Tolkien,
and good tension in the dramatic parts.

Title: When All Lights Pass · Author: Werecat · Genres: Alternate
Universe: Pre-LOTR · ID: 349
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:24:31 Score: 4
I really enjoyed this story. It's a trifle unusual, but kudos
certainly for putting Radagast to good work. He found a solution
where Gandalf was stymied, and that made me grin. And bonus points
for spotting the loophole in the King's Foil rhyme. Tricky bit of
writing! And the descriptions of the animals was very well done. I
could see the cat on the boy's chest, and I could hear his purrs.

Title: Quarantined · Author: Shirebound · Genres: Alternate Universe:
Pre-LOTR · ID: 877
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:25:40 Score: 5
Aragorn meeting Frodo early on would have certainly simplified things
later, and I liked the new developments because of their early
encounter. But strangely enough, the things I liked best about this
story were the asides and the throw-away remarks rather than the main
plot. Such as the fact that Gandalf's conjuring reputation suffered
when it turned out that he hadn't spirited Frodo away. The little
remarks like that were really entertaining, and I enjoyed them
immensely.

Title: Mary Mordor Sue · Author: Meg Thornton · Genres: Alternate
Universe · ID: 7
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:28:51 Score: 6
Brilliant and twisted. When I first read this, I spent half the story
trying to figure out who she was talking to before I finally settled
down and just enjoyed it. Fitting that it would turn out to be who it
was. And wonderful twist at the end, too. I didn't see it coming, no
matter how many hints were thrown, and I think it's deliciously evil.
As for the narrative, the rambling nature was wholly appropriate and
lent credence to her claims of insanity. I laughed hard at the idea
of a dungeon filled with Legolas Lusters, but one of the best moments
in the entire story (to me, anyway) was the shout-out to the Evil
Overlord website, which has to be one of my favorite websites of all
time. If Sauron had discovered that, LotR would certainly have ended
very differently. As can be seen here.

Title: The Care and Feeding of Young Hobbits · Author: James
Walkswithwind · Genres: Alternate Universe · ID: 1252
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:35:07 Score: 7
I have no idea what I was expecting when I read this story, but that
certainly was not it! What an absolutely brilliant twist on the lines
between Merry and Pippin in the movies! Really, this is sheer genius.
I keep thinking back to the moment in the books when Butterbur warns
Frodo about taking up with a Ranger, and I now wonder if he shouldn't
have reversed it and warned the Ranger about taking up with Frodo!
Poor Aragorn. And poor hobbits. So they were on their third guide? At
this rate, they'll never get to Rivendell. I think my favorite part
of this story was the end where Frodo lays down the law about their
fourth guide. He says it so matter-of-factly, but the concept is so
absurd that I was clutching my sides laughing at it. Very, very good
concept. I loved it! Highly original, and brilliantly hilarious.

Title: Love Me and Despair · Author: EdorasLass · Genres: Alternate
Universe: Elves · ID: 645
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:43:39 Score: 8
The first thing I thought of when reading this story was Galadriel's
line from the books as she considers taking the Ring: "Beautiful and
terrible as the Morning and the Night." And the section with Merry
and Pippin seemed to really emphasize this because they appeared to
be caught in the between both sides. At night, they saw (or at least
wondered about) the beauty, but in the morning, they saw the terror.
And leave it to hobbits to be able to recognize both. Everyone else
seemed to be caught in one extreme or the other.

And kudos for a very creepy portrayal of events, too. The story began
with an almost mystical and dreamlike quality. Then we hit Legolas's
section, and after that, the dream became a nightmare which was made
worse by the flashes of happier visions that were clearly tainted.
Wonderful mood pacing. The contrasts played off one another
beautifully. I wonder if the last part wasn't a bit too extreme, but
considering the build and Galadriel's latent power, I can see it
happening. Well done.

Title: Triumvirate · Author: Scribe · Genres: Alternate Universe:
Post-LOTR · ID: 114
Reviewer: Thundera Tiger · 2005-08-30 18:49:43 Score: 10
It's so difficult to write a believable modern-day LotR story, and
because of this, I have to grovel before Scribe's skill. Her series
of modern-day adventures in which Tolkien's characters merge with the
events of today are amazing, and "Triumvirate" is probably my
favorite out of the bunch. This is a stunning, fantastic story,
packed with almost anything you could ever want from a piece of
fiction: humor, action, suspense, drama, mystery, horror, surprise,
twists, etc. It's a brilliant build on her previous story, "The
Patient," only this time we get to add one of my favorite Fellowship
members: Boromir. Well, Bryan, but he's definitely got Boromir's
personality. And we add Frodo, too, whom I adore in this story. I
also love that Scribe never forgets just how foreign the modern world
is to the elves, and just how foreign they are to it. Aaron and Eve
serve as wonderful go-betweens, and I love the occasionally managled
attempts of both Haldir and Legolas to understand what they're
facing. The plot itself is a fantastic ride, never once letting up as
things start rolling, and the final showdown with Saeron as Bryan
finally redeems Boromir is brilliant. I love the surprises, I love
the twists, and I love the writing. Quite possibly my favorite modern-
day LotR story, it also comes in near the top of my list of favorite
stories altogether, both published and fanfiction.

Title: Just in Case · Author: Marnie · Books/Time: Gap-Filler · ID:
477
Reviewer: Marta · 2005-08-30 19:07:07 Score: 7
As I've told Marnie in the past, I'm definitely a fan of Ring War-era
stuff. Anything from the quest for Erebor to the early Fourth Age is
fair game, but stories about the First Age and so on are a little out
of my comfort zone. Nevertheless, Marnie is a first-class writer so
whenever I see a piece by her that I think I have enough background
to follow, I always read. So I was a bit surprised by the flashback
to Doriath here. But that was fine -- Marnie spinned a yarn that even
I could follow. the things that tempted Celeborn seemed so well
thought-out, just the sort of vision he might be tempted of. In fact,
it reminded me of Sam's vision at Cirith Ungol. (Fitting, given the
parallels she drew between the two of them in another of her
stories.) And that was a chilling thought, that there were
marchwardens ready to attack Galadriel or Celeborn if need be.

**end**