Reviewed by: Dwimordene -- Score: 8

The queen of brevity strikes again--I always have absolute faith that Altariel will manage somehow to find the most economic way to express an idea or an emotion. Whether drabbling or writing short pieces (or even novels), she doesn't waste a single word. Her style is very clean and eloquent, and when she gives us an image, it remains with the reader. You can't mistake her work with anyone else's, I dare say. Here, she manages to draw on other works we're familiar with to give depth to her pieces; but even if we aren't familiar with them, there's enough there that the stories can stand on their own, and very well at that. Her Faramir is always well characterized--she knows how to capture mood but also a lively intelligence that doesn't need to be direct to be pointed. She also shows the complexity of his own emotional heritage very well--his balance between Denethor and Finduilas, as it were, and the way that trauma has affected him, all while avoiding excess. Any work by Altariel is worth reading, and then reading again.

Reviewed by: dkpalaska -- Score: 10

I have loved and enjoyed Altariel's works since soon after I discovered LotR fanfiction. Even after finding many additional wonderful and creative authors, I still think of her as one of the most poetic and brilliant writers around. She wastes no words, whether we are dealing with drabbles, longer stories or multi-chapter serials. Everything is crafted such that it contributes to the storyline and enhances the overall picture - no extraneous material. She is also a master of slipping in the unexpected, an unusual "twist"/PoV, or a double-meaning word or phrase that will draw me up sharply and make me really think about what she is trying to convey. Her main focus is Faramir, Eowyn and their immediate family, and few can come close to the complexity and depth that she has given these characters. Even difficult ones like Denethor and Finduilas are handled well, and if I do not always like or enjoy where Altariel goes with these individuals, I've never been able to deny the plausibility of it. But the House of Hurin is not her sole playground, and she writes with the same creativity and thoroughness in every piece she authors. Her characters grow and change, but still remain true, always, to her vision of them. Truly a gifted author, deftly capable of executing the perfect turn of phrase or subtle reference.

Reviewed by: Marta -- Score: 4

Altariel shows here that she can build effectively on the writings of other fanfic authors and make them distinctly her own. The Brand stories are some of my favourites in her shared universe, and the story of Faramir meeting Brand is really convincingly drawn. And her story "Red River" has a similar touch of politics that makes the events feel robust and realistic. That's what I really love about Altariel's world, that it is impossible to forget that these folks are nobles and so their actions always have larger implications.