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Title: Alas, for the dying of the trees · Author: Gandalfs apprentice ·
Races: Cross-Cultural: Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 788
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:13:26
[Not mine the words]--I can't be fair, this was written for my birthday.
But it's just so perfectly dwarven--and so perfectly crotchety and
irreverent, as old age should be in the presence of youthful melancholy!
I can well imagine a dwarf of Gimli's venerable age, and burdened with
all the pains of old age, would get a tad annoyed with all the elven
mournfulness over the passing of time. Like he needs a reminder from
someone who's never going to have that visceral experience of time
passing that is the fate of all mortals!

Thank you, Gandalf's Appentice!
-----------------------------------
Title: A Spring Day At Cormallen · Author: Marigold · Races:
Cross-Cultural · ID: 746
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:13:41
Nice portrait of the hobbits on the mend--resilient and irrepressible,
to the consternation of many healers, Aragorn included to a degree,
though at least he knew enough about hobbits not to give Pippin up for
dead when Gimli found him.
-----------------------------------
Title: A Memorial in Four Parts · Author: Illwynd · Races:
Cross-Cultural · ID: 702
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:13:57
Very well done. It's interesting to me that although Faramir's
remembrance is undoubtedly the longest, and appropriately opens the
story, it's not until the final and shortest memorial that we get a
first-person perspective. Interesting choice.

The other mourners each have a moment when they *almost* connect with
the departed Boromir, or where they do, in some sense, connect--in the
fog in Henneth Annun, Faramir's memories come so close to being alive
that he can almost hear Boromir; Pippin and Merry find the anonymous
voice that warned them of danger so similar to Boromir's voice they
can't shake the sense that it in some way belongs to him; Frodo's dream
is reminiscent of dreams others have had where they are convinced their
loved ones came and made peace with them beyond the grave--Aragorn
doesn't have that, yet his is the most immediate voice. In some way, he
encompasses the other perspectives, but because it seems Boromir is
clearest to him through the memories of others. Quite interesting.
-----------------------------------
Title: Rest and Recreation · Author: Raksha the Demon · Races:
Cross-Cultural · ID: 700
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:14:17
Ooh, called it on the first pass--had to be Glorfindel! This was
excellent--I loved Boromir's longing to be about useful work, or at
least to keep up his form. To be stymied by refusals from Elves who
wouldn't even try him must've been utterly galling. That he should then,
by sheer ignorance, end up challenging Glorfindel and giving him more
than just an afternoon's work-out was fabulous. Go Boromir! Show those
elves the folly of judging books by covers, to slip into Farmir's idiom
for a moment! Boromir might lack Faramir's patience in the library, but
not when it comes to sword-play, and his willingness to get soundly
beaten and bounce back again and again, showing improvement, is a
patience of its own and appropriate to him. Well done!
-----------------------------------
Title: Sixteen Singing Eagles · Author: Isabeau of Greenlea · Races:
Cross-Cultural: Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 678
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:14:39
I love how aquiline the eagles are! Their antics and dignity are
wonderful, as is the rather uncomfortable decision to display their
singing voices... or lack thereof. I can certainly imagine the
screeching. Hethlin's reciprocation, and the eagles' reaction, were a
perfect ending to this humorous little cross-cultural exchange.
-----------------------------------
Title: The Beauty of Memory · Author: pipkinsweetgrass · Races:
Cross-Cultural · ID: 652
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:14:56
Sweet memorial to Boromir in Pippin.
-----------------------------------
Title: The Age of Men · Author: Marta · Races: Cross-Cultural · ID: 401
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:15:09
An appropriately long view of the newly budding Fourth Age from
Treebeard. Good use of the song about the Entwives, and of
movie!Galadriel's opening lines. I wonder, though, was Treebeard
conscious of Melkor's fall? Would he know Morgoth's original name since
the Elves pretty much had a ban on speaking it?
-----------------------------------
Title: Teatime in Rivendell · Author: Gandalfs apprentice · Races:
Cross-Cultural: Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 373
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:15:23
*snork!* Oh that's priceless! Nice use of that scene in [The Hobbit]--I
hadn't thought to put that into a hobbit's perspective like that, or
take it into account when Bilbo and Legolas should first meet. Well done!
-----------------------------------
Title: Horse Thief · Author: Gandalfs apprentice · Races: Cross-Cultural
· ID: 365
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:15:43
Cute brotherly interaction--I like the fact that Gilraen's wrath is
apparently so formidable as to cow even a half-elven princeling. Estel's
'punishment' being nothing of the sort is an amusing twist, and I like
the combination of stubbornness but also a pretty quick turn around in
temprament. Nice pre-figuring of the adult Aragorn, who likes things on
his terms, but who can roll with the punches and also the apologies when
necessary.
-----------------------------------
Title: The Hobbit and the Man: "All That Is Gold Does Not Glitter" ·
Author: Gandalfs apprentice · Races: Cross-Cultural · ID: 351
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:15:58
Awww! I liked this first meeting of Aragorn and Bilbo, from a hobbit's
perspective. But Bilbo being an unusual hobbit, he has an eye for
interestsing stories. I loved that last line! Excellent turn about, and
it makes perfect sense of the context for that poem.
-----------------------------------
Title: Hair · Author: Gandalfs apprentice · Races: Cross-Cultural:
Fixed-Length Ficlet · ID: 321
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:16:12
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and it is always up for
cross-cultural interrogation. Poor Legolas, accustomed to hairless
elves, save the stuff on the top of the head, is certainly getting a
lesson in what counts as an 'appropriate' part of the body for hair to
grow upon!
-----------------------------------
Title: A Matter of Honor · Author: meckinock · Races: Cross-Cultural:
Incomplete · ID: 208
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:16:30
I've not managed to read [In the Hands of the Enemy], although every so
often, something will prompt me to remind myself that I should read it.
However, I did make a point of putting [A Matter of Honor] on my MEFA
reviewing list, and I'm not sorry I did.

