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| A problem shared by Dot | 9 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Mairi | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 8/8/2007 |
| I have always thought Thranduil was an interesting character to read and write about, and you do a very good job with it. It is nice, and it is decent writing, too. Author Reply: Thanks, Mairi! I love to read Thranduil stories and it turns out he's very interesting to write about too. I'm so glad you enjoyed this. Thanks very much for the review :-) | |
| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 8/3/2007 |
| Oh it doesn't get better than Thranduil and Radagast! I love them both and together they are great. I can so see Thranduil as amused (occasionally impatiently so) with Radagast and sometimes surprised to learn something from him. And this captures Radagast and that relationship so well, I think. Fiercely protective… Beautiful but deadly… Clever… Distrusting… Mighty foes… Thranduil chuckled. Why did the Istari insist being mysterious when bluntness would be infinitely preferable? Hehehehe! Yes, those wizards can be so difficult and someone as direct as Thranduil must have been driven to distraction by them. This was great, Dot! Loved it! Author Reply: Thranduil and Radagast were fun to write together, even in so short a piece. I'm glad you felt the two of them came across well. I think Thranduil would have been more amused by Radagast if he wasn't so preoccupied. Thank you so much for the review, Elliska. And I hope you're enjoying the holiday :-) | |
| meckinock | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/31/2007 |
| I don't remember reading a story about Thranduil set when Legolas was on the Quest before. You do a great job of bringing out the tension and creeping despair, and setting the scene. I especially loved this passage: Thranduil kept his gaze on the parchment before him, his left hand plucking steadily at a loose thread in the hem of his tunic. The hand curled into a tense fist at the grating clatter of a chair pushed across the stone floor and he looked up in surprise as his second councillor abruptly rose, a bleak look on his pale face. “Excuse me, my lord,” he managed in a hollow voice before he left, pulling the door shut behind him. In the heavy silence six pairs of eyes flicked between the door and Thranduil. Understated but very powerful. Radagast was wonderful - just what the doctor ordered, of course. Wizards always turn up exactly where they're needed, don't they? I liked his preoccupation with critters and Thranduil's amusement at it. Very enjoyable! Author Reply: Thanks, Meckinock. I really appreciate your comments because I was feeling quite unsure about this story. I'm so glad the tension and despair came across. And thank you for picking out a passage you liked! Radagast turned out to be quite fun to play with. I'd love to have time to write him in more depth. Preoccupation with critters, huh? Now who does that remind me of...? Bugs. I should have put in more bugs. | |
| Mirkwoodmaiden | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/30/2007 |
| Dot! It has been too long since I've had the privilege of reading one of your stories! :-) As ever the writing is so beautiful and wonderfully evocative. I love the way you sketch Thranduil's irritation and then his burgeoning understanding of Radagast! As ever...wonderful! MM Author Reply: Mirkwoodmaiden! Wow, it's great to hear from you. I hope all is well with you :-) I'm so pleased you liked this. It was written in a bit of a rush but I had fun with Thranduil and Radagast all the same. Thank you so much for the review. And keep writing! | |
| Redheredh | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/28/2007 |
| This was a real gem. Very Entertaining! :D Thranduil was excellent throughout in his relationships with his councillors, his subjects, the tree, and the wizard. The writing was truly wonderful. I enjoyed how you showed us what made him a true king of elves. Thranduil in the tree. Now, that was marvelous! wow... "Marvelous creatures..." At first, I thought I got it that Radegast was speaking in general about the good peaceful, non-predatory creatures of the world, and we were being specifically reminded of Gandalf's affection for hobbits. I liked how the wizard went on from that and appreciated the courage of the wood-elves, in the same way. Even though they are a bit more dangerous! ;) Having Thranduil in the tree beforehand nicely showed that a truly peaceful side of wood-elves does existed. "The wizard was looking much better..." "...suspected he had stumbled into worse than a novice practice session." You really made me grin with that! Again just like Mithrandir!! After a dire battle, he had found a healing refuge with elven friends in the stronghold of their forest. His memory and intellect slowly rebuilding, until ready to return to the fray. With this scenario, it was fun to ponder on what might have happened in comparison in Lothlorien. Especially with Radgast