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| No Better Name by Cairistiona | 12 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Layne | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 10/6/2011 |
| > slices of gravy-drowned beef, generous portions of buttered peas and steaming mounds of potatoes cooked with cabbage. Oh my ... *drooooooools* That sounds very, very delicious. Eeeek, too bad Halbarad and Denlad were unable to enjoy them to the fullest. I was like, oh please don't let them find out about Aragorn until after they had their meal :)) Author Reply: Thanks, Layne! I admit to making myself hungry, writing that. Wouldn't you just love to be able to stroll into the Prancing Pony and order a platter? *sigh* But alas, even Denlad and Halbarad didn't get any that day. | |
| Lily Baggins | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/27/2011 |
| Well, I am feeling very bad that Halbarad and Denlad didn't get to finish off their meal... here's hoping that Bowen's wife is a good cook who will fatten them up some! (If Halbarad can put aside his worry). That was priceless, the way in which Halbarad discovered Aragorn's illness. I can just see it playing out in slow motion in my mind. And I can completely relate to that roller-coaster of emotion you can feel when you get good news and bad news and then good news again... I am really looking forward to Halbarad getting to be a Mother Hen for a time... it's always so enjoyable! Loved this---looking forward to more! Author Reply: Thanks, Lily! Poor Halbarad didn't have a good time at all in Bree, what with hearing his chieftain is ill, and not getting to eat, and having to put up with getting the news in such a crazy way. And now he has a cranky Denlad to deal with! I think he needs a hug. :) | |
| Suzelle | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/25/2011 |
| Three things: 1). LOL Strider leaving graffiti. I want this to be canon. 2). Om nom nom roast beef. 3). Poor worrying Denlad :( Author Reply: LOL!! Wouldn't it be funny if someday, somewhere, an archeologist actually digs up a shattered piece of an old bench, with mysterious markings on it that if you squint just right look like "S---d-r 29-5". *g* Thank you for your always creative review! | |
| Darkover | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/24/2011 |
| Dear Cairistiona: This chapter was very well written, too! I thoroughly enjoy your version of Halbarad. His conversation with Butterbur was priceless, and IMHO you portrayed the innkeeper very much in-character. His report on Strider's health was simultaneously hilarious and enough to drive a saint to violence. As usual, this was a pleasure to read, and I happily await the next chapter. Please post soon! Sincerely, Darkover Author Reply: Thank you, Darkover! So glad you're still enjoying the story... can you imagine trying to get any sort of concise and thorough report from Butterbur on anything? He's a good cook and innkeeper but don't ask him to be any sort of administrative assistant! Next chapter will come on Tuesday. :) Thanks again! | |
| EllyBaggins | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/24/2011 |
| I LOVE your stories! You write all of the characters so well, I can't get enough of your Halbarad and Aragorn! I'm really enjoying this so far...it has made me hungry for roast beef though! Keep up the good work :) Author Reply: Thank you, EllyBaggins! So glad you're enjoy my tales and feel I get the characters right. I really do enjoy writing Halbarad and Aragorn. :) Hopefully you can get you some roast beef soon. *g* Thanks for the review! | |
| Vilwarin | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/24/2011 |
| What a shame to leave the good roast beef behind. They should have taken it "to go". ;) I'm also both amazed that Halbarad gives Barliman their real names and that Barliman remembers such outlandish sounding words. Strider carving his name - what a fun thought. I recently visited a monastery that was (and still is) later used as a protestant school. People had chisled their names in the stone! That's something different from today! Author Reply: Thanks, Vilwarin... too bad Butterbur didn't provide those handy little to-go boxes you get nowadays in restaurants! I don't think it too unusual that Halbarad would use his actual name... he's not of the direct line of kings (and who knows, may not even be related to the royal line at all... he is in my universe but Tolkien doesn't say). At any rate, he doesn't really have to hide his identity like Aragorn does. Now, Butterbur remembering those outlandish names is another thing entirely--I wonder how many times he had to be told Halbarad's name before he finally remembered it! And isn't it interesting how long people have been carving their names in places! It seems to be a universal need, somehow (although I have to say I've never been tempted myself). Over the summer I toured a Spanish fort in Florida, established in the 1500's and the barracks had all kinds of names carved in the stone walls, both of the soldiers who lived there and the tourists in the centuries that followed... though none in recent years, as the sharp eyes of the park rangers see to it that no one gets busy with chisel and hammer! | |
| Nath | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/24/2011 |
| Aragorn will have to get well very fast, if only to escape from the flock of Mother Hens he'll soon have around him... Author Reply: And everyone thinks it's flocks of crebain you have to worry about! :) Thanks for the review! | |
| Ainariel | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/23/2011 |
| I am really enjoying this tale - Bowen is such a treasure! I was worried a bit, at the end of Ch 3, that Halbarad and Denlad might come upon Bowen as he was readying Striders horse...that could have presented a bad situation! And the mustard poultice...ah, what memories! It is a nasty stuff, but wow...can it do wonders. My great grandmother used one on me when I was a youngster (maybe 3 or 4 yrs old) and I thought the old woman had lost her mind! She put the poultice on and 'packed' me in bed - had all the covers tucked around me/between mattress & box spring so that I could barely move! The fever broke, the congestion didn't settle in my chest, and I felt much better (other than being tired) the next morning...of course, I didn't really know what she had done until I took an herbal remedies course a few years ago!! Anyway, love the characterization here - all seem spot on, and their voices are perfect (even Strider's non-verbal communication seems very much in-character!) Can I ask what book you were speaking of regarding non-verbal communication? I dabble in writing and the sheer amount of reference materials is overwhelming...it's hard to find good resources! Author Reply: Thank you Ainariel! So glad you're enjoying this... and yes, yikes, that might have been interesting and not in a good way for Bowen, had Halbarad come upon him seemingly stealing Strider's horse! I'm not sure even Bowen could talk fast enough to get himself out of that jam. You are the first person I've ever met who actually had to endure a mustard poultice. It's definitely one of those cures that can seem worse than the illness, from the sound of it. As for the book on dialogue, it's "Writing Dialogue" by Tom Chiarella. It's full of all kinds of good advice on how to make dialogue work better and feel fresh and interesting, and he includes an entire chapter on how to use silence in dialogue. Good stuff, that book. :) He writes in a very conversational tone that doesn't feel dry or didactic. (And now that I've got it down from the shelf and am looking at it, I think I'll give it another read--I think it's been about 10 years since I read it and I'm sure I've forgotten some really good nuggets in there.) Thanks again for the review! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/23/2011 |
| Worries will plague one in such a case. Glad they're following after, but wish Denlad were in a better mood. Author Reply: Yes, Denlad is definitely hard at worrying now, on top of being a little down in the dumps... poor guy could use some good news, couldn't he! Thanks for reading along! | |
| Estelcontar | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/23/2011 |
| I'm sure Barliman would be very disappointed if for once Halbarad made a subdued entrance at the Prancing Pony. *g* I see that, when it comes to Aragorn, Denland is now as big a worry-wart as Halbarad ever was if not bigger. Halbarad should be proud of his tutoring skills. LOL I'm so sorry though they did not get to enjoy their delicious meal and their mug of ale at the Prancing Pony. They really deserved the rest. I'm most definitely loving this story of yours to bits Author Reply: Hee, thank you! I do wonder how high Barliman would jump if Halbarad snuck in and suddenly there he was in a corner! I imagine there were times when Halbarad made a quieter entrance, but when faced with an empty inn, why not make the best of it! And yes, Halbarad taught Denlad a little too well about mother-henning. Glad you're enjoying this the 2nd time around! | |