Reviewer: Midge (Signed) · Date: 16/11/09 04:31 PM · On: The Petrified Forest
Oh my, that's one cliffhanger that I didn't see coming - not at all. You certainly suckered me in to thinking that dangerous Dean was the sting in the tail of that chapter, but I was so wrong. PS. Enjoyed Sam's meltdown even though I really feel for Dean being called a pathetic drunk whilst he's desperately trying to hold it all together sober.
Author's Response: Yup: you know I am really trying to impart the fact that Sam and Bobby also are traumatized by what has happened, albeit to a lesser extent and in a different way... Sam feels guilty that he 'left' Dean... oh, Sam! And yup: a little glimpse of hunter!Dean. Yowzah!
Reviewer: moira4eku (Signed) · Date: 16/11/09 04:03 PM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
Holy moly, I can sorta breath again. Dean is back with them but so is the Bendigo, and it is going to be hungry really soon. I hope they can come up with something to get out of their without losing any one to its dinner!!! I can't wait to read the next chapter!
Author's Response: Gah, I guess I better start writing it then, huh?!
Reviewer: Midge (Signed) · Date: 16/11/09 02:41 PM · On: It's Just a Shot Away
Yep, definitely wanting to read more now. Dean opening up to Kathleen was a breath of fresh air, she is so what he needs. Non threatening, understanding but not prepared to take any crap from him and full of solid practical advice. Think he'd find it easier to be handcuffed to her in the tent than he will to Sam or Bobby.
Author's Response: I really like that she is totally objective... and she has no preconceived ideas or illusions about him. I love her and I feel so proud of what I have done with her character in this story particularly. It's hard to get an OFC past this fandom, but everyone seems to love her! ;-)
Reviewer: Glitterbelle (Signed) · Date: 16/11/09 06:21 AM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
Oh you are such a meany, making us wait a little longer through the chapter to see what the Bendigo did with Dean. But you were very clever not to reveal it too soon, I liked it because it added to the suspense. :o) I enjoyed the conversation between Sam and Bobby, its always nice to see these two connect. Its helped Sam put things a little more in perspective and it helped him find out a fews about how Dean felt when he left for Stanford, I think this was well written and one of my favourite scenes of yours. I can feel their frustration about being stuck down that hole just waiting for the Bendigo to come back, I want them to be able to get out so much, but thats another credit to the way you are writing it because my longing for them to get out comes from the way you have written out their situation. At least they are all reunited in a way, even though poor Dean is pretty much out of it. You have made that Bendigo very creepy, him makes my skin crawl to know that he is anyway near Dean let alone holding him.
I worry for Bobby being next on the menu, I can't wait to find out what happens next. I hope they find a way out soon and get Dean somewhere sfae before hisfoot falls off lol!!! Thanks for another good chapter, I for one would very much like you to continue. Gem xx :o)
Author's Response: Thank you so much, Gem! Yup, dragging out the suspense... cackles. You need a lot of patience to read a multi-chapter... and to write it, I must say. I started this [and Woods] jut bursting with ideas but have never wanted to race them out and waste them on a four or five-chapter story. Nothing gives me greater pleasure than finding a new, meaty, 20+ chapter SPN fanfic, and I want these two stories to inspire that feeling in anyone who finds them. I do subscribe to the Dean-Bobby bond, but have never discounted his deep affection for Sam too... Sam just needs him in a different way, I think, because he is more self-sufficient. But yes, they are all together again now... I guess I better figure out a way to rescue them! Oops... I never thought of that! ;-) Hey, if you like these stories you might like graceofgod's stories... she's a wonderful writer who I believe posts mainly on here...
Reviewer: bitnblue (Signed) · Date: 15/11/09 05:47 PM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
just keeps getting better! been studying for final exams and this was the only study break i allowed myself to take - well worth it! keep it coming... please?
Author's Response: That is so sweet! I’m glad you chose me for your time off from textbooks but STUDY HARD! I want you to do well and succeed, you hear me?! :-D
Maybe one more to come… give or take. I guess I better start figuring out how to get them out of the pit, huh?
Reviewer: Silvertayl (Signed) · Date: 15/11/09 03:45 PM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
Great work as always.
