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| The Ranger and the Eagles by Cairistiona | 20 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Minerva Organa | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/13/2011 |
| How much do I love Menelris? Thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiss much!! I love that the Eagles have finally come, I love that you have given us a female Eagle, and I *love* the way you characterize her. The way she talks is very similar to how I've always imagined the Eagles, and the exchanges between her and Gandalf are perfect. And of course, I also love Gandalf and Aragorn. And am very concerned for our Ranger!! Author Reply: Thank you, ma'am! I'm so glad you like Menelris... I had a lot of fun creating her, almost as much fun as coming up with owies to inflict on poor Aragorn. *g* | |
| LisaG | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/13/2011 |
| I love Menelris! She's very...well...eagle-ish, but kind and caring :) Gandalf's concern and compassion over Aragorn's current predicament and his life long struggle against the darkness is very touching...you made me smile at his teary reaction in the end. Author Reply: Thank you, LisaG! So glad you like Menelris, and I'm glad Gandalf's teary reaction wasn't too over the top. I imagine it would take quite a lot to bring him to tears like that... and well, Aragorn nearly dying surely qualifies! | |
| layne | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/13/2011 |
| Yay for a girl eagle! I thought that was a good move, and I love it when she said that Strider was such an earth-bound name :) What does Thorongil mean btw? Author Reply: Thank you, Layne! I'm glad you liked this. Menelris as a Chieftain seems to be agreeable with just about everyone, which is a relief. :) And Thorongil means "Eagle and Star" or "The Eagle and the Star", basically, so you can see where Menelris might prefer that name over Strider! | |
| Ainu Laire | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/12/2011 |
| I fail at the whole 'review on time' thing. Anyways, this story is fantastic so far. Very medically-techy, never knew you were so well-versed with medicine. Also, I love how you characterize the Eagle, she seems very neat. I did love the end of chapter 3 when Gandalf was staring at the eagle, wondering how he was going to help Aragorn and find a horse... and then he came to realization. I was laughing a bit at that. Anyways, fantastic job, as always, Cair. Cannot wait for more! :D Hope the eagle isn't shot at! Author Reply: Thank you, Laire! Fear not, you don't fail at reviewing... there's no deadline, after all. :) I'm glad you're liking this so far. As for the medical stuff, I did quite a bit of research, and though I don't aim for technical perfection, as this is fiction and not a medical journal, I do try not to stretch "dramatic license" too far past believability, although I'm sure there are glaring errors here and there. And yay that you laughed at poor Gandalf! Well, Gandalf may not appreciate your laughter, but I do, as I wanted that to be a bit of a light moment amidst all the angst. :) And you know what? Eagles are FUN. I never would have thought I could have enjoyed writing Eagles but wow... Anyway, thanks for the review and hope you enjoy the rest of the tale! | |
| Darkover | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/11/2011 |
| Dear Cairistiona: I love this story. I'm very pleased that you've added some new chapters, and I eagerly await more. I loved that "feeble in the feathers" line. I'm still wondering how Aragorn managed to get part of a tree branch in him. Thanks for writing and posting this story. Sincerely, Darkover Author Reply: Thank you, Darkover! I'm so glad you're enjoying this tale! I'll be updating twice weekly until it's finished, so there's more to come on a regular basis... including a bit more on how Aragorn managed to get snagged like that. Thank you again for the review! | |
| Imbecamiel | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/11/2011 |
| Just a silly, short addendum, but I forgot to say - And *naturally* she would think that "Thorongil" was a far superior name to "Strider." Ha! Yep, that part gave me the giggles. ;D - Cami Author Reply: Hee hee! I'm glad you liked that little detail... as I was writing, it just occurred to me that an Eagle wouldn't really like anything to do with walking! *g* | |
| Imbecamiel | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/11/2011 |
