Oh my goodness this is so good! This is exactly what I was looking for, a pre-lotr Aragorn centric story! What a masterpiece!

Thank you for this gem. I hope you will forgive me not reviewing each chapter: this story has been my companion through dreary days and sleepless nights, distracted me from drowning depression, kept me awake when I dared not sleep and soothed me to rest when emotions ran too high for peace. Thank you.

This story would make Tolkien proud. You kept faithfully to the language, the characteristics, the very feel of all he created - and yet, you deepened and enriched it yet further. Most impressive indeed.

your authors note made me laugh out loud. I haven't been reviewing this as I've gone along and that is a real tragedy. but I've definitely been enjoying your tale so far, cheers to another day of me being unproductive at work since I cannot put this down!

Wow, I've finally finished. I don't start long fanfics often because I know that when I start reading I'll find it difficult to stop to do things like sleep and doing work, which is why I probably should have waited until certain deadlines were past before I started, but after reading the first chapter I was hooked and only then did I realise how long this was :)
But as much of a detrimental that was to other aspects of my life, I'm glad that it was long because it meant the pacing was really good and never felt rushed like some journeys in fanfics. I really felt like I was on the journey too and it really felt like it was canon. It would be awesome to turn this into an audiobook so it isn't as much of a time commitment, because despite how much I enjoyed it, it's unlikely that I'll read the whole thing in one again, at least not for a while.
The only negative I found about it was the realisation that I'm not as good with my middle-earth geography as I thought, especially around Mordor. When I get the time, I'll have to study it before re reading the start (which may turn into me re reading it all)

I love how you describe Aragorn and elrond’s relationship. It’s so tender and supportive. You mentioned in one of your previous stories that Elrond thought that out of all his children, Estel was most like him. And I can see it. Thanks for writing this beautiful story.

As I got closer and closer to the end of this story, I jumped wildly back and forth between "I don't think I ever read this bit! I just not have finished it!" and "no, wait, I do remember this." So I don't know what weird thing my brain was doing, or if I managed to skip over a chapter here and there, but I am as renewed and as satisfied as I was the first time I reached the end of this story (if indeed I ever did finish it, which remains unclear).

But ahhhhhhhhh, what can I say? I have not the words to celebrate this achievement as artfully as you have celebrated the achievements of these beloved characters, but I know that the writing of this was as long and arduous a journey as Aragorn's own, though it was measured in word count rather than footsteps.

You are of the rare sort of writer who embellishes without overbearing, who conveys gravity and greatness without prentention. Never was there a word missing or one unneeded; never did the characters' thoughts or voices stray from their core; never did I feel as though I wasn't walking the whole way with them. (This had some interesting effects, as I would at times find myself astonished by the presence of food in my house that I didn't need to hunt or scavenge myself, or abruptly concerned that I was running out of drinkable water. These are things I have never truly had to worry about, so I thank you doubly - once for the incredible richness of your storytelling, and once for the reminder to appreciate and be grateful for the privileges I have, which are all too easily taken as a certainty.)

As before, I so appreciate your detail work: the garments (and the construction and repairing thereof), the medical interventions (and consequences), and the lush descriptions of terrain and sensation that made it so easy to take this journey with you.

I am so looking forward to treating myself to the rest of your longer stories, though I'm torn between diving in with reckless abandon and attempting to ration myself just a bit. On the one hand, I'm assured of several days' worth of quality reading material, but on the other, my sleep schedule has been pretty mucked up recently by my inability to put this story down. I'm almost certain that I won't make the sensible decision, but it's nice to pretend that it's an option!

Thank you again (and immeasurably much) for the labors of love that are your writings. I treasure them, as I know do many, and am so unspeakably grateful that you have decided to share your incredible imagination, your dedicated work, and your not insignificant talent with this fandom. I hope you glean (and have gleaned, and will continue to glean) as much joy and contentment from this community as you have given to it.

P.S. I have been notified that I have already left a review on the final chapter so I MUST have finished this before, but ? I have questions, mostly about the state of my memory, but onto chapter 81 this is going.

Once I began reading I could not stop for two days and one night. My loss of sleep was very much worthwhile. Thank you for sharing your masterful gift of writing, it has brought me so much joy.

I can't remember if I have commented on this fic before, but I first read it in 2015 and have come back to it a number of times since. I never fail to be awed by the extensive research that must have gone into it to achieve this level of detail and that gives me a whole new perspective on Middle Earth! Your characterization here (and in your other stories, especially The Valley is Jolly) of our beloved characters really has shaped the way I look at them and is what has helped to make Aragorn one of my favorites over the years. Honestly, I count this version of the hunt for Gollum as canon. I know my thanks are almost a decade too late, but thank you for the time, the effort, and the care that you put into this fic. It's truly a gift to the LOTR fandom!

(Also, a minute comment on this individual chapter- the thought of rugged Aragorn, all alone out in a wild land, smiling softly and imitating his sweet friend Bilbo- made me so happy.)

This was lovely! I admit that it was very hard in the beginning when Aragorn was alone, but I took a sneak peak at the Appendices and decided it'd be worth it to get to the times when he met with others along the road. And it was. :) Also, and this is true for all your stories, but every once and a while I'll come across a word I didn't know and I'll have to look it up (and that rarely happens for me) or I'll learn some neat random fact. Like you can eat pine bark! Learning stuff while reading fiction is always fun. :) Loved the detail and richness of the writing.

I love the way you write Aragorn's relationships with both Arwen and Elrond.

What a wonderful read! Well researched on the events and geography too! Even the title and summary are perfect. It was a long read but I loved every bit of it

What an absolutely marvelous story! I cannot hope to write down an adequate review, but the sheer amount of time you must have spent on writing this is astounding - a very lengthy work, and every chapter was a pleasure to read (mind you, it took me several days to read through it, and I'm very happy about that). Thank you so very much for writing and sharing this!

Wow! What a fantastic read! I can't say enough about how wonderfully written this story was! It had me on the edge of my seat for nearly the whole way. The scenes showing the tender moments and courtship of Aragorn and Arwen was less my cup of tea, but that's my own failing. I'm too much like the kid from the start of The Princess Bride ("Hold it! What is this? Are you trying to trick me? Where's the sports? Is this a kissing book?"). :P I suppose it would be too cruel to deny Aragorn such moments after the trails and trials he faced, but during those moments I couldn't help but think that I was intruding on somebody's very personal business. So really, it's a testament how well written they were!

If you're looking for a subject for a short story, I personally would love to read one from the perspective of Glorfindel, focussing on his unusual nature, so I could better understand what happened to him and how the transition occurs from one life to another. How much of his old life does his memory retain, and is it remembered all at once, or bit by bit? Even just one or two chapters from the perspective of such a richly written side-character would be incredibly illuminating!

Thanks again for this fantastic story! I'm itching to go back and reread The Lord of the Rings now, which is the highest praise I can think to offer! Bravo!

Aragorn has good instincts, but I'm curious as to what led him to mistrust Isengard so quickly. I mean, he's ultimately right, but it seemed a little odd that he had such strong misgivings when both Elrond and Gandalf know Saruman much better, and Elrond at least has reason to mistrust the White wizard (at least based on the events in The Valley is Jolly which, while not strictly canonical, is still in the same literary timeline as this story). Was it because Aragorn's line has been known to produce heirs that possess gifts of minor foresight?

Very cool to see The Plan begin to take shape in this meeting! I am definitely going to be rereading TLotR after this! I've got the bug again :)

I can't express how much I love the way that you write Bilbo! So very Tolkienish! Just wonderful!