Title: Bringing the walls down
Fandom: Dr.Horrible/Supernatural
Pairing: Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester/Billy (Dr. Horrible)
Categories/Genres: Apocalypse AU, Romance, Slight Crack
Length: 20895
Warnings: Incest

Author/Artist on LJ: libraryofsol
Author/Artist on AO3: Library of Sol

Summary: They had names now, the men in the 1967 Chevy Impala were Sam and Dean Winchester, and they were trying to save the world.

Review: Written by one of my top favourite authors of all time. This fic is a mix between a sequel of Dr. Horrible and an alternative Supernatural future where the gates of hell stay open. It’s a world where there is a never ending fight happening against the forces of evil, Billy joins up with the boys to help them with their war.

What I love so much about this fic is the feeling it gives you of light in the darkness. While the world is a miserable place, these people find happiness in each other and Billy especially as he gives them his weird science and wonderful weapons straight out of sci-fi. Billy finally has a place where he is appreciated.

There is nothing sadder than the ending of Dr. Horrible. Where he is all alone and he chooses to become evil because the people who claim to be good do the most harm. In this fic he finally finds himself on the right side and finds himself a happy ending. If you want a well written resolution then you should definitely read this fic.

The incest only happens in the last chapter so you may just read the first two chapters and should be alright.

Bringing the walls down

Title: All the King's Horses
Fandom: Doctor Who
Pairing: Gen, Tenth Doctor, Donna Noble
Categories: Adventure, Gen
Length: Long [26 110 words]
Warnings: none

Author/Artist/Creator on LJ: lindenharp
Author/Artist/Creator Website: Lindenharp’S AO3

Summary:A star empire is menaced by deadly creatures from the time of Rassilon. Will one lone Time Lord and a human companion be enough to defeat them?

Review:

Sometimes what I really need is a good canon-style adventure. Donna is one of my favorite companions and I was always a bit sad that we only got the one season with her and especially about how things ended up for her.

This is not a fix-it for that, but it’s a wonderful gen adventure that slots in right in between the episodes we have for her and the Doctor. The interactions and dialogue are very in character (in the beginning Donna seems a bit smart in the wrong way, but that soon levels back to canon Donna brilliance).

It’s a brilliantly crafted adventure story too, that could very well be an episode. Lindenharp does an amazing job of fleshing out the details of the Time War and Time Lord history. I found the world-building she did for the ancient alien civilization they encounter and all the traditions and costums of theirs very engaging and I love the underlying story of culture clash, especially because it’s also a story of how people from different cultures can work together and come to understand each other better.

It’s a wonderful read all around.

All the King's Horses

Title: the best man in his world and a good enough man for any world
Fandom: Iron Man Noir
Pairing: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Categories: Romance, Angst, Drama, Post-Canon
Length: Long [~25 000]
Warnings: Comic Book Violence, some mentions of medical procedures that can be uncomfortable

Author on LJ: stray_heart/thyrza
Author Website: thyrza's AO3

Summary: Tony Stark disappeared without a word at the close of World War II, and hasn't been seen or heard from since. When Commander Steve Rogers, newly retired from the mantle of Captain America, arrives in Madripoor to investigate the presence of a Hydra cell, he is reunited with his former lover. But Tony is keeping secrets of his own ... and Steve soon finds out he isn't the only person interested in Tony Stark's missing years.

Review:

This is a Steve/Tony story written for the Cap/Iron Man Big Bang a couple of years ago and and even better for one of the more obscure canon versions of Tony Stark. It’s based on the Iron Man Noir mini-series from 2010 in which Tony Stark is not only a genius inventor, but also an Indiana Jones style adventurer with his own pulp magazine that fictionalizes his exploits. He has run-in’s with Nazi’s like Baron von Strucker and Baron Zemo and it’s implied at the end that he’ll join the war effort at the end of the comic.

This Big Bang story takes that as a given and jumps ahead in time to the post-war era and is told entirely from the perspective of Steve, who we learn was indeed Captain America during World War II and is now “retired”, but still works for SHIELD - not as Captain America, but as Steve Rogers. Tony Stark has vanished right after the war and his whereabouts and reasons for leaving remain a mystery to Steve until he’s sent on a new mission.

