News Resources
Login
Become a member
Help
Search
|
|
| About Us News Resources
Login
Become a member
Help
Search
|
|
|
| Somewhere I Have Never Traveled by Fiondil | 20 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Eruherdiriel | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/1/2014 |
| Interesting. I was rather surprised that Sam and Frodo were still alive. Hobbits don't usually go much beyond 130, do they? ~Eruherdiriel Author Reply: Well, it's possible the Valar were able to extend their lifespans long enough for them to be ready to accept the Gift. Maybe that was the bargain they made with Námo: they would be allowed to stick around until all their mortal friends had gone on. Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed the story, Eruherdiriel. Thanks for reading and reviewing. I appreciate it. | |
| Isilarma | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 2/4/2013 |
| I love this. Arwen and Eowyn were both written brilliantly, and I loved the part with Frodo, Sam and Namo at the end. The last few lines were perfect. Author Reply: Hello Isilarma. I especially had fun writing this, especially the end part with the Hobbits and Námo. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for taking the time to let me know. I appreciate it very much. | |
| 6336 | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 9/21/2011 |
| I can't believe that I have never reviewed this! I can understand Arwens feelings and the response she gets from Eowyn, you made your choices now live or die with them. I don't think Arwen was perfect, she must have had some spunk, she had to put up with Elladan and Elrohir for how many ages?, plus defy her father when it came to plighting her troth with Aragorn, it was one of the strictures laid down by her father when he found out about their feelings for one another. I have always liked the scene at the end with Frodo and Sam and Namo, it shows the love he has for these two small beings and for all the others he has in his care. So they get to stay until Gimli goes and then watch them wheedle another extension out of Namo! Huggs, Lynda Author Reply: Hi Lynda.Well, better late than never, I suppose. LOL! Anyway, I don't think Arwen was perfect either (how boring for Aragorn!), and so I chose to write her has having some faults as well as virtues, just like the rest of us. I'm glad you like the final scene. I enjoyed writing it. Thanks for re-reading and (finally)reviewing. *grin* | |
| Audrey33 | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 6/2/2010 |
| Yes, it's me again, I'll need an account here as well ^^ This, I think, was almost even better than the other story about Gimli. I really liked Arwen's explosive behavior at the beginning, I completely understand her annoyance at not being hailed as a hero by giving her immortality up. Excellent job. Audrey Author Reply: Hi Audrey. I'm glad you found your way to this site and hope you have many enjoyable hours reading the wonderful stories you can find here besides my own. I'm not sure if this story is better than the Gimli story, just different, but I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for letting me know. | |
| Lily Baggins | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 2/5/2010 |
| Oh, this was a lovely story! I truly enjoyed it, especially the end with Frodo and Sam. It gave me a big smile and was beautifully written. Author Reply: Wow! I was very surprised to see a review for this story after so long, but I am glad that you found it, Lily. Thank you for letting me know how much you enjoyed it. I'm glad it gave you a big smile, especially the end with Frodo and Sam. I really appreciate you taking the time to leave a review. | |
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 11/4/2008 |
| How beautifully written! What I particularly like is what Eowyn has to say: That Arwen's choice isn't so spectacularly special, just because she is immortal, and that the choices made by humans are just as valid. Somehow I would have thought that the afterlife would be a bit more ... otherworldly. It seems a bit too physical. Still, a very good story. Author Reply: Thanks, Virtuella. I'm glad you liked this. Not sure just how 'otherwordly' you want the Afterlife to be... and after all, the Halls of Mandos are still, technically speaking, in this world. It's more of a waystation on the road to the Afterlife, you might say, so it's more 'earthly' in tone than the Timeless Halls would be. | |
| Ces | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 1/31/2008 |
| Poor Arwen - reality really does bite sometimes, doesn't it? Although I do think Eowyn might have had a bit more sympathy for her, but then again she doesn't understand what it means to an elf to give up immortality - it must truly be an earth shattering event for them. I'm not a fan of Eowyn - as a matter of fact I detest her in the movies - but you portray her as having a good head on her shoulders here and speaking sense. She does seem to be a bit of a know-it-all though. Poor Elrond - although he knew Arwen would die one day, to know that it actually happened must have been very hard on him. Fireworks indeed! What would Námo do without his hobbits to keep him entertained? Author Reply: Éowyn, of course, has had several decades waiting in Mandos, discussing things with Námo, so she probably "knows" quite a bit. *grin* So, her lack of sympathy is probably due to having a more objective feel for what has happened, and as she pointed out, Arwen's choice was no more momentuous, on one level, than the choices of any other woman choosing to marry the man she loves. Éowyn herself had to make such a choice between a false love (Aragorn) and true love (Faramir). And I'm sure Námo found the hobbits more than amusing. *grin* Thanks for reviewing. | |
