this is was about the corniest cheesiesest fluffiest story i have evr read..........and i loved it.
i thought it was faboously written however sad it was ..... the ending was really quite depressing....i truly believed that somehow he would use the time turner to save hermione.....aa..o well... it was very good anyway.....i just thought the 17 year old tom riddle was the teensiest bit corny when he was in love....but otherwise you wrote his emotions very well especially when he cried when he knew that she was gone....
alright.. enough of my ramblings fab story hun
Hey,
This was the first fanfic I ever read. I added it to my favourites list ages and ages ago, when you hadn't even finished posting it all up yet. I remember absolutely craving the next chapter. I was so sad when it ended. I've read many fanfics since then but this is still one of my all-time favourites. I was just searching you to see if you'd written anything else since then, but nothing came up. I don't know whether you still check these reviews but if you do, let me encourage you to keep writing! I'd love to read some more fanfics, but you also have a lot of talent and hopefully one day I'll be reading one of your original works. :) So please put something new up!
Julia.
I just finished reading this... and I'm sobbing as I write this. I love how you showed that, in the end, Tom had always loved Hermione. The last line, in particular, is so beautiful... "Even in his death, the rose had still not wilted." It's amazing enough to think that Tom Riddle could love, but it is both terrible and beautiful to think that Lord Voldemort, killer of so many, could love.
Great job writing this.
This is more than the best fanfics I have ever read. This is one of the best stories period I have ever read. Ingenious really. You have a way with words. Don't give up on writing.
Hi! Dropped by to leave a review as a thank you for my banner! Anyways, I must say, the first chapter is so interesting. Even without the Hr/Tom Riddle notice in the summary, you clearly hint at it. Hermione's determination to fulfill Harry's last request is excellent, though I wish we could've gotten more details on how he knew what he did (though she may find that out in later chapters). Anyways, excellent start to the story. ^^
Hello, Maddy! This is a thank you for the beautiful banner you made for my fic “Young and Restless.” A little late, but not as late as the last one!
Firstly, you’ve done a wonderful job capturing Hermione’s voice. She’s always thinking and analysing, but at the same time, she’s brave and stubborn, like a proper Gryffindor should be. I’ve seen too many fics where Hermione is almost paralysed because she’s thinking about everything too much, like a female Hamlet. But you’ve got her right! She isn’t afraid to speak up, she sticks up for herself, and at the same time, she keeps herself in check, realising what her goals are and why she’s here. Fabulous job with that.
I also really like the extra details about the Hogwarts classes you’ve thrown in. Specifying which level of classes she’s taking, and the specifics of each class, makes her schedule a lot more real and impressively intimidating. It’s easy to see why she would be stressed with a schedule like that. And LOL at having to take Divination again! *smirk* At least Trelawney isn’t teaching yet.
I like Hermione’s resolution to act dull and uninteresting. That’s perfect. It reminds me of the CIA – but not the Alias kind, the real kind, where a spy has to be as unobtrusive as possible, trying to blend in and not be noticed at all. Very realistic. I also love her worry about being able to return to the future, to her proper time, since nobody has ever been able to go back that far before. It’s definitely a valid concern, and I think her reaction – at first being terrified, since it’s only logical, but then being able to talk herself out of it and just braving whatever may come. That again takes into account her intelligence and her bravery.
And squee at your portrayal of young Tom Riddle! He’s … fascinating! Intelligent, saucy, droll, extremely good-looking, and talented, but he is still Voldemort. He is still fascinated by the Dark Arts, and he will become one of the most feared, most evil wizards of all time. I don’t know how Hermione is going to be able to reconcile the two. I don’t know if I would. And then LOL at her having to work with him! I love their exchange. It’s so perfect – witty and fast, each of them trying to prove themselves. It’s so great! And mwahaha at Tom’s answer – You said you could make it as well as me. You made it well, but not as well as I would’ve. *smirk* I love it! And ha, they did get Outstanding. Nice.
There was only one issue I had with this chapter, only one thing that grabbed my attention and pulled my focus out of the story. It was giving a Gryffindor the last name “Black.” I don’t know when you originally wrote this, but I simply cannot see a member of the House of Black placed in Gryffindor. It was a huge deal when it happened to Sirius – his mother, at least, was furious at him for betraying them. I really think that if any other Black had been something other than A Slytherin, we would have heard about it – they probably would have been blasted off the family tree, or Sirius would have mentioned something about there not being any Black Gryffindors since his great-uncle Christoph. Something like that. I suggest you change his last name? It really interrupted the continuity of the story for me. Other than that, I love Christoph’s character, as well as Emma’s. Nice job with the OCs!