| Oh, this is just excellent. I believe I've mentioned before how much I admire the sure-handed way that you write characters commonly seen as difficult and intimidating to handle (I think so, certainly!). Gandalf is so fun to read, and to my mind perfectly in keeping with his canon personality. You know it's good when reading a story not only satisfies your inner fan, but actually makes you love the character more. Aragorn, in both his moments of wakefulness and the secondhand views of him through Gandalf's thoughts, continues to be utterly awesome. The way that you manage to blend Aragorn-being-awesome, Aragorn-being-vulernable, Aragorn-being-hurt (*g*), and the general dichotomies presented by his being simultaneously noble and kingly, and yet humble, down-to-earth, and very used to rough living... Well, I just couldn't ask for better. Utterly satisfying. Yep, enough to leave me grinning like crazy all the way. And eagles! Oh, eagles! I just love the great eagles, but they are so rarely used in fanfiction. (I can actually only remember seeing them make an appearance... once? Maybe twice?) Yes, given the fact that they tend to avoid involvement in outside affairs that may be only logical, but still... *wistful* So much fun to see them here! Menelris is just delightful - you do just have the best sense for OCs, always making them interesting and endearing, real, and never crossing that line between "filling out and complementing the plot" and "taking over, drawing things too far from the main characters, and becoming annoying." They really serve to make "your" vision of Middle Earth that much more alive, and I enjoy them immensely. And, naturally, the occasional touch of unavoidable ranger injury and illness is nicely handled. Yes, I think I can tolerate that aspect or this particular story quite easily. *innocent smile* (Okay, yes, it's just as excellently done as I've come to expect from you, and wonderfully angsty. Bring on more! ;D) You know, there are some stories that're so packed full of awesomeness that all the way through I'm torn between the desire to read as fast as possible to find out what's going to happen next - and the need to keep taking breaks, just because there's so much good stuff there that I actually have to keep stopping to think parts over and properly savor it. Your stories definitely do fit in that category. Yes, even on re-reads. *g* Absolutely loving it - and can't wait for more! - Cami Author Reply: Thank you, Cami! Oh gosh, you've made me blush furiously, reading all this! Where to start... I guess by saying that you've hit on all the reasons I write fic: to explore the "untold" bits of Tolkien's world, definitely, but also to bring, hopefully, a new appreciation of the characters to readers. Like the Eagles--you're absolutely right in that there's very little fanfiction that includes them, and most of that is done with a sort of light hand. I want with this story to show them as full-fledged (no pun intended!) individuals, each with their own personalities, and who, as a group, have a thriving community of their own. In some ways I think this story is more about Eagles than Aragorn! At any rate, I'm glad you enjoy the OC's and the way I handle the canon characters. It's always encouraging to hear that I've given someone new appreciation for the canon characters. :) Thanks so much for the thoughtful review! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/11/2011 |
| As Manwe's servants, the Great Eagles were likely to recognize the royalty in Aragorn, or so I would suppose. Love the caring she shows for him, and her willingness to dare the bows of the Beornings for Aragorn's sake. Author Reply: Thank you, Larner! So glad you liked this... and I do wonder if that recognition of Aragorn might have played a part in her willingness to help, or if it just is an aspect of her caring nature. I haven't quite decided which! | |
| Silivren Tinu | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/11/2011 |
| Now I really want to meet an Eagle, too! I love the way you wrote Menelris - she's so perfectly eagle-ish (now that a really weird-sounding word, lol). I wouldn't be surprised at all if the Eagles knew about Aragorn. I'm just glad this one does and is more than willing to lend a helping hand... uhm, I meant to say wing. *g* I'm beginning to get more than a bit worried about Aragorn, though. It seems to me there's something more ailing him than what we (and Gandalf) already know. Well, I'll wait and see, but I'm quite sure he wouldn't be happy with whatever you've planned for him. ;-) Author Reply: Thanks, Silvren! Oh, poor Aragorn really is better off not knowing what lies ahead. *evil grin* And that's all I'll say about *that*. hee hee. But I'm glad you like Menelris... she did turn out very Eagle-ish, didn't she? And Tolkien wrote his Eagles very Eagle-ish, if you look at real eagles and how they behave and think etc. It really has been fascinating to study both types of birds and see the similarities and differences. :) Thanks for the review! | |
| Envinyatar | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/11/2011 |
| Great chapter! I love the idea that the Eagles (or one of them, at least) watched over Aragorn and this particular eagle is a wonderful creation. Looking forward to seeing more of her. And I'm with Aragorn on the fear of heights, if that's what it is. I would be staying in that cave, I think, if that was the only alternative! Author Reply: Thank you, Envinyatar! I'd be with both you and Aragorn at the idea of flying on an Eagle... it's just not something one ever imagines doing, really! Especially in the days before parachutes. *g* Glad you enjoyed seeing the Eagle finally arrive. :) | |