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Title: Mine · Author: EdorasLass · Genres: Humor: Children · ID: 66
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-10 22:14:48
Cute!
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Title: Book Learning · Author: Branwyn · Genres: Romance: Incomplete ·
ID: 910
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2006-08-10 23:01:21
This is one of the best Faramir/Eowyn romance stories I have ever read;
and I have read most of them. It is certainly one of the most
sensitively told, beautifully, honestly and realistically written
Faramir/Eowyn stories I have ever read. And the touches of humor,
comparatively rare in the stories of Gondor's most angsty young couples,
are delightful.

The story chronicles the course of a not uncommon difficulty among
newlyweds, occurring when Faramir and Eowyn have been married a month.
They love each other and are happily adjusting to life as a married
couple. But there's one problem - they are both woefully ignorant about
sex, don't know if they are doing right by the other, and of course,
being raised in a culture substantially different from our own, would
not think to discuss it frankly between themselves. And they don't have
relatives from whom they could comfortably seek guidance (Faramir thinks
of his uncle, but Imrahil is back in Dol Amroth).

Fanfiction writers still debate, and differ, in their perception of
Dunedain sexuality, whether Aragorn, or Faramir, or others, would have
been sexually experienced when they married. Branwyn makes a good and
plausible case as to why Faramir has had only minimal sexual experience,
and in his own words is [green as a newly-cut stave of wood] when he
comes to his wedding bed. The flashback to the wedding night is
wonderfully told, elegant, natural and sympathetic to the couple's
earnestness and nervousness - what sex there is is explicit, but not
very graphic. Faramir's view of his new bride as [small and soft] is
particularly sweet, considering that Tolkien painted Eowyn as a tall
steely flower, but it's quite touching and reveals Faramir's own
self-confidence and inner strength, as well as his own physical height
and power. In the course of the story, he also thinks of her as [strong,
clever]; it is clear that he feels respect as well as tenderness and
love for her.

Faramir and Eowyn each realize that their knowledge of sex is deficient,
and set out separately to remedy the gaps in their education. Branwyn
writes the two married lovers as essentially strong, proactive people -
though faced with a problem that is new to their experience, they do
their best to solve it on their own, rather than sitting around and
brooding over it.

While I love the characterisation of Faramir, who is shown both as a
noble and generous-hearted man trying to fulfill both his duties as a
Steward and a husband (and in this story, he is definitely more obsessed
with his husbandly duties than the charges of his office), it is Eowyn
who particularly shines here. I have rarely seen her so well-written as
an intelligent, strong-minded young woman and enjoying her new life as
the Steward's bride in Minas Tirith. There is also an appealing
poignancy to her quest, the extent of the loneliness of Eowyn's youth
and young womanhood in Edoras is made quietly, subtly obvious.

The way that Faramir and Eowyn find the knowledge they seek is
skillfully written; with moments of quite brilliant humor as well as
poignancy. The third chapter had me literally laughing so hard I cried.

