brad posted a comment on Friday 28th August 2009 9:49pm

Now that the end of this epic has been announced I've been loathing finishing it. I think my subconscious has kept on putting it off. It took me weeks/months before I read the previous chapter ... which I haven't reviewed yet. I'll re-read it again before doing so.

I/we really do appreciate your doing this, Adam (it's Adam, right?). So many questions to answer!! What Hermione discovers to help Harry (although part of that is referenced in this instalment). How it all goes down in the end. Whether Ron survives. How his vision of his death manifests (I still reckon/hope that he 'saw' a doppleganger of some sort perish rather than himself). How Harry and Hermione end up fitting - or not - in wizarding society; that was a story arc that Mike seemed to raise relatively recently, in part 3.

And dear Luna!! Such a wonderful character, the way Mike wrote her, I want so much for her to be 'healed', to find out what her problem is at Hogwarts, for her to be accorded respect and find love. She's proven to be such a sterling friend to the Trio in this novel of Mike's, I want to see that recognised. I was very pleased when Hermione started to appreciate her friendship more.

This is a wonderful - and loooong - novel, which I've re-read at least once, but its "re-reading value" will go up by an order of magnitude when we have an idea of how it ends. I know Mike published an epilogue a few years ago; I deliberately didn't go anywhere near it, for fear of being spoiled. If I could have worked out a way to print it without seeing a single word I could have.

(Darn. I've just realised I could have asked for someone to e-mail it to me; I could have left it in my IN box, unopened. :-))

Well, I hope that you'll come across that epilogue eventually amongst all those boxes of notes.

I greatly enjoyed reading this chapter. Mike's style of writing, particularly the semi-formal mode of dialogue that seems to be characteristic of this work, is unique in my (gawd, close to 6 years I think!) fan fiction reading experience. The dialogue is written with an ... elegance ... that I find really satisfying to read. Plus it adds to the impression that this Harry is just that much smarter than the one we were given in canon; something I'm convinced is necessary for a first-class fanfic. As well as mandatory for any boy who hopes to be the partner of Hermione Granger. :-)

Well, Harry's speech in YoR is usually a cut above canon or other fanfics, but his encounter with the goblins and his chat with Fliptrask in this chapter!! Priceless. I felt like I was listening to a chess game. Loved it. And seeing noble!Harry in this story, friend of the (downtrodden) goblins, was always pleasing. Interesting, though, the reservation here that not *all* goblins could be trusted. Nothing was ever simple in this story, was it?

The whole McIlvaine thing and the revelation of 'old magic' was fascinating, and the history of the Hogwarts Founders as detailed and precise as one would expect of Mike.

> "I can only say that she was very excited, and I suspect that the ritual had something to do with your survival."

BINGO!!!

I was *SO* pleased to read that. At least we get one part of one of the outstanding questions of this epic answered, hurrah!! Adam, I don't know if you have been a part of this crazy HP fandom thing, but we fans were debating how Lily Potter managed to protect Harry for *years*, urged on partly by the author's deliberate teasing and suggestions that she had a clever 'grand plan' that would finally make sense of it all.

Sadly, she did not; nothing close to it. If you've ever heard Mike or others rage about Rowling's inadequacies, her incompetence, her inability in particular to properly finish what she started ... it's all true. Really. In 2005 she tried to explain how Lily's 'sacrifice' worked, and it's all a sloppy mish-mash of wishful crossed-fingers thinking from a writer who just couldn't, in the end, handle the fine detail necessary to give proper closure to what she'd started. The interview is here:

http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/features/interviews/jkr1

It's at the bottom of the page. There are several arguments that tear her tenuous and flimsy premise - on which the entire series depends! - to threads, but I won't go into them here, I don't want to bore you too much. Adam? You still here? :-)

Anyway, it really was wonderful to (FINALLY!!!! Grrrr) get a handle on how Harry survived in Mike's world, using 'old magic' wards from the Compact families, fuelled somehow by Lily's motherly love/sacrifice? Good stuff.

The other really great line in this chapter was this:

> "There is a power within you bursting to be released ... Proper rites of betrothal and bonding can release or enhance abilities ..."

Another reason why I've so enjoyed and admired this story is because I've been hooked into Harry's trials in trying to investigate and use his powers. I enjoy a story with a heroic Harry who is a cut above his peers (in both power and nobilty), but in this tale it's been bloody frustrating, frankly, as he's struggled to get a grasp on what he can do. This paragraph by Madam McIlvaine really got me wondering what Mike was going to write ... the idea of Harry and Hermione finally consummating their love would have been awesome enough, when penned by Mike - I mean, how many hundreds of thousands of words have been written leading up to that moment? Hermione's support of Harry, and, particularly in part 3, his statements of support for her, have been the bedrock of this story and has fuelled its emotional cusps - but to have Harry's power somehow 'released' when they do finally get together ... well, I'm not sure I would have survived my perusal of that particular chapter. What Mike did to me with Intermezzo was bad enough, and that wouldn't have been anything compared with the double-bunger (that might be an Australian idiom, but I think you'll gather its meaning) that I think Mike might have been planning, given this revelation.

