Yahoo Forum Archive

Title: Bitter Sweet · Author: annmarwalk · Genres: Alternate Universe:
Steward's Family · ID: 536
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-17 02:07:45
Spoilers!
Bittersweet, indeed! In Ann's universe, Boromir and Théodred go
together like the back and front of one's own hand - they just belong
together as the quintessentially star-crossed and doomed lovers. Not
by any social stigma, at least not in Rohan - there's no one there
breathing down their necks, threatening disclosure. But death looms in
the background and imbues the whole relationship with the tragedy of
untimely and permanent partings.

It seems that if the two are to live into the Fourth Age, the price
must be borne by another, also wholly unwitting - poor Lothíriel! At
least it wasn't a tragic triangle - I liked that Théodred's vows [were
never bent nor broken], and that Boromir spared his lover [the sorest
test] by absenting himself, and it seems that the two were more than
just well-reconciled to the marriage. Still... bitter sweet from
beginning to end, as promised!

Title: Five things that never happened to Nerdanel · Author: Meril ·
Genres: Alternate Universe: Angst/Tragedy · ID: 389
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-17 02:08:00
Spoilers!
Nerdanel's perspective is illuminating - of Fëanor, of fate, of
possibilities that could have occurred. Meril deftly puts them all
together, constructing little parallel universes out of a few
well-chosen words and images, and ruthless alliteration at times. The
disaster that is Fëanor and his pride looms large, as well it should,
this being an AU - sometimes, it is partially avoided, yet the near
misses leave something wanting. One senses that something was lost in
not taking the risk for Nerdanel - either love or life itself (and
what a description of death in alternate world number 3!).

But Meril doesn't just leave us with near misses: she gives us the
tragic lovers, a kind of M-e Bonnie and Clyde who will go down into
darkness together [and damn the rest of the world], and she gives them
(and us) an out that still had its challenges. Very well done! Well
worth the reading, especially for Silm fans or people who are
interested in the underwritten women of M-e.

Title: The Least of Rings · Author: Marta · Genres: Alternate
Universe: Drabbles · ID: 621
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-17 02:08:11
Spoilers!
There's something about AU drabbles - it's hard to write just one.
It's so much easier to write several and so surround the original text
with a halo of its own possibilities. Marta manages to write just two,
and then cut us down to reading just one (which is somewhat cruel).
That one has to grab us then and not let us feel any incompletion.

The opening does grab one immediately, by the memory of violence that
reminds us just what this Ring can do, if it can lead even Boromir to
say of the struggle between him and Frodo [in truth fought seemed too
weak a word]. It suggests the measure of desperation, but also, more
chillingly, the extent to which the Ring has worked its way into the
soul of each combatant.

The apparent calm that follows - the note that this fight is three
days old, for all it clearly preoccupies Boromir - lends an
uncanniness to the whole scene, and it reminds the reader of two
canonical points: that for the noble and the great, they always begin
their possession of the Ring with good intentions; and that every good
intention works hand in hand with a fundamental self-deception that
can only grow. Even Bilbo, who did not come by the Ring in an out and
out struggle to take it from another, almost immediately spins his own
lie to justify his possession of it.

A sobering look at an all too plausible turn of the plot that
highlights the good man Boromir was, and who is rapidly dying even as
he lives on past Parth Galen.

Title: Giving Gifts · Author: Marta · Genres: Humor: Other
Fixed-Length Ficlets · ID: 426
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-17 02:08:23
Spoilers!
Anyone who spends more than five minutes looking through anything I've
written that has Denethor in it will have noticed that I like my
Steward like some people like their coffee: dark, strong, acid, and
with grit at the bottom. Lighter Denethors feel like Coke-Zero to me
very often, even though they can be quite delightful in many respects.

However, in this case, preference bows to the humor of the moment. I
can't read this without laughing. And even better, I can see Denethor
taking perfectly measured and cordial revenge upon his brother-in-law
in exactly this fashion. The letter is point perfect etiquette and
brotherly affection mixed with unmistakable, geometrically precise
glee, aimed at a worthy and intelligent 'opponent.'

