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| Sharing Sam by Celeritas | 34 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| shirebound | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/2/2009 |
| Sam turned to her and looked her straight in the eye; and his face was a mixture of wonder and love. What a truly lovely chapter. Author Reply: Thank you! Rosie really was a lucky girl--once Sam had the time, opportunity, and nerve to show his affection to her! | |
| cookiefleck | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 3/9/2009 |
| I just love this story. Missed the second chapter when you posted it but read it now and that final vision of Sam sobbing just tore me apart. The third chapter was engrossing, and made more so by Sam's absence, I think. Although he's not present, the anticipation of his return permeates all the goings on. Everything so far feels in sync with canon and characterization and I mean that as the highest compliment. Author Reply: Hello, cookiefleck; thanks for the review! I felt kind of wretched giving Frodo that vision of Sam, but I think he needed to be fully aware of how devastating leaving him would be (even though he hasn't quite grasped that that's why Sam's crying). It also, fortunately, shows him that Sam will be in good arms... er, hands. I was a little bit nervous about this chapter because it wasn't as obviously about Sam as the last two, but Rosie had to deal with the Cousins before Sam came back. Everything so far feels in sync with canon and characterization and I mean that as the highest compliment. Even if you didn't intend that to be complimentary, I would take it as such! Verisimilitude with canon is something that I strive for in almost all of my fan fiction. | |
| Kara's Aunty | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 3/8/2009 |
| Hello Celeritas! I was about to reply to your own review when I saw your (Not In Any Way) Shameless Plug at the bottom and dashed straight over to the homepage to find...ta da!...a new chapter of the wonderful Sharing Sam! Oh, you are too good to me! And what a wonderful chapter it was too! How nice to see Frodo and Rosie's burgeoning friendship has developed to a point where they can indulge in a bit of friendly teasing. And the poor lass being surprised with the daunting experience of meeting his cousins for the first time - you portrayed her nervous anxiety beautifully. It was very touching to see the more serious, compassionate side of the usually gragarious hobbits as they apologised for their little faux pax. And I bet they didn't even have to be forced into it by Frodo either, 'cos that's how wonderful they really are. One wee note - I think you mis-spelled 'ungignified' as 'undignifying' when Rosie was imagining Pip's look of comic outrage at his greeting from Frodo, just in case you want to change it. Otherwise, this was an exemplary specimen of your work at its very best. More, more!! Hopping in anticipation, M ;) Author Reply: I think it'll still be some time before Rosie feels comfortable with teasing Frodo, but at least she's learning how to deal with his gentle teasing with grace. And this isn't the first time she's come across Merry and Pippin--it's just that now Frodo's trying to work on their cultivating her acquaintance (and they're trying to cultivate her acquaintance on their own as well!). I do think that Merry and Pippin would make anyone who doesn't know them nervously anxious, though! ^_^ I try never to forget the more serious side of Merry and Pippin, and I think that as soon as they realized they were making Rosie uncomfortable they'd go out of their way to apologize: as long as no one else was looking in! I did give some major thought over the nonword "undignifying," but I decided to keep it: if the treatment were undignified, then that would imply that there was something shameful in the treatment itself, whereas "undignifying" suggests that it has the effect of making Pippin undignified. *is a grammar nerd* No guarantees on when "more" is going to happen, but the next chapter should not be nearly as difficult to write as this one was*! *Famous last words... | |
| Antane | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 3/7/2009 |
| "You’re clearly the treasure of his heart—well, you and Frodo, that is—and you’ve waited for him this long.” Lucky Frodo and Rosie to be loved by Love Incarnate like that. Very true and Rosie was some special lass to have been able to understand and accept that she did share Sam with Frodo but neither was loved any the less because of it. “Well, please don’t do anything until a while after he’s come back. Mr. Frodo’s already got something up his sleeve and I don’t want Sam to be overwhelmed…” Cute! You should continue this. Namarie, God bless, Antane :) Author Reply: Yes, well, if it were any other hobbit than Sam Rosie wouldn't think it was possible to love two separate individuals that strongly. But this is Sam we're talking about. Not that that doesn't mean there aren't going to be little tensions when they're all moved in together, but it'll be a little while before that happens. And in case you're wondering, the next bit will be set one day later, and will (finally!) include Sam in the tale. | |