No doubt, I would be able to appreciate it better if I had the whole
backstory to inform my impressions, but it's not necessary. This is a
serial piece, and what you need from the previous story is not so much
the events as the attitudes of the characters towards each other--and
that Meckinock provides, and brilliantly.

As a Dunedain fancier, I appreciate the way the Elf-Mankind division is
put here--this is not a piece that only half-heartedly defends a mortal
perspective as over against the 'higher' or more comfortable elven one.
It is clearly written from a mortal perspective, and a perspective that
is tired of making apologies for itself before an immortal one, and
which can point out the shortcomings of the current elven situation. At
the same time, certain lacks in mortal life in the North are made to
show, too, so it's not a one-sided portrait.

Halbarad's voice and personality come through beautifully, as does the
peril and hardship of a Ranger's life. Aragorn, too, sounds like
himself, though in the mode of an invalid and a man who's suffering from
father-issues. I'm very intrigued to see how the plot twists from here
on out, now that he and Halbarad have gone looking for Arathorn's
bastard son--a son older than Aragorn, and so quite possibly, depending
on what sorts of arrangements were in place, Isildur's Heir.

Halbarad isn't enthused with this idea, nor does he think an
illegitimate line would be accepted, especially if it's a line that goes
through a Dunlending mother. But he's willing to see the thing through
for Aragorn's sake, even if it does look as though this quest has landed
them in quite a lot of trouble.

I look forward to updates on this story, and recommend it to anyone who
enjoys stories about the Northern Dunedain. Well done, Meckinock!
-----------------------------------
Title: The Tenth Walker · Author: Lindelea · Races: Cross-Cultural:
Incomplete · ID: 198
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:16:51
I've seen a few Bill the Pony stories, but usually they are vignettes
only. Trying to chart the course from Bree to Imladris through his eyes
makes for a much more satisfying read, for it allows more of his
personality to come out.