I am certain this will turn into a most amusing pitched battle, with
each birthday in Dol Amroth or Minas Tirith being the occasion for a
game of one-up-manship that will later be fondly remembered as the
next birthday draws near with its occasion for parental revenge: in a
way, it's all about sharing the joys and experiences of parenthood
together, despite being a few hundred miles apart. Really.

Highly recommended!

Title: --and it was done · Author: Neoinean · Genres: Adventure · ID: 527
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2008-09-17 02:34:58
Spoilers!
A well-written, suspenseful and gritty Aragorn/Legolas adventure
story. I loved how Aragorn's healer training kept kicking in with
every injury, inflicted by him or upon Legolas by the bad guys.

Title: Dragons In The Trollshaws · Author: Bodkin · Genres: Adventure
· ID: 170
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2008-09-17 02:49:32
Spoilers!
An excellent story pitting Elrohir and Elladan and (eventually)
Glorfindel against a long-hidden nest of dragons. The descriptions of
the dragons, and extrapolations of their behavior, are very credible.
And the characterisation of the twins, their father, and Glorfindel,
is quite good, as one would expect from this very skilled writer.

Title: Balm · Author: Armariel · Genres: Adventure · ID: 459
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2008-09-17 02:56:43
Spoilers!
An effective story with a bit more punch than most hurt/comfort
pieces. I really love the last paragraphs, as Frodo looks back on the
horror of Mordor from the peace of Valinor. Armariel always uses
beautiful language, words that sing, and so it is in this story as well.

Title: Last Stroke · Author: Elena Tiriel · Genres: Alternate
Universe: Drabbles · ID: 465
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-17 12:08:31
This drabble does what a good AU should: it takes what you think is
familiar, evokes it and whips it up to the point where one imagines
that only the outcome could be different (will Minas Tirith stand or
fall in the face of the Corsairs) and then turns the reader on her
head by throwing her hundreds of leagues away.

It's an accomplished mislead to great effect, and that last line is
just chilling and makes the whole drabble. Very enjoyable - well done, ET!

Title: The Prisoner of Time · Author: Raksha the Demon · Genres:
Alternate Universe: Steward's Family · ID: 313
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-17 12:08:52
Spoilers!
Raksha skillfully deploys a portrait of Denethor in despair, a
portrait whose ultimate nadir we know from the books, and then extends
it into an enclosed life. With all his strength of will turned inward
and against any others or anything that he cannot control, the Steward
of Gondor shows what would have made him as formidable an ally as
enemy and rival, had he been able to break with himself and pride when
he gave up on the suicide attempt. All the self-righteousness and its
poisoned fruit are there and caught in admirably few words, and put
into a very plausible AU.

Title: Oathbreakers · Author: Thundera Tiger · Times: Late Third Age ·
ID: 470
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-17 12:22:16
Spoilers!
As a general rule, I'm not a great fan of Elladan and Elrohir. Their
perspective generally doesn't seem to open much to me, and they
function more like Elves than anything else most of the time - they
have the knowledge that less long-lived beings do not have, and
effects otherwise seems to slide off of them like rain off wax. Not
that nothing happens to them, but to me, it often seems to fail to
leave a mark, and the mixed heritage thing... to the extent that they
function as Elves, it isn't effectively used often, IMO, unless to
'weaken' them.

Thundera manages to overcome these issues and opens through them a
truly unique perspective on both Aragorn and Éowyn at a critical
moment: she makes us believe, by drawing up a wealth of history that
the twins would be aware of as not so far removed from them, and using
it to actually make us see how the effects of treason and of contact
with the enemy, may be at work in Aragorn by the time they reach the
Dwimorburg. She does the same for Éowyn, and gives us a new, subtle
motivation for her decision to refuse that third opportunity to stay
and wait: the shades of the Dead gain power through the perceptions of
two who are Men enough to feel it, rather than through Legolas, who is
an Elf and so totally untroubled by them. She doesn't separate Elves
from Men simply to make them different, she effectively uses those
differences in order to bring about a horrifying sense of similarity
in different but relevant respects. She totally reinterprets the
significance of an entire scene - a scene that is already filled with
tension and conflict - shifting it from the dynastic/romantic and
quasi-private concerns of two individuals, and making those words and
actions signify in ways that could have dire consequences for the war
effort in its strategic and tactical dimensions.

