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| The Unquenchable Light by Virtuella | 56 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Lady Forlong | Reviewed Chapter: 26 on 6/14/2025 |
| I like the way you weave this story in with everything else that is going on in Middle-earth at the same time. And I hope the Seer is right about Jarin and Wan flying together again. | |
| Lindelea | Reviewed Chapter: 25 on 5/10/2025 |
| This chapter had me in tears. Happy ones. I suspected I knew what Alatar was feeling, in part because I've written several stories about how people in other parts of Middle-earth might somehow perceive the destruction of the Ring from afar. And yes, it sounds like Diri picked a magnificent setting for his proposal! Lovely chapter. I've enjoyed this story thoroughly and appreciate how it's stretched my imagination regarding Middle-earth. One more chapter, eh? I will both dread (I hate coming to the end of a good book, probably the thing that drew me into writing fanfic in the first place) and look forward to reading it. | |
| Mirkwoodmaiden | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/2/2025 |
| Virtuella! This is wonderful! I love how you have taken Tolkien lore and are interpreting it as seen another people. Fascinating. I shall continue to read but I just wanted to drop a quick review. Love it! (((hugs))) MM Author Reply: Thanks for all your comments! I'm glad you're enjoying the story. | |
| Mirkwoodmaiden | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 5/1/2025 |
| Virtuella! I love how you deftly show the trouble brewing towards the west, what will become the Ring War but seen from far off. Nicely done. I love the use of the Blue Wizards as Guardian and wanderer to the Kuz. And that Pallando is the giver of the New Way! So wonderfully crafted. Thank you for this!! ((hugs)) MM | |
| Mirkwoodmaiden | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 5/1/2025 |
| Virtuella! I am loving this. Really well crafted. Original but also with the feel of Middle Earth. Wonderfully done! I shall continue reading.... (((hugs))) MM | |
| Lindelea | Reviewed Chapter: 24 on 4/26/2025 |
| The Ezens' cynicism is well-done. I can just see the Archseraph beginning his letter with profuse apologies, which understandably confirms their dour suspicions at the beginning and maybe helps them accept what they do get with more grace than might have been. Ah, irony. It is also ironic to think back to the previous description of Sauron waiting for the defectors' forces to arrive before launching his campaign. “I hear the Hwenti are pretty handy in a tight spot,” said Ezen Gomru drily. They also throw a mean party. Ezen Worig's observation echoes JRRT's description of the Host of Mordor waking up in front of the Black Gate: “I think the ambassador did something to us, to our heads. We were like sleepwalkers out there. Didn’t you feel when the Archseraph came that you had suddenly woken up from a confusing dream?” The Haradrim in my puppy story describe something similar, and they fear, at first, that Elessar will try to steal their souls or take their will captive as the Dark Lord did. It would make sense that the Ambassador would have some kind of mind-control power/hypnotism? but also that his power would be less than Sauron's (and maybe broken by exposure to the Light?). It is a dangerous time of night for me to be reading fanfic and trying to comment. My tired eyes and brain just rendered "bini carriage" as "bikini". The momentary mental image of a Dwarf in a bikini was stunning, let's just say. However, I am happy to say that I guessed correctly about the contents of the package! But how long are Jarin and Diri going to dance around a certain topic, I wonder? I can easily see them happily working together on projects and inventions and such... and their hearts appear to be bound together, at least to this casual reader. Pairs of ducks always remind me of my dad, who was part of a bomber crew in WWII. Whenever he saw a pair of ducks, he always talked about how they reminded him of fighters flying "in perfect formation". With a sudden pang, I remember what happened to all those ceramic birds. But it was worth it to prevent the coup from going forward. ...a-a-a-a-and we find out the Ambassador's fate. Seasoned with a little more irony. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy. (Swamp fever sounds nasty. Abandoning sick men? There are words for men like him that I won't type here.) What were the two or three battles? O wait, last we heard, Sauron was hesitating, so does that mean the Siege of Gondor hasn't started yet? So, battles in Moria? The attack that The Rohirrim destroying the Orcs that had taken Merry and Pippin captive? The Ents marching on Orthanc? (Something else?) Pallando and Alatar aren't the only ones who're confused. But then, again, considering the brief glimpse of a bikini-clad Dwarf I had earlier, my brain is not working at optimum right now as it is. However, the idea of an instruction manual for a palantír is amusing. (In one of my past careers, I wrote user manuals in the early days of desktop computers.) Jarin has learned and grown so much. I was touched when she asked the Seer's name and wanted to learn more about her. A preserve of custard apple doesn't sound all that appealing to me, either. But then, the only custard flavour that has ever seemed edible to me was chocolate. But how can I do it? Why do I get the sudden suspicion that something creative is about to happen? Looking forward to more. Author Reply: Do they come across as cynical? I was more thinking realistic, or maybe a bit jaded. Bikini dwarf - what can I say? Mind you, there is a scene in The Hobbit where were thirteen dwarves, one hobbit and one wizard all strip naked, bathe in the river and then lie in the sun drying off. Really something you do not want to visualise... The battles, yes. I am being deliberately a little vague about dates, because matching them up exactly to the LOTR timeline and at the same time being precise about timeframes for distrances travelled seemed too tricky. But we are coming up for the spring equinos - this is when the Festival of Birds begins, as Jarin tells Diri, and it's "coming up," so just a few days away. The palantir may show the Battle of Dale, the Battle on the Pellennor, the Battle under the Trees in Mirkwood, the assault on Lorien. The custard apple dessert was born out of desparation. I had originally assumed 23 or 24 chapters, but the story got longer and longer and I kind of ran out of fruit. Thanks for your very entertaining comments! ;-) | |
