for Going To Sleep5/30/2009 c1 Isabella303
OMG Babette! I know that so many have used this word but I am too...BEAUTIFUL! I felt like I was actually there! It was like a movie...so emotional and raw. The flashback where they made love was just so beautifully written! It just spoke of the times back then. The whole story spoke of that time. I just felt transported back to that time! The end was so damn sad. But I felt it coming. It still didn't stop the many tears from falling. It takes a lot to make me cry and this just hit a nerve! I am so proud of you for this story! I really cannot WAIT for you to write more! I will beg if I have to :) AWESOME BB!
-Shelly
OMG Babette! I know that so many have used this word but I am too...BEAUTIFUL! I felt like I was actually there! It was like a movie...so emotional and raw. The flashback where they made love was just so beautifully written! It just spoke of the times back then. The whole story spoke of that time. I just felt transported back to that time! The end was so damn sad. But I felt it coming. It still didn't stop the many tears from falling. It takes a lot to make me cry and this just hit a nerve! I am so proud of you for this story! I really cannot WAIT for you to write more! I will beg if I have to :) AWESOME BB!
-Shelly
5/30/2009 c1 
4RosieWilde
Oh, this is absolutely beautiful! You write so well, really. I'm quite hard to please, you know ;) It's just - stunning. I don't really know what else to say.
I've just flicked through your other reviews and they all use the word 'beautiful'. Sorry about that but it's true :) Your writing has poetry, almost rhythm to it, and it was such a pleasure to read. I hope Edward died - not because I ever want Edward to die (obviously!) but because I am a sucker for tragedy and poignancy and that would just round it off. Incredible.
I see you haven't written anything else and, let me tell you, /that/ is a tragedy. See? I've put you on author alert so I hear when you next put your talented pen to paper. I hope you do :)
4RosieWildeOh, this is absolutely beautiful! You write so well, really. I'm quite hard to please, you know ;) It's just - stunning. I don't really know what else to say.
I've just flicked through your other reviews and they all use the word 'beautiful'. Sorry about that but it's true :) Your writing has poetry, almost rhythm to it, and it was such a pleasure to read. I hope Edward died - not because I ever want Edward to die (obviously!) but because I am a sucker for tragedy and poignancy and that would just round it off. Incredible.
I see you haven't written anything else and, let me tell you, /that/ is a tragedy. See? I've put you on author alert so I hear when you next put your talented pen to paper. I hope you do :)
5/29/2009 c1 1Insane Bliss
This is beautifully written Babette! Definitely a tear jerker. I really enjoyed his reflections on his time with Bella, even if it did make me cry. Good luck in the contest!
1Insane BlissThis is beautifully written Babette! Definitely a tear jerker. I really enjoyed his reflections on his time with Bella, even if it did make me cry. Good luck in the contest!
5/29/2009 c1 lambcullen
I only have one word right now for this one shot.
BEAUTIFUL.
Honestly, Babette.. I felt like I was there, with him, remembering her...your writing was so descriptive and so fitting for the time you are writing about. Beautiful really is the best I have darlin'. "I lightly caressed her cheekbone with my fingertips, my lips jealous of their contact." - i loved that line so much- I swooned!
You need a huge pat on the back! Thank you x
I only have one word right now for this one shot.
BEAUTIFUL.
Honestly, Babette.. I felt like I was there, with him, remembering her...your writing was so descriptive and so fitting for the time you are writing about. Beautiful really is the best I have darlin'. "I lightly caressed her cheekbone with my fingertips, my lips jealous of their contact." - i loved that line so much- I swooned!
You need a huge pat on the back! Thank you x
5/28/2009 c1 7WriteOnTime
What an extremely well-crafted and unutterably bittersweet story! You use the language of the era so well, but manage to create a tale to suit a modern taste at the same time. And while I hoped as I was reading that someone would find Edward on the battlefield and save him, I was prepared for the end when it came. I mean, no M.A.S.H. units as we know them existed at the time, and field hospital surgeries were pretty much nothing more than the painful cocktail hour of death for most of the patients who were treated.
Awesome job!
7WriteOnTimeWhat an extremely well-crafted and unutterably bittersweet story! You use the language of the era so well, but manage to create a tale to suit a modern taste at the same time. And while I hoped as I was reading that someone would find Edward on the battlefield and save him, I was prepared for the end when it came. I mean, no M.A.S.H. units as we know them existed at the time, and field hospital surgeries were pretty much nothing more than the painful cocktail hour of death for most of the patients who were treated.
Awesome job!
5/27/2009 c1 8Namariel
Aw.
Sweet, innocent and gentle. Very nice Edward indeed, Babette. What a lovely story.
He fell in love with her as a bpy and loved her always... such a romantic! And his honor and his reluctance to 'tarnish' hers, he sure as hell was a Civil War gentleman.
that he lings to her memories to try and fight the sleep is so wamrnign and heartbreaking at once. He really has such a pure spirit, this boy.