Cho died! Lavender died!! Damn. :-( Now I'm getting nervous about Ron ...

Thank you again for helping to finalise this story. As always I hope the best for Mike; please pass on my best wishes. Cheers.

Wolfric posted a comment on Monday 13th July 2009 4:28am

I appreciate your work in compiling and releasing the remaining work of your uncle and I hope he will recover as much as possible. Thanks. W.

BloodRedJawz posted a comment on Thursday 9th July 2009 4:30am

this is way too much of a pussy!harry story for me to continue reading...

mwinter posted a comment on Wednesday 8th July 2009 1:18pm

We are praying for him. This was a good idea of where things are going.

Dracolych69 posted a comment on Tuesday 7th July 2009 3:59am

Hope these new treatments work better than the last. Just from the notes, this looks to be an excellent chapter. Looking forward to seeing it fleshed out.

Poirot posted a comment on Monday 6th July 2009 10:45pm

I am very glad you updated as this story is a favorite of mine. My best to Mike, I hope his treatments are going well.

Patches posted a comment on Monday 6th July 2009 6:33pm

Very good. It is difficult to take over for someone else. You have done a great job. I look foward to more of this story. Thank you for making the effort of continuing this story for Mike. I am keeping him in my prayers and I pray for him, his family and friends. May God Bless you all. pms

Full_Pensieve replied:

Hey just want to make sure everybody gets what Mike asked me to do. The stuff I put up yesterday was all written by Mike. I'm going through the stuff he already wrote and his notes and I hope putting it together so it makes sense. I couldn't take over his writing, he's too good at it. I have everything in time order now but he has to look through the next chunk of notes before I do anything else. Not sure when he has the time. He's back to work believe it or not, but only half time. He got bored, LOL. Just please, nobody should think I'm taking over for Mike. That's not the deal. Thx, AMP

Anansii posted a comment on Monday 6th July 2009 3:41pm

Thank you and Mike for continuing this, even if it is of necessity mostly outline. Give him my best - I'll be praying for his recovery.

Cu posted a comment on Monday 6th July 2009 10:30am

Thanks to both of you for taking the effort of tidying up and sharing these notes, it is much appreciated.

Wow, Mike adds yet another plot point to his already convoluted story, well after the half-million word mark: any editor would have his work cut out for him with this tale. I wonder how was he planning to tie everything up and how long would have taken him, it seems a monumental project in magnitude.

Anyhow, please bring Mike my best wishes for a full and speedy recovery. Beat that sucker, FP!

Ken Warner posted a comment on Sunday 5th July 2009 9:23pm

I would like to see the rapprochement between Harry and Hermione, as well as a formal agreement between them and the Compact families and the Goblins which would crush the stronghold of the DEs,which has to be the Unspeakables.

This story has fascinated me for years, since it was originally interrupted at the Great Hunt. I hope that the muse and RL will allow you to bring it to a satisfactory conclusion.
warmest regards

brad posted a comment on Sunday 5th July 2009 7:21pm

I intend to read and review later, but just thought I'd pop in to ask - did you tick the box or whatever is necessary to send out e-mail alerts about this update?

Because I came across this new chapter largely by accident; whereas normally I'd expect an e-mail message notifying me that a new chapter had been uploaded. Cheers.

(And thank you very much for collating Mike's notes; it will truly add value to his body of work to have some sense of 'completion' to it. I know a couple of years ago he posted an epilogue but I was too chicken to glance at it, I didn't want to spoil myself. :-))

Bedrup posted a comment on Sunday 5th July 2009 4:54pm

Thank you for the work you are doing.

Logan_MacLeod posted a comment on Sunday 5th July 2009 1:33pm

That red like a police report. That was cool

Mistress of Potions posted a comment on Saturday 4th July 2009 10:05am

I am sorry to hear of your illness returning, and not because it means the necessary laying aside of your writing. May your doctors be skilled, your family and friends steadfast, and your life be blessed.