Author's Response: Thanks so much! I’m real glad you like… ;-)
Reviewer: eeyore (Signed) · Date: 15/11/09 02:34 PM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
I'm really enjoying these conversations between Bobby and Sam. Normally most authors write that Bobby just talks with Dean so it's nice to see this side as well, especially as Bobby makes Sam think about Dean and challenges his motivations and his view of his brother. That wendigo of yours is definitely creepy. It was very disturbing reading how it held Dean to his chest and seemed to be protecting him from Sam, but I'm very glad he let Sam have him. Awesome chapter as always.
Author's Response: Tho a Dean Grrrl, I like Sam… and it sees to me his bond with Bobby must be as deep, albeit slightly different because he is more self-sufficient and less needy than Dean. I really love using Bobby as a subjective observer, giving readers all sorts of insights into the brothers… and I guess Hudak is the bookend to him, the objective observer. Themes of family have run all through both these stories so I thought it tied into that nicely to have Sam appeal to the bendigo’s ‘kinship’ with Dean. But heck, I’m still gonna kill it horribly! >:)
Reviewer: rbliss1969 (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 09:21 PM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
Kate, another excellent chapter. like the heart to heart with Sam and Bobby. Sam being impatient with Kathleen; just how Sam would be. great job Renee
Author's Response: Hey Renee: great to see you back! I really wanted to get some Sam introspection in here after the Deanliness of C18. Fanfiction is such a great vehicle for investigating what might be going on in their heads! ;-)
Reviewer: Shannondoah (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 04:45 PM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
Magnificent! I was enthralled, racing ahead to know what happened then rereading to get the full affect. I'm not usually a person who reads the end last but you have me so on edge that I have to know what's going to happen before I can actually enjoy the story. "If you bounce from the knees?" Bobby says witheringly. "It hasn't worked so far." I loved it in chapter 17 and I'm lovin' it now! It's even funnier when Kathleen says it and we get Bobby's response. Bobby's comparison of Samand John was very compelling. Both men refusing to return Dean's phone calls is damning evidence. I'm glad Bobby pleaded Dean's case. as much as Dean loves being a hunter, he probably had other dreams. I especially loved when Bobby asked Sam if he thought Dean wanted to die young and bloody. Reality check! "Jesus...who writes this stuff?" A mad genius masquerading as a sick, twisted chick! ;-) "...when he was sinking the knife in, feeling it grind through vertebrae, twisting it to make damned sure there was no coming back. No coming back...how fucking ironic is that..." Ironic is definitely the word for it. Hee! A bit cheeky, aren't you?
Author's Response: It kills me that you read the end first! That’s so funny! I said further down I was worried people might find this underwhelming after the intensity of C18 but everyone has loved it. I guess that’s the territory with multi-chapters… the slow burn, and trying hard to balance action with introspection so that you don’t end up rushing the story you want to tell. I wanted to get some Sam in here… I really like Sam-Bobby, because so much of Sam is buried deep. Bobby is a good device to reveal things about Sam… and nice to have the benefit of hindsight from the S4 revelations about Sam’s similarity to John and the fact he effectively became his father in his quest for revenge. I think bounce from the knees might be my new mantra! And meta: heck, if it’s good enough for Kripke, it’s good enough for me!
Reviewer: Midge (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 04:40 PM · On: Never Look Back, Walk Tall Act Fine
Now I'm really beginning to look forward to what happens next and can't wait to read more. Though it'll have to be tomorrow, no more time tonight, so I'll see you later.
Author's Response: I love it when people say my stories are page-turners! Hope you like what you find as you read on…
Reviewer: Midge (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 04:11 PM · On: Comfortably Numb
Self destructive Dean and still regarded as a pretty boy even when completely and utterly drunk. He really is one big mess and I feel so sorry for Sam and Bobby trying to cope. And now Kathleen is finding trouble. Perhaps she'll be able to get Dean to eat and keep him from the booze and pills. Well I can only hope.
Author's Response: Yup: there’s nothing like repression and denial! I thought it would be ironic to have those big guys end up taking care of him instead of beating him up!