| Lindelea | Reviewed Chapter: 23 on 4/23/2025 |
| Oops, accidentally posed the earlier review before I finished reading the chapter. I have an idea about the "memento". We'll see if I'm right. I'm sorry for the women and children who are waiting for their men to return. "the story of the elves and their killer booze" sounds like an awesome topic for a raucous drinking song. Or maybe an anti-drinking song? By the way, the pun is awesome in its awfulness. And now I will retire the word "awesome" for at least 24 hours due to overuse. It's rather satisfying to see Sauron hoisted on his own petard, or whatever the saying is. Nice tie-in to the main story. Lastly, "step by hairy little step" is... quite evocative, for starters. Author Reply: Thanks for all your comments! I rather think of Kuz as a kind of mirror of the Shire. A land of plenty, far from trouble, favoured by istari, but then confronted with the evil out there and having to respond in a way that is appropriate for them. I would go with "well-grounded." And it may be that I am a tiny bit in love with Hamujil, which seems strange, but I tend to crush on fictional characters, just usually not my own. I didn't set out to write a commentary on the state of the real world, but I found over time that it just seeped in. | |
| Lindelea | Reviewed Chapter: 23 on 4/23/2025 |
| I suddenly saw in my head what needed to be done and I did it. Considering the topic of discussion, these sound like the words of a very secure man. Or maybe I mean "self-possessed" or "well-grounded". Though he may also have taken a page out of his wife's book, from the conversation. So that's what's happened to the ambassador. (Did, perhaps, steam come out of his ears, or does that only happen in cartoons?) Interesting penal code. It sounds similar to the Shire as I've written it, except for the idea of banishment which I don't remember if it came out of my own head or if I can hang the idea on the hook of something JRRT wrote or hinted at. Though not really a solution, I suppose it might work mostly as a deterrent for a peace-loving people. Re: Jarin and language. I remember when I started dreaming in another language (call it "language 3" for reasons that will hopefully become clear a few lines down), and then thinking in that language instead of my mother tongue (aka "language 1") during a year-long study abroad program. Getting the jokes is an interesting measure of fluency; I hadn't thought of that, but it would require close acquaintance with local idioms. A phenomenon that has fascinated me for years is that when a friend and I were travelling and met some folks from another country (whose language I had learned in high school; call it "language 2"), to talk to them, I had to translate my thoughts internally from my language 3 to language 1 to language 2, and do the opposite when translating what they said to us. I could not translate directly from language 3 to language 2. I am still not sure why. Unless the roads are smooth or the supply carts have springs or some other form of suspension, I'd imagine riding in a cart to be rather uncomfortable even if it spares Jarin's legs. Like the nightly light parade, it probably helped. Oh! watching someone throw pots on a potter's wheel has always fascinated me. A glassblower is similarly fascinating. This is a strangely beautiful thought: Strange how they looked the same even so far from home. The light of the Powers, shining on all. And now Tilar's trial. Hmmm. Maybe a just punishment would to be send her off in Sauron's direction, following in the Ambassador's footsteps (or the footsteps of those who carried him away, that is)? Hmm. A "dragon" scale that weighs the conscience, eh? They're putting her on a weight-loss diet of sorts. Just a different kind of weight or mass or something. Aha. Here, too, it seems, "the love of money is the root of all evil", perhaps? (On a personal note, I find this discussion depressing, considering the state of the world today. I won't say what modern-day person(s) Olan reminds me of because I don't think RL politics belong in a fanfic archive, but he is a bright spot nonetheless.) What will the Ezens say? It's the burning question of the day... or week... or month... or whatever. Lovely chapter! Looking forward to more when you have the time and inclination to write and post. | |
| Leithian | Reviewed Chapter: 23 on 4/17/2025 |
| This in one of the best chapters in this story! Hamujil and Majani are so sweet together. 𝘛𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘒û𝘻𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘒𝘳â 𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢 𝘒𝘳â 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘒û𝘻. I liked the interaction Jarin had with the Kra. It is nice to see they accept her as one of their own. 𝘏𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘺 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘵𝘰-𝘥𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵. This made me laugh so much, and I don't even know why. In fact the whole paragraph on Ezen Kemra is amusing. 𝘐𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘩 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵í𝘳, 𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘯𝘰 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘴. 𝘏𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘭. 𝘏𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘏𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘷𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺. I like your characterisation of Sauron, this version feels very close to the canonical one. The last paragraph was so powerful and is really the culmination of all the efforts of Alatar, Pallando, and the Kuzeen. Will the Ents be re-united with the Ent-wives? I really hope so! Author Reply: Thank you so much! I like a wee joke now and then, and I have presented many to-do lists to my husband over the years, lol. | |
| Mirkwoodmaiden | Reviewed Chapter: Prologue on 4/16/2025 |
| Virtuella! I have seen this story pop up from time to time and yet never clicked on it till now. I am very glad I did. I love the first chapter. Love the hints at who the blue robed one or who the tree women are. I shall continue to read but I am loving the prologue! Thanks! MM Author Reply: I'm glad you decided to have a look, and hope you will not be disappointed! ;-) | |