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| The Road to Edoras by Dreamflower | 529 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Grey Wonderer | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 4/11/2005 |
| Enjoyed the re-counting of the slaying of the Troll and Cado's reaction to it all. Could it be that he is having a small change of heart in all of this or is he simply very glad that he was never crushed by a Troll? Author Reply: It's too soon to tell whether any changes might be for the good. But he is definitely beginning to learn that the world is more than the Shire, and that the acclaim Merry and Pippin won while they were gone did not come easy. He has a lot to think about, is all. For now. | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 4/11/2005 |
| Am hopefully on the way to catching up. Nice entry into Bree and the Prancing Pony. Feel sorry for Lotho's co-conspirators, but not too sorry for them--they did ask for it, after all. Author Reply: Yes, they did ask for it. Well, not for exactly what they got. I don't think it occurred to them they would get caught, and if they did, they probably only expected temporary banishment. They had no idea that they'd be turned over to King's Justice. But the Shire-folk are going to have to learn that merely putting malefactors over their border and forgetting about them is no longer acceptable, for then they are just giving their problems to another part of the kingdom. This is part of what Frodo had in mind when he suggested to Paladin that they turn the traitors over. | |
| Mysterious Jedi | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 4/11/2005 |
| Which was the "worse" brother, Clovis or Cado? I'm too lazy to go back and look, but since you would know and usually reply to reviews anyways... It was excellent to let another hobbit hear how great his future thain is! Author Reply: *chuckle* well, they were both pretty dire, weren't they? But Clovis is the older one with the ideas: you know, like knock Pippin down with a ball,steal from the Thain's wine cellar, dare Pippin to get drunk, vandalize the Men's camp and knock one of them out...you know, "brilliant" ideas like that. *grin* And Cado is the one who usually goes along with his brother's "brilliant" ideas because he's too lazy to argue, and then blames him when they go wrong. Mosco is not as well acquainted with Pippin, and does not know Merry really well,either, even though they are cousins. But, like many another young hobbit in the Shire, he's had a case of hero-worship for them both ever since the Scouring. Hearing first hand just how hard it was for the two of them to come by their hard won heroism has to be an eye opener. | |
| GamgeeFest | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 4/11/2005 |
| Hahaha, they didn't even let him get a noise out before gagging him! Lovely. Cute fluffiness between Berilac and Ivory. Is another apprentice about to be swept off her feet? I liked the way he tried to be sly about asking if Ivory was involved with Pippin. Author Reply: Well, Pippin *was* observed dancing quite a bit with her during the Ball. If the Banks brothers had not pulled their stunt, he might have shown a bit more interest, but after that everyone was far too busy. So as far as Viola's concerned, her loss was Diamond's gain. But I did want to show Pippin's preference for healer lasses pre-dated his meeting of Diamond. And of course, Berilac would not want to step on Pippin's toes for any number of reasons. | |
| Mysterious Jedi | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 4/10/2005 |
| On the road, how exciting! It will be interesting to see if anything comes of Viola and Berilac. I know you just wrote another story about a healer's apprentice getting married, it would be really crazy if you wrote two! Author Reply: We will just have to see, won't we? | |
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 4/10/2005 |
| H'mm. Berilac and Viola, huh? Seems a good combination. And, after these adventures they will have a lot in common. Clovis is one of the slowest learners going, though. Although I suppose the other banished hobbits are benefiting from observing his general stupidity and how it is treated. I can't work out whether Poppy will get the chance to see Lord Elrond and Imladris. I hope she does. And I'm sure the tummies of the Rohirrim and Gondorians are very glad that the hobbits don't scorn the skills of the kitchen. They can even make porridge a treat. And I always like seeing them do things like go off and forage - it emphasises that being small doesn't make them helpless. I'm looking forward to their adventures. Author Reply: Well, Berilac and Viola have a long journey ahead of them, but let us just say that the little conversation they had is the beginning of a long-simmering plot thread for this sequel. We will just have to see what comes of it. Clovis simply has no will-power. He can resist anything except temptation, and the temptation to run his mouth is a strong one. He's definitely not the brightest bulb in the pack either. That's because *I* haven't worked it out myself. It won't be in *this* story, though, because it only goes as far as Meduseld. The skills of even a poor hobbit cook are far better than those of even the average cook of Men. I've always felt that foraging would be a strong point of most hobbits, like anything else to do with food. | |
