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| In the Deep Places by Lamiel | 81 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 16 on 2/18/2005 |
| 'If I live to get out of these woods, Gimli swore to himself, I’ll never set foot in a tree again. Never. And no more ladders, either.' That sounds like a promise he won't be keeping!! I love the arrival of all the Elves to stare at the visitors - it's like a movie premiere. How very Gimli not to realise that actually he did the complete opposite of failing. Galadriel put temptation before him and he shrugged it off. Very good grasp of what is real, has Gimli. 'if ever those two came into conflict he would have preferred to watch from a safe distance, such as Valinor.' Mind you, so has Legolas. The way to a Hobbit's heart is through his stomach, is it? Pretty good analysis there - I'm sure the Elves are amazed how much they can eat yet still stand. I enjoyed watching Legolas tease Gimli - it's true that they have become more than a representative of their separate races to each other - that they have, despite all the odds, become friends. I wonder how Legolas felt after Gimli's death, when he was, probably, the only Elf in Valinor to remember the glories of Dwarven culture - and whether he spoke of them to anyone else. Author Reply: As wonderful as Legolas and Gimli's friendship is, it does have an additional element of sadness for the Elf, because of course Gimli will eventually die. In choosing to bond with him Legolas is accepting that eventual grief, just as he has done for Aragorn and to some extent all of the mortals in the Fellowship. This is a theme that will be hinted at in the epilogue, though not overly much so. But I think that Legolas would keep his promise to remember and tell others of Dwarven culture - with or without embellishments of his own making. | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 16 on 2/17/2005 |
| What a delightful chapter! One can see the final opening blossom of Legolas's and Gimli's friendship, based on mutual respect and affection, and displayed by teasing banter. I love it, but it makes me sad, because I know the story is winding down. *sigh* Author Reply: Sigh. All good things must come to an end, I suppose. This story remains my favorite of all the ones I've written, but there are others out there too. | |
| TithenFeredir | Reviewed Chapter: 16 on 2/17/2005 |
| I want to be there when curious elves swarm! If only! Anyway, the way Gimli's adoration for Galadriel blossomed was lovely. I like the way Legolas is doing his best to be proper representative of his home. He seems very princely. His interlude at the top of the mallorn was really beautiful, very elvish. You did a great job of evoking his elven stangeness to Gimli when he first appears where the dwarf is meditating. Then there was that light, teasing note at the end to keep things from getting too earnest. I thoroughly enjoyed this chapter! Thanks! TF Author Reply: I usually visualize Legolas as being rather quiet, and very reluctant to draw attention to himself as royalty. But when the situation calls for it, he can act every inch the Elven prince. I think his father raised him well. | |
| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 16 on 2/17/2005 |
| Of all the chapters, this one is my absolute favorite. There is just too much here to comment on. Elves are foolish. But she was wise. Elves are flighty. But she was serene. Elves are capricious. But she was constant. Elves hate Dwarves. But she had welcomed him, and there had been no hate in her eyes, no scorn or condemnation. There had been only love, and acceptance, and peace. Never trust an Elf. But he loved her. This is a terrific sequence. Ahh Gimli! I love to see the internal struggle of character's whose entire world has just been set on end and Galadriel has done that to Gimli. How wonderfully you capture it there! There is no hope without friendship, and no friendship without understanding. So I will understand. I will understand them all, starting with the Dwarf. And this is wonderful too. The same train of thought from Legolas's perspective. And that is what I loved about this whole first sequence--you have two characters drawing the same conclusion. But if I had read Gimli and Legolas's introspections without having been supplied their names (or even thoughts like, 'can mortals do this') I still could have been able to tell you which was Legolas's thoughts and which was Gimli's. And that is outstanding characterization. Loved this part. Then, completely unarmed for the first time in his adult life, Legolas climbed up into the canopy of the Golden Wood. He moved swiftly through the trees, climbing for the sheer joy of it higher and higher until he reached the uppermost branches that bent and curved easily beneath his feet. Then he stopped, and settling with his back against the cool brace of a mallorn’s trunk he turned his face up toward the stars. I liked this image. Nothing more than that--I just enjoyed it. I like the 'unarmed for the first time in his adult life.' I liked the vision of Legolas climbing in the trees for the sheer joy of it. And I liked the image of him sitting and enjoying the stars. Very nice. And the closing dialogue between Gimli and Legolas--superb! The humor in it still has me giggling. thumping like a woodpecker in the forest and “I can sing.” “Aargh” and “Invent?” Gimli had to hurry to keep up as the Elf slipped silently into the forest. “Of course. For example, I can say that Dwarves were so frightened of knives of any kind that they refused to cut their hair, and their beards grew so long that they frequently tripped over them when they walked.” “What?” etc Those are absolutely priceless snippets. But I also love Legolas's complete openess and how you showed it. And Gimli's struggle to finally let go and accept the change in him and how you showed that. This is a fantastic culminating point to the story in my mind. Loved it! Author Reply: Thank you so much, elliska! This chapter is of course the culmination of the whole story, and I'm just thrilled that you like it. Your comments about the characterization absolutely made my week. That was the point of the story, after all. | |
| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 15 on 2/14/2005 |
| Gimli's reactions here are great: Elven architecture. My life depends on Elven architecture. Lord Mahal preserve me. Ha! Legolas's first interaction with Celeborn and Gimli's reaction to it was great. But I think my favorite part was Legolas's 'conversation' with Galadriel. I have read a lot of stories that addressed how Legolas must have felt about the ring and Lorien/Galadriel's ring and few handled that topic as well as you did here. Great job! Author Reply: I think Legolas has a legitimate grievance regarding the White Council's role in the fight against Dol Guldur. But when I really thought about what it would mean to use Galadriel's power to free Mirkwood, I began to understand why it couldn't be that easy. Truth to tell, the entire Galadriel sequence terrified me, and so I'm very glad that you thought it was done well. Thank you! | |
| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 14 on 2/14/2005 |
| Sorry I fell behind in reviews again. It's been hectic (and I'll be honest--I couldn't stand waiting for updates so I snuck over to FF and read the whole thing there. I'd promised myself I'd enjoy the suspense, but then one day I couldn't stand it anymore. But I hate trying to leave reviews there...) Anyway... This chapter is so rich. Love the 'nettles' problem--you have to wonder how they managed that, don't you. *Giggle* And the waterskin fight was funny too. Only an elf could duck what he couldn't see. Love the whole description of when the take the blindfolds off. And I LOVED the conversation about Mirkwood drinking songs vs children's songs vs tra-la-la down in the valley. Too funny. But the tension at the end between Legolas and Aragorn. Whew! Good job. This is an absolutely wonderful story! Author Reply: Wow, you read the end and you're still taking the time to post such nice and thoughtful reviews here! Aw, thank you so much, Elliska. If you don't care for FF.net (and I don't blame you for that), my current work in progress is also posted at Eternal, if you're interested. Updates tend to be slower there, as they are done when the site manager has time and I have no control over that. But at least the site works consistently. I don't expect the current story to be posted here at SoA because it doesn't fit the restrictions here. | |
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 15 on 2/13/2005 |
| I think, on the whole, I'm rather glad I didn't have to climb up into that mallorn. And Gimli deserves a whole bunch of heroism awards just for getting up there without turning into jelly. I love Legolas being - edged. And Gimli confounding all the elves looking on him as an unlettered rustic of an inferior race. The development of how they can see beneath the superficial differences between elf and dwarf is beautifully done. Author Reply: As much as I love the books, I have to say that I think PJ's mallorn, with stairs, was more realistic - it's hard to conceive of Galadriel climbing that ladder, isn't it? But hey, Tolkien said it was a ladder, and far be it for me to contradict the Master. Besides, I just couldn't resist the chance to make Gimli's life that much harder. | |
| Faith | Reviewed Chapter: 15 on 2/12/2005 |
| we likes it precioussssssssssssss...yes we do.....such a beautiful description of the lady of light....yes preciousssssssssssss....we likes the lady...yes we doo..yes we do.........update soon preciousssssssssssssssssssss...:) Faith, the slightly obssessed fangirl | |
| TithenFeredir | Reviewed Chapter: 15 on 2/12/2005 |
| Oh, this chapter was so good. I loved description of the mellyrn and Gimli's perception of "elven architecture", as well as his determined show of dignity in spite of his nervousness and fatigue. The beginning of his adoration for Galadriel was well done. My favorite part was the way you handled Legolas here. It was a nice balance of his nobility and elvishness against his youth, inexperience and the bias he brings from home. In his exchange with Galaderiel the difference in their ages and status was very evident. It seemed to me that she was teaching him as much as surveying his heart. Then in the brief mention of her encounter with Aragorn you imply much with a simple description of their movements alone. The whole chapter flows so well! Good stuff! TF Author Reply: Thank you TF! In some ways I think this is my favorite chapter of the story. Legolas has good reason to resent the White Council's lack of involvement in fighting Dol Guldur, I think, but he is, as you point out, very young (for an Elf). Galadriel has reasons for everything she does, and her point about taking the Elven Ring to Mirkwood is something of an eye-opener for our prince. | |
| Dreamflower | Reviewed Chapter: 15 on 2/12/2005 |
| I just thought of something else I wanted to mention: from the description of your summary, it seems that this story might end when they leave Lothlorien. I find myself wishing that you might continue it on down the Anduin, and through the hunt for Merry and Pippin up to the re-union in Isengard. So if it *does* end after Lorien, might I beg you for such sequel? I will feed the bunnies for you... Author Reply: Oh, thank you, Dreamflower. Yes, this story does end in Lorien, actually in just a couple of chapters from now. It was not conceived of as a gap-filler for the entire Fellowship (as, for instance, Thundera's story "While the Ring Went South" is) but rather as a friendship fic focusing on Legolas and Gimli. But I did greatly enjoy writing it, and the Three Hunters have always been my favorite part of the books, along with Treebeard . . . well, we'll see. Maybe when I finish my current work-in-progress (which is not on this site - it is on fanfiction.net) I might write a sequel. Especially if I get encouragement like this! I also regret that the focus of the story did not allow me to explore the other characters' reactions to Galadriel's test. Perhaps one day I'll do a series of drabbles on them. So please, keep feeding the bunnies! There's no telling what might develop. | |