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| A Star in Midwinter by Cairistiona | 29 Review(s) |
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| Ellynn | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| Thank you for this wonderful story, and merry Christmas to you too! Author Reply: Thank you, Ellynn, both for the reviews and for the astronomy help. :) And I hope your Christmas was lovely and filled with all kinds of good things! | |
| Inzilbeth | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| This has been a most wonderful story from start to finish, beautifully written and thoroughly plausible. In each of your stories, Denlad has grown as a character and I can't imagine the Dunedain without him now! The Chieftain's Call is a great tradition and I can't help wondering if maybe this influenced the hobbit settlers when they first moved to the Shire and that this is where their tradition of giving presents on birthdays really came from! Thank you for writing such a great read. Author Reply: Thank you, Inzilbeth! That is such an interesting thought, that the Hobbits may have been influenced by whatever gift-giving the Dunedain may have done. Oh that we could ask the dear Professor his thoughts! But I'm glad you enjoyed this story and enjoyed watching Denlad's early days with the Dunedain--it was my hope to make him fit into canon as seamlessly as I could, so it's always wonderful hearing that readers now can't imagine him not being around. (And Denlad's *very* happy to hear that... he still has that bit of an insecure streak, you know! LOL) Thank you for all your assistance, often right up at the midnight hour. It would have been a far weaker tale without your helping me with canon! | |
| Silivren Tinu | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| *has a sudden strange vision of Aragorn as Santa Claus* I loved the tradition of Chieftain's Call! I certainly would have bid him come in, too. ;-) As enjoyable as Beorning’s Growl must undoubtedly be, I think I'd still prefer Aragorn to come in my house. *g* LOL, I have to admit that I was wondering if poor Denlad would have to drag a drunken chieftain home, too - I'm glad Aragorn only had to take a sip at each house. This story was a wonderful Christmas gift, Cairistiona, and I had lots of fun unwrapping it. Thank you for writing it and sharing it with us! :) Author Reply: And thank you, Almut, for all your lovely reviews! I'm so glad you enjoyed the tale, and yes, Aragorn as Santa! LOL I did have that in mind when I wrote that the bag was burgundy velvet (red would have been too obvious LOL). I don't intend for Aragorn to be a precursor to Santa by any means but I thought it was a fun little image to play with, just a wee bit. *g* And I'm with you... much rather have a handsome, young dark-haired Chieftain than a man in a bear suit, much as I love Dirhael! Again, thank you for all the reviews--I'm so glad you enjoyed this! | |
| george | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| Thank you, and Merry Christmas! Author Reply: Thank you, george! I'm glad you enjoyed this and I hope your Christmas was merry and bright! | |
| shirebound | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| "Watching out for me already, are you?" "Always," Denlad said firmly. And so he shall. What a wondrous story. Thank you for this gift to us. *applauds* Author Reply: *blushes* Thank you, shirebound! I'm so glad you enjoyed the story and made it part of your holidays! | |
| BeeGee | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| I really liked the idea of the "Beornings Growl" LOL. As for Aragorn being so mature for his years; well he was raised by Elves. When your foster father and foster brothers are thousands of years older, I guess you don't get away with much. I'm sure Elrond had seen it all...:D Thank you for this wonderful story, especially for these Holidays when times are really tough for everybody. That's the essence of the Dunadain for me; when they were faced with oppression and loss and evil that was trying to wipe them out completely they stood firm and stood together. A good lesson for us all. Happy Holidays, and hopefully next year will be better for everyone. Author Reply: Thank you, BeeGee! That too is something I greatly admire about the Dunedain--life was hard but yet they must have been able to cope and have joy nonetheless. That is definitely a lesson we can all take away from any story about the Dunedain or Aragorn--that joy does not depend on our circumstances. I'm so glad you enjoyed this story and thank you for the review! | |
| Vilwarin | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| I love the tradition. (It reminds me a bit of Santa and his little helper. ;) And the role fits him. In your story you showed a very different Aragorn from the one we normally see - it shows his "hope [that] dwelt ever in the depths of his heart, from which mirth would arise at times like a spring from the rock." And I absolutely loved it - very well done. I wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy new year, too. Author Reply: Oh, thank you for using that quote... that is one of my favorite descriptions of Aragorn and what guides me most in how I write him! It's so gratifying to hear a reader say that a story of mine brings that quote to mind. And yes, he was a bit of Santa and his little helper, wasn't he? LOL So glad you enjoyed the story and thank you again for this and all the reviews you've left. They're all so very encouraging! Have a lovely New Year! | |
| Ainu Laire | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| What a wonderful story- I love the development of your OCs as well as canon characters, as well as your own take on the Dunedain. I also don't view the stars as a symbol of rank- I would think every Dunadan Ranger has one. I also see the stars passed on from father to son, extra ones being made when there are too many sons, or old ones given to the chieftain if a widow (and sonless) of a fallen Ranger does not want it anymore. Your explanation of that old Scottish tradition is really neat- I had never heard of such a thing before. The chieftains are basically Middle-earth's version of a good-looking Santa. I can deal with that XD What a lovely mettare tale, I loved it. Author Reply: Thank you, Laire! I'm glad you liked this little tale of mine. :) I had never heard of that tradition, either (and hope I have the details right--I was relying on various online sources and you know how that can be). It just seemed a perfect fit for the Dunedain, with some major tweaks. And yes, I do think the star pins likely had to be made anew at times, but I have to wonder how many extras Aragorn likely had, as a result of the long dwindling of the Dunedain. So many men likely died before they ever had sons, which is a very bitter thing on which to think. It's those kinds of things that leave us little wonder that Aragorn's mirth lay deeply hidden... but thank goodness it did spring up now and then! Thank you for the review! | |
| utfrog | Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/25/2009 |
| Thank you for a lovely holiday gift. This is a beautiful story that I will likely reread each year. Blessing to you and yours. Author Reply: Oh, thank you, utfrog! It's lovely to know that a story will become part of a reader's Christmas traditions in the future! I'm so glad you enjoyed this, and yes, blessings to you and yours as well this holiday season! | |