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| The Way Home by Lindelea | 158 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| KathyG | Reviewed Chapter: 39 on 12/3/2025 |
| Hopefully, Bill and Shadowfax are nowhere near Weathertop at this point! How far from Bree are they, as of now, and how many days will it take them to get there, or wherever it is that they're seeking to get to? Seems to me that if Shadowfax is going to drop Bill off at The Prancing Pony, they'll have to enter the town somewhere! Author Reply: In case it wasn't clear, Bill's objective at this point is Rivendell. The horse and pony are bypassing Bree on their way to the East-West Road, or that is their intention at least. They are just out of easy sight for someone peering over Bree's walls or looking out from the Bree Hill, and passing south of the town towards the Chetwood and parts east. I'd imagine they would not retrace Aragorn's twisting path through the woods but would instead take a more direct route, travelling on the Road or not far to one side of the Road, just as they did when they were travelling northward while following the Greenway. But you know what they say about best laid plans... (Thanks!) | |
| shirebound | Reviewed Chapter: 39 on 12/2/2025 |
| Part of my relief is that we are on the last leg of our journey, so to speak. Yes, such an accomplishment! This is truly a journey worthy of remembrance, as you are so wonderfully doing. Author Reply: How I have loved travelling with Bill on this journey! (And the next chapter has turned out to be quite satisfying, to my mind at least. Hopefully it will sound plausible to you as well. (!) As long as I don't relapse with whatever this bug was, a cold or a mild case of the flu despite – or maybe "mild" because of – the flu shot I got recently and end up in bed again, I plan to post the next chapter on Friday.) Thanks! | |
| KathyG | Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 12/1/2025 |
| I am so glad that Shadowfax will only be needed by Gandalf after he has safely escorted Bill to The Prancing Pony; I was hoping that would be the case! This way, Bill will make it there in one piece. Of course, you're right that the story won't be over at that point; it can't end until Bill has been reunited with Sam! =) It'll be interesting to see how the story proceeds during those months between Bill's arrival at the inn and the hobbits' and Gandalf's own arrival there. Author Reply: I'm glad to hear you're reassured on that point. Of course, we have Tolkien's word for it that Bill arrives in one piece, albeit "lean" and "shaggy". The gap-filler that occurred to me to account for Bill's time in Bree, waiting for Sam, makes me smile, so I hope it will cheer you as well. I didn't want to write his arrival in his stall at The Prancing Pony and then abruptly begin the next chapter by describing Bill's reunion with Sam ten or so months later! The thought was jarring, somehow. Thanks again for reading and pausing long enough to share your thoughts! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 11/30/2025 |
| Good results can occur after apparent difficulties. I understand thoroughly. Author Reply: Definitely. I suppose that "Every cloud has a silver lining" has a similar context. (I think "context" is the right word... my brain is mush, a lively discussion is taking place in the kitchen just a few steps away from where I'm typing, the cat-with-the-peacock-voice is intermittently chiming in, and I cannot think straight. However, it is delightful to have human companionship again, so I'm not complaining. "background"? "underlying meaning"? "connotation"?) Thanks! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 37 on 11/30/2025 |
| Comfort of Shadowfax' companionship and warmth, and of remembrances of his Hobbits and the rest of the Fellowship. Now to get past the wolves and back to Bree. \\\\ Author Reply: Yes, those pesky wolves, howling round the fences, and those dark shapes in the woods, definitely a point of concern. But we know that Bill arrives safely in Bree, and Shadowfax is there when Gandalf needs him not long from now, so that ought to help. Thanks! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 36 on 11/30/2025 |
| Love the images here. Not long to cover to await Sam's return. Author Reply: Not long! Soon Bill will reach Bree, and then there will be a little gap-filling before Sam returns, and then the final part of the journey and Scouring of the Shire and a bit more gap-filling before Sam rides Bill to the Grey Havens. My goodness, the story is practically galloping along! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 35 on 11/30/2025 |
| Frodo's cloak dropped there by Fatty Bolger. Now to find where the other fork leads! Author Reply: Exactly! The equines' logic may not be completely sound here, but instinct does fill in some of the gaps left by a lack of map-reading skills. Thanks! Hope you and yours had a good t-day. | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 34 on 11/30/2025 |
| Just moving on is enough for the moment. now we await an awakening high atop a mountain far to the south and east of them. Author Reply: Won't that be a wonderful moment! (And totally unexpected for all the mortals of his acquaintance, I should think...) | |
| KathyG | Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 11/23/2025 |
| So long as neither wolves nor rogue men plague Bill or Shadowfax, that's the important thing! Author Reply: Definitely! A little more difficulty between here and Bree, but it won't be long before Bill is safe with Butterbur (and Nob and Bob). Of course, the story won't be quite over at that point... Thanks! | |
| Lady Forlong | Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 11/22/2025 |
| Yes, it will be very fitting if the wolves and the rogue Men "take care" of each other, one way or the other. One less thing for Bill and Shadowfax to worry about. Author Reply: That would be quite a satisfying solution, all told. You might even say they deserve each other. I'm happy to say that Bree is just ahead, though our intrepid travellers intend to go around rather than through the town at this point. Thanks! | |