Reviewer: Shannondoah (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 04:00 PM · On: Dueling Banjos
I like when Dean is trying to remember a before with his brother and sister, his memories sort of morph into his real family: the dark, gentle eyes that aren't like his. Including snippets of Dean's alpha-dog personality and the line from the pilot "dude, I'm twenty six," shows that the real Dean is trying to come out but I think deep inside he knows he can only survive being with the Benders by being Gabe. Its so sad that dean's devotion of family keep him with the Benders. That when Lee comes for him, he's as relieved that someone actually cares enough for him as he is repulsed by their life and confused by why he doesn't fit in. In his mind, is dysfunctional family isn't much different than the one in which he finds himself. Carving his initials into that tree is his surrender. It's his desire to fit in with his family no matter how horrible he feels that family is just so he belongs somewhere. That is tragically sad! An iron chastity belt---yahoo! That was ingenious! Dean having the opportunity to confront his rapist was fabulous! I think it was what everyone wanted Dean to be able to do---stand up to Lee, show Lee and himself that he wasn't going to take the abuse anymore and that he wasn't a part of the Bender's sick family love. It was what Dean had to do to be a man again and realize he was strong enough to fight for himself, strong enough to overcome his trauma. That being said, it was terribly sad when he confessed to Sam that he would let Sam do that to him, that he loved him so much that he would subject himself to anything to keep his family together. I'm glad that Sam was horrified and saddened by that revelation. Now that the bendigo is taking Dean back to his place, maybe he can save his family, at least he'll know where they are.
Author's Response: Hey sugah! Glad you liked. I wanted to use that flashback to show how that process of betrayal started, and as a way of having Dean realize it is the betrayal that is at the heart of his trauma more so than the abuse he suffered… which comes across very clearly [I hope!] in his confrontation with Lee and shouts out to Sam’s S4 betrayal of Dean.
And very important to have all of those images of his real family in there because to an extent they have betrayed him too, and his attachment to them is in some ways as dysfunctional as his attachment to the Benders was. :-( And yes: little shout-outs to the fact Dean was there all along… I had a few of those in Woods too. And we see how resourceful he is even when he is at the end of himself, with the full metal jacket and his appeal to the monster to save him! He’s awesome!
Reviewer: darkhunter (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 02:32 PM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
I enjoyed this chapter, very intense, well at least they are all back together again but still in a world of trouble, looking forward to more.
Author's Response: I was worried folks would find this chapter underwhelming after C18, but it has had such great feedback here and elsewhere. Thanks so much for letting me know you enjoyed it – I really appreciate it… everyone has such busy lives and it’s lovely to think that people take the time out of that to R&R. ;-)
Reviewer: anniesmom (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 10:02 AM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
I have still not gotten around to reading all the chapters I have printed but I will. I know they are gonna be great!
Author's Response: Thanks sweetie! Give me a shout back when you do! ;-)
Reviewer: sunsetlover (Signed) · Date: 14/11/09 05:10 AM · On: The Hole in the Ground Gang
Oh my God, that was intense. You kept me staring at the computer screen long after I`d finished the chapter. So much despair... Wonder how they can escape...
Author's Response: Thanks so much! I guess I had better think of a way for them to escape now, huh? I haven’t written a single word of C20… :-O
Reviewer: Midge (Signed) · Date: 13/11/09 03:44 PM · On: See How Deep the Bullet Lies
Loved the brother scene at the rest stop. Not got anything clever to say about it, but was relieved that Dean has opened up to Sam a little bit more. Feels as though we are inching closer to a healed Dean, but then that is probably your way of giving us peace before the storm. Well done.
Author's Response: Yeah… thought it was time for some schmoop though I tried to suggest in there that Dean was just giving Sam something to hold him off and the real issues were still buried deep… ;-)
Reviewer: Midge (Signed) · Date: 13/11/09 02:52 PM · On: Life, Abroad in the Land and Defiant
I really enjoyed this chapter. Enough glimpses of the real Dean to give us hope for a light at the end of tunnel in this dark story. Dean in full protector mode even if he isn't protecting his family is always something I like to see, and defending that 14 year old boy was a joy to read. Thank you.
