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The Prisoner and The Hobbit  by Dreamflower 3 Review(s)
LarnerReviewed Chapter: 4 on 1/30/2012
This discussion on the Rings of Power is fascinating, from the common symbology associated with rings in general to the motives for him working on rings specifically intended for use on Elves, Men, and Dwarves. Love the questions and answers regarding Hobbits and why Hobbits were particularly protected from the influence of such things as the One Ring, and the experience with time seeming to speed up as we age (certainly I've noted the apparent swifter experience of the passage of time as I've aged and have thought of how that phenomenon occurs just as Sauron explains it in his letter). And I love, love, love Bilbo's description of how it is that Hobbit nature is antithetical to tyrancy for the most part. As for Bilbo's feelings of discomfort engendered by what he read and his specific responses to the various offending questions or comments--I felt it was indeed most likely and appropriate for Bilbo to respond as he did.

As for the references to your other works--I smiled as I caught and identified them! Great!

Author Reply: Thanks! Both Sauron and Bilbo are going to experience some discomfort with this correspondence-- their natures are so different, and there is such a difficult history between them, that it is like walking on eggshells, especially at this early stage.

And I've always thought the Ring misjudged hobbits because it simply could not understand their lack of interest in gaining power (as you may recall from my essay on the subject).

pandemonium_213Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 10/19/2011
UTfrog, Lynda, Raksha and Alei,

Thanks a million for the kind words! It was a wild hair of a notion to have these two monumental characters correspond with one another, and as Dreamflower aptly notes, it's an organic process. I love Dreamflower's version of Bilbo Baggins, Esq. and have been following her stories for quite some time. I am so tickled to see Adamanta and Trotter get mentioned (also two of my favorites). Her hobbits really resonate with me. Bilbo's voice is wonderful in the series, very authentic, I think, and the way she handles his conflict is so well done. It also takes a lot of courage to step into the Pande!verse with a more humanized villain.

My Dark Muse never knows what Bilbo will say and conversely, I think that Mr. Sauron provokes Bilbo in any number of ways. It's tremendously entertaining. Alei, I am wildly flattered that we drew you out of lurkdom. Lynda and UTfrog, you are familiar "faces" to me from Serinde's saga, so it's a pleasure you're following Dreamflower's and my experiment.

Raksha, you sly dickens, you! :^D If I elaborate more on D.L. Sauron and his feelings toward the Holocaust, that takes me into late 20th century territory of the Pande!verse and would be a *significant* spoiler. Maybe you can wheedle a clue or two out of me during our next perambulation. On Sauron's withholding his true name from Gandalf, that's a nod back to Light Over the Mountain. Keeping his real name to himself is something of a neurotic thing, probably linked to early trauma.

Thanks again, everyone!


6336Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 10/19/2011
Hi Dreamflower,
I have been reading this over on M.P.T.T.and have much enjoyed it, while I enjoy the much lighter aspects of most fan fic sometimes it is good to read something with a bit of meat on its bones, as it were, this fits the bill!

One could, almost, feel sorry for Sauron in his captivity and I expect in some ways he was a likeable person, when he wanted to be,after all he did pose as Annatar, Lord of Gifts but the price he demanded for those gifts was prohibativa, total domination of Arda is a little bit out of most peoples reach!

I am not sure which bits I like the best, Saurons life or the letters.

Huggs,
Lynda

Author Reply: This one is a good deal of fun to work on. I've collaborated before, but this one is different, as neither of us can plan ahead much. Each chapter depends on what the other character has written!

I expect this will have it's share of lighter moments, as well as some very dark moments as well-- which is why I rated it PG-13 as a precaution.

Pandë's version of Sauron is masterful. She never glosses over his evil deeds or tries to pretend that he was not utterly consumed by his reach for power; but she does give him motives and a backstory, and reasons (not excuses) for his actions. Not an easy thing to accomplish, but she does!

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