| Grey Wonderer | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 4/9/2005 |
| I was glad to see another chapter of this one. I like Viola and I do believe that Berilac does also. Seems there might be a bit of romance on this journey. Freddy is doing a great job of keeping up with what to expect. He seems to have become almost as much of a natural leader as Merry is. I am still expecting trouble from the Banks's at this point, but the gag is working out very well. LOL Author Reply: Mmm-hmm; I think you've spotted it! *grin* Freddy *was* the leader during the Rebellion during the Occupation, and he is from one of the high ranking Shire families. (In my Shire, the Bolgers rank fourth, directly behind the Bagginses.) He is definitely taking his responsiblity for all these hobbits seriously--he wants to make sure he gets everyone home safely. Keep on expecting--you know it *will* happen before the end, but I do not promise how soon! | |
| Mysterious Jedi | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 4/4/2005 |
| I wish I could travel with hobbits. Sounds like good eats! Author Reply: Good eats indeed! I imagine that some of the Men are going to need their armor altered, LOL! | |
| Kitty | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 4/4/2005 |
| She nodded. These Men had some very strange customs. Why not just use coin to begin with? Ah, well. Perhaps that was too simple. *lol* Of course, the Men have no plain Hobbit sense ;-) Poor Viola, this is not so easy for her. She is the only one Hobbit who is not truly on her own free will on her way to Gondor (with exception of the prisoners, of course). It is surely quite frightening at times. Author Reply: *chuckle* Well, of course there are some practical reasons for the chits, but they are not immediately obvious to hobbits, who have no experience of armies. Yes, Viola has felt constrained by her ties to her mistress, not to mention the fact that she is the most typically "hobbity" hobbit in the group, as well as being a lass. But she loves her mistress, and she does want to be a good healer. She will find a way to overcome her timidity as time goes by. | |
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 4/4/2005 |
| The Men are determined to protect the Hobbits, aren't they. Just in case. It must be very tempting for them to treat adult hobbits as being younger and more helpless than they are - size being so linked with maturity in the eyes of men. And yet, there is also an innocence about the wider world that means that they do need shielding. Like the immediate recognition of a good fruit and veg stall (hobbit-run, of course). And the break for lunch. Viola's need to remain close to safety is very recognisable, too - and Poppy will probably look back on it wistfully once the girl really finds her feet and starts heading off into the unknown. Glad to see Clovis has been silenced. Author Reply: Well, there is even a bit more to the protectiveness to that, in my way of thinking. I have a theory that the *majority* of hobbits have something about them that will actually *trigger* the protective instincts of the majority of Big Folk, and cause them to become fond of them very quickly. I think of it as an unconscious defense mechanism working in hobbits' favor. It's a sort of special charisma they have, and certain hobbits, such as Frodo and his cousins, have more than others. If you look at the reactions of most Big Folk to the hobbits in LotR, you can see that there is evidence of a sort for it: how quickly Strider pledges his allegiance to Frodo in Bree; the reactions of them all on Caradhras, for example; Boromir's fierce defense of Merry and Pippin; the Three Hunters' determination to rescue the younger hobbits once they realize the Ringbearer is out of reach; Faramir's admiration for Frodo and Sam upon very short acquaintance; Eowyn's willingness to take Merry along...I could go on and on... The converse side of this is that a *few* hobbits, such as the S.-B.s, Sandyman, the Bankses and Hyacinth, for example, are defective in that they *lack* this charisma altogether. Anyway, off of my soapbox for now, and thanks for the lovely review! | |