I loved it, LOVED it!
Gavi
8NamarielAw.
Sweet, innocent and gentle. Very nice Edward indeed, Babette. What a lovely story.
He fell in love with her as a bpy and loved her always... such a romantic! And his honor and his reluctance to 'tarnish' hers, he sure as hell was a Civil War gentleman.
that he lings to her memories to try and fight the sleep is so wamrnign and heartbreaking at once. He really has such a pure spirit, this boy.
I loved it, LOVED it!
Gavi
5/27/2009 c1 24Rochelle Allison
oh my goodness, babette! this was beautiful, poignant, sad and and so, so vivid. i could fully imagine each moment as you descibed it, and your great use of vocabulary made it so rich. (sounds simple. but it makes such a difference!)
the end pulled on my heart something terrible - was bella really there, with him as he fell asleep for the last time? oh wow.
24Rochelle Allisonoh my goodness, babette! this was beautiful, poignant, sad and and so, so vivid. i could fully imagine each moment as you descibed it, and your great use of vocabulary made it so rich. (sounds simple. but it makes such a difference!)
the end pulled on my heart something terrible - was bella really there, with him as he fell asleep for the last time? oh wow.
5/27/2009 c1 4Stoney Angel
SO good! I choose to believe he survived - don't tell me otherwise because I don't want to hear it!
Thanks for such an awesome CivilWarWard.
4Stoney AngelSO good! I choose to believe he survived - don't tell me otherwise because I don't want to hear it!
Thanks for such an awesome CivilWarWard.
5/27/2009 c1 3BringOnTheShackles
I love this. Like really really love it.
Sorry I know thats a really boring review to give but I just have no words - it was truly amazing.
Really good use of flashbacks (there - that was sort of constructive!)
3BringOnTheShacklesI love this. Like really really love it.
Sorry I know thats a really boring review to give but I just have no words - it was truly amazing.
Really good use of flashbacks (there - that was sort of constructive!)
5/27/2009 c1 Cartnee
WOW...I mean just WOW!
Babette, you've been holding out on us. Can I tell you how much I love the stories of soldiers thinking of their loved ones and then you went and added Edward and Bella to the mix.
The entire honeymoon scene was so enduring and very realistic for the time. Edward had to go and internalize his hope for a child to be formed from their love! ::swoons::
I'm hooked. Can't wait to see where you take this.
Thanks for sharing this with us!
WOW...I mean just WOW!
Babette, you've been holding out on us. Can I tell you how much I love the stories of soldiers thinking of their loved ones and then you went and added Edward and Bella to the mix.
The entire honeymoon scene was so enduring and very realistic for the time. Edward had to go and internalize his hope for a child to be formed from their love! ::swoons::
I'm hooked. Can't wait to see where you take this.
Thanks for sharing this with us!
5/26/2009 c1 1MusicJunki
The detail of the regiments he was a part of/transferred to. The campaigns he participated in. You did such a wonderful job of making this feel like a true piece of historical fiction.
"Upon arriving at the dance, I could hear the strains of a Minuet. Surely this was done to appease the older generation." Even just that tiny bit. You seem to know so much about this period and every little statement displays that fact.
"How flushed was her skin at the end! How I wished to have her flush for different reasons." Oh my, CivilWarward!
"I lightly caressed her cheekbone with my fingertips, my lips jealous of their contact." I just thought that little bit was wonderfully endearing.
"Would I expire without ever seeing her face again?" Just...*sob*
"So I had turned to our driver, Emmett. I knew that he and his girl, Rosalie, had been intimate frequently, for he had boasted of it to me." HAHAHA! Love it. Good ol' Em and Rose.
"He reminded me that there have been wedding nights since Adam married Eve, and no one had died from one yet. I sincerely hoped he was right." Goodness, his nervousness is so fitting, particularly for the time. You did such a wonderful job of conveying that nervousness wrapped also in his eagerness to be intimate with this woman he loves so deeply. From the bit with them undressing each other (LOVED that- the timid sensuality coupled with Ed's impatience), to him trying to remember all of Emmett's advice and the care he took while first making love to her.
"Would this joining of our love bring forth life? How long before I had a living and breathing representation of the love we shared?" Oh mah goodness. That these are his thoughts as he's making love to his wife for the first time... Once again, a perfect sign of the times, I think. But mostly one of the intense and endearing love he has for Bella.
Okay, so I leave up this window to copy/paste lines that I particularly enjoy as I read, but I lost track when I got to the end...
And now I'm crying.
Babette.
My dearest, lovely Babette.
That was beautiful. I keep reading the last few lines over and over, which draws out more tears. I literally sobbed aloud the first time I finished it.