being such a delightful handful for Thranduil! The alarm at the end was great in how it brought out the satisfying conclusion. The thread on Thranduil's hem and the 'knot' unraveling tied together perfectly. And, I loved the touch of humour there and throughout. Big fan of irony that I am, I fancy wood-elves being the same way. What a lovely gift for Daw. ...and you have for writing. Thanks for sharing it again. Author Reply: Redheredh, you’re always so generous in your reviews. Glad you liked Thranduil in the tree! And why wouldn’t he climb a tree when he needed a bit of comfort ;-) I did actually start off with having Radagast just speaking about creatures in general – but it felt like it needed to be rounded off and for Thranduil to get something from the conversation too. So I figured why not give the conversation more depth and have him really be talking about the strength of the wood-elves to their clearly troubled king? delightful handful LOL! That’s a perfect way of describing him! And I’m so pleased that you understood what I was trying to do and saw the connections I was clumsily trying to draw. That you liked Thranduil in this made me smile too – he’s always very enjoyable to write! Really, thank you so much for this review. It really brightened up my day yesterday. | |
| perelleth | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/28/2007 |
| Wow, Dot, this was wonderful! I loved the apparent cluelessness of Radagast and Thranduil's courteous behaviour... rewarded by a glimpse of the wizard's game in the end. Radagast's refrain "marvellous creatures made me chuckle, but I had a Monty Python moment with the anrgry rabbit, :-) sorry! But I really loved how elven the elves look, from Thranduil's conversation with the tree to the patience with which the elves wait while Radagast feeds the rabbit...A beautiful piece, suiting perfectly this autumn weather :-) Author Reply: Thank you so much, Perelleth! Radagast was quite fun, really. I think he was genuinely talking about these creatures and he sees woodelves as something similar so mightn’t have realised he wasn’t making sense. I imagine he must have thought Thranduil was very dense there for a while ;-) but I had a Monty Python moment with the anrgry rabbit LOLOL!!! Why didn’t I realise that?? That’s hilarious. Thanks for the lovely review, Perelleth. | |
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/28/2007 |
| Wizards, like elves, don't believe in coming straight out and saying things. Perhaps they think that their words are perceived as much more valuable if the hearer has to strive to comprehend ... I love always-in-the-way Radagast and his marvellous creatures. And it must be so hard for Thranduil to endure what is happening. Bad enough to listen to lists of the dead and worry about his son ... and the youngsters training to thrust back the dark, but to feel the suffering of the forest in the whispers of the trees. Unendurable. Almost. If he wasn't so strong. A delightful piece, Dot. Loved it. Author Reply: Where would be the fun in just saying what you mean?! I don’t think he really set out to be mysterious – he just understands the creatures of the world and puts the woodelves in the same bracket. Always-in-the-way Radagast turned out to be quite fun to play with, even though I’d have liked more time to get to know him. I’m glad you liked it, Bodkin. Thanks for the review. | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/27/2007 |
| One does wonder why Radagast has wandered in from the cold, but I suppose one day Thranduil will learn. And most creatures when backed into a corner will fight back. Heh! Author Reply: I was thinking that this was the early days of the Quest and that Radagast, who we know was used by Saruman to get his message to Gandalf, has wandered back towards Rhosgobel, which is empty at that time, and took refuge with Thranduil for a short while. And turned out to be quite a handful! Thanks for the review :-) | |
| daw the minstrel | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 7/27/2007 |
| OK. I'm sorting this out. It takes place while Legolas is on the Quest? Is that right? That's why Thranduil wonders what his son had done? And when Radagast talks about the beautiful and the deadly, is it wood elves? I hope so, because that's what I seem to come down to. There's terrible loss. That roll of the dead, two of them brothers, is just awful. Thranduil must be out of his mind and yet he has to go on. And Radagast seems to be something of a refugee here. I like the way Thranduil doesn't hesitate to climb a tree and take comfort, dignity be damned. Or maybe that's a sign of elven dignity. :-) Thank you for doing this, Dot. I know you're very busy and wrestling with writer's block so I'm so touched that you did this because it's beautiful and ripe with emotion. Author Reply: Oh dear, did it not make sense? You’ve figured it out right anyway. I’m glad you like Thranduil climbing the tree. I’d like to think that the elves of Mirkwood would be quite used to seeing their king in a tree :-) | |