| shirebound | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 3/7/2009 |
| “I think we’d rather forgotten you’re a lass in your own right, and not just the person Sam wouldn’t shut up about. I love that. You have a wonderful way of writing each hobbit's dialogue as unique; I can always tell who's speaking. Dear Merry; I can well imagine he'd be longing to be with Frodo more, and see to his comfort and peace of mind. Author Reply: Thank you!!! I do try to hear each character's "voice" in my head, by which I mean word choice and such, but I can never really tell if I'm right or not until someone else reads it. And yes, I feel quite sorry for post-Quest Merry (and Pippin!)--they've done so much for Frodo, but now the person closest to him and indeed his chief caretaker is Sam! And he was going to sail without even letting them know! | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 3/7/2009 |
| Aww...this was a nice treat to wake up to! Dear Rose, so unused to the gentry! And Merry and Pippin being their usual expansive selves, only perhaps a little more so. (I too think they may have overdone the joviality from time to time in those early days, as they tried to fit in back home.) (Merry being "a little sad" on the fifteenth makes me suspicious, by the way--it's entirely too casual, and far too like his older cousin's own denials. But it's no part of this story, and out of Rose's ken anyway.) Their apology to Rose was so sweet--it's clear they are very motivated by their friendship with Sam, and their wish for his to be happy. And the part at the end with Merry looking in on Frodo, and his conversation with Rose was wonderful. That's another thing I'm sure of: that she confided in those who loved Frodo about his illness. I can't see her holding with keeping secrets like that from family. And underlying it all is a twitch of amusement on this reader's part, as I am inagining the future, and how in time, these particular gentry will end up being as close as cousins to Sam (for I include those two among the things Frodo left to Sam) and that at the very least, *one* of them will end up actually being kin-by-marriage! It's probably a *good* thing that poor Rosie doesn't have Frodo's foresight! As much as she loves Sam, it might have scared her off!! LOL! Author Reply: *grin* I was so ridiculously happy when I got it done! I do think that M&P were overdoing it, just a little bit. They're still trying to get their bearings in this new home, with their new selves. So of course it's going to take a bit for Rose to get used to them! Heh, the fifteenth... You may take that however you want. Though his suspiciously asking "why?" implies, I hope, that Merry thinks Frodo expected him to go through something much worse--because Frodo went through something himself two days ago. I don't think Merry was entirely unaffected, but this was (at least to me; as I said you may take that however you want) my attempt to subvert the traditional "all the hobbits had anniversaries" fanon. But yes, entirely too casual. I had a lot of fun working through that apology and trying to figure out exactly why Rosie felt so uncomfortable around Merry and Pippin. I did not mention anything here, but I do think Frodo had a few words with his cousins while Rosie was off on her own--though once they realized what was going on, they were able to analyze their own actions well enough to know what must be done. And you're absolutely right--Rosie hasn't seen nuttin' yet with these two! I think even a basic reading of Appendix B shows how close Sam was to Merry and Pippin in the Fourth Age, and of course as he and Rosie are gentrified she'll have to know these two fellows a lot better than she does now! One step at a time, Rosie, one step at a time... | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 3/7/2009 |
| Poor lads are really too forward for Rosie, but she'll get by with them, I think. And I'm so glad she's willing to be there for Frodo, but understands Merry's desire to do so. Merry's always thought of Frodo as his near-brother; this must be so difficult for him, to know he can do barely anything for him. Author Reply: She will get by them, especially now that they've explained themselves to her to an extent. I hope that as time goes by (after Frodo has left) she'll learn how to give as good as she gets! I always felt bad for Merry, fading out of his cousin's life like that. When I'd originally envisioned the scene, he was considerably more irritated that first Sam does all the looking after him, and then Sam's sweetheart! | |
| Speedy Hobbit | Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 12/20/2008 |
