Hunting the Spider by Ellynn
Aldwen · 4 November 2021 · Chapter 16: Chapter 16
After the cliffhanger at the end of the previous chapter, I am very glad it resolved like this! :) Thank you so much for a happy ending and for a really nice story!
Author's reply
And thank *you* for the support throughout the whole story. *hugs*
shirebound · 3 November 2021 · Chapter 16: Chapter 16
Three cheers for such a glorious, happy, satisfying ending! Your characters are courageous and noble, the monster is finally slain, the villages are safe, and Faramir finally gets his happily-ever-after. Well done.
Author's reply
Awww, thank you so much for your compliments and support throughout the whole journey. *big hug*
demeter d · 29 October 2021 · Chapter 15: Chapter 15
Wow! That was a good one! First we are moving along purposefully with Haldar and his dark memories. You go from one thread to another, bringing them steadily closer. Then, they all come together! Will she reach one of the boys before the soldiers can reach her? I suspect that after what ever happens here, poor Halder might decide he is ready to retire.
Author's reply
Thank you for the compliments! As for retirement... we'll discuss that after the last chapter. :)
shirebound · 29 October 2021 · Chapter 15: Chapter 15
You certainly know how to craft a cliffhanger. Arrogance has slowed Shelob's attack, and hopefully EVERYone in the village will be saved. Run, Rangers, run!
Author's reply
Hehe, I did announce that there would be one more suspenseful chapter, didn't I? :D Don't worry, no more cliffhangers! The next chapter brings resolution. Thank you! *hugs*
Aldwen · 27 October 2021 · Chapter 14: Chapter 14
'Babies don't do anything else except eating and sleeping and they are cute, right?' - yes, keep thinking that, Faramir! Keep thinking that! :-D On a serious note - the end is frightening. I do hope the rangers get there in time to save those kids!
Author's reply
He will discover that there is so much more about babies, ha? *lol* It will be even more frightening, I promise... *evil laugh* Thank you, dear. :*
shirebound · 25 October 2021 · Chapter 14: Chapter 14
Oh no, more suspense! I suspect that everything's coming together for something conclusive to happen. I really like your Faramir, and his men. They all deserve good food, peaceful rest, and a lifetime of joy with their families.
Author's reply
Hehe, one more chapter of suspense, and then conclusion in the final chapter :) I am so happy to hear you like them :))) Thank you! :*
Aldwen · 21 October 2021 · Chapter 13: Chapter 13
The image of a furious, vengeance-bound giant spider in dark tunnels, dripping venom and kicking bones... scary! Great description!
Author's reply
Tkanks!
shirebound · 21 October 2021 · Chapter 13: Chapter 13
he hoped he would never again have to knock on someone's door and deliver bad news to the family. And now he would have to do it again – no less than nine times What incredibly sad duty for any commander, especially after believing the days of battle were well over.
Author's reply
Indeed :( I guess it's something one can never get used to. :( Thank you *hugs*
Aldwen · 17 October 2021 · Chapter 12: Chapter 12
Very nice battle strategy and excellently described!
Author's reply
Thanks! *hugs*
Raksha The Demon · 17 October 2021 · Chapter 12: Chapter 12
I love seeing Faramir written as the skilled warrior and military leader that he is. Just because he doesn't love battle for its own sake doesn't mean he can't win them...
Author's reply
I'm glad to hear you like my Faramir *happy* Thank you for the review. :)
shirebound · 16 October 2021 · Chapter 12: Chapter 12
You describe this step-by-step advance beautifully. And they had more surprises for the orcs. Earlier preparations included coating the swords with oil; as the rangers advanced from the tunnel and ran forward, it was enough just to pass with the blade through the fires burning around for the oil to burst into flame. The orcs were suddenly faced with the opponents wielding fiery swords. What a genius idea!
Author's reply
Thank you so much, dear. *hugs*
Aldwen · 10 October 2021 · Chapter 11: Chapter 11
Oh... The rangers are in a really tight spot there! Another great, suspenseful chapter! And I really like how you show Faramir's character!
Author's reply
Thank you so much, my friend! *hugs*
shirebound · 10 October 2021 · Chapter 11: Chapter 11
Thank goodness Faramir is there, with his clear head, military experiences, and memory of the hobbits' experiences. Eeee, this is suspenseful!
Author's reply
And it will be more suspenseful, I promise! :) Thank you. :*
sue · 3 October 2021 · Chapter 10: Chapter 10
aarrrgh.waaa. ;( most horrible of cliffhangers. And I have to wait A WEEK for more. The evil of Mordor is infecting you. Loving the story.
Author's reply
Hahaha, will you kill me if I tell you that there will be even more horrible cliffhangers, as we'll approach the end? :))) Thank you so much. ;)
shirebound · 3 October 2021 · Chapter 10: Chapter 10
The two little hobbits must have felt so much worse. His admiration for them suddenly grew to the sky. You know I love that. :) Actually setting foot into Mordor, after knowing it for one's whole life only as a dark threat and a menace must indeed be a momentous thing.
