It seems the business world agrees, as publishers are far from the only entities trying to grab the Tolkien audience. Regina says the site he co-founded, TheOneRing.net, has seen a drop in traffic from the peak of the fan craze, but interest remains high. "Things like this (the book release) bring people out of the woodwork. There is definitely a second life of Tolkien. We still have people interested to know more."

In addition, Turbine Inc., a software developer, will officially launch a massive multiplayer online game on April 24, "The Lord of the Rings Online: The Rise of the Witch King," a week after Tolkien's new book hits the shelves. It is viewed by PC game insiders as a challenge to other multimillion-player games currently in session, such as king of the genre "World of Warcraft," which boasts 8 million monthly subscribers. The game is perceived as a real challenger in the market because it takes place in the most recognizable fantasy world: Tolkien's Middle-earth.

"They are just different interpretations (of Middle-earth)," Regina said. "The game is — and the book is — a different way of enjoying them." He intends to sample both.

Turbine also sees the game as a new interpretation of Tolkein. "It is the type of product that can support en epic launch," Turbine's CEO Jeff Anderson told the Deseret Morning News. "The magnitude of the (Tolkein) world needs to feel epic."

The game creates a Middle-earth where players can walk and react to other players and thousands of non-players controlled by the computer, which immerses players in Middle-earth during the time of "The Fellowship of the Ring."

Anticipation for the game is high, and business potential is big. Users pay between $10 and $15 monthly to have access to the game as well as $50 to buy it off the shelf or online. It features more than 50 million square meters of territory in Middle-earth with expansions promised. There are 400 points of interest, 1,500 quests and several "exceptional" characters lifted directly from canonized Tolkien text.

On the other end of fandom are Tolkien scholars who have been around before, during and after the film hype, who are also having a banner year. Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull are leading the charge right now with two monumental Tolkien publications they have co-authored in the past three years.

The newest is "The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide," a work of Tolkien scholarship that will stand as a pillar of significant importance for a long time. It focuses on Tolkein, his life, his associates, his times, his history, his environments and, by virtue of all of that, his works.

This comes on the heels of the same authors' 2005 release "The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion." That work focuses on "Lord of the Rings," acting as an "Annotated Lord of the Rings." The quality of research is an aid to both casual readers and those who are serious scholars.

So rejoice, Tolkienites, these are the salad days.

Note: Larry Curtis is a staff member of TheOneRing.net.

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E-mail: lc@desnews.com