I am looking forward to seeing how Faramir and Eowyn put the information
they've found to good and practical use.
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Title: Until the Stars Are All Alight · Author: Kenaz · Races: Men:
Featuring Aragorn · ID: 148
Reviewer: Marta · 2006-08-10 23:59:28
This story has a lot to recommend it, but I think the thing that jumps
out at me is the way that it is not just about either Aragorn or
Halbarad. At the beginning I thought it would be an Aragorn-centric fic,
but the authors doesn't take that easy road and makes it just about
Halbarad's background. I also noticed that Halbarad is not *that* much
older than Aragorn. Ten years for a Dunedain isn't too great a span, and
the difference between the two men tell us a lot about life in Eriador.
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Title: Unspeakable · Author: White Gull · Genres: Romance: Poetry · ID: 822
Reviewer: Marta · 2006-08-11 00:02:36
This is a nice poem. You've created a very erotic moment without giving
too many specifics - the best kind, especially in poetry, in my opinion.
But the last verse is what really makes the poem work for me. the quest
of seeking relief is worthwhile even if the relief turns out to be
unattainable.
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Title: A Little Thing · Author: Acacea · Times: Early Third Age:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 75
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 00:52:45
I think this is the first instance ever of foliage being affected by the
power of the Ring, such that it doesn't age. Interesting perspective.
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Title: The Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship · Author: Elana · Times:
Early Third Age: Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 150
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 00:54:52
I liked this little glimpse into Gandalf's first encounter with hobbits.
That their smoking should appeal to a Maia with a fire affinity makes
sense, and I liked how the hobbits come to trust him based on his
enjoyment of the passtime.
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Title: We Shall Return · Author: Marta · Times: Early Third Age:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 650
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 00:58:08
Castamir's supporters rarely get much of a voice; this is an excellent
look at how they might have thought. I particularly liked the idea of
Gondor growing away from its heritage in becoming the land of stone,
enamored with the land. Osse underlies Numenor, but clearly this is an
insular reading of that heritage. The repetition of the title gives a
strong forboding sentiment to the drabble. Well done!
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Title: The Usurper · Author: Elena Tiriel · Times: Early Third Age:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 834
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:00:45
Castamir's true colors show plainly here: he is both egotistical and
cruel. For the sleight to his pride, and a prince's unwillingness to
acknowledge him, he will order a most horrific and slow death for the
offender. Indeed, collective punishment apparently isn't too good for
the people of the City who (at least nominally) were loyal to Eldacar's
line.
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Title: Lobelia's List · Author: annmarwalk · Races: Hobbits: General
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 201
Reviewer: Branwyn · 2006-08-11 01:07:44
In a tale dominated by male characters, Lobelia Sackville-Baggins stands
out as one of the few strong females, a hobbit as tenacious and lovable
as an old tree root. In this drabble, annmarwalk gives us Lobelia's
hilarious "To Do" list of tasks to be done before the auction at BagEnd.
True to form, Lobelia comes across as a ruthlessly efficient organizer
and a merciless critic of human behavior. She is resignedly realistic
about her own son--

[4. How to keep lollygaggers away from beer barrel? Station Otho at
cellar door? Who to watch Otho?]