While the main story takes place in 1947, the set-up and most of the exposition, is done very deftly through the use of flashbacks, that give us the missing background for the romance and go into some details of their time together during the war, before the real action starts.

The story is very well written and has some of the most heart-breaking angsty Tony moments imaginable. It does go some dark places, before things get better, but nothing darker than the original mini-series (which was full of pulpy violence and noir themes). The author does a good job of using the cast and little details that the mini-series’ worldbuilding provided and add re-interpretations of other Marvel universe plots and characters to build upon it. It’s a very engaging read, a very emotional adventures and some of the moments of desperation and fear driving the main characters here were probably among the best I ever read.

It’s likely helpful to know the gist of the 4 issue mini-series, but there is so much original worldbuilding going on here that it can also be read without much canon knowledge.

the best man in his world and a good enough man for any world

Title: feet been draggin’ cross the ground
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Pairing: Gen with Dawn and Buffy, background Buffy/Faith
Categories: drama, family, hurt/comfort, romance
Length: Long [17784words]
Warnings: canon typical violence

Author/Artist/Creator on LJ: celaenos
Author/Artist/Creator Website: celaenos' AO3

Summary: Dawn goes along with Buffy on a seemingly endless road trip after Sunnydale blows up. Stubbornly avoiding their friends, and any semblance of normalcy, they try to figure out just what the hell they are supposed to do with their lives now.

Review:

I do remember that the first time I tried to read the fic I stopped after the first few scenes, because I felt there were some clunky sentences. Then later I sat down again, because I'm a sucker for a good fic about the Summers sisters and even more for Buffy/Faith and that time I read it in one setting and what I found was an amazing fic.

It's set post-canon and Buffy feels lost without her mission, instead of joining the scoobies she and Dawn set out on a road trip across the country. It's a fic about the sisters and their relationship and how life changes for them, how they deal with being or not being the Slayer and a girl that technically isn't real, but the Key. It has wonderful bonding moment and wonderful humor. It's also about Buffy running away from facing the feeling she might have for Faith.

It also does a good job of showing how both Buffy and Dawn slowly figure themselves out and find their way.

It's wonderful. The characterisation and slow progression is perfect and highlights the confusion and the feeling of being aimlessly adrift. There are just so many unique and wonderful women around in this fic and it makes for a wonderful highly recommended read.

feet been draggin’ cross the ground

Title: The Sea and Stars Are Yours, My Dear, But the Moon Would Not Cooperate
Fandom: Dishonored
Pairing: Corvo Attano/The Outsider
Categories/Genres: Romance, Fluff, Humor, Courtship
Length: Long (25367 words)
Warnings: N/A

Author on LJ: N/A
Author Website: NeverwinterThistle

Summary:

The Outsider explores the murky seas of human courtship while Corvo watches in bemusement, and in the background Emily draws, Callista takes charge, Piero sulks, and Cecelia accidentally becomes indispensable. There's also a plague, a vase of asparagus, and about a hundred singing whales who randomly showed up in the harbour one evening.

The squid is still wriggling.

Review:

It's funny, that is to say, odd, how love is such an indelible constant of the human condition, and yet the ways and means of achieving it evolve and change with the times. It's also funny, that is to say, amusing, to watch The Outsider try his hand at human-style courtship as defined by a wealthy, entitled male. It's also utterly hilarious to watch Corvo misunderstand at every turn.

Speaking of, Corvo is a delight in this fic. NeverwinterThistle takes a mute player character and, with a wave of the magic author wand, turns him into a real boy with real person thoughts and real person feelings and real person uncertainty in the face of some pretty heavy-handed intentions on The Outsider's part. But NeverwinterThistle never once lets Corvo backslide into the cardboard cut-out most silent protagonists are by their very nature. Instead, Corvo's mood lifts from gritty, grinding paranoia to genuine contentment in a progression that never feels rushed or overdone.

But to be honest, the star of this fic is The Outsider and the vast range of moods NeverwinterThistle is able to portray through Corvo's perspective.

The Sea and Stars Are Yours, My Dear, But the Moon Would Not Cooperate

Title: Timeline series
Fandom: X-Men: First Class, X-Men Movies
Pairing: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier
Categories: Time Travel, First Time, Humor with a bit of angst
Length: Long [31 625words]
Warnings: none

Author/Artist/Creator on LJ: unforgotten
Author/Artist/Creator Website: Unforgotten’s AO3

Review: This is a series of two fics, “Replay” and “Numbers” and an added collection of snippets and drabbles set in the same verse that highlight some of the moments we didn’t get to see or that were only hinted at.