Author's reply
I know you do. :) Remember the moment "Even if this was an ordinary trip in the middle of the sunny day..."? While writing that, I had a moment of humour in my head - I imagined distant future in Gondor, development of tourism, and a tourist agency named "Mordor Tours!" *lol* Thank you, dear.
Aldwen · 3 October 2021 · Chapter 10: Chapter 10
Great chapter! The alternating POV so efficiently adds to the tension! And I like Faramir's realization how brave the hobbits were. As a person subject to a strong dislike of confined places, I totally get his point. :-D
Author's reply
Thank you for the compliments! *happy*
Aldwen · 1 October 2021 · Chapter 9: Chapter 9
Shelob's tunnel - a great description of a nasty place! :-D I also very much like the idea that nature and green things are taking over Minas Morgul. Thank you!
Author's reply
This part about Minas Morgul and nature is based on a documentary I've once seen. I think the name was "Earth after humans". It was a simulation: if the human race disappeared in an instant, what would happen to our buildings, roads and other things we had created? And it looks like that nature would take over very quickly - our cities would soon turn into jungles. :) Thank you so much!
shirebound · 26 September 2021 · Chapter 9: Chapter 9
in comparison to this, the orcs' stench now seemed like a perfume. That's a great way to portray the unimaginable smell of this tunnel. I suspect that the men's admiration for the hobbits is even greater than before!
Author's reply
Not just yet, not just yet... but it will be, later. You will see. Thank you. *hugs*
demeter d · 19 September 2021 · Chapter 8: Chapter 8
The story continues! That second section is my favorite. I have always imagined that Faramir, the Ithilien Ranger, would be an early morning person. We rise with him, and travel through the gently awaking Ithilien landscape. He soaks in the site of the land blossoming under his stewardship. This, indeed, is what he fought those long years for. He still carries the memory of lost friends in his heart, but the pain has mellowed with time. Lovely. Your Shelob, on the other hand, is an aching, embittered old veteran. And she is plotting her revenge. Oh, my. She may very well be as smart a commander as many of these orcs ever served under. The grinding poverty the orc bands live in reminds me of tales from my American West of life for our Native Americans, after they had been militarily beaten and driven from their better ancestral lands onto whatever desert the white "invaders" did not want. Things are slowly getting some better after a century and a half, but their path has been hard. Now, tho. Faramir has assembled a band perhaps enough for one large, smart "Bug". But enough to also tackle eighty desperate, half-starved orcs? And what about the young trainees and their teachers, and those juicy horses mestled in that meadow. What are they prepared to handle?
Author's reply
Well, as I said in my reply to Shirebound, I don't think Shelob would have survived all those millennia if she was stupid! :) And yes, I imagine that orcs' life after the war is a difficult one. They don't know much about agriculture (the slaves worked and produced food), and they lost much territory. Thanks for reading and reviewing! :)
shirebound · 19 September 2021 · Chapter 8: Chapter 8
"these feeble scrawnies" ... What a great description. Shelob is clever, but let's hope that Faramir is more clever!
Author's reply
Well, in all her long years, I'm sure that not everything has been easy for her, and she surely has had battles - with the elves and Gondorians, and other challenges too. I don't think she would have survived all those milennia (and hardships) if she was stupid.
Sue · 13 September 2021 · Chapter 7: Chapter 7
What a great story! I am on tenterhooks waiting for the next installment. You sure know how to write cliff hangars. Every day I check for a new chapter and get excited when I see one - then I zoom through it wishing it were much much longer. Thank you!
Author's reply
Thank you so much! *happy for the review* Chapters will arrive each sunday. And I think 3000 is the average length. One more time - thank you! :)
Aldwen · 13 September 2021 · Chapter 7: Chapter 7
One huge and immortal spider is definitely better than a whole swarm of short-lived ones... And under other circumstances Eowyn would totally have gone on this quest! :) Thank you for another great chapter!
Author's reply
Personally, I don't have anything against spiders. I don't kill them - when I see them in my home, I just let them be. :) Thankfully, there are not Shelob-sized spiders in our world! :))) Yes, I needed a good reason to leave Eowyn behind - and being in the 7th month seemed like a good one. :) thank you, dear. *hugs*
shirebound · 12 September 2021 · Chapter 7: Chapter 7
He imagined the future, imagined holding her hand while children's laugher echoed around them. These two most certainly deserve that, and more. I can't imagine Faramir being able to fully concentrate on this mission if his beloved came along! It's good that he knew Frodo's story, and is communicating with Aragorn about what's going on.
Author's reply
Thank you, dear *hugs*
Aldwen · 5 September 2021 · Chapter 6: Chapter 6
Oh... this is disheartening. Poor guy... :( 'An orc drying his laundry' was a funny one though! :-) Great chapter!
Author's reply
thank you so much for the compliments! *happy*
shirebound · 5 September 2021 · Chapter 6: Chapter 6
Finally their thoughts are heading in the right direction. But knowing the nature of one's adversary and knowing what to do about it... two different things!
Author's reply
They don't know everything yet - but they will. Thank you, dear.