Bill's voice is distinct, and his concerns are a pony's concerns. Not
for him to worry about darkness gathering, he has to contend with the
scars on hide and heart that Bill Ferny, [my old misery] as Bill thinks
of him, left on him. His initial mistrust of Aragorn, due to his being
of the same kind as Bill Ferny, seems right, as does the gradual easing
of tension as Bill comes to know the travelers on the road.

His affection for Sam is obvious, and the hobbits' efforts to aid him,
as well as his observations of them, and eventually of Aragorn as well,
are well portrayed. Lindelea needs only a few short paraphraphs to
sketch the interaction, and keeps us moving at a pony's pace through the
story. The result is a quick, but enjoyable read. Well done!
-----------------------------------
Title: The River · Author: Indigo Bunting · Races: Cross-Cultural:
Incomplete · ID: 51
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:17:05
A good Fellowship fic is a rare treasure, and this is a very good
Fellowship fic. Some canon details are altered, and in fact the river
itself is totally non-canonical, but I stopped caring about these things
after about the first paragraph or two.

Indigo Bunting seems bent on giving each character a significant chunk
of a chapter in which to be our eyes and ears (and sometimes noses). Her
characterizations are convincing--I can believe Merry might think as he
does, that Boromir would think as he does, Sam and Legolas are
masterfully drawn, and for those desperately wishing Gimli would get
some credit, do read this fic. Whether seen through the eyes of the
narrating character or from the inside of their heads, the characters
act and feel and think convincingly.

The winter flood that sweeps two members of the Fellowship away to
struggle on their own to survive is a device I've seen used before and
in this very time frame, but it is absolutely different as a story. The
fear and worry of the remaining members as they seek their missing
companions and discover they're not the only ones on the look-out for a
hobbit and a few comrades, is well portrayed, and although we know what
has to happen so long as this story remains outside of a full blow AU,
still, the suspense remains. That takes talent to pull off, and Indigo
Bunting does it with style.

Hopefully, this story will be completed soon, and I shall be interested
to learn what effect this might have on the Fellowship as they continue
on their canonically-mandated path. Excellent tale, if very intense at
key points--job well done, Indigo Bunting!
-----------------------------------
Title: On Being the Youngest · Author: Bodkin · Races: Cross-Cultural ·
ID: 45
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:17:20
Pippin is young enough that it's easy to find stories that use this
element to get everyone in more trouble than one finds easy to believe
is possible. It's good to see that aspect of his character put to a use
that makes it an *advantage*, and that shows that he does sometimes
think fairly well.

That the youngest of those who will eventually go on a quest should
bring some comfort and optimism about the benefits of use to Legolas, of
all people, is ironic, but Pippin's confidence is so unprepossessing and
straightforward, it's clear that it's genuine. Legolas' youth is also
referenced convincingly to draw the two into conversation over a common
topic. Clearly, there's a lot to be said for the hobbity habit of being
more than appearance might make give out.

Very nicely done!
-----------------------------------
Title: Nothing but Dreams · Author: Unsung Heroine · Genres: Drama:
First Age Elves · ID: 659
Reviewer: Vana Tuivana · 2006-08-14 13:36:08
The Unsung Heroine has written more about Caranthir and Haleth than
anyone else I know, but she somehow manages to capture a fresh aspect or
perspective on their relationship with each new story. 'Nothing but
Dreams' is simultaneously a ghost story, a love story, and an amazing
piece of prose that's filled with poetic emotions.

The story follows Caranthir, the fourth son of Feanor, in his descent
into something like madness after the defeat of the Nirnaeth Arnoediad.
Not only has he lost his beloved home in Thargelion and his comfortable
way of life there, but he has also lost the one woman he's ever loved:
Haleth of the Haladin.

The emotions running through this piece -- loss, fear, anger, betrayal
-- are almost too real for comfort, especially when Caranthir's grief
over losing his lover and his home collides with the idea that he has
betrayed his kin by recruiting Ulfang the Black to the side of the
Noldor in the battle, who later proved to be the traitor who led to
their defeat. Speaking to one of his brothers (and part of the genius in
this story is that the only named characters are Caranthir and Haleth --
we don't know which brother comes to bring him comfort, which somehow
makes the story more personal for the reader), Caranthir releases some
of those feelings:

["She was a girl," I cry, "for Ilúvatars sake, only a girl! What harm
could she have done? You had a thousand wise counsels for me, a thousand
good reasons why I should leave her alone. Why did you not use a single
one of them to warn me of him? Just a single one! Why did no one warn me?"

