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| More Faramir drabbles by Nesta | 51 Review(s) |
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| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 6 on 3/24/2009 |
| One I think I have read before, elsewhere. Oh, so true! Too true. Author Reply: You can't help thinking about it that way, to my mind. A woman who cheerfully waves her man off to war, and really *is* cheerful, would not be a very loving one, would she? | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 3/24/2009 |
| At least THIS dream came true in the end. Marvelous foreshadowing. Author Reply: Yes, it must have been wonderful to think that things like that could really happen. It reminds me a little of growing up before the fall of the Soviet bloc: we just never dreamed that it would cease to exist in our lifetimes, and we were brought up to think it was an ever-present menace, lilke Mordor. Alas, the joy and relief at its fall very soon turned sour. Apparently the same thing happened in Middle Earth as well (return of the Shadow), but not in Faramir's lifetime. | |
| Larner | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 3/24/2009 |
| A dream we all face, I fear. And she calls for a champion? Not one she can best herself. Author Reply: Faramir will be her champion, I think. She'd always be beautiful to him. There's a sad little footnote to Rider Haggard's 'She' - a novel about another beautiful woman who never grows old - to the effect that 'we' (meaning men)tend to love women for their beauty. 'If we lost them, and found them again dreadful to look upon, though otherwise they were the very same, would we still love them?' But in the sequel, when 'She' turns up again and *has* become old and hideous, the hero sticks by her - except that she immediately turns beautiful again. There ain't no denying it, men want female beauty and it sometimes seems that women spend half their lives (and incomes) trying to give them what they want. Sigh. | |
| Raksha The Demon | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 3/22/2009 |
| A lovely, haunting piece. I think Eowyn would have the pragmatism to make anyplace where she was respected and loved and had a family her home; she would have known from childhood on that women often left their homes to go make a new home at their husbands' hearths. And I can easily see her being happy with Faramir wherever he is. The glimpse of Legolas' sea-longing is nicely written, it's often with him, he just hides it, and perhaps it ebbs and flows. Arwen's anguish is haunting; and perhaps this sorrow contributed to her despair after Aragorn's death. Author Reply: Thanks, Racksha. I think this sense of exile and loss that hovers over Tolkien's world is one of the most profound and important things in it; there's even a touch of it in 'The Hobbit', at Thorin's death. From the 'Tale' it seems that Arwen, by Aragorn's death-bed, does come perilously close to regretting her choice: Aragorn's serenity contrasts very sharply with her bitterness. It seems that she never really faced the consequences of her choice until that moment, when her reason for becoming mortal was vanishing and yet she had to remain mortal herself. It's rather odd that Aragorn should suggest that she could 'repent' of her choice; surely he ought to have known that she couldn't? Perhaps he never really dared face the implications either. As a human being, if you believe in an after-life then no partings can be for ever. Tolkien clearly did believe this, which is why the parting of Elrond and Arwen is so very painful. I don't think anyone else in the whole saga has to face anything so utterly final. | |
| daw the minstrel | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 3/22/2009 |
| This was both powerful and true. I love the varied descriptions of what each person longs for as home. The glimpses of Legolas's longing are heart-rending. But most painful of all is Arwen. Yes, she made her own choice, but all choices give loss as well as gain. Great job. Author Reply: Many thanks, Minstrel! There's an awful lot about choice in LoTR and nobody's choices are easy. Think of Aragorn deciding whether or not to follow Frodo at Rauros, or, most of all, Sam deciding whether to leave Frodo's body and go on with the quest. And I always thought Faramir's choice not to seize the Ring was worth far more praise than it ever got. He probably expected a kick in the teeth from Denethor, but Gandalf might have said a kind word... | |
| Rugi | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 3/22/2009 |
| I am so pleased to see you posting more fics! I love your stories (particularly your Steward stuff) so it's a treat to see more of them. I thought it was intriguing to read Eowyn's view of home, as she is someone who made a choice to leave her own home and old life. I liked that, for Eowyn, it became the people in her life who were home to her, rather than any one place - it makes sense for her character. And I liked the mention of Faramir and his love for the MT - for all that Ithilien was his princedom, I can't imagine it completely displacing the city of his family. And it was also interesting to see Arwen and her grief through Eowyn's eyes. I loved it. Author Reply: I'm sure you're right about Eowyn, Rugi. She seems to have found Edoras intolerably confining, but she clearly loved Rohan, or at least took a fierce pride in it. Raksha the Demon has written a beautiful drabble about how Faramir might have delivered Eowyn from her 'cage' at Edoras. It's called 'The Bower' and I think it's on ff.net, but Raksha will tell you. | |
| Rugi | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 2/21/2009 |
| I LOVED this fic. The rhythm of the questions and answers between the ambassador and Elboron was perfect - almost like poetry. And I adored the end. It reminded me of Pippin's reaction to Faramir - if Faramir could inspire that kind of feeling, meeting Aragorn must have been a bit shattering. I like the image of the ambassador contemplating that. Lovely! Author Reply: I'm sure my knees would knock meeting either of them, but with Faramir it might be for a slightly different reason... | |
| Linda Hoyland | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 6/20/2007 |
| Very enjoyable.It is the essence of the man that counts. Author Reply: Very true. Of course, diplomacy involves a lot of posturing, and magnificence is a powerful tool. However, I think Faramir would have eschewed it in the Stewards' tradition, remembering the unforgettable description in RoTK of Denethor - the proudest of men! - sitting in his humble chair in the shadow of that great empty throne. I don't think Faramir would need magnificence to impress. Just looking at people seems to do the job! | |
| phyloxena | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 6/15/2007 |
| I remember you had a piece somewhere about various characters testifying against PJ's distortion. Gandalf's testimony surely sounded like "the Elephant Child". Could you please link me to the piece? I meant Solomon(?) from "the Butterfly Who Stomped"; I'm better familiar with JSS in translation and wasn't sure what was original name. Author Reply: That would be Gandalf talking about young Faramir's 'Statiable Curtiosity in a very old fanfic I posted at Council of Elrond. You'll find it on http://www.councilofelrond.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Fanfiction&file=index&options=SearchResults&searchterm=Fattybolger&pagenumber=1&searchkind=author&totalpages=-1 Nice of you to remember it! | |
| phyloxena | Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 6/14/2007 |
| This is actually very funny. The kind of mounting-to-the-punchline fun of a historical anecdote. And it reminded me of Solomon in "Just So Stories" (or the Elephant child from the same book). Author Reply: I always adored the JSS, especially the Elephant's child. Perhaps this one is more like 'The Butterfly that stamped': how to rig things so as to make somebody look important? I would certainly tremble if I met Faramir's eyes, but it might not be for the same reasons. So that was all right, Best Beloved: do you see? | |