Tedious brief tales of Númenor by Nesta
Elena Tiriel · 5 August 2010 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Oh, dear, I didn't realize that URLs are filtered out of reviews.... My story, "Fell and Fair" is at HASA; you can use the "Select an author" drop-down at the top of the home page to look for "Elena Tiriel", then click on the story name. The eagle drabble is the first one in chapter 13. - Barbara
Author's reply
Thanks, Barbara!
Linda Hoyland · 5 August 2010 · Chapter 2: The stuff of nightmares
Truly the stuff of nightmares! I can see now why Faramir has them if he has inherited the memory.A vivid and chilling tale.
Author's reply
Yes, this is Faramir's remote ancestor. He must be Tolkien's ancestor too! There's no doubt that Tolkien and Faramir are related. I even think that's why Faramir isn't given such lavish praise as people like Aragorn and Eomer: it's the Prof's innate modesty coming out!
Elena Tiriel · 4 August 2010 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Hi Nesta, My eagle drabble is part of my drabble novel ;-) called Fell and Fair, at . It is about the sons of Elrond at the Battle of the Field of Celebrant. The eagle drabble is the first one in the battle chapter at . And I owe my knowledge of eagles and ravens (another PoV in that chapter) to the PBS series, "Nature". So I'm all for learning about the kind of nature that I'd never see up-close and personal from high-quality TV programming, too. - Barbara
Larner · 3 August 2010 · Chapter 2: The stuff of nightmares
How likely this perception of the fall of the Star-Isle and the horror of knowing that Sauron also survived its fall and must be fought anew. Well done.
Author's reply
Thanks, Larner! You can probably guess whose ancestor is having these thoughts.
Elena Tiriel · 3 August 2010 · Chapter 2: The stuff of nightmares
Very evocative, Nesta! You've picked a couple of the most interesting bits of the Númenor chapter in UT to expand upon, and done it well. The horror of such an experience really comes through, and the stress.... Nicely done! - Barbara
Author's reply
Thanks, Barbara! I'm sure you spotted the direct quote.
Elena Tiriel · 3 August 2010 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Oh, this is great, Nesta! I always liked the idea of the Eagles of Manwë taking an interest in Númenor, and being accorded respect -- and a nesting place -- by the Kings. And I love unusual PoVs, so in my mega-drabble series, I have one drabble from the PoV of an eagle, which I thought was very daring. ;-) But to have the PoV of the poor shmuck who has to muck out the aerie? That is simply brilliant! And you do it so well... Yes, I'd be counting the steps, too! And whining piteously.... Very nicely done! - Barbara
Author's reply
Yes, wonderful birds eagles, but by all accounts their nesting habits are appalling - as are those of most birds of prey. Where's your eagle drabble?
Agape4Gondor · 1 April 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Absolutely excellent! My heart (my feet, my legs, my arms) went out to the oor servants! I do think that a dumb waiter would work - even in a circular stair - put it in the middle shaft. Also, I had to learn a wee bit about eagles myself for a tale - they do indeed usually only have one of the brood live. Nice job!
Author's reply
I think the King will have to get in a domestic engineer before the servants go on strike! Of course it's a bit cheeky to get realistic over Tolkien's eagles: he sees them romantically and symbolically and they work very well that way. Same with Shelob: real spiders have eight eyes and don't sting, but Shelob works very well in the story. Unless you're a dedicated arachnophile maybe!
Linda Hoyland · 31 March 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Delightfully amusing though I shudder at the thought of climbing all those steps!
Author's reply
Yes, you know how agonising it is when you are carrying something heavy, in particular!
Aiwen · 29 March 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Snicker. Very funny and true to life; although I suspect that numenor may have had something like a dumb waiter system in castles that size - needed equipment gets hauled up and down a shaft. It ought to be perfectly doable with their technology level and there's plenty of incentive to invent one.
Author's reply
That's an intriguing idea, but do dumb waiters work with corkscrew staircases? I was thinking the tower would have one like that.
Stefania · 29 March 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Very clever and well-written. Eagles do have terrible hygiene. - Steff
Author's reply
Glad to have this confirmed. I saw an eagle once, but from a great distance - not enough to smell it!
grumpy · 28 March 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Ah, this one gave me a laugh, of course the king would not know of the mess that would have to cleaned up. Love the counting of stairs!
Author's reply
Actually palaces could be very difficult to keep clean, and sometimes weren't (talking about our world now). Apparently some parts of 18th-century Versailles, for example, were filthy, and medieval kings used to move house when the stink in the one they occupied became unbearable. Eagles would be a minor problem for the poor servants!
Cairistiona · 28 March 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Brilliant! It is funny how in fiction, all those nasty bits tend to go unwritten, but yes, someone had to clean out the eyrie. The last line made me chuckle aloud.
Author's reply
Ah well, romance doesn't bother with mundane details, and that's one reason why I like it. But the mundane things must always have got on, mustn't they? In my earthier moments I've even wondered how they coped with the sewage outfall from Henneth Annun. Tut, tut, Nesta!
Larner · 27 March 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Ah, I love it! One wonders what Junior did to draw THAT duty? Hehehehe! Thanks for a giggle!
Author's reply
It was a case of 'last one out of the room cleans up after the eagles', I imagine!
6336 · 27 March 2009 · Chapter 1: The topmost turret
Eru bless the BBC! Lynda
Author's reply
Ah, I love it. I haven't the patience to watch wildlife in the flesh, but thanks to those natural history programmes I've witnessed marvels - and some grimmer moments, like young birds being turfed out of their nests by elder siblings. There was one sequence of a baby owl swallowing its little brother whole...