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| Spring Awakenings by daw the minstrel | 22 Review(s) |
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| Lizzie | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 1/14/2015 |
| I really, really like this story, it has such an interesting storyline and all of the characters are so well-rounded. I especially like the OCs, you've written them in such a way and given them such distinct personalities that I've come to like Eilian, Ithilden et al. a lot. It's also great to see Legolas being given more responsibility and representing his father in rather delicate situation. It shows how much Thranduil actually trusts him, and I think it's good for Legolas to know that. I just hope the king is not going to be angry about what Legolas did and decided. The only thing I wasn't so sure about in this chapter was the "love story" for Legolas I can see looming on the horizon. It's just a personal preference, but I guess I would've rather seen him simply get on with his mission than turning into a bit of an idiot - being distracted and speechless - because he's "fallen in love" with a beautiful woman. I've probably seen too many stories where the hero falls for the perfect Mary Sue and then turns into a complete, bumbling fool who can't manage a single complete, coherent sentence anymore and am therefore a bit wary. But I'll see how it continues. At the moment I'm just curious to see if there's going to be more flooding and how Eilian and Celuwen will resolve their difficulties. Author Reply: Thank you, Lizzie. I'm shamelessly fond of my OCs, so if someone appreciates them, I'm always happy. I approached the Legolas romance here with some caution because Legomances have such a bad reputation in the fandom, and also because I have more trouble writing female OCs than male ones. That probably says something unfortunate about my psyche. Anyway, we'll see how you like it. Eilian and Celuwen resolve their difficulties in a very Eilian-like way. Writing that was...interesting. daw | |
| Fadesintothewest | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 4/3/2004 |
| Oh I wanted to punch both the leaders of the human and elven settlements, for giving our Legolas such headache. Alas Legolas performed with much astuteness as only he could. I just cringe thinking about how Thranduil will react! Author Reply: See, you were worried about how Thranduil would react and now that you have read the next chapter, you know he'll pat Legolas on the head and say "Thank the Valar for you, my son." Either that or he'll be in such a bad mood that he'll have all three of his kids locked up for life. | |
| Karri | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 4/1/2004 |
| It nice to see Legolas holding his own as a prince of the realm. Good job! :-) Author Reply: Thank you, Karri. Legolas is doing very well in a tough situation. I'm always interested in what consequences flow from being obligated by birth to serve the realm. But I'll have to see if Legolas can't have a little fun too. | |
| Antigone Q | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 4/1/2004 |
| Oh, good job, Legolas! Way to negotiate where you can! I'm going to be cross now if Thranduil isn't very proud of him. I don't know who would have done better - Thranduil himself might have lost his temper somewhere during the proceedings, and Legolas never did. And Legolas used the leverage he had to get some of what he wanted, at least. Goodness, Anyr would drive nearly anyone to distraction! "Arda" will provide, indeed (!)...what a bunch of hooey. What he really means is "If Arda doesn't provide, then Thranduil will." It's a good thing Crydus had a little more sense. Are we going to see Eilian and Celuwen next chapter? I hope so. Author Reply: In all truth, I haven't decided yet how Thranduil will react. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. I haven't written much about politics before so this is all new ground and at each step I wind up pausing and asking myself what people would really do, given all the complications. But I thought Legolas did well. "Are we going to see Eilian and Celuwen next chapter?" Oh yeah. ;-) | |
| caz - baz | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 4/1/2004 |
| hahaha. i suppose there are down sides of being an elf other elves are so perceptive. poor Eilian he really wants celuwen but she seems so far out of his reach at the moment unless he gave up his adventure seeking ways. Those children sound scary don't think i'd like to meet them on a dark night and i also think i'd enjoy being Annael when he get's to tell Tinar the great news. well least no orcs have attacked... yet. how much longer do you think it's going to be? well until next chapter. Author Reply: Galivion is pretty perceptive about Legolas eyeing the maiden, but Legolas may not have been hiding it very well. He seemed dazed. In a good kind of way, of course. You are taking much too much pleasure in how upset poor Tinar will be, Caz-baz! I'm not sure how much longer the story will be--several more chapters anyway. I have to have a few more events in the settlements (that river is looking high!) and then get everyone home and take care of loose threads (like what happens to Tinar). Thanks for the review. | |