Author's Response: Hey there! Dean is really on the cusp of recovery here… he’s trying to move forwards but until he confronts what happened he’ll flounder. You’ll see that switch between hurt!Dean and hunter!Dean a few times as you read…
Reviewer: Glitterbelle (Signed) · Date: 12/11/09 03:51 PM · On: Dueling Banjos
I have caught up with all the chapters now, sorry for not reviewing as I read. Its interesting to see the aftermath of what happened to Dean in your first story and how all the characters are coping with it. Pulling Dean back into the woods, was very mean but ultimately I really think that it will help him come to terms with it all, get some payback and lay some of the demons to rest. Gosh what does the Bendigo have in store for Dean? I want to know but also worried to find out.
Thanks for taking the time to post this story, I look forward to the conclusion and hope that future looks brighter for Dean too. Gem x
Author's Response: Thanks so much Gem: I’m so pleased you’re enjoying this. Not much more to go now! ;-)
Reviewer: Amberdreams (Signed) · Date: 12/11/09 02:30 PM · On: Dueling Banjos
Sorry I haven’t reviewed chapter by chapter but as with the Woods, I have read this straight through, cover to cover (so to speak). Obviously, I am now anxiously awaiting the next and final chapters, still hoping that you will ultimately provide us with some salvation and relief, especially for poor old Dean. So – likes and dislikes. Dislikes first to get it over with – just generally, this is so hard to read because it is such an emotional grind, heart wrenchingly horrible thing to have to live through with the characters we know and love – what can I say but aaargh! And you will realise that is a double edged sword – we need the angst to make the story work but man, it is very angsty. I am also uncomfortable with the thought of young Dean giving blow jobs for money even though it is highly feasible that desperate straights could have led to desperate actions – and that is more a reflection of my discomfort with many aspects of real life that are much more frightening to contemplate than any monster of the week than any criticism of the story. Me and Dean are on the same page there – demons I get, people are just crazy… Likes – the language used is punchy, pithy, full of pulchritude. The characterisation is nothing short of brilliant. You have developed them from where we know they were at this time in the overall SPN story in a totally convincing manner, through the events of this story into some of the aspects of the characters that we can see emerging now in current episodes. Neat. I love Kathleen fucking Hudak, hell yeah! She was always one of my favourite additional characters. Her interactions with Dean in that episode make the way you have woven her into these 2 stories totally convincing. And you and the boys are quite right – she is Ripley will bells on. I do hope you haven’t dropped her on her head once too often and she too will emerge victorious from that damned root cellar…. There were also a few laughs, some classic Dean and Sam bitch face moments, in amongst the pain and suffering so thanks for that! One last point of interest. I don’t know what you think of the whole slash genre, but I have now worked out, thanks to your writing and the theme of both these 2 books, why I am so uncomfortable with the idea of Sam/Dean. I am glad to say it is not through some deep seated prejudice or homophobia (and I certainly don’t get that impression from you either by the way). It comes from what we know about the two boys and their (you say it somewhere) dysfunctional relationship. It is rooted in Dean’s ridiculously low self esteem, and you absolutely nailed it on the head in the scene between Sam and Dean where Dean finally comes clean about what Lee did to him, how he had been to some extent projecting Sam onto Lee and Sam’s horrified realisation that Dean would let him (Sam) do anything to him and never fight back because he can’t deny his brother anything. There is this thing about loving some one too much. I had read this slash fic xxx before reading your 2 stories, and I now realise why it actually made me so sad, and want to cry at the end. It’s because (and I don’t think this author intends it to read this way) there is this feeling throughout that Dean’s love for Sam is too extreme, and that this love is somehow warped by this act, so much so that it actually felt like rape, submission to a powerful force and not a joyous act – which is so totally opposite to Dean in the show (early Dean before Hell anyway) where he sees sex as a totally wonderful fun thing. I think it is interesting the writers in the series have moved the characters on from this point and that Dean is now showing that he can detach himself from Sam, that his sense of self worth is now gradually developing away from being solely defined as Sam’s big brother, Sam’s protector – his job. I love the way they are doing this without reducing the love he feels for his brother, but giving Dean some much needed independence. PS with my occasional proof reader hat on there were a few typos in latter chapters – like a ‘the the’ that should be a ‘that the’, missing end quotes, etc. If you want I can track back and let you know exactly where they are, if you are interested!! I know, I’m a sad woman!
