Hollow by Thundera Tiger
Reviews (9)
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Estel_Mi_Olor
· 26 September 2012
· Chapter 1: Hollow
I. Love. TS. Eliot.
How do you achieve this masterful literary pairing? Thundera, that was perfect! I have never been so chilled reading a description of the Paths of the Dead. Excellent work as always!
Author's reply
I absolutely adore TS Eliot, too! Tolkien wasn't the biggest fan, but in one of his letters, he does admit some grudging respect. So I figured I could get away with it. :) I'm SO glad you liked the description. That was the challenge in this story, so I'm relieved it had an affect. Thank you!
obsidianj
· 3 January 2012
· Chapter 1: Hollow
This is a very creepy description of the Path of the Dead. After this it makes perfect sense for Gimli to have so much trouble entering the mountain.
Adrianne
· 7 November 2010
· Chapter 1: Hollow
I believe that Legolas is wrong in one respect, I believe that all living things hear the song of life or creation, even Men. They just may not be aware that that is what they hear, until they do not hear it any more. It is the absence that makes us more aware of its presence and what it is. I could make a very good analogy based on my own religious beliefs but won't use this forum for that comparison.
I will just say, another story well crafted and fully engrossing and a wee bit disconcerting. Thank you for generously sharing your talent with us. I will say that it was reading your stories that finally gave me courage to post one of my own.
Thank you, Adrianne
Author's reply
Hey Adrianne,
Thank you so much for your review! I agree with you that Legolas isn't quite accurate, but he's making a statement from his perspective which means it's relative. To him, the Song is quite loud and impossible to miss. As a result, when men don't seem to react to its presence or absence, his assumption is that they can't always hear it. So in a relative sense from Legolas's POV, they're deaf. You could liken it to a bloodhound claiming that humans have no sense of smell. It's not strictly true, but for all practical purposes, it's not far off base, either. :) Anyway, many thanks for sharing your thoughts on the subject, and I'm so glad that you found the courage to post! Writing is at least partly about sharing.
Fantasia
· 1 November 2010
· Chapter 1: Hollow
This is a great story, I have never giving a thought to the "place' where the ghost were waiting for redemption. This concept of lack of "materia" or "song" took me to my time at college, where we have endless discussions about what is first, the matter or the consciousness, during philosofic conferences. Really, I enjoyed this short story a lot, and it was a little scary too....
Thank you.
Author's reply
I'm so glad you enjoyed and that you found it at least a wee bit spooky. :) As for the "place" these ghosts inhabit, the land wasn't necessarily cursed, just the oathbreakers. So why would the area feel haunted, too? And why would Legolas have such problems under the trees if the dead hold no terror for him? At least, that's what I wondered, and what's where this story came from. Thanks for the comments!
Matt
· 1 November 2010
· Chapter 1: Hollow
Great job on this story. Very thought provoking and deeply evocative of those parts of a character that .... well, a character would rather not see.
Nicely done.
Thanks for your efforts.
Matt
Author's reply
Many thanks for your comments! I'm glad you liked the fact that everyone is slightly out of his element. In my mind, the distortion of what should be familiar is more unnerving than coming up against the completely unknown. Thank you again! I'm glad it made you think!
Erulisse (one L)
· 30 October 2010
· Chapter 1: Hollow
What a wonderfully insightful story that pulls itself below the tale to discover the stones of the foundation. Indeed, it is the lack of the Song that is of the greatest disturbance. Cacophony of sound can be tolerated, but total silence – the absence of sound – that leaves the need to fill that silence with something; and if that something is smothered, hollowness results. Beautifully done!
Goddess Bless on this Samhain Eve.
- Erulisse (one L)
Author's reply
Thank you so much for such thoughtful comments! I know that I always get jumpy when movies or spooky TV shows go completely silent. That silence just begs to be filled, and if it isn't...well, my imagination does a good job of filling in the blanks. So I wondered how that jumpy-silence-effect might translate into Middle-earth, where there is a perpetual Song that some can hear but some can't. And if that Song were silenced...well, that seems to me to be more horrifying than absolute chaos. Thanks again for the review!
Radbooks
· 30 October 2010
· Chapter 1: Hollow
Very, very nice. I truly enjoyed this little ficlet!! :)
Author's reply
Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked it!
Larner
· 30 October 2010
· Chapter 1: Hollow
For all here, even the forest and the mountain itself, to have so lost themselves that none can sense their intended nature--indeed the greatest horror of all!
Author's reply
Thank you so much for the review! To me, the most effective horror movies and books are things that take what should be and twist them into something that is still recognizable but wholly unfathomable. Not sure if that makes sense, but that's more or less what I was trying to convey here. I'm glad you caught the sense of it! Thanks again!
curiouswombat
· 30 October 2010
· Chapter 1: Hollow
That is both fascinating and powerful - I feel a shiver up my spine but, also, the urge to go back and read again, straight away.
Author's reply
Thank you so much for the review! I'm glad to hear it was worth reading again, even if this is more an atmospheric piece than anything else. It was also good to know that the atmosphere didn't fall flat. I can be very hit-and-miss with that kind of writing. Thanks again!