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All That Glisters by Lindelea	9 Review(s)
Larner	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 12/14/2004
Bless Bergil (or so I'm guessing) for being there for Hilly when he needs it. Surgery would be a new one for the Hobbits, I'm sure. Am still catching up as I can.

Dreamflower	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 11/24/2004
Ah, I recall from "Gentle Rain" that your hobbits don't do much in the way of surgery. Interesting to see all their reactions to the idea. Of course, Merry and Pippin are receptive. It will be interesting to see how Estella receives the idea.

Anso the Hobbit	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 10/29/2004
I am so horribly far behind on your story... :) Ferdi is stubborn but so is Fennel. Ferdi´s trying to ignore Fennel and the healer tries to ignore Ferdi´s ignoration! Hilly and Pip seems more shocked about the surgery than Merry. I understand Hilly`s reaction - he has no clue of what is to happen. Pippin is so worried fir his Merry that that makes him not want Merry and himself to go through this. They have almost lost oneanother before. When Merry trusts somone he trusts them completely and utterly, and he does trust Strider and his skills. I don´t have to tell you that I went all squee-ish when I found some Merry h/c in your story, lol, but as always you manage to get so many perspectives and sides of things shown. I am really looking forward to how this will turn out. What will Estella say? She doesn´t know about Men´s way of healing the way Ferdi or even Hilly maybe does?

Chibi-Kaz	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 10/20/2004
Ha! Another Bergil cameo at the end there.... --Cheers, --Chibi-Kaz Author Reply: And even more Bergil in the next chapter! Thanks for commenting.

FantasyFan	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 10/20/2004
I remember one of the Star Trek movies, where the crew of the Enterprise had gone back to current-day San Diego. The doctor, hearing a description of neurosurgery in an elevator, called the doctors "Barbarians" for their cutting. And modern surgery can seem that way. The cautery sizzles and tendrils of smoke rise that smell like seared flesh: a very disquieting smell. To do blunt dissection, tools or even fingers pry down into the body and forcefully separate the layers of structures. Things creak and pop. Blood sprays or fountains, and bloody bits of gauze drop on the floor. It takes a long time, and intense concentration. Things go wrong sometimes, or unexpectedly, and then everyone moves very fast. It's always cold in surgery, and the music they play echoes hollowly. It's not a NATURAL environment at all, though often the results turn out much better than anyone could have expected. I can see why the hobbits would be uneasy. Merry is more accepting than Pip, which isn't surprising. He's making a decision for himself, probably feeling that he doesn't have much to lose. Pippin's more likely remembering a few other times when Merry's arm was dead, and thinking he has everything to lose. But Merry trusts the healing hands of the king. I wonder that this experience didn't make the hobbits trust Strider's medical skills more later on in As the Gentle Rain, when Pippin's head injury required such drastic measures. Author Reply: I remember that movie! As a matter of fact, I was thinking of that when I wrote the hobbits' reaction to Pippin's treatment. My goodness, perhaps I ought to subcontract Merry's surgery to you! What a vivid description! Of course, in "Rain" the hobbits (well, Merry, Ferdi and Pimpernel) had been through some horrendous experience at the hands of a Man. And there aren't that many witnesses to Merry's surgery--he won't enjoy a roomful of singing hobbits, I'm afraid. That surgical technique hasn't been learned yet by the healers among Men. I wonder if it was written into the medical books as "standard procedure when treating hobbits" after Pippin's case? Why is it that operating rooms are so cold? OTOH, hospital rooms always seem so over-warm. We were in the ER the other night and nearly smothered. Thanks for taking the time to comment!

Grey Wonderer	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 10/19/2004
I was behind and so I read two chapters at once. I love this tory! Pippin is so very blunt and so very Pippin with his cutting to the chase on all things. I also loved how he gave Hilly and Freddy the tribute they deserved. Merry's mater-of-fact reaction to Pippin's chatter and to his own up-coming surgery struck the right note too. Strider is very in charater and his concern for Merry's injuries is wonderful. Love this bit of Pippin-speak: ‘Or he’d be too busy healing folk to be King,’ Pippin said, ‘in which case his hands wouldn’t be healing hands because he wouldn’t be King anymore.’ Keep it coming! Author Reply: Working on it. Can't believe I was able to add a chapter today, usually Thursday is a very busy day but I was able to type in the draft chapter over our lunch break. I love it that Pippin gives credit where he sees it due. Not enough of that in our world, is there? More people seem intent on claiming credit, even for things they haven't done, but somehow that wouldn't seem hobbity to me. Glad that the story sounds in character! Thanks.