I know I am probably not making any sense now. It just keeps coming
together all at once; the love I had for Haleth, the betrayal of
Ulfangs people, my inability to let the past be past and move on, and
it is pushing out of me with such a force that it is making me breathless.]

Added to this emotional stew is Caranthir's fear that he is going mad,
because the ghost of his lover Haleth keeps visiting him, but no one
else ever sees her. He pushes her away out of a desire to retain his
sanity, but at the same time he's desperate for her to be there:

["Leave me," I forced out hoarsely. "You are not there. I do not want to
see you. I am not going mad." But she did not move the least bit and
only when I awoke the next morning she was gone.

Her visits became a strange routine within a world tumbling down into
chaos and the few times when night had fallen, and the rain beat down,
and the fire burnt low, and yet she still had not appeared, I found
myself eagerly listening to my own anxious breathing, longingly waiting
for her slender form to emerge from the shadows.

People soon started whispering among themselves that I was losing my
mind, seeing things that were not there, but she sat beside me during
the bad nights when I could find no sleep and as much as reason screamed
against it, I desperately wanted her to be real.]

In the end, it is Haleth who helps Caranthir to realize that he must
move on with his life and not dwell on the tragedies in his past. And
yet it is the ghost of Haleth (is she there or not? We never really
know...) who clings to Caranthir, reminding him of the past.

All in all, this is a haunting fic with excruciating, grinding emotion
that brings me back time and again to read it and find something new in
the story each time. Besides being a great work of narrative fiction, it
has the feeling of poetry in unstoppable prose-like motion, and a great
depth of feeling which actually brought tears to my eyes the first time
I read it. Fantastic writing.
-----------------------------------
Title: Man of Gondor · Author: LittleHobbitGal · Races: Cross-Cultural:
Incomplete · ID: 682
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2006-08-14 13:39:19
It's an interesting attempt to reintroduce Boromir to the drama of his
family, after his death on Parth Galen. The idea that Boromir is privy
now to his brother's experiences, remembered in his own fever dreams and
transformed into nightmares of a Dark Lord who might have been had
things gone otherwise in Ithilien, is intriguing. Faramir's nightmare
temptation and the twisting that the Ring exercises on moments of
dream-lucidity are well portrayed. Sometimes it's a little hard to
distinguish Boromir's thoughts from Faramir's, but otherwise, an
enjoyable quasi-redemption story.
-----------------------------------
Title: The Heads of One Thousand Goblins: A Love Story · Author:
SickleYield · Races: Dwarves · ID: 644
Reviewer: Vana Tuivana · 2006-08-14 14:08:40
This is one of the most heartfelt and touching romances I've read in
this fandom. I love the characterizations of the Dwarves, particularly
the new look at Gimli after the Ring War is over, as a sort of oddball
figure who keeps to himself because the other Dwarves could never
understand all that he's done in his life. Very unique, fresh, and
hilarious at times. The ending is sweet, but not saccharine, and keeps
the light humor of the rest of the piece.

"The Heads of One Thousand Goblins" is one of my favorite LoTR stories,
and I keep coming back to it when I want something familiar to read. It
satisfies the craving for a fresh, original, creative story with some
unexpected romance. Wonderful writing.
-----------------------------------
Title: Thranduil's begetting day · Author: daw the minstrel · Genres:
Humor · ID: 287
Reviewer: Perelleth · 2006-08-14 14:21:07
Any of Daw's stories is a jewel, but this one is a particularly amusing
commedy of sorts, with people getting into and out of scene, all full of
good intentions and marked for disaster. A light tale of a highly
amusing chaos, with plenty of screen time for her delightful OCs.

