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| The Tenth Walker by Lindelea | 832 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 95 on 6/4/2025 |
| This made me think how coolo it would be to have an archaeological expedition into Middle-earth, discovering old roads and ruins. And how I wish I could see their stars! Author Reply: I get that same feeling every time I read a story that includes ruins. From my younger years, I remember clearly the joy of exploring old crumbling ruins from various periods of history (e.g. castles, chapels, walls, Roman roads, a salt mine founded in the 1500s, a reconstruction of a prehistoric village on stilts, and Roman baths in Europe; ghost towns and the still-visible ruts of the Oregon Trail in the Western US; cave paintings that I don't remember anymore where I saw them because it was so long ago). I can close my eyes and remember walking up a stone stairway in a castle ruin where feet have worn down the middle part of each stair, passing arrow slits in the outward-facing wall, pausing to peer outwards and imagining what the place was like when it was full of life and animals and people... I've never been on a "dig", but the idea of digging down through layers of history is also a fascinating concept. Their stars! Yes... I'd love to see the night sky in Middle-earth during the various seasons, and learn the names and shapes of all the constellations... | |
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 93 on 6/4/2025 |
| I'm happy you are taking me back to this part of the journey, which I've always really liked, with the whole mountian panorama and the lingering memory of the elves. :) Author Reply: I have long had a secret wish to visit Hollin. Even with the uneasy notes JRRT added, it sounds like a lovely place. Thanks! | |
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 90 on 5/14/2025 |
| You've picked up that eerie moment in the book and made it eerier. Personally, I rather like corvids, and whatever they might do to other animals is nothing in comparison to the cruelty humans inflict. But if you need a good spooky bird, a corvid it has to be. Author Reply: Weren't they the birds in the playground scene (and maybe other scenes) of Hitchcock's The Birds? Very eerie! Frightening, even. It wasn't long after seeing that film that I swore off horror films. JRRT seemed to have a better opinion of them, though, at least in The Hobbit. If I'm remembering right. They're so intelligent, and I've found their customs and culture fascinating in the past. I always stop and watch when I see a crow or two driving away a much larger raptor; so bold and brave and clever and determined! It's too bad Saruman used them for nefarious purposes. Do you think the silence (I think a single croak is mentioned in the book) increased the eeriness of the scene? Thinking back on it, that single croak must have made an impression on me in reading that passage and writing this chapter since it's something Bill mentions. Thanks so much for reading and pausing to share your thoughts! | |
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 87 on 5/14/2025 |
| I love that scene in the film, a rare moment that does Boromir justice. Lovely that you picked it up here. And yes, I can see that the poise from dancing could also help with fencing. Author Reply: I remember Boromir as "a noble man" though I think JRRT actually describes Denethor with those words. He's a tragic figure, and yet from the glimpses of him given throughout the book, it's no wonder he's been the subject of interest for so many excellent fanfic writers. He's not all brawn and muscle, but also intelligent, observant, practical, caring and even sensitive (though forced to suppress it or, at least, hide it most of the time). I can understand the temptation to write an AU where he lives and gets to see his beloved City safe at last. It's a difficult day (woke up with no spoons today; was Lobelia visiting recently?), so I'm taking great comfort in reading reviews and dabbling in fanfic. Thanks so much for reading and taking the time to comment. I really appreciate it. | |
| Virtuella | Reviewed Chapter: 86 on 5/14/2025 |
| Ah, so what we amateurs call an LBB - "little brown bird." Author Reply: Hahaha! That resurrected a faint memory of one of my older family members... Thanks for the chuckle! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 128 on 5/10/2025 |
| Now all makes sense to poor Bill, split at last from his Sam and the other Hobbits it has come to see as his new herd. May his separation from the Fellowship be eased as he finds his way home, guided by the Wizard's pictures and the voices gifted to him for his guidance within the empty lands he now faces. Beautifully wrought to the end, my friend. Author Reply: Thank you so much, dear friend. I'm glad this weekend gave you some space to read and (hopefully) relax. (((hugs))) Happy Mother's Day to you! (I think I probably wrote this in another review reply, but it bears repeating.) | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 127 on 5/10/2025 |
| Love the pony's vision of what the others see, and his appreciation for the worry as to how they will enter the Mines. Author Reply: He can certainly read their emotions, even though he can't make sense of the lines that appear on the rocky surface of the cliffs. (While I've seen video of studies where dolphins and other creatures were able to learn to recognise fairly simple symbols and shapes – who knows what complex shapes they naturally respond to in the wild? – I'm not sure if any such studies have been conducted with equines. So I went with the idea that Bill couldn't distinguish a star from a rune or a tree in a 2D rendering.) Thanks! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 126 on 5/10/2025 |
| Ah, it was the empathy of Frodo rather than Aragorn I noted. But the same could indeed be said of the King-to-be had he thought of it first. I bless the pictures Gandalf shows Bill to bring him back to his birthplace. Thanks for this one. Author Reply: I have stolen some time to type review replies this morning, and so I must thank you for your encouraging feedback – for reading reviews is so energizing – but the "kitten" is having a cow, so to speak, and so I think I must close the laptop and embark upon a voyage of discovery to see what she needs. Or thinks she needs. A lap to nap on? Freshening the supply of food or water? A few light-hearted moments chasing a feather tied to a string? All demanding, insistent meows sound alike to me, and so a process of trial-and-error lies in my immediate future. (((hugs))) Thanks again! | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 125 on 5/10/2025 |
| I am proud of Bill's strength and courage! And bless Aragorn for his empathy. Author Reply: Bill has learned much and grown much over the past weeks. He had a good foundation, what with the Old Man who bred and trained him and his dam who brought him up (and who evidently had stored up quite a lot of experience and wisdom before he was born). I'm glad that Aragorn made sure he had at least a little water as they walked through the dry lands, but I also wanted to emphasize Boromir's qualities as I imagine would be characteristic of a Captain of Gondor. Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts! I hope this finds you well. | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 124 on 5/10/2025 |
| A good reminder that they are no longer in safe places. Author Reply: Gandalf undoubtedly had good reasons for his repeated urging to make haste, and the others probably took their cues from his concern, I should think! Thanks! | |