Of course, subsequent events will prove that he is even weaker than she
had suspected. Her avariciousness and her snobbery toward those who she
sees as her inferiors are right in character. The line about the missing
spoons made me laugh out loud! Still, Lobelia is unapologetically her
own master and she does win our respect at the end of LOTR when she
hobbles out of prison, so it is a pleasure to read this delightful piece
about one of Tolkien's fiestiest characters.
-----------------------------------
Title: Tokens of Sorrow · Author: Tanaqui · Times: Early Third Age:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 874
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:10:34
Tanaqui picks an obscure corner of fandom for this drabble. The king is
dead, long live the king--save that the heir has also died. Worse, as
Minohtar learns from the Rohirric captain, the king's younger son,
Faramir, has also gone to war in disguise and been killed--he was
recognized by the tokens of rank found on his body. A tragic day, and
the tragedy hasn't ended yet for Gondor, either--part of the horror of
the drabble comes from the knowledge that Minohtar, the king's nephew,
hasn't long to live either.
-----------------------------------
Title: A Hallowed Place of Both Peoples · Author: Imhiriel · Times:
Early Third Age: Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 944
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:15:12
Imhiriel puts the two resting places of Elendil to good use, employing
it to explore the cross-cultural tensions between the Rohirrim--classed
as 'Middle Men' by Gondorians--and their new Gondorian allies. Cirion
may have bowed to his council and moved the body for several reasons,
but it does seem like an act of mistrust not to leave it on Halifirien.
Eorl shows that the 'Middle Men' have the generous spirit of a much
higher people, and so suggests that Gondor might need to rethink its
classification schema. Well done, Imhiriel!
-----------------------------------
Title: Claws · Author: Elena Tiriel · Races: Villains: Fixed-Length
Ficlet · ID: 835
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:22:09
Minus the fact that crows and ravens have a positive significance for
the Dwarves, this reminds me of the relationship between wargs and orcs:
the [friendship of their kind] is an opportunistic use and abuse of each
other. The crow steals Smaug's gems, while Smaug retrieves it without a
second thought for the crow-thief's survival. Interesting side-view into
[The Hobbit].
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Title: Midwinter in Mordor · Author: Tanaqui · Races: Villains:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 872
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:25:04
A very orcish holiday drabble. There's nothing like slave labor to
lighten the load of a celebration, and to provide for the indulgence in
a little schadenfreud when it comes to relieving the itch to hurt
something. Then there's the small matter of needing meat for the menu,
which Lugdush heartily appreciates. An appalling depiction--quite as it
ought to be.
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Title: Blood Brothers · Author: Elana · Races: Villains: Fixed-Length
Ficlet · ID: 149
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:28:21
An intriguing glimpse into the life and formation of a mumak and his
rider. Rider and beast share in everything together--birth, blooding,
ornamentation, and finally, death. Well done!
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Title: Dark Appetites · Author: Elena Tiriel · Races: Villains:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 833
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:31:36
Shelob was always a wild card, serving no one but herself, really. Here
we see that that independence enables her to outlast the one who would
call himself her master. When Sauron falls, she can fall back upon her
own strength and power, having not allowed herself to be shaped so fully
by him. And so she survives, waiting for someone to fill her stomach
again at last. Good job!
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Title: Shadow and flame · Author: Tanaqui · Races: Villains:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 876
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:34:52
It seems appropriate that the bitterest stroke to the fallen balrog is
not any punishment that might be dealt out to him in the afterlife, as
it were, but the insight into the Music, which tells him that his
corruption and death was but an instrument for others to rise. For a
would-be rebel, what could be worse than the knowledge that all one's
plans were foreseen and made to suit another's designs? Well done!
-----------------------------------
Title: Hunting Orcs · Author: Tanaqui · Races: Villains: Fixed-Length
Ficlet · ID: 723
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-11 01:37:27
An interesting twist on the twins' incessant quest for revenge. The orc
narrator is so wonderfully self-centered--he and his band weren't doing
anything, just torturing a bunch of villagers to whom Elrohir and
Elladan had no relation. What call for the twins to go hunting them down
and chasing them far over the fields to death? Wonderfully ironic.
-----------------------------------
Title: Four Conversations and A Dream · Author: Forodwaith · Times: The
Great Years: Post-Sauron's Fall · ID: 90
Reviewer: Marta · 2006-08-11 03:05:25
The different interludes all work so well. They are tender and full of
details, and give us great scenes of Arwen's relationships with
different people. I know this author has a special Arwen-shaped muse,
but I didn't realize until reading this piece that that meant that she
just *got* Arwen so completely - not just Arwen herself but how Arwen
would relate to other characters, and how they would relate to her.
That's the feeling I have coming away from this piece. It's a great
gapfiller for how Arwen came to give the evenstar to Frodo, but much
more than that develops a very under-developed (book-canon speaking) elf.
-----------------------------------
Title: The Price of Power · Author: Rabidsamfan · Times: The Great
Years: General Fixed-Length Ficlets · ID: 989
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2006-08-11 08:34:33
A heartless, and heart-rending ficlet from the point of view of a voice
not often heard in LOTR fanfiction - Saruman. Here, he shows awareness
and regret for what he is doing to achieve his goals, as well as his
ruthlessness and ends-justify-the-means motivation. Saruman is someone
who understands nobility and beauty - his willingness to sacrifice what
he once cherished makes his fall all the more horrible.
-----------------------------------
Title: In Aragorn's Safekeeping · Author: Radbooks · Genres: Drama · ID: 141
Reviewer: Madeleine · 2006-08-11 12:57:00
Usually I avoid fanfiction about anybody or anything falling into
Middle-earth like the plague. I cant even recalled why I started to
read this particular story, but I know why I kept reading it with
enthusiasm till the last chapter.