kryptikk79 posted a comment on Wednesday 1st July 2009 5:16pm

I'm sorry that your illness has returned. The true sorrow, however, lies in the loss of one of the few remaining literary artists in this fandom. Although JKR royally screwed up with the last few books, the world she created has been one of the most intriguing worlds of fiction, and it has had the most room for expansion, creativity, and, in some cases, artistry. At one point, it was easy to find stories written by exceptional authors with exceptional plots. But those stories have been completed, and their authors have moved on into life, leaving their talents and their masterpieces behind. It is a real pity to see another go... but such is the way of things, i suppose. There are very few crafts left in the world where the craftsman pours his very being into his work, and creates a product that means something. Writing... writing is one of the last, and the HP universe has inspired more craftsmen to take up their tools than other work to date... and that is coming to a close. There are maybe ten authors worth a damn who still write with everything they have. I understand your reasons for leaving, but to see another of those go... Enough rambling. Ill be amazed if you even read this entire thing. One last thing: why is it that the greats of fanfiction don't become published authors? Many of them... they could take their fictions, change a few names, remove some things from the first chapters, and it would be completely unrecognizable as having anything to do with Rowling's universe. Jbern has become published, I know, and I'm glad to see that someone recognizes that their talents can be used for more than fanfiction. still...even writing in general has begun to die. If you read some of the 'best sellers' out there, and compare them to some of the fanfictions i've read... the fanfictions blow them out of the water. Very few take pride in their work anymore, you know? Work has become a means to an end, and not an end unto itself. There are no longer Masters of a craft, there are only practitioners who plod along, becoming more uselessly efficient at the same routines for years. Dammit, i'm getting all philosophical on you. Time to stop before I end up writing a book. Goodbye...

kryptikk79 posted a comment on Wednesday 1st July 2009 4:13pm

Its actually nice to be reading a novel-sized chapter. Many of the old classic fanfictions were written in this way... and it feels wonderful to be reading something by a good author that actually has detail.

On a different subject: I agree with you that Ender's Game is horrible, but... around ten years later, he wrote Ender's Shadow, and a few others that follow. Ender's Shadow is almost nothing like Ender's Game. It's actually well thought out, and detailed. Not perfect... but my real recommendation is the sequel to Ender's Shadow, Shadow of the Hegemon. That novel is oddly similar to this story, or at least stylistically, and I believe you would enjoy it.

Harriverse posted a comment on Saturday 27th June 2009 1:31am

You have a wonderful grasp of drama. Harry seems to have pulled away from his circle of school friends, so I'm guessing many of the spots will be taken by his teachers or order members, excepting his close circle (which has taken a back seat this year due to events posted). Thanks for being Snape back into existence--so we know what happened to him. So Hermoine is to be his adviser/support/researcher? This universe you've created is fascinating.

Harriverse posted a comment on Friday 26th June 2009 6:23pm

I think you have a wonderful re-imagining of the Potterverse. Except your version is better written and explained. I don't care about the length....some of my favorite stories span many books *cough, cough, Harry Potter, Anita Blake, Sookie Stackhouse, Sherlock Holmes: Need I go on?* I was impressed enough to spend a couple of days reading up to this point. Your bit of foreshadowing was very impressive in this chapter! I was thinking of the Defense teacher, but your choice is diabolical. I hope your health improves. I look forward to seeing where you go with this work. Now, on to the next chapter!

dudette3993 posted a comment on Tuesday 16th June 2009 9:59am

Well, I'm not sure how to start off a review of such a work as this. I suppose I should say right off that I picked this story up on Portkey in 2004 and thoroughly enjoyed it. I lost track of it after a few years (especially after the HBP and DH debacles), but decided to search for 'that fic where Harry had a motorcycle' a few days ago so I could reread. I found it, and though it isn't finished, what you've done is WONDERFUL. It's definitely one of my favorite fanfictions ever, right up there with Cassie's Draco Trilogy and Lori's Paradigm of Uncertainty Series. Your plots and subplots are intriguing and impeccably woven together, and the characterizations of known characters are spot on and their growth and maturity in your fic is GREAT. Your own characters are at once interesting, funny and brilliantly crafted, the Marquis especially.
I'm sorry to hear about your illness, and I wish you and your family well. I can only hope you return to fanfiction at some point, it would be a great loss. If indeed this is probably the last chapter, I hope your nephew posts your work in progress and hopefully a summary of what would have happened is included (like Lori's ended, sadly). I'm rather interested in what Hermione has discovered, more about Harry's new group, Dumbledore's explanation on his latest manipulation, the rest of the story on Croaker, and of course how Harry fares against Voldemort.
Lastly, as a supporter of H/Hr I'm thrilled with the ending of this chapter and the way you've made them grow and work together. I would've continued the story no matter what ship you went with because the writing is that good, but you've made me quite happy with your choice, LOVE IT. If this was the real 6th book in HP it would've complied with everything said, including the prophecy, the power he knows not, and the potential of a H/Hr ship in SS through OotP- unlike HBP and DH did, the prophecy and the whole power he knows not/love concept seemed to be pushed aside for dumb luck. So kudos on all of that, I'll definitely want to see more of this but if not, what a great note to end on. =D

Nabakov posted a comment on Thursday 4th June 2009 2:11pm

Great story so far...has your nephew posted the remaining chapters?