There were some minor grammar issues as well. Remember that you don’t capitalise the word after dialogue if it’s in the same sentence. For example:
No! she said to herself, heavy tears pricking her eyes.
or
Of all people! she thought.
Also, it should be “We Gryffindors” and not “Us Gryffindors” in Emma’s line of dialogue. In the next paragraph, there’s a spelling error – it should be “proceeded” and not “preceded.” And when Tom laughs at her, and Hermione remembers hearing that laugh before, it should be “she was instantly reminded of whom she was with” instead “of who.” The last typo is in the second to last paragraph – there’s a missing space between the words “go forward.” That’s all!
Again, let me congratulate you on such an imaginative fic! I love the concept behind it, I love the way you’ve kept all the characters in character, and I love your take on Tom! He’s amazing! I’m really looking forward to the next chapter. Thanks again for the amazing banner!
~ Abigail
Author's Response: *dies* Oh my goodness gracious Abigail, thank you so much for this SPEW-worthy review! It really just made my day. :) I'm glad you think Hermione is somewhat in character; looking back at the story now, I definitely would have changed a couple of things about her character, but it's great that you liked her. I wrote this story when I was 14 (am 17 now) so it was pre . . . HBP? possibly OotP? Not sure, but definitely before that lovely Black family tree came out with all the names. Yes, looking back, I'd definitely change the Christoph Black thing, now that we have so much more information about the Black family. And thank you so much for all the grammar nitpicks, it makes me want to go back and give a facelift to the whole story! :) This is definitely enough compensation for the banner I made you... consider your next banner free of charge. ;)
amazing.
thats all i can say..
that was amazing.!
I honestly don't know what to say... I finished this fic the day I started reading it (no breaks, lol...it was *way* to good to stop), and then, to my horror, I realized I didn't reviewed it at the end. So here I am. It was one of those fics I read because the summary sounded kinda weird, but at the same time, I have this thing where I think dark/angsty fics have a tendency to be very original, so I read it. And it was amazing. During the whole time I was reading this, it actually seemed really believable that they would fall in love. I don't know, but something about how you wrote it made me love it. And the end was sad, but amazing. I never—NEVER—cry during fanfiction, but I have to admit that I was very choked up at the end. Not crying, but as close as I've ever gotten. That's a compliment, btw. Have you written anything else? Anyway, it was amazing and is now on my favorites!!
~Alison
This fic is ridiculously good so far. I can't stop reading it!
Author's Response: Why thank you; I hope you'll finish it and tell me what you thought! :)
That is the best bloody fanfiction ever,
and I do not say that lightly!
Author's Response: Ooh, well thank you then! I don't take this review lightly either. ;)
omg that was so sad and i loved it!!!!!!!!!! it was really good i started reading it then i was glued to the screen! it was so good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Author's Response: Thank you! :)
I liked the way you wrote this, how everything made sense in the end.
Speaking of the end, the ending made me cry.
Great story, one of the best I've seen.
Author's Response: Thank you! I'm glad everything made sense to you in the end-- that's one of the things I worry about, tying up all the plotlines in my fics. I'm honored that you liked it!
I absolutely LOVE this fanfic. It's the best I've read in a very, very long time. I heard about it from a friend, and it seemed like a strange idea- Tom Riddle and Hermione. But you pulled it off very convincingly, and looked into the question of evil. I also liked your observations on time. Overall, excellent job.
Author's Response: Thank you very much. Yes, it was and still is a very strange idea. I have no idea why I wrote it, but I'm glad you liked it!