Well worth reading - a fine job, Thundera!

Title: Brotherhood · Author: Violin Ghost · Races: Men: Steward's
Family · ID: 261
Reviewer: Nancy Brooke · 2008-09-17 15:51:00
Spoilers!
There are a lot of lovely moments in this piece - in fact in many ways
it is four stories in one - is the how in the conclusion Faramir finds
a new family for himself, and a new brother. Nicely done.

Title: The Best Sword Ever · Author: Linaewen · Times: Mid Third Age ·
ID: 290
Reviewer: Nancy Brooke · 2008-09-17 16:15:38
Spoilers!
It is extremely difficult to establish, nurture, and sustain tension
in a story, and even more difficult to resist temptation and not
resolve that tension. Here the author manages that and more as
Boromir's awareness dances ever so closely to a difficult and
disruptive but, perhaps ultimately, helpful understanding, only to
have his pride and concern pull it away repeatedly.

Quite a balancing act! Well done.

Title: Your Father Loves You · Author: Raksha the Demon · Races: Men:
Pre-Ring War Fixed-Length Ficlets · ID: 424
Reviewer: Inkling · 2008-09-17 21:11:58
Spoilers!
As carefully constructed as a poem, this little gem of a ficlet
presents the complex feelings of one of Tolkien's most complex
characters toward his second-born son. The first half sets us up to
think the Steward resents the newborn: for almost killing his beloved
wife, for not being a girl (a surprising yet completely convincing
idea), etc. Denethor's love for his wife [the light of my heart] and
first son [the joy of my heart] is beautifully expressed, but Faramir
seems to have no place as yet in his father's heart.

But beneath this distressingly aloof veneer a depth of emotion begins
to surface: [Do not gaze at me so, with that sage look in your clear
grey eyes.] Faramir seems to be winning over his father as we read.

Denethor's sudden switch to the "thou" form of address in the next
paragraph has a strangely powerful impact on me, even after several
readings. Partly it's knowing that it used to be a term of intimacy,
despite its formal connotations today. And partly it's my feeling of
sheer parental relief to find that he does love this baby after all.
But whatever the reason, it just overwhelms me. Yes, Denethor, would
that we could keep them safe forever...



Title: Frodo's Crosswise Verse · Author: Elanor Gardner · Genres:
Drama: Featuring Frodo or Sam · ID: 520
Reviewer: Inkling · 2008-09-17 21:24:47
Spoilers!
This story is one of my touchstones for quintessential Frodo-angst,
and I suspect it is for many other readers and writers of the genre as
well. But even those who don't usually consider such fare to be their
cup of tea should find this well worth the read...not only for the
quality of the writing (Elanor Gardner's impressive fanfic debut), but
for its emotional power, beautifully drawn characterizations and
brilliant use of a phobia that--literally as well as
figuratively--nearly sends Frodo over the edge.

In a skillful blend of book and movie verse, the author presents an
excruciating portrait of the torment Frodo felt, and still feels, in
the grasp of the Ring. Early in the story he tells a sleeping Sam, ["I
have seen how you keep Sting close to hand, as if there were something
real and menacing to battle without, instead of this battle you can't
see, within."] The heartbreak of the climax is precisely this: that
Sam indeed cannot slay Frodo's inner demons, much as he desperately
wishes to, and must make do instead with battling [the tiny enemy that
lurked in the shadows above].

In the end, Frodo's choice echoes his movie-verse choice at the Cracks
of Doom...only a temporary victory, we know, but for the moment we are
consoled.