I thought the transition between him lying in the battlefield (heartbreak much?) and struggling to fill his mind with flashbacks of Bella (why yes, break my heart in two) were wonderfully done.
There really isn't anything of substance for me to say. I've already rambled enough, I think (good lord, this is going to be long). I just. . . this was just. . . beautiful. Painfully so.
*sigh*
Much love, lady.
1MusicJunkiThe detail of the regiments he was a part of/transferred to. The campaigns he participated in. You did such a wonderful job of making this feel like a true piece of historical fiction.
"Upon arriving at the dance, I could hear the strains of a Minuet. Surely this was done to appease the older generation." Even just that tiny bit. You seem to know so much about this period and every little statement displays that fact.
"How flushed was her skin at the end! How I wished to have her flush for different reasons." Oh my, CivilWarward!
"I lightly caressed her cheekbone with my fingertips, my lips jealous of their contact." I just thought that little bit was wonderfully endearing.
"Would I expire without ever seeing her face again?" Just...*sob*
"So I had turned to our driver, Emmett. I knew that he and his girl, Rosalie, had been intimate frequently, for he had boasted of it to me." HAHAHA! Love it. Good ol' Em and Rose.
"He reminded me that there have been wedding nights since Adam married Eve, and no one had died from one yet. I sincerely hoped he was right." Goodness, his nervousness is so fitting, particularly for the time. You did such a wonderful job of conveying that nervousness wrapped also in his eagerness to be intimate with this woman he loves so deeply. From the bit with them undressing each other (LOVED that- the timid sensuality coupled with Ed's impatience), to him trying to remember all of Emmett's advice and the care he took while first making love to her.
"Would this joining of our love bring forth life? How long before I had a living and breathing representation of the love we shared?" Oh mah goodness. That these are his thoughts as he's making love to his wife for the first time... Once again, a perfect sign of the times, I think. But mostly one of the intense and endearing love he has for Bella.
Okay, so I leave up this window to copy/paste lines that I particularly enjoy as I read, but I lost track when I got to the end...
And now I'm crying.
Babette.
My dearest, lovely Babette.
That was beautiful. I keep reading the last few lines over and over, which draws out more tears. I literally sobbed aloud the first time I finished it.
I thought the transition between him lying in the battlefield (heartbreak much?) and struggling to fill his mind with flashbacks of Bella (why yes, break my heart in two) were wonderfully done.
There really isn't anything of substance for me to say. I've already rambled enough, I think (good lord, this is going to be long). I just. . . this was just. . . beautiful. Painfully so.
*sigh*
Much love, lady.
5/25/2009 c1 1whenpoetryrises
I'm so speechless right now. When you told me you had written a story, I knew it would be amazing...and this is just so beautiful-the story and the writing both.
I cried and I laughed during this story and I don't do that often. I loved how you incorperated so much of Twilight into it, even in such a different setting and time.
I don't know if I've told you this, but I absolutely love historical fiction-and this story was that genre and Twilight all combined into one. I can tell that you really know this time period, which makes it even better because the Civil War setting is so realistic.
I loved how Alice loved fashion and dresses, even then, and how you hinted at Bella and Alice's friendship. I just loved the dancing scene in general, especially Edward's hesitance and excitement. I liked Carlisle and Emmett's roles in this story (especially Emmett as the giver of sage advice about sex). Even the minor characters-like Mike and Mr. Banner-were worked into the story perfectly. Yet at the same time, it truly remained a love story about Edward and Bella. I've officially fallen in love with Civil War-ward. :)
Also, I absolutely loved the ending. I can't even explain why exactly, but I like how it left us hanging a bit, but was rather peaceful at the same time.
You are an amazing writer and a beta and I'm looking forward to reading more from you. :) Keep on being wonderful! Love you!
1whenpoetryrisesI'm so speechless right now. When you told me you had written a story, I knew it would be amazing...and this is just so beautiful-the story and the writing both.
I cried and I laughed during this story and I don't do that often. I loved how you incorperated so much of Twilight into it, even in such a different setting and time.
I don't know if I've told you this, but I absolutely love historical fiction-and this story was that genre and Twilight all combined into one. I can tell that you really know this time period, which makes it even better because the Civil War setting is so realistic.
I loved how Alice loved fashion and dresses, even then, and how you hinted at Bella and Alice's friendship. I just loved the dancing scene in general, especially Edward's hesitance and excitement. I liked Carlisle and Emmett's roles in this story (especially Emmett as the giver of sage advice about sex). Even the minor characters-like Mike and Mr. Banner-were worked into the story perfectly. Yet at the same time, it truly remained a love story about Edward and Bella. I've officially fallen in love with Civil War-ward. :)
Also, I absolutely loved the ending. I can't even explain why exactly, but I like how it left us hanging a bit, but was rather peaceful at the same time.
You are an amazing writer and a beta and I'm looking forward to reading more from you. :) Keep on being wonderful! Love you!