| Dot | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 4/1/2004 |
| Those storm clouds do seem ominous. Although, Legolas appears to be more worried than the settlers. I suppose he knows he can’t very well just head off home should anything go wrong on this mission. And Anyr is a little too accepting of whatever nature throws at them for my peace of mind! Tinar causes no end of trouble, does he?! For once, though, I can see why he might be riled up – even if his reaction was a bit unnecessary. In fairness, Legolas’ immediate assumption was exactly the same as Tinar’s. Woah, Tuilinn certainly has a, ahem, way with Legolas. I’m glad he has a little bit of romance in his life and I’m going to remain neutral about her for a while I think but, yeah, you’ll have a lot of jealous readers if she gets much closer to Legolas…;) You’ve really done a great job with Anyr. He seems to have just expected food and is completely bewildered as to why these warriors are still here, and especially as to why they tend to “fuss” so much. It’s interesting that it isn’t even a question to him that they would help the men and their children. Maybe that’s why he was surprised that Thranduil didn’t send all they had asked for, when they themselves give so willingly. Anyr seems to accept men, even their shortcomings such as feeling hunger and inability to scale trees, without judgement. He’d drive me nuts, though, if I had to deal with him… I really like Crydus! He seems very genuine. It appears to be a real friendship he has with Anyr, which would account for his surprise that he hadn’t been told the exact truth of the situation. I had to laugh at him taking such a sensible view, as opposed to this elf talking vaguely of Arda providing. I feel sorry for Galivion. He must be having palpitations by now. I mean, not only does he, more than anyone, know the exact situation regarding provisions for Thranduil’s people but he’s clearly starting to panic at the thought that Legolas might land them in trouble with Thranduil with a wrong word. I did cringe a bit when he mentioned the “pretty maiden”, though. He’s lucky Legolas didn’t take offence at this (whether true or not!). Still, I really do admire him for his honesty and desire to see Legolas succeed. “He will not let us cut living trees, of course.” He smiled fondly at Anyr, who looked placidly back at him.” I love the way he looks on this as a ‘quirk’ of Anyr’s but is willing to humour him… “I am sure Anyr has conferred with him about timber rights and trade tariffs.” Well done, Legolas! What a great way of introducing the matter without actually interrogating or openly embarrassing Anyr. “You are Thranduil’s son.” Hmm, certainly as, um, persuasive anyway. Crydus has probably just realised that he isn’t getting anything for nothing. But how could he know Thranduil so well? He must have dealt with him before. Or maybe he’s just heard things from his elf pals… I have to say, I thought Legolas did a very good job. Isn’t he great for noting details and making use of them? And he listens to and respects those around him, such as Annael and Galivion. He might have to wait around a while to ensure that things are as they should be but really a lot of the matters concerning trading need to be taken to the king. It’s tricky, though – the settlers won’t like it if the king’s son goes home, tells his father what is happening and Thranduil stops the trading or introduces conditions that will undermine the obvious friendship between these men and elves. I honestly never thought I could be fascinated by the intricacies of diplomacy but I’m totally engrossed!! Author Reply: I'm planning some romantic moments for the next chapter for both brothers, so we'll see if the Tuilinn hatred rises then. Anyr is my attempt at a 'hippy' elf -- not possessive but not particularly self supporting either. Arda better provide for him because he's not good at doing it for himself! Crydus probably goes home and rolls his eyes even though he is genuinely fond of the goof. I thought Crydus had probably heard talk of Thranduil, who trades with the Lake-men, and that would be how he knows that the king would expect some sort of concession. Galivion is a good advisor, I think. At least, I mean him to be. He offers his advice but then if his listener doesn't take it, he helps the listener do what he wants to do only do it better. I'm hoping I manage to unravel all that diplomatic stuff when they get home. And I will need to see that Tinar meets his fate, whatever I decide that will be. And I have other things going on too. But Nilmandra keeps me on the straight and narrow at the end of a story when I always tend to rush. I'm glad you like this. | |