| Awwwwww, our poor dear Frodo! And poor Rosie too, come to that- I can't imagine it being a very nice feeling at all, what the whole Sam-leaving thing must have looked like to her- he tells her he loves her, then departs the Shire for over a year without sending any messages back? That certainly would not look very well at all from her point-of-view. The poor dears. *huggles them both* Author Reply: Oh, excellent; I'm glad you found this! I imagine that some part of Frodo has already realized that he's leaving, so a lot of his actions at this point are him gracefully preparing the way to make sure Sam has a fulfilling life without him--even though he doesn't consciously realize it yet. And I can't imagine that the past year would have been easy on Rosie, either, especially since somehow she knew since March that Sam was well, but he still didn't come back for another six months! Hopefully getting to know one another will help both of them feel better. Thanks for reviewing! ~Celeritas | |
| Antane | Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 11/2/2008 |
| A loving, lovely, heartaching tale. You go, Rosie! Give that stubborn Baggins a good talking to! He needs to know there are those who would take care of him. And yes, she and Sam will match perfectly because they both are such caring, loving souls. I'm glad Frodo trusts Rosie enough to have cried in her arms. He sees far and with his soul so knit to Sam's, of course he would know whether Sam was troubled by nightmares, even when they are apart. That deep a connection between them wouldn't change even with all the Sea between them. I love what Rose did - sleeping in Sam's room so she could watch out like he would - and I love also that she perceived that her/their Sam was even more Sam after his return than before she left. These three will get along very well together in Bag End. But oh for Frodo to have seen a vision of what Sam will feel after Frodo has left...but then he knows that Rose will be there...and Frodo himself will be always in Sam's heart and Sam in his. Namarie, God bless, Antane :) Author Reply: Honestly, with both Sam and Rosie giving him the what-for you'd think that Frodo would try to put a little more stock in propriety just so they'll leave him alone! I think the bit where Frodo cried for Rosie was a leap of faith on his part: they still hardly know each other and to bare your soul like that is a very difficult thing to do. But she'd already seen him weak, coming in on his dream like that, and she had just told him that she was trying to do what Sam would--so perforce he had to do what he would have if it were Sam there and not Rose. I don't think Frodo would know for certain whether Sam was perfectly all right while away, but he certainly knows his character and his capacity for healing. Sam seems like the sort not to get troubled by anything as long as he has something to do. It was hard trying to think of how exactly Sam would have changed to those who remained in the Shire over the Quest--because you know he would have to have, but he adjusts back to life in the Shire so well. So I think his time Outside just helped him to realize his Sammish potential a lot faster than he would have within the Shire. Then Rosie just had to see that and put it in her own words. I also think Frodo needed to see exactly what his choice to sail would mean to those he left behind--as grievous as that was! But once he realizes the reason for the sorrow in that vision, he'll remember that Sam is not crying alone, and other, later ones that show him happy and healed will tell him all he needs to know. | |
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 11/2/2008 |
| A most excellent story. You portray the delicate relationship between Rosie and Frodo very well. She couldn't not resent him, and still she couldn't not try to understand and like him, given how close he is to Sam. I like how you refer to class distinction and at the same time allow them to transcend it. The dreams, yes. Post traumatic stress disorder, isn't that what it's called? Tolkien tells us only that Frodo was troubled, but you're right, all of the fellowship would have been affected by it to some degree. It was a lovely sentence when she realized that the quest had changed Sam, but only to make him even more like Sam. Author Reply: I'm glad you picked up on that sentence, because as soon as I had written it I became exceedingly fond of it. PTSD is the current correct medical term (I personally prefer the older "shell shock"), but I try not to actually apply psych per se to fiction that's set in a pre-psych world. Getting bad dreams from bad experiences is pretty normal, and I think that going through what the hobbits went through and not coming out affected by that would be more worrisome than getting bad dreams. I do think that eventually after he's done grieving for Frodo Sam's dreams would die down, but it's only been a year after all and Sam is by no means complete in terms of his character. I'm glad you thought I got Rosie and Frodo's relationship down. There's not a lot about them out there, but one can make educated guesses! Thanks for the review! | |