The story is good.

I am not quite sure if 'storyteller' translates verbatim into English,
but that is what Radbooks did. She told a good story. Its as simple as
that.

It is detailed, colourful and the most enjoyable part are the brilliant
characterizations of virtually every protagonist, no matter if they are
of the own characters or the well-known and well-loved Tolkien
characters. She does everyone great justice, Elves, Men and Hobbits.

I can only recommend to anybody who usually avoids this genre, to give
this fanfiction a try. I'm sure you won't be disapointed.

-----------------------------------
Title: Dinnertime Folly · Author: Cathleen · Genres: Humor · ID: 733
Reviewer: Marta · 2006-08-11 14:57:00
Poor Pippin! I know what it's like to have to behave like an adult all
the time even when sometimes you want to have fun and not be so
responsible. I think he was being a bit unreasonable and at his age he
might have had a bit more shame about this. But I can certainly
understand the inclination. Good for him that he had the nerve to get
back at Merry with a story of his own.
-----------------------------------
Title: The Smallest Hands · Author: Dreamflower · Times: The Great
Years: Poetry · ID: 884
Reviewer: GamgeeFest · 2006-08-11 16:03:08
This is a beautiful song that honors Middle Earth's unlikely heroes. The
names of legendary heroes at the beginning, and the qualities that are
thought to make them so great, is wonderfully juxtaposed by those of the
hobbits in the second half of the sonnet. ["Although in height but half
as high full twice as large their hearts"] the hobbits prove that they
are equal to the task and no less valiant than the heroes who have come
before.
-----------------------------------
Title: Chance Encounter · Author: Dreamflower · Times: The Great Years:
Post-Sauron's Fall · ID: 187
Reviewer: GamgeeFest · 2006-08-11 16:21:21
There is so much to love about this story, from the Fellowship
surprising Sam for his birthday, to Legolas wanting to spare the hobbits
of their nightmares, to the little glimpse into Eowyn's childhood. But
the true star of this story is Pippin, who gets his chance to shine and
prove to his cousins just how much he has grown, in character not just
height, during the war. It was also nice to see Meneclar, a wonderfully
drawn OC, who has come back to Gondor after being away for years. The
reunion of old friends is truly heartwarming. My favorite part though
has to be the hobbit fan girls. Even in Middle Earth, the hobbits aren't
safe from swooning girls!
-----------------------------------
Title: To The King! · Author: Ithil-Valon · Times: Multi-Age: Incomplete
· ID: 848
Reviewer: Katzilla · 2006-08-11 16:44:14
Although this story started as 'merely' an undertaking of showing the
relationship between Éomer and Théoden in greater depth (which was
sorely missed in the movie and even prompted this outpouring of
wonderfully intimate scenes), it quickly developed into a full-fledged
adventure story that is mindful of canon, lovingly fleshing out the
characters and overal, a real page turner.

I know that this is the author's first attempt at fanfic, and if it is
any indication of what might await us in the future, we will be in for
many more wonderful stories from her. The thing that sets her apart from
many others are, in my opinion, the very lovingly written relationsships
between the different characters. Very nice work, my friend!
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Title: How Grima Lost His Eyebrows · Author: NeumeIndil · Times: Late
Third Age: Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 800
Reviewer: Katzilla · 2006-08-11 16:48:39
Ha ha!! I have never been one to read drabbles or very short stories as
I always figured that they are too short for me to get involved... but
this provided me with a good laugh - I can just see those scenes of Brad
Dourif's RingCon-panel again when he discussed at great length how
disturbed his girlfriend was when he had to shave them off six times
during the production! Poor, evil Gríma! Isn't it fun to have something
like this happen to him? Thank you, Neu!
-----------------------------------