Title: The King's Colors · Author: Dwimordene · Genres: Alternate
Universe: Steward's Family · ID: 482
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2008-09-18 01:43:45
Spoilers!
I have always been impressed by Dwimordene's ability to tell
fascinating stories with powerful character studies. Here, in this AU
where Faramir apparently took Boromir's place in the Fellowship and
died, Dwim captures Aragorn's otherworldliness and charisma as well as
his intelligence. And, as usual, Dwim shows her knowledge of the
history of Middle-earth, in Aragorn's mention of Arnor's debt to
Gondor now paid by him - a Neat Bit if ever there was one. And a good
capture of a war-weary Boromir, too. This story was a treat to read.

Title: Summer's Lease · Author: Raksha the Demon · Genres: Romance:
Gondor · ID: 650
Reviewer: Marta · 2008-09-18 03:45:52
Spoilers!
A lovely little interlude for a hot summer night; your use of Eowyn's
point of view allowed the reader to immerse themselves in the scene as
it played out, so that it was like we were there, sitting in the
shadows beside her, rather than being told what had happened.

I also found it a sweet and yet bittersweet counterpoint to "A
Midsummer Day's Dream." (Though the two stand perfectly well on their
own without any overt link; I just found the two nice commentaries on
each other as I read them both soon together.) That poignancy of
mortality is part of what makes Faramir's and Eowyn's love so
touching. I really enjoyed this.

Title: Pride and Despair: A Defense of Ecthelion's Son · Author: Marta
· Genres: Non-Fiction: Character Studies · ID: 624
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2008-09-18 04:35:27
Spoilers!
Denethor is easily one of Tolkien's most fascinating characters. I
have always loved his younger son more, and felt that Denethor did not
treat Faramir fairly, but there has never been any doubt in my mind
that Denethor was a formidable and gifted individual.

On the few occasions when I have tried to set down my opinions about
Denethor's complicated character, I inevitably descend to rambling
extrapolation. Here, Marta presents a very cogent and thorough
character study of the 26th Ruling Steward of Gondor from childhood to
his untimely and self-willed death. I do not agree with every one of
her conclusions; but I am in awe of her organisational and writing
skills in putting the essay together. And the research, from LOTR and
appendices to HoME and Unfinished Tales, is excellent.

A must-read for any Gondor aficionado (especially those interested in
the last Ruling Stewards, not to mention Thorongil).



Title: The Clear Ringing Of Silver Trumpets · Author: Lithilien
Quicksilver · Genres: Drama: Featuring Boromir or Faramir · ID: 278
Reviewer: Raksha the Demon · 2008-09-18 04:39:25
Very sad and poignant account of movie-verse Boromir's last moments.
His humanity and basic goodness shine through. The last line is really
quite lovely, too.

Title: As Close As · Author: Dana · Genres: Romance · ID: 88
Reviewer: Imhiriel · 2008-09-18 08:06:34
Spoilers!
Like the author herself, I can't see Hobbits having to cope with
arranged marriages, but I thought the issued was handled intelligently.

Yes, there is uncertainty and awkwardness - conveyed very well - but
there is also a basic trust and willingness to make it *work* that I
find very appealing and convincing. This is a story of two people who
basically like each other, but have to find a way to this new, much
more intimate relationship. It was very heart-warming to see how that
awkwardness slowly loosens up during their honeymoon.

Title: The Dwarves Treasure · Author: eiranae · Races: Dwarves · ID: 312
Reviewer: elea24 · 2008-09-18 09:16:31
Spoilers!
This is such a sweet story that doesn't fail to tug at the
heart-strings. Watching Mireth as she grows with the dwarves is a
delight. She is such a joy to read about and I can that so many would
wish to keep her as their own. Seeing at first her endearing
differences and then, later, her assimilation into the culture and
inability to see what makes her different is lovely and dealt with
very touchingly. The characterisation is good and I like the fact that
wider factors are brought in, such as Thranduil's grief over his
father's death and Elrond's fears about the growing attachment between
Arwen and Aragorn. It was also nice to see a cheeky young Legolas,
enjoying meriment in his father's halls.

