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| Elf-root by Soledad | 31 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Kitt Otter | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 10/30/2008 |
| So many new chapters – nice! Oh my… Bilbo obviously is in a strait. I mean, checking Lobelia’s bodice! But I believe it. I like that idea for naming the inns. My head is swimming - so many hobbit names. If you can keep them straight I congratulate you. I liked seeing Isengar Took, a very interesting though queer hobbit. *coughing and laughing* Yeees, that proof would have been a bit indecent to any decent hobbit. Very clever of Doro's father! Unfortunately, the S-Bs won't give up that easily. Author Reply: Yeah, I know all those Hobit genealogies can confuse the living daylight out of a person. I just couldn't resist the urge to let old Missus Crabtree boast about her family. *is feeling guilty* I think one day - perhaps when I'm retired and in a home - I'll write Isengar's story, too. Perhaps in a series titled "Errantries", discussing the tale of all queer Tooks that have fallen under Gandalf's dreadful influence. ;) | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 10/30/2008 |
| LOL! So Bifur was a female, eh? And if any vegetable could be an Elven sort of vegetable, it would be the delicious asparagus! But the funniest thing of all was Lobelia getting smacked down for her dirty mind! I loved that! I eagerly await more! Author Reply: If any from Thorin's company was female, it would have been Bifur, I think. S/he came over as a very... caring Dwarf for me. And if anyone could smack down Lobelia, it would be a Dwarf-dam, I think. Actually, this whole story was inspired by the recent asparagus season. We had a talk on LJ about asparagus, about who likes it and who doesn't, and what a back-breaking work it is to grow it, and how many ways there are to prepare it... that sort of it. Then someone asked whether Hobbits would like it, and before I knew what was happening with me, I was knee-deep in the story. One more part to go, and then we're done. | |
| phyloxena | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 10/30/2008 |
| Very funny, and very clever and consistent. I am not sure I understand why Mad Took talks in somewhat folksy manner -- isn't he a gentlehobbit? Or is he so eccentric he even talks out of his class? Author Reply: The Mad Took had been living in some sort of exile since his return, as nobody wanted to have to do anything with such an irresponsible adventurer. I think he just got a bit rustic in all his loneliness. Happens to the best, when they hadn't have to talk with anyone else but the sheep or so for a while. *g* | |
| phyloxena | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 10/29/2008 |
"Of course,” he said. “There’s what right and there’s what’s wrong; and what’s right must be protected. But there are also things that are done and those that are not done among respectable Hobbits – you should never mistake those two things for right and wrong, son.” This is brilliant. So very English and so very Hobbit. The whole story sounds very true to Middle-Earth and "realistic" (as far as realism of made-up world can go), a little heavy, a little insider-ish, like hobbit family trees which they reportedly remembered to great detail and could relay any time. Thank you. Author Reply: Thank you. :) The Hobbit family trees nearly drove me mad - it took me weeks to figure out who's related to whom and where my original characters could be put. But if one wants to write convincing Hobbitfic, one needs to do those things. As enjoyable as this little foray into Hobbit society was, I'm glad I've finished the story. All those little things that needed to be considered - from genealogy to speech patterns and proper primness - tended to gave me a headache. *g* The last two parts will be posted shortly. | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 10/29/2008 |
| Bwahahahahaha! Oh, I love it! Bilbo's birthmark and its location! That was just too clever for words, dear! And Mayor Doro is a very clever young hobbit as well! Interesting to see the various reactions to Bilbo now. I imagine that this will be the beginning of Bilbo spending much more time among the Tooks and the Brandybucks. And I am still very curious indeed about the "Elf-root"! Author Reply: I must admit that I was very troubled about how to resolve the legal debate. Thankfully, the idea came up, and since this is supposed to be a more light-hearted story than than what I usually write, I greatly enjoyed making it as hilarious as possible. Elf-root is going to make its grand entree in the next chapter. | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 10/25/2008 |
