A couple months ago author Steve Hillard got slapped with a big fat cease-and-desist order from J.R.R. Tolkien’s estate for his novel Mirkwood. The estate took issue with Hillard’s book because it featured a fictionalized version of the iconic author of The Lord of the Rings, and the estate claimed that only they had the right to use Tolkien’s name and likeness. Hillard argued that his novel is an exercise in literary criticism, which is protected by the First Amendment, about the lack of female characters in Tolkien’s work.

After some back and forth it seems that the two parties have reached some sort of settlement on the matter and Mirkwood is headed to shelves once again. The full details of the settlement are unclear, but we do know that there will be a disclaimer in the book that clarifies the Tolkien estate’s disassociation with the work. Well, duh. Sounds like Hillard Lawyer’d the Tolkien estate, and agreed to this (very obvious) stipulation just to make them feel better .

Enter Mirkwood, the Great Forest of Doubt Bold new author Steve Hillard’s wildly original debut, Mirkwood, re-invents J.R.R. Tolkien as a man haunted by the very myths he rewove into his famous works. As much literary criticism as boisterous epic, this episodically-driven plot explores the blurred borderlands where ancient tales, lost heroines, and epic journeys are stalked by dim monsters that will not be still. In 1970, Professor Tolkien makes a little-known visit to America-and sets in motion elvish powers embodied in a cache of archaic documents. Destinies are altered, legends become real, and two heroines must race for their lives in vastly different worlds.

[Source] THR

Pick up a copy of Mirkwood from Amazon today.

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