In the first part, the setting is displayed and we get to know what it
is on store for each of the characters. Thranduil's efficient daughter
-in-law is in charge of the operations, and for once all the males in
the household are supposed to follow her well-laid plans. Thranduil is
most comfortable in his appointed role, the easiest one, no doubt, and
he greets his guests -be it family or human allies- regally. Legolas
spends a good part of the story fighting an evil plot concocted by a
cunning aunt playing match-maker. Eilian is mistaken for a stable hand
and manages to find advantage in it, and Sinnarn, Thranduil's
adventurous grandson, is busy enjoying himself and enlisting his friends
to help him unearth a perfect gift for his beloved grandfather.

Precisely the search for this gift, which is basically the rest of the
story, proves disastrous for some of the more serious, effcient and
composed elves in Thranduil´s staff, and the great fun of seeing them
running madly into the woods is simply indescribable.

The radical, and perfectly captured difference between Men and Elves
adds up to the mayhem, as the human guests try in vain to make sense
-according to their understanding- of the elves' more than strange
behaviour. This ocnfusion offers added amusement to the already mad
story, and it all ends up with Alfirin battling a monstrous headache and
all of us readers claiming to know how Beliond got back at all of them.

Hilarious,delightful commedy. Thranduil never had such an entertaining.
begetting day!
-----------------------------------
Title: Discretion · Author: Bodkin · Genres: Humor · ID: 286
Reviewer: Perelleth · 2006-08-14 14:23:38
Life in the Blessed Realm -well into the Fourth Age and beyond- is never
boring. Not with Elladan, Elrohir and Legolas trying to adjust to their
peaceful surroundings and taking advantage of general lightness. But
jokes are given and taken in a delightful story in which we get to see
Celeborn, Galadriel, Celebrían, Elrond, Glorfindel, take their revenge
at the younger three elves thanks to a certain "misunderstanding" that
took place back in the Third Age.The glimpses of that period -with
Arwen. Aragorn, Gimli making part of the conspiration- are funny,
bittersweet pieces of flashback, as some of the main characters recall
the origins of a joke that seemed to be lost in time and that
unexpectedly backfires against all of them in the Blessed Realm...

Writing fun, agile, witty dialogue is one of Bodkin's talents and it
shows greatly in this tale of sparkling humorous exchanges. Differences
of personality and relatonship between parents, grandparents and friends
mark the evolution of the game. Everyone is truly in character, which is
another treat.

And yet, we can get to see how life in the Blessed Realm eased the
worries of some of those duty burdened elves, as we knew them by the end
of the Third Age. We are shown a group of merry creatures who are
finally free of burdens and can look back to their past with a pain that
has been softened by time and understanding.
-----------------------------------
Title: The Grey at the End of the World · Author: jodancingtree · Times:
Fourth Age and Beyond: The Shire · ID: 288
Reviewer: Perelleth · 2006-08-14 14:28:37
This is a sequel to The Queen's orc" but it is not necessary to have
read this one first to enjoy this deeply Tolkienish account of the last
days of the Shire. Suffice it to say that Canohando is an orc redeemed
by Frodo, Arwen's jewel and Radagast, and who married an elf woman
marred by torture in the hands of the Dark Lord's minions during the
last years of the third Age. Both marred and doomed creatures are
redeemed and we see them now, some thousand years later, settled down
with their descendants as Guardians of the Shire. The children of
Canohando and Melewen intermarried with humans and, as generations
passed by , their children almost completely lost the traces of their
ancestors' nature. They are strong, loyal and valiant people devoted to
protect the borders of the increasingly dwindling Shire.

This is a tale of fruitless victories of duty beyond hope and hopeless
fight. But it is also the story of a bitter redemption against nature,
the tale of an Orc, Logi, born in a time when orcs exist no more, and
who must learn, through fire, and betrayal, and fruitless love and
misery, to tame his own nature and to trust the gifts he too possesses.