| Ah, I had to go out today *right after* I found this chapter up! All day I kept wondering about it. I love your title for the chapter--it sets it firmly in the wider Middle-earth in which the Shire belongs--however much the Shire would deny it! I also love the various desciptions of the outrage being felt by various and sundry hobbits. My favorite was this: But Missus Ruby was the sister of Rudibert Bolger, whose wife, Amethyst, in her turn, was the older sister of Albus’ wife Amelinda, thus they had no other choice than listen to Missus Ruby’s complaints. About Bilbo’s irresponsible actions and how they would cast an unfavourable light at all Bagginses. About Longo’s greed and ruthless behaviour and how it would cast an unfavourable light at all Bagginses. About Camellia’s ridiculous accusations and how the scandal they had caused would cast an unfortunate light at all Bagginses. About her own husband, Fosco, who kept visiting with ‘that mad Baggins’, not caring about what people might say about such associations. About her elder son, Drogo, who kept sneaking out of the smial to see Bilbo, no matter how often she’d told him that Bilbo wasn’t the right company for him. And so on… LOL! So very hobbity! I also loved the references to Lalia! And the way that the working-class hobbits of the Shire are firmly on Bilbo's side, even if they don't approve. Definitely worth the wait! Author Reply: Hobbit family connections can confuse one out of one's mind, can't they? I'm glad that you enjoyed the new chapter nonetheless. I had great fun with Missus Ruby's outrage - she's just so frigging proper, I thought she'd have been the one most honestly upset. She wasn't disappointed because of the fine tea service she had to give back, she was upset because of the scandal, and that is, at the very least, an honest thing. As I'm not exactly a thin person myself, fat characters, like Bombur and Lalia always fascinate me. It makes me a little angry that they always have to stand in as the villain or as the comic relief - that's why I like writing about Forlong, who was, after all, a war hero - as if the mere fact of being overweight would make someone less worth than their skinny companions. It's the worst case of discrimination, where no other factor like origins and so on can be found, one I had to struggle with during my entire youth. I might write something about Lalia some day - she might have been a female dragon of extraordinary proportions, but she still deserves to tell the story from her own point of view. As for the simple people siding with Bilbo - well, he might have been eccentric, but he was always good to them, and that makes people forgive a lot of strangeness, I think. Thanks for your kind words. Feedback is what keeps the muses working. ;)) | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 10/20/2008 |
| Ah, such a delightful chapter, and to see Bilbo interrupting the sale of his own household furnishings in such a marvelous way! And then to look at the situation from Godilo's POV--just too perfect! It's just too perfect! Author Reply: Flatterer! :) I'm glad you like Godilo, though. I chose him because I wanted someone who isn't exactly hostile towards Bilbo like the SBs, in fact, even loyal to a certain grade, being his lawyer and all, but who's conservative enough to look at Bilbo's actions most suspiciously. | |
| Kitt Otter | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 10/19/2008 |
| I was chuckling throughout the chapter. The quaint ways of hobbits can be quite... ridiculous. :) I like how Bilbo's change is noted by the other hobbits, with that glint in his eyes. Good idea to make Frodo the image of Drogo. That’s true, Bilbo had dealt with a dragon worse than Lobelia... what Sackville-Baggins or Bracegirdle can face him now? I am more and more curious about this Elf-root. Does it have something to do with that troll-treasure??? -Kitt Author Reply: Heh! Yes, you can't face a living dragon and hope to remain unchanged. The SBs don't know whom they are really dealing with. The secret of the Elf-root will be revealed, soon. Although, I'm afraid, it's a lot more harmless than everyone thinks. Hopefully, you won't be disappointed. | |
| Elflingimp | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 10/18/2008 |
| Ha!Ha! I am thuoroly enjoying this, it's almost like reading an extended version of The Hobbit it's written so well. Keep going I can't wait for the outcome of all this and to find out what else Bilbo brought so mysteriously home! Hugs The Imp Author Reply: I'm so very glad you liked it! I msut admit, I read The Hobbit years before I'd meet LOTR, and my first love will always belong to The Hobbit characters. The mystery will be revealed within the next couple of chapters, I promise! Thanks for taking the time to review. It really means a lot to me to get feedback, especially as I'm just a novice when it comes to write about Hobbits. | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 10/18/2008 |
| Utterly hobbity! I love the happy reunion with some of his kin, and the huffiness and suspicion of the rest! And I love the forceful glint in Bilbo's eye. I have a feeling that he will not be very easily pushed around! It's quite fun to see that Dora's mother is so "proper", and I like the idea of using Frodo's description for Drogo's looks! A very fun notion! I look forward to seeing just what's going to occur, and I wonder what proof Bilbo can give if many of the hobbits try to say he's an imposter! Now that's a complication I had not anticipated! Author Reply: Well, Dora had to get her sense for decorum from someone, hadn't she? And I must admit I was in some pain to imagine Drogo's looks... until the idea of using book!Frodo's description occurred to me. They had a great deal of Fallohide blood in them, after all. Oh, yes, Bilbo will have to fight for what's rightfully his. But fear not for him, he has old Missus Crabtree on his side, and an old Gammer is sometimes more frightening than a whole army. *g* | |