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A New Reckoning by Dreamflower	7 Review(s)
KathyG	Reviewed Chapter: 40 on 5/26/2019
Oh, my! I love how the 4 hobbits were announced! I can't help but wonder what Hyacinth and Rosamunda thought of Sam's announcement, given their snobbish attitudes. =) Too bad you didn't include their reactions! [g] There's just one thing I'm wondering about Pippin announcememt: "Sir Peregrin Took, Knight of Gondor; Kinsman of Frodo the Belovéd; Peregrin of the Nine Walkers; Guard of the Citadel; Warrior of the Siege of Minas Tirith; Warrior of the Morannon; Trollsbane; Heir to Paladin, the Thain of the Shire.” Shouldn't "Guard of the Citadel" immediately follow "Knight of Gondor" in Pippin's list of titles? After all, as a knight, that was Pippin's job in Minas Tirith.

Larner	Reviewed Chapter: 40 on 9/28/2006
Frodo the Beloved! How very right that is. And a wonderful introduction to all, and a good chance to see that Sam isn't just a "jumped-up gardener"! Author Reply: It seemed to me that "Beloved" was the best description, for all who truly know him do love him! And of course Sam is more than a "jumped-up gardener", though a few hobbits need to get their noses rubbed in that fact!

Pervinca	Reviewed Chapter: 40 on 6/14/2004
My, my, Eglantine certainly is a clever one. How I would have loved to see the hobbits' faces as they heard all those names for the travellers! I was quite impressed myself. I always though of Gandalf and Aragorn as having the most names :P You managed to make an entire chapter out of introductions! That's very impressive - and, as such, I'm expecting the chapter about the actually ball to be absolutely wonderful (which I know it will be) :) - Pervinca Author Reply: Yes, well, I'm sure that if Gandalf and Aragorn had been there, they'd still be introducing them. I'm glad you were impressed with the titles. It took me a while to come up with them all. The Ball has begun.

Ladykorana	Reviewed Chapter: 40 on 6/13/2004
I know it's got to be a tough job to get all those titles listed, but I felt obligated to point out that you've left out 'Warrior of Helm's Deep' from Gimli's titles. The poor dwarf deserves recognition for that, especially since he bested our dear Elf in the orc-killing contest! And I second the motion that Gimli should have come right after Legolas, before Merry and Pippin. He is, afterall, Lord of his own land, and is of the line of Durin the Deathless, so I think he should have a rank almost as high as Legolas, IMHO. Author Reply: Thank you for pointing that out. I did have "Warrior of Helm's Deep" in originally, but in fighting with the italics, I somehow lost it. I seem to have a problem when I use italics, they scramble everything up, and sometimes I lose phrases. I will fix that right away! And as I said, I was of two minds on having him after Legolas, but because the focus was on Frodo, I thought their status as his kin would place them ahead. Remember, too, that Legolas helped to set the precedence. I appreciate your point of view; thanks for letting me know about the other. Author Reply: I went back and added "Warrior of Helm's Deep" back in. Darn italics! Thanks!

Bodkin	Reviewed Chapter: 40 on 6/13/2004
The hobbits are impressed - but I'm not sure they really grasp it. They are quite a hidebound rural society really. I think it will take more than this to make them understand Sam and, in fact, he earned his own rise in hobbit society partly as Frodo's heir, but even more with his work greening the Shire and his many terms as Mayor. The titles are extensive, but really they all need to know more about what happened - getting writing that Red Book, Frodo. (Wouldn't Gimli, as Lord of Aglarond, have outranked Pippin and Merry? Not that it matters.) Author Reply: You are right. They do not grasp it yet, and most of them will never grasp it, though I like to think a few of the more intelligent will eventually. The whole purpose of this was to throw hobbit society off-balance by turning their ideas of precedence on its head, and make them more receptive and less obstructive of the King's proposals (that the proposals are good for the Shire is not necessarily going to matter to certain types) and to show Sam in a better light. You are right about Sam earning his new place, but in this story at least, the knowledge that he is honored by the new King helps give him a bit of a jump start. The hobbits are not going to have a clue as to what the majority of the titles mean: part of the idea is to get them asking questions. And, sadly, even after Frodo writes the Red Book, most hobbits will never read it. I went back and forth on that, but finally thought the deciding factor was Pippin's and Merry's status as "Kinsmen of Frodo the Beloved". I could be wrong, but I don't much think Gimli would care, anyway.

GamgeeFest	Reviewed Chapter: 40 on 6/13/2004
Yay! That was so cool! And well worth the wait. I was curious what everyone's titles would be. They sounded very impressive indeed, you pulled them off spectacularly. I'm sure we'll be getting more of everyone's reactions in the coming chapters, but the ones seen here were perfect. My heart went out to Frodo. He agreed to do this, but he still doesn't like it. It's a shame he can't feel the same pride for himself that he does for Sam. The funniest reaction was to Legolas' introduction: He's a prince and he's announced third?! Now The Jewelery are really going to feel horrible about accousting him the way they did (well, I should hope so anyway). Till next time. :) Author Reply: The whole idea was to sound impressive! Remember that this Ball is essentially a political move. But I'm glad you thought they sounded right. Frodo's own emotions are too raw for him to be proud of himself, and Saruman didn't help (I think he lied when he said that the bit about Frodo's health and happiness was only a prediction--I think it was one of his patented self-fulfilling curses, for he still had much of the power of his Voice) But Frodo can still feel happiness and joy and pride for others, which is as well as he can do. Legolas himself helped to organize this precedence, and I think that he amused himself by anticipating just that kind of reaction.

RogerGamgee	Reviewed Chapter: 40 on 6/13/2004
Dreamflower, Yet another fantastic chapter in this tale! I love how you portrayed the hobbits' feelings during the ceremony...Frodo's reluctance, Sam's love for Rose...all done so beautifully. Perhaps now the rest of the Shire will see just what kind of person Sam truly is...that he is more than 'just a gardener'. I take it from reading this that most of the Shire is relatively 'ignorant' about the Quest and what it meant. I know that Frodo and the others really didn't talk much about it after their return home. All in all, well done! I'm curious to see what happens at the ball. Author Reply: Of course we all know he is more than "just a gardener", but it's going to take more than this to change most minds. My take is that the Travellers talked about their experiences on a "need to know" basis--to their closest friends and family, but these were not experiences they would share with casual strangers or even acquaintances--although I think Merry and Pippin would be more forthcoming with some of the lighter moments of their travels. I don't think Frodo talked about it any more than he could help, and when he did, he stuck to "just the facts, ma'am". He saved it up for the Red Book, mostly.

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