IT is a tale of darkness not denied, but embraced in the hopes that
light will shine through. A tale of duty, and friendship and betrayal
and family love, in which the gentle, compassionate and resilient nature
of the hobbits shines as deeply as the honest commitment and desperate
valour of Canohando and his children, as they fight the relentless tides
of time, intent of sweeping away the last remnants of a mythic time from
Middle-earth. The time of Men is fully come and there is no place left
for orcs or elves or hobbits. The dwindling of the shire is full of
melancholy in its unavoidability,

Jo's smooth style, and the easy way in which she manages to describe
events without stacking the chapter with dialogue is enthralling, as
that kind of distant, enchanted pov to events that aren't mythical but
that did not happen yesterday...

And sure there is mercy, and hope, amidst darkness, yet we tend to
forget darkness, which is a substantial part of light, for were it not
for the darkness what would we know of hope and light? Some times,
darkness is needed so good and shiny things can be discovered.

["She could not rob him of what he never had."] Actaully it turned out
that Logi needed to walk down that terrible path to its most bitter
bottom before finding out that, indeed, he did have honour and he was a
faithful orc.

No concessions to easy, short lived hope in this story, no hope that
Tulco is alive, that Osta will survive, that any of them will, for, who
would want to when all you have known has been destroyed and all your
loved ones have been swept away?

Yet we end up hoping that Logi may somehow redeem himself and that
Canohando shall understand. The ending is bittersweet, as it becomes
life, and I choose to cling to the image of Arato, a lonesome gurdian,
smoking his pipe under the starlight, leading his solitary, faithful
life until his end, keeping his guard.

Beautifully, deeply and most compassionately done, Jo, I bow again to
your skill! :-)

-----------------------------------
Title: Celebrian, Sell i Nos Galadhad · Author: Redheredh · Genres:
Drama: Incomplete · ID: 318
Reviewer: Perelleth · 2006-08-14 14:33:41
This is the tale of an eventful day in the city of Ost -in-Edhil in
Eregion, during the Second Age, and of an unexpected arrival that sets
in motion a flow of memories, some plotting, and entertaining insights
into the history of Middle- Earth seen from the pov of the Green Elves,
although part of the tale is told from the pov of an obcure. endearing
Noldorin scribe, at the service of Celebrimbor, who fervently hopes to
climb on the social ladder.

A misterious Elf is stalking Lord Celeborn's only daughter as she and
her nanny made their way through the busy market in a bustling city that
is vividly described and that inmediately reminds you of the times of
the Gold Rush.

The nanny sets the guards upon the stranger, who is imprisoned quickly.
The vagabond turns out to be Lord Celeborn's most faithful servant,
guard and friend, long ago vanished without word or trace and now
showing up in a city full of Dwarves and Noldorin elves. Intrigue is
guaranteed.

With this setting, the tale is spun from the author's wonderful and
artfully crafted background history of the third Host of the Elves, and
their own look at the events and the kingdoms there. We learn that
Celeborn is seen as Thingol's rightful heir. This faithful warrior
hopes, as many of their people do, that Celeborn shall stand forth and
restore the glory of Doriath and will finally take the place and honour
that he deserves, rather than serving/helping Gil-galad.

We also get to see a not usual side of Celeborn, a fine politician with
a view and a goal. The confrontation between these two in the dungeons,
and the subsequent walk through the secret passages in the palace while
a feast is held in the public areas is a particularly masterfully well
done scene. You most definitely have to read those scenes, in chapters
three and five for it.

And while Celeborn and his long lost friend catch up with news and
gossip and politic plans for the future, a feast is held, and
Celebrimbor is unsuccesfully trying to match Celeborn and Galadriel's
skill at plotting, with hilarious results.

The details are wondrous, the city and the palace are vividly described.
The background epic of the Green Elves from which many other tales have
sprung to life are a delight, and the story gains even more depth from
being read as a whole.

And Hrassa, Celeborn's friend and guard is one fo the best developed OCs
I have found in ffiction.


