Reviews with content warning for Death - The Fellowship of the Ring: The Lord of the Rings: Part One

A story of friendship and bravery. I loved this re-read seeing the relationship and loyalty between the characters. Such a rich and many layers world of folklore and song has been created, it was a joy to exist in it. Moments of humour mixed with moments of tension, but what shines through is the love of tales and telling stories and the appreciation of a take well told and a song well sung.

I can't unexpectedly teary at a couple of moments, one when despite really nit wanting g to Frodo accepts the Ring, then his delight when people get love ask to accompany him. The other when Sam goes after Frodo when Ftido decides it is safer for all if he goes to Mohnt doom alone. His heartfelt speech was beautiful.

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linnylionheart's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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ran_sophia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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dargent94's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious relaxing tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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dlrosebyh's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

well, controversially, i enjoyed this more than the hobbit.

tolkien is called "the father of fantasy" but i wouldn't say this is one of the best fantasy books out there, it was just fine. the plot was good, however the execution was disappointing. tolkien's writing was dull for me, especially in the first part. as i read through the book, no doubts, i was getting more intrigue with the storyline. there are also no doubts that tolkien's writing style grew more to me. personally, i prefer the second part more. i thought it had a better execution than the first part.

regardless, i guess you could say that i enjoyed the book despite on how slow it is.

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stephbakerbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Absolutely loved this reread. I can't recommend this audio enough! Andy Serkis nails all the voices and emotions; it was perfection.

I haven't read this trilogy since I was in middle school, though I've seen the movies multiple times. I really only remembered the main difference being the addition of Tom Bombadil and all the singing (which, on the audiobook, is actually singing! with melodies! Andy Serkis is a great singer!). I'd forgotten how many of the funny lines from the movies are directly from the books. If I'm remembering correctly, I think the first movie is the one that stays truest to the book, but I'll have to see if I still think that after rereading the other two. Anyways, even though I know the story, I found myself cracking up at the funny moments, and I was not expecting to be in tears at the end, but that's how I found myself (and it wasn't over anyone's death).

Samwise is even more precious in the book than he is in the movie...it might just be because this is fresh on my mind, but I think he is my favorite literary character ever.

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tiredtori's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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fusrofabulous's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

A lot of my thoughts have to do with how this book compares to it's movie adaptation and how we remember the lord of the rings today.

So much of our conversations about this story are colored by Jackson's films (and Bakshi's cartoon) and it was difficult to separate them from Tolkien's book.

The book is slower paced, both in how it was written and how long it takes in-story. Frodo spends years between Bilbo leaving and Gandalf explaining the ring. His journey to Bree takes months, and they spend months in Rivendell.

At every step Tolkien details the environment and history of his world. Nature is as much a character as Frodo or Sam in this book, and in many cases it is literally true (Tom Bombadill). Tolkien uses these long passages to establish the stakes for his plot. It's not just Frodo's life that is in danger; Tolkien makes it clear that all of the natural world is at risk.

Characters are basically rough sketches of people who spout lore and make exclamations. Everyone feels broader and more whimsical than their pop culture portrayals. Everyone sings in this! Every character gets at least one song! It rules!

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