I am most definitely looking forward to its continuation. I would also
love to see what kind of difficulties a dwarven-raised elf would face
if she finally rejoined elvish company -what prejudices would she have
and how would she cope with the culture class? Well, they have caves
in Mirkwood, so maybe she would be best suited there, I wonder?

Title: A Great Cause for Concern · Author: Alassante · Races:
Cross-Cultural: Post-Ring War · ID: 682
Reviewer: elea24 · 2008-09-18 09:35:52
Spoilers!
This is a really touching piece. I think there is so much to be said
for the friendship of Legolas and Gimli and this doesn't fail to
capture it wonderfully. For me this encorporates just the right amount
of pathos and humour. I particularly like the way even the likes of
Galadriel and Gandalf are treated like wayward offspring by the
Valar.It makes for a very amusing visual.

Title: The Weight of Power · Author: Nefhiriel · Times: Mid Third Age
· ID: 325
Reviewer: Larner · 2008-09-18 10:47:45
A well-wrought tale of suspense and plotting, brought to a satisfying
ending in which not all the innocent die.

Some usage of over-modern terms and phrases (in a time when books were
all copied by hand, to have everyone "on the same page" could be
impossible!), but definitely an enjoyable tale.

Title: The Dark One · Author: NeumeIndil · Genres: Drama · ID: 411
Reviewer: elea24 · 2008-09-18 11:12:58
I don't think that I can adequately put into words how much I love
this series, how excited I get when I see there's a new installment,
and how much I enjoy reading every single one.

The characters themselves are a delight. They are so well rounded
-loveable and flawed and very endearing. Neume has written them so
they feel like much loved friends. You roll your eyes when they do
something foolish, cannot help laughing with them when they are happy
and break your heart over them when they cry.

The details are also so rich and evocative. Rohan really comes to life
with all the wonderful imagery. There is also an underlying sense of
threat and darkness that is skillfully weaved into the plot and
brought in with references to the outside world beyond the immediate
situation of the characters.
With this particular installment 'The Dark One', we really get a sense
of the seedier side of this world and the approaching darkness
threatening to consume everything as our protagonists try and battle
on and seek comfort where they can.

And, of course, there is the romance. I defy anyone not to become a
horse-lord lover after reading this. The details of the relationship
between Morwen and Gamiling are thrilling, evocative and yet
incredibly tender and at times poignent.

Title: I Stand No Longer Alone · Author: Larner · Races: Men: Minas
Tirith · ID: 62
Reviewer: elea24 · 2008-09-18 16:31:46
This is a really interesting piece, with such a wonderful concept
behind it. I love the exploration behind the point of view. In some
ways, it should -- could -- be highly comical, but the tone is
actually dealt with seriously and reverently, and I think that adds a
lot of weight to the whole piece. I particularly love the sense of
time that passes in this piece, and the idea of destiny finally being
fulfilled.

Title: Shall We Dance? · Author: Isabeau of Greenlea · Races: Men:
Steward's Family · ID: 93
Reviewer: Dwimordene · 2008-09-18 23:01:21
Spoilers!
As noted elsewhere, Denethor and I get along better when we're dealing
in shades of black, suitably etched with acid, but this was
delightful. Lothiriel is most definitely going to be a force to be
reckoned with when it comes to charming her way into unlikely hearts -
no doubt, the Queen of Rohan had the court and half the country eating
out of her hand. Having Boromir and Faramir jointly defeated, even
with the spectre of Tirathiel invoked on their side, just sets up
Lothiriel's triumph all the more.

The cousinly scenes were sweet, too - light-hearted and exuberant, and
I liked the notion of Imrahil, watching his daughter on the dance
floor and listening to Boromir's dire estimation of his chances when
it comes to butting heads with Lothiriel, being [torn between pride
and a primal desire to snarl at the many young men he saw following
his daughter's progress with avid interest]. We've seen your Imrahil
as father figure for his sons and for his nephews, but the
father-daughter relationship hasn't had the same focus, so this makes
a welcome addition to your vision of the Dol Amroth crew.