okay... i have to say that when i first read the summary of this story on someone else's favorites, i was disgusted... i thought the whole idea for this story was horrible and the idea of hermione and voldemort together seemed repulsive... i decided that this was one story that i definately WASN'T going to read. see, i usually stick to the lily/james or harry/ginny stories with the occasional ron/hermione or hermione/draco(just cause i find the idea of her with draco quite funny, but i am getting off topic), but as i was looking through the other stories i kept comming back to it, i geuss i was kinda drawn to it in a way and the next thing i knew i was reading it
and geuss what.... i loved it. it was so tragicly sad and you wrote it beautifully. there is so much i want to say right now and i just dont know where to start.the twisted irony in the end was spectacular in a frusratingly sad way, the expression of the inner workings of tom was fantastic, the characterization was perfect, the whole thing just amazed me because let me tell you, i did not expect to end up wanting hermione and tom to be together. it was one of the saddest things ive read, but you didnt overload the angst to a point that i just couldnt stand it, you somehow reached the perfect balance. And let me just thank you for giving me a much needed break from the fluffy monotonous romance fics. despite my original adversion to it, it was origanal, different, beutifully written, and very much to my surprise, it has become one of my favorites.this is truely one of the very best stories ive read.
sarah
Author's Response: Thank you! I'm glad you put aside your original doubt and gave it a shot... I totally understand what you mean about being weirded out by the concept. I was too, when I first started writing it. I didn't really expect anyone to like it, but I'm glad you did! Thanks for the wonderful review. :)
AH (sobbing uncontorlably) that is so sad. i loved it! it didn't have a happy ending and i still loved it. the part about the rose not wilting even when he died is beautiful. that was a really good story she created the monster with loving him then leaving him and they all died in the end (still sobbing uncontrolably) i really did nearly cry at the end of it i was so caught up in it great story.
Author's Response: Aww thank you. I didn't add that part about the rose until the very last moment, but I think it's fitting; the idea that love transcends death is really the only hopeful thing you can glean from the whole shebang, and I wanted to end on a semi-hopeful note. ;) So glad you liked it.
NNNoooooooo!!! He's back! everything hermione did was wasted he loved her he promised her that he would not become him
ohh big bad Volly's in love. i love it
OMG. this was so good. and so incredibly sad. I loved it!!!
OMG. this was so good. and so incredibly sad. I loved it!!!
Hi Maddy! I’ve owed you this review for a long time, and here I am finally getting around to it! I swear, I’m the world’s worst procrastinator. And I can’t believe I’ve put off reading such a great fic until now! Really, this is very well written and extremely intriguing. I’m forcing myself to review after this first chapter, when really all I want to do is find out what happens!
From the very beginning of the chapter, you’ve completely sucked me in by telling it from Tom Riddle’s point of view. This hateful character isn’t so hateful after all. Here we see that he’s just a regular seventeen-year-old boy, with homework, duties, and distasteful tasks. And ooh, he plays Quidditch! I’d never considered that before. I feel almost sorry for him – I can definitely relate to feeling bored and lonely. I love the way you’ve explained his affinity for the Dark Arts – boredom – while leaving it up to our imagination whether that was his only reason. I like the subtle details you’ve included – an older Malfoy, expelling Hagrid, Dumbledore not trusting him, Slytherins not making friends but political alliances, etc. They’re all woven skilfully together, and not thrown down on the page like a list of facts we need to know before we get into the story. Everything seems natural.
The next section, told from Hermione’s point of view, is just so very Hermione! I love that she’s being cautious and stealthy, and yet is struggling with what to do next. And I simply adore the description of young Tom Riddle. *shivers* He’s positively dreamy, though in a dark and dangerous way. I like that she compares him to Draco, and I love how she has to keep reminding herself that this is a boy who will turn into a vicious, heartless monster. Her logical reasoning with two basic outcomes is very in-character, as is her realisation that the future Dumbledore might possibly have known her in the past. Then the spells that she uses fit in seamlessly. They seem like actual spells from the books – that’s hard to do! And heh, I love that she actually forgot that Dumbledore wasn’t headmaster at this time. But I was positively groaning when she lied to him! Gah, that’s got to make things more difficult for her! People are forever not confiding in Dumbledore. That’s a very in-character move for her. And then *gasp* Tom Riddle! They meet at last. I can’t wait to see where this goes!
My only critique is that some of her thoughts and memories aren’t italicised. It could just be my browser, but you might want to go back through this chapter and double-check those.
Maddy, really, this is outstanding. I’m so glad I had a reason to check this out, and I’m even more relieved to know that this fic is completed! I’m really excited to read the rest of this, since it’s a really interesting idea. You’ve set up the storyline so beautifully and effortlessly. Your characterisation of Riddle, Hermione, and Dumbledore is just perfect, and your attention to little details is brilliant. This first chapter is excellent, Maddy! I hope to see more of your work soon!
~ Abigail