| Hildigrim | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 6/8/2007 |
| As will be clear to anyone who looks at my “favorites” list, I greatly admire your work. So, I hope you will not mind if I file a respectful opinion dissenting in part regarding Arwen’s likely reaction on arriving in Mandos, while also saying that parts of this story are very moving. The Queen of Elves and Men had retreated from honor and glory in Gondor – not to mention from the love of Eldarion and his sisters – to go into seclusion following Aragorn’s passing. For Arwen to have wanted quick reunion with Aragorn seems credible to me, but for her to have expected acknowledgment and fanfare for her choice of mortality upon arriving in the unknown, non-Elven afterlife does not. I would interpret her immediately prior pre-death withdrawal from society as voluntarily purgative, sloughing layers of both the very valuable and the superfluous aspects of life to follow Aragorn and accept the divine gift to the second-born. Under that view, I would suggest Arwen to be a vessel rather unusually emptied to receive Love, rather than someone expecting acclamation. Under any view, we have to confront what I interpret to be the Spirit of Prophesy falling upon the Ring-bearer, triggered by the sight of Arwen: “And Frodo when he saw her come glimmering in the evening, with stars on her brow and a sweet fragrance about her, was moved with great wonder, and he said to Gandalf: 'At last I understand why we have waited! This is the ending. Now not day only shall be beloved, but night too shall be beautiful and blessed and all its fear pass away!'” I have always thought it interesting that no reply from Olorin is reported regarding this seeming instance of beatific fore-knowledge. I admire your work because it makes me think (even if not very well!) Author Reply: I understand your views here, though I don't necessarily agree with them. If you read carefully, Arwen is not, initially, concerned with acknowledgment and fanfare, but rather with rejoining her beloved Estel. When he is not there to greet her, I suspect she went into irate-wife-mode. The discussion that follows with Éowyn comes out of the expectations of her family history and the fact that Death is not a natural feature of her spiritual landscape as it is with Mortals. Arwen lived the life of the Firstborn for 2778 years before she married Aragorn. Then she live for only another 122 years (more or less) as a mortal, or rather, among mortals, since she still retained her elvish character. For Arwen, her spiritual landscape was colored by Choice, not by Death, so even if she has accepted it on an intellectual level, she may not have accepted it on an emotional level. Whatever purgative experiences she might have had prior to death is only the beginning of the transition. She still has to confront family history and her own feelings, no longer shielded by the exigencies of Life. That is the whole purpose of the discussion between her and Éowyn, who rightly points out that Arwen's Choice was not as Arda-shaking as she might think, or at least not for the reasons usually given. Once Arwen is able to put her choice in perspective (by Mortal standards, not Immortal), she is able to correctly accept whatever acclamation and fanfare is offered to her by those who are not enjoined to offer her neither. I'm not sure what you mean by the quote from Frodo as being a determining factor. Whatever Frodo saw in Arwen was for the Living, not the Dead. His prophecy was for the benefit of all those who would live under her benevolence. What happens after her death would have no bearing on it for herself. At any rate I'm glad you enjoy my work. It isn't necessary to agree with everything an author says or writes, but if what is said makes you think, then the author's work is justified. Thank you for your review. I truly do appreciate it, as such reviews as yours helps me to think and clarify my own ideas. | |
| ponypetter | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 3/1/2007 |
| Wonderful story. I like the way Sam especially treats Namo: with respect, but also like an old friend. It's similar to the way they treat Gandalf. Author Reply: Yes, Sam is very respectful but is on easy terms with the Lord of Mandos. Others might find his manner off-putting but I think Námo enjoys seeing someone treating him more like a trusted friend than someone to be feared. It's probably a refreshing change for him. I'm glad you enjoyed the story. | |
| Grumpy | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 2/25/2007 |
| What a lovey story. it was so nice of Eowyn to wait for a queen, even if the queen shreds roses. I could understand her being a little peaved that Aragorn was not there. I liked the part at the end were a group of elves were trying to pretend that a certain someone was there. Author Reply: Glad you liked this story, Grumpy. I'm afraid poor Námo doesn't get many invitations to tea from that crowd. LOL I think it's good for them to see Frodo and Sam being unfraid in his presence. | |