#thrandul

Galion straight-faced: So… lie.

Legolas grinning: Extensively.

Thranduil sighing: Why do I bring either of you?

Galion: You like flair and backup commentary.

Legolas: And I’m your little leaf. You wouldn't leave me!

Thranduil muttering: I won't hesitate to fire you.

Elrond: Thranduil! Welcome. Your reputation precedes you.

Thranduil bowing with just the right amount of smug: I do try to arrive at least ten minutes after it.

Galion under his breath: Usually with better posture than this.

Thranduil: Galion.

Legolas eyeing the decorative fruit platter on the table: Is that… pomegranate? I thought this was a formal occasion.

Galion sniffs a fig suspiciously: This looks like it fought back.

Thranduil through clenched teeth, smiling at the Elrond: Forgive my companions. They’ve never seen fruit arranged diplomatically.

Elrond slightly confused: It's a symbol of abundance.

Galion: Abundant bruising, perhaps.

Legolas: Shall I duel it, or just glare at it until it surrenders?

Thranduil glaring at both of them: If either of you so much as sneeze in the direction of that fruit, I will assign you both to border patrol. In the rain. Without cloaks.

Elrond smiling a little too politely: You certainly bring a… spirited entourage.

Galion: We prefer the term “charmingly inconvenient.”

Legolas: Or “elvishly unpredictable.”

Thranduil: I’m changing both your titles to “Perpetual Embarrassment.”

Galion: Sounds like a noble house.

Legolas: Can I be heir?

Thranduil turns to the Elrond: I’m terribly sorry. I promise, we are technically a functioning government.

Elrond laughing: On the contrary—this is the most entertaining diplomatic visit we’ve ever had.

Galion: See, my lord? We’re not chaotic.

Old McThranduil had a farm

E-I-E-I-O

Bald Thranduil looks like Mark Strong.

Lindir: What’s wrong, Elrond?

Elrond: I just spoke to Galadriel. She is very upset right now.

Lindir: Why? What is the matter?

Elrond: She just read Thranduil’s thoughts again.

Another Review: The hits keep coming--and not from Justin Bieber.

So getting through Book II: The Saga of Thranduil isn’t for those with the attention span of a fruit gnat or me, but from what I gather on the outside is that it’s great, keeps your attention, the accuracy is wonderful and the detail is “awesome”, its the relationships they love the most. 

For those who have read Tolkien (like my reader) knows this story is relationship oriented so there are no quotes from Tolkien. Almost always most people seem to like Oropher and Thranduil’s relationship the most--mostly because it is non-existent in Tolkien--so is Thranduil’s relationship with Legolas. I can never figure out why Oropher has suddenly become as popular and Thranduil, but oh well. Beggars can’t be choosers. Today, it was Thranduil and Êlúriel, his wife and mother of Legolas. They liked it because it is emotional, intensely real and as normal as you can be being near-immortal beings in an imaginary world. They go through couple issues, in other words without being too much one way or the other. I will admit, however, I wanted to have something to rival Arwen and Aragorn’s romance on purpose.

Her name is Êlúriel (eel-OO-riel). Êlúriel calls Thranduil (Thran-DU-il) rather than Thran-dweel). Tolkien was trying to get “The Halls of Thranduil” to be as scary as the name he was going for (UT) “The Halls of Darkness”. Since Thranduil (Thran-DU-il) would mean “Hall of the Night Star” rather than (Thran-dweel) which can mean “vigorous spring (as in the season), or vigorous flowing (ui = flowing) as in water, we preferred “Hall of the Night Star”. It sounds more majestic and it is how his mother, Nimeithel came to call him “Isilya” (elven Moonsday)--the day he was conceived and born) and that’s how he got his throne name “Thranduil Tárisil”--Tárisil meaning “high/royal moon”. Êlúriel means “Star-maiden or Star-daughter” depending on which language you are looking at. Nenluin (blue water) was given to her by Thranduil because he always felt he was drowning in her eyes because they had “water in them”.

NOW you know what Starlight and Fire Moon is about--sort of. And as Nenduîl Nárisil and Tárimë Silme are a combination of Thranduil Tárisil and Êlúriel Nenluin’s names, their middle names are Fire Moon (Nárisil) and Starlight (Silme). (Nenduîl = Blue Night Star and Tárimë = Ever Royal (as imë = ui).

*On the Lee Pace Side, @peonies-and-poppies and @leepacesweetfantasy: When coming up with Thranduil’s birthday, a guy friend of mine let it slip once that he was happy that he was born a few days before Lee Pace (March) after I specifically told him not to tell me when Pace’s birthday was. So, I looked up Aries and it fit Thranduil to a “T”--pun intended, so he ended up being born in Súlimë (Q: March and also Windy.) That is the only Lee Pace shout out in the entire story (other than looking like him somewhat).

Well, that was long winded--and other than other relationships and moments, Book II: The Saga of Thranduil seems to be living up to the expectations I didn’t have for it. I just wrote it because it felt right and needed to be told. Everyone else wants to see it it on a shelf. The Trilogy itself picked a few followers on Twitter and some others on WordPress and here as well. If my reader had anything to say about it, you’d find it tomorrow at Barnes and Noble. But it still has editing to go through and all basic stuff first.--J.

(Are you dancing in the streets yet, @fortunatelyclevercandy? Anyone? No Bieber--I promise).

Sources: Book II: The Saga of Thranduil is being seen by some serious writers and critics now (because I know they’ve looked over here) so it is not the last you will ever hear of it--even while working the other two books and Legolas’ journal. I will need to have EVERY book read and researched in the Appendix and I did a lot of research to make the life of Thranduil as “Middle Earth-esque” as possible. It will live up to the promise I made to Tolkien before I started. Still far more to be done--I can’t wait.

*UT = "Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle Earth" by J.R.R. Tolkien. ed. by Christopher Tolkien. © 1980 J.R.R. Tolkien Copyright Trust. All Rights Reserved.