On a more positive note, The Seattle Times includes The Nature of Middle-earth on their list of "Critic picks 20 of the most eagerly awaited books of 2021".

https://www.seattletimes.com/entertain ... ly-awaited-books-of-2021/

The leak? Maybe Wormtongue?

Trotter wrote:

Private Eye https://www.private-eye.co.uk/ have already reviewed the book. For anyone who is not aware of Private Eye, the magazine is very anti Tolkien and the Tolkien Estate.

I wouldn't get too stressed about Private Eye. Their job is to poke fun at whatever is there to have fun poked at it, and I think the readership knows that.