| The Karenator | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 3/31/2004 |
| Legolas sure was between a rock and a hard place. Trying to balance what he thought the king would want him to do and helping out people who were obviously in dire straits, was enough to give 'me' a headache. And then he had Galivion reminding him that he could not 'speak for Thranduil'. It's kind of hard to not be seen in that way when you're the king's representative. What a balancing act! Other than his one minor slip up, he did an excellent job of offering some very valid options for solving the problems. I agree with the Ranger(and Legolas); battling orcs is less stressful. I think the maiden finds our good Thranduilion kind of cute. He certainly seems to still be eyeing her. Compensation for diplomacy, eh? That Galivion is still practicing his wily ways of diplomcy. Very good chapter, daw. I really enjoyed it. I hope the next one won't be too long in coming our way. Actually, I'm so proud that I got this chapter reviewed before you slipped another one in. :>) Karen Author Reply: Legolas is in a tough spot, you're right. There's not a good solution, so he just has to muddle through as best he can. *I* sure wouldn't want to do it either. Of course the maiden thinks he's cute! I think he's cute, you think he's cute, all Eru's children think he's cute. Oh wait, that's a song. I'm working on the next chapter and plan to have it done sometime this weekend, although part of it looks tricky to me. We'll see. | |
| Estel_Mi_Olor | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 3/31/2004 |
| Wow...diplomacy is so much more than you give it credit for. Legolas is doing very well, although the situation is very precarious. I never thought we'd meet a Man with more sense than an Elf. That should squash all stereotypes. You wrote the situation very well, with all the complications, etc, that arose. I wonder, have you seen the movie "Thirteen Days" about the Cuban Missile Crisis? If you have not, I reccommend it, because it is a tense drama all about diplomacy and political situations, sort of which Legolas is in now. Galivion is so nice, especially letting Legolas...be? with the maiden. But he is so right in saying that Thranduil will be displeased with whatever happens...reminds me of my mother... Keep writing! Author Reply: I think Anyr is a pretty maddening elf, so maybe he's an exception in being dumber than the man. I haven't seen "Thirteen Days," but it sounds intriguing. And I think that Galivion is a pretty good advisor, even if he didn't want Legolas to give food to the men. He did his best and his opinion was an honest one. Sorry about your mother!! Maybe she and Thranduil can get together and exchange notes about their kids. | |
| erunyauve | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 3/31/2004 |
| Well, I thought of the source of food when the children were eating. It's a good thing the man is at little more sensible than Anyr. And it certainly doesn't hurt either of them that a maiden has caught the eye of the King's son. Legolas had better hope that Tinar doesn't notice, though the latter is so self-centered that he probably wouldn't notice unless he had designs on the maiden himself. Author Reply: Legolas is a little distracted by the maiden. Writing about him makes a funny contrast to writing about Eilian, who is at home with maidens smiling at him. Legolas is a more steady sort. The next chapter will be about the romances of both brothers. | |
| Justafan | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 3/31/2004 |
| Yay, another update! Sorry I didn't get to review on the past update, so I'll try to make this one worthy of your two nice chapters. I really like this diplomatic side of Legolas as well as the getting to know girls side. He's never had much interaction besides Celuwen and the ellyth when he was younger and his reactions are so fun and cute to watch! (er, read) Last chapter, I loved Eilian and his dealings with Celuwen and her family. Solith's protectiveness towards his daughter is understandable, but of course, I'm rooting for Eilian. Thanks for the story! Author Reply: Legolas is doing well. I had to give him a little romance. I couldn't stand the thought of him being alone all those years. Tuilinn is hitting him like a ton of bricks though, and he's confused. In the next chapter, he feels better! I'm rooting for Eilian too, but he does have a problem if he wants to please Thranduil. We'll see. | |