Author's Response: Wow: thanks for these wonderful insights! I try to put so many layers in when I write and tbh a lot of it does fly over people’s heads [tho not all of it!] so it is wonderful when someone reads and sees all the subtext. I have seen the Dean as joyboy idea in a few stories and always found it pretty believable in the context of being left alone with no money and no means of making it by hustling in other ways because of his age. I’ve never felt uncomfortable about it per se, but I have felt saddened by the idea, I think for the reasons you point to in your thoughts on Wincest: the fact he might go that far for Sam is just wrong. That his love might go that deep, and he might sacrifice himself in that way, is disturbing and warped – just as you felt it was in the Wincest fic you read. I have tried to suggest, subtly [because God knows I don’t want to incur the wrath of the brotherly-bonders] that the bond is in fact unhealthy and dysfunctional and this is very much intended as a parallel with current show plot and characterization. I really like my boys in character… actually that’s the main reason Wincest doesn’t really float my boat. I don’t see those tendencies in either brother, so to me Wincest would read as totally AU: two different characters, and since I want to read about the Sam and Dean I know I just don’t find that Wincest appeals to me. But interestingly, the odd ones I have read have been just like you describe: turning love into a twisted power play, Dean being so desperate that he will ‘go there’ – which, as you say, is just terribly sad and negative. I hadn’t ever thought about it in the terms you mention, but now I wonder if that might be another reason I tend to avoid them unless they have been written by people whose gen stories I have enjoyed. Now you’ve given me something to think about! And gah, please do email me about any typos! I post on my LJ and on FF too, and I usually read through a few times on those sites to pick up anything I might have missed but I don’t often come back here to correct any I find on the other sites… I always forget!
Reviewer: tenaciouspc (Signed) · Date: 10/11/09 04:59 PM · On: Dueling Banjos
Cool!!!
Author's Response: Thanks muchly! ;-)
Reviewer: Amberdreams (Signed) · Date: 08/11/09 02:50 PM · On: Mr Brightside
This is good - not sure where and when it is set, but it is bloody good. And depressing. And sad. Haven't read the Woods one that this is the sequel to so I think I better do that before carrying on with this story...!
Author's Response: Thanks muchly! And do read the other story first as you'll need to have done so to clue into some of the events that take place in this one... ;-)
Reviewer: bitnblue (Signed) · Date: 08/11/09 02:27 PM · On: Dueling Banjos
getting better with every chapter. wonder how they will get rid of lee. Might be interesting if bendigo took lee's body to the lair too since he's family and whatnot? :)
Author's Response: Are you shining at me?! Glad you liked! Not much more to go now...
Reviewer: moira4eku (Signed) · Date: 08/11/09 11:41 AM · On: Dueling Banjos
I do believe I held my breath the whole way while reading this chapter. Poor Dean, his memory of when and how he came to carve his name into the tree was heartbreaking. I was hoping Dean would be able to end the Bendigo and Lee, but alas. now he's in the crutches of the Bendigo. But I'm not sure what it wants with Dean. Seems like he wants to care for him, perhaps. And what is going on with Sam, Kathleen, and Bobby? I'm dying to find out, so I'm hoping you'll post soon!
Author's Response: Thanks hun! I really wanted to do this chapter as a two-hander because I felt that breaking it up would disrupt the intensity of the confrontation. The others will definitey be back in C19... ;-)
Reviewer: Midge (Signed) · Date: 08/11/09 11:40 AM · On: Leaving Normal
Hmm, thoughtful chapter. Weird girl Lucy, who was probably helpful to Dean if only in the long run. Feeling very sorry for Sam and Bobby trying to cope here. Hope puppy Rumsfeld proves helpful.
Author's Response: Puppy Rumsfeld might be one of the few dogs that actually lives in my stories! Until Meg kills him of course... ;-)
Reviewer: moira4eku (Signed) · Date: 08/11/09 11:16 AM · On: Ramble On
Holy Moly! I was so excited when Kathleen found Bobby and Sam and then Wham!! Great day?What is happening with them? And now Dean has met up with ghost Lee? I'm not sure about Dean's state of mind here, also. He seems a bit confused! I can't wait to read the next chapter, so I'm off to do so!!
Author's Response: Yup: it's all coming together for the big smackdown!
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