-----------------------------------
Title: Conversational, of Cousins · Author: Vana Tuivana · Genres:
Drama: Poetry · ID: 642
Reviewer: Perelleth · 2006-08-14 14:35:16
This story has a beautiful rythm, an almost enthralling exchange of
voices and moods; skeptical, resigned, from the bereft eldest cousin,
and emotional, tender, sadly hopeful from his rescuer.

Written as a conversation between Fingon and Maedhros after the
Thangorodrim episode -no slash- it offers in less than three hundred and
fifty words a beautiful glimpse of the friendship between these two
characters, from episodes in their youth to the subtle indications of
how that friendship has been changed by words and acts. But love and
respect remain untouched.

Abused as this episode has been, I think that this little poem makes it
shine anew. I also liked, too, the businesslike tone both cousins employ
when referring to that missing item, almost carelessly left behind for
Morgoth to vaunt over. Remembering the things that hand did, and why it
was cherished, Fingon tells the story of a childhood, and a happy,
carefree life, and also tries to fuel a bit of life, of enthusiasm, of
warmth in his friend and cousin's much wasted spirit.

Maedhros´ detachment, cyinicism, matches perfectly what can be expected
after such an ordeal. Both are much in character, and that is another
virtue of this tale.

-----------------------------------
Title: Strange Fortunes · Author: Tehta · Times: First Age and Prior:
Incomplete · ID: 81
Reviewer: Perelleth · 2006-08-14 14:39:21
Hilarious commedy that manages to portray a quite endearing Maeglin
-despite his non-too-subtle machinations- in all his cluelessness before
the old, experienced, world-wise Eldar of Gondolin.

A moral conflict related to a sentece in LaCE perturbs formal Ecthelion
and charming Glorfindel. a meddling Salgant discovers a secret that
threatens to blemish the reputation of the Gondolindhrim captains, and
he uses it to blackmail them. Meanwhile, a love-struck, ignorant of the
uses of more sophisticated courts Maeglin boils in rage as he begins to
suspect that Glorfindel is in love with Idril, and, worst, that she
corresponds his love. So he sets out in search of a way to discredit the
blond hero, only he completely misunderstands what Salgant was trying to
tell him abut both captains.

On the other side, truth, honor, friendship, morality and love make the
two friends's relationship even more difficult. They are threatened by
Salgant on one hand, and inadvertently set at odds by Maeglin's
machinations and their own misunderstandings. Hilarious scenes of
clueless elves, misguided suspicion, sarcastic songs, Glorfindel in full
wrath mode, almost hamletian Ecthelion and slimy, nasty Salgant manage
to drive poor Maeglin nuts.

The scenes are precise and delicately crafted, like a weaving of
diffrent threads that are all converging with great mastery, but, above
all, providing great fun to the reader.
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Title: From the Journal of Frodo Baggins · Author: MysteriousWays ·
Genres: Drama: Featuring Frodo or Sam · ID: 61
Reviewer: Pearl Took · 2006-08-14 14:59:20
This story captures a lot of how I think Frodo must have felt about his
needing to leave. I like that Mysterious Ways has him being attracted to
hobbitesses but unable to find one that fits him well, ones that can see
beyond the Shire enough . She shows the struggle he has gone through to
try to be who he was before he left on the Quest, and his frustration
and sorrow that he cannot. That he is too damaged to be what he once
was. That although the darkness is gone some things, like Shelob\'s
poison in his blood, still remain.

It has a lot a beautiful imagery. Frost on the window that Frodo
doesn\'t know that the elves could create something as lovely. Time
alone at Bag End, with Sam and Rosie gone visiting, being like the years
after Bilbo left when Frodo felt he lived in innocence. And I
particularly love that Frodo writes of Mount Doom, of the ash and fire,
of seeing molton rock, but then he says that in his study the fire on
the hearth is now a source of reassuring comfort.

The author does a wonderful job of expressing Frodo\'s sadness without
it becoming maudlin. She has him not so much depressed as resigned,
knowing that he has tried his best to fit into Shire society, to fit
into life at Bag End, as he used to, but simply cannot.

This is a beautifully and powerfully written story.
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