Beruthiel	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 10/19/2004
". . . likely to be receipts for evil tasting concoctions . . ." Receipts? Wouldn't "recipes" make more sense? Poor Ferdi, stuck with a healer all the way back to the Smials. Healers certainly can be quite a nuisance at times, can't they? Hopefully Merry's arm will be all right, although the sick, demented, angst-seeking creature in the darker areas of my brain is wondering if problems might come up. They didn't have antibiotics in Middle-earth, after all. The creature requests that if health-related problems do appear, give them to Pippin. We like Pip-angst, yes, precious, we do . . . Author Reply: I had "recipes" originally, but my editor-friend changed the word, saying that recipes were called "receipts" in the 1800s and early 1900s. I'll ask her about it. It might be an Americanism: I've seen it used in "Five Little Peppers", myself, but never thought about it. Wonder how I'd find out if it was used in Britain the same way? OTOH, if I happen to run across the word "recipe" in Hobbit or LOTR I can argue for changing it back. Healers are a terrible nuisance, sometimes. Unless, of course, you're a healer amongst Tooks. Then the perception is that Tooks are a terrible nuisance. Ah, Pip-angst. You mean I haven't tortured him enough? Thanks!

Connie B.	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 10/19/2004
Wonderful chapter. Poor Ferdi; stuck with a healer, and in a carriage to boot. At least he's very aware that he wasn't being punished for falling asleep. Wait, maybe he was.:) After all, Pippin knows how much Ferdi hates riding inside and keeping company with healers. That sneaky Took. I wondered what Strider would do to help Merry. Poor Merry. That's gonna hurt. I just hope it works. I can especially sympathize with him in this situation. When I broke my leg, the first operation didn't work to fix it so they went back a year later and did it all over again. I had to consciously decide to let them mess with it a second time. But, like Merry, I was out of options so I too submitted to the necessary torture. Are you going to go into their trip to the lake in this story, or are you going to put it in another one? Please tell it. I can't stand leaving that untold. Plus, there's the chance for some great hobbit-healing scenes. Ooo, I love the thought. Thanks. Connie B. Author Reply: Pip is a sneaky Took. The thought had crossed my mind that this might be a back-handed sort of reprimand... Oh, you poor thing, two operations! I hope the second one worked. They're going to the Lake. Had I split it into two stories, it would have made two 20- or 25-chapter stories, but as it looks right now it's running about 40 chapters in total. I never know if it will be more or less, all depends on if chapters run too long and have to be split or if we decide to throw out a chunk of background. Thanks! Hope you enjoy the next one as well. Taking a little break from angst over the weekend--we've had quite enough in real life this week.

Bodkin	Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 10/19/2004
I hope Ferdi (MFH) isn't about to be seriously ill. The only times when Ferdi (MFH) isn't fighting are when he is at death's door. He complied with a healer's wishes? He went in a coach? He slept - with a blanket round him and a foot warmer? That hobbit is dangerously ill. So the story of Merry's and Estella's attacker has managed to convince Hilly that Jack and the lads were well-meaning. No downs without some ups, then. I wonder when it will really hit Hilly that to be so familiar with Aragorn's medical procedures, Merry and Pippin must have been on the receiving end of them before. His horror at the idea of Frodo's shoulder being opened up is beautifully done - as is the quietly delivered message that Merry would trust Aragorn with more than his life. Mind you, I would have thought that after the images the conversation has put in Hilly's mind, restorative food would have been the last thing he would have required. But then - he is a hobbit. Author Reply: Ferdi (MFH) looks sort of like a trademark! g Let me just say that you have good instincts. But have put off angst for the weekend, choosing to finish the week with a "comfort" chapter instead. Whew, I needed that. Food--the hobbit answer to all ills. (Hmm, think I'll put the kettle on for another cup of tea.) Thanks for the encouragement and the insightful comments. I'm so tired I can hardly write straight--good thing I'm just editing and typing in a draft that was written weeks ago! It's nice to hear that the story's making sense.

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