The premise is that old man Charles Xavier as we know him from the X-Men movies and with all the knowledge, experience and power of his old self travels back in time, by casting his mind into his younger body. It’s his plan to change all the horrible events that made Magneto the person he is and he does it in the best way he can think of: As he knows Erik has been in love for him for decades now, what’s easier than to give him what he wants?

“Replay” is a delightful and sometimes hilarious fic about old Charles having to come to grips with being young again and with the moral dilemma of using his future knowledge to “take advantage” of Erik. He’s so engrossed in his own dilemma and so very Charles in some of the decisions he makes - like not reading Erik’s mind for the entire fic - that makes the little twist here work. Although the author - or Erik - gives the twist away pretty early on to make even more obvious that Charles can be the king of denial if he wants to, Charles never allows himself to pick up on it. It makes all his interactions with Erik very interesting and all the back and forth and paralleling of the things that happened in the future they left behind and what’s happening in their new past is well thought out and nicely used to describe the sort of people they are.

I think I like the second part, “Numbers” a little better even than “Replay” although it’s really imperative to read them in order and preferably together. “Numbers” is Eriks version of that happened in “Replay” and his voice is appropriately dry and a joy to read. Also his reflections on Charles and his obliviousness are just too funny.

Timeline series

Title: i broke my bones playing games with
Fandom: Agent Carter (TV)
Pairing: Peggy Carter/Angie Martinelli and past Steve/Peggy
Categories: Romance, AU, domestic
Length: Long [22 029words]
Warnings: none

Author on LJ: n/a
Author Website: mooosicaldreamz on AO3

Review:
This is a wonderful and tender fic. Reading it I wished for it to never end and still it ends in such a fitting, sweet spot that it’s exactly perfect the way it is.

This is essentially a shipping fic for the Peggy/Angie pairing set in an AU where Peggy was Captain America and is woken from the ice into present day New York and meets Angie Martinelli, aspiring actress, lesbian, working at a diner and developing a big crush on her the suddenly alive again childhood hero.

It’s a nice fic and it explains nicely how a British woman ended up being Captain America - a role that had been meant for Steve Rogers initially. It also does a wonderful job of integrating this into the greater MCU by letting Peggy’s adventures in the present follow some of the stages a woken up Steve Rogers also had to go through. All of that is told from Angie’s POV though, who meets Peggy by accident and watches her react to the new life and times, who is worried about her when she’s fighting the good fight and who ends up being very much infatuated with her, amused by some of her old fashioned ideas and who is on the side also trying to cope with life and her unrequited love.

The fic has some very amusing moment, with Angie putting her foot in her mouth when she tries to be suave, with Tony Stark ending up wearing a gay pride rainbow colored Iron Man suit spraying glitter and Peggy understatedly and charmingly dealing with being thrown into our time. The MCU is only the backdrop though, Angie’s life and her blossoming romance with Peggy is at the center and there are some wonderful call-backs to how the two of them met and got to be friends and roommates in the Agent Carter series. And that's what makes this fic so great and so sweet, with all the domestic moments and the dancing around each other and Angi's thoughts about superhero life.

i broke my bones playing games with

Title: An Ordinary Meeting
Fandom: Sherlock Holmes
Pairing: Gen
Categories/Genres: Slice of Life, Friendship, Humor, Action/Adventure
Length: Long ( 27,235 words)
Warnings: N/A

Author on LJ: N/A
Author Website: aragonite

Summary:

Lestrade meets the man mad enough to room with Sherlock Holmes.

Review:

If you like Sherlock Holmes in literally any of its incarnations, you need to read this. Period. My favorite chapter is Honey and Onions, Both because of the sheer unbelievable hilarity and also the way in which aragonite has Lestrade and Watson recount their story. It's messy and haphazard and incredibly improbable, and yet aragonite shows in The Art of Reports that it's completely true, if heavily abridged. If you need more convincing, I leave you with this delightful snippet:

"It is illegal to perform obstruction in highways, bridges or rivers!" Lestrade paused again to spit filthy water out from the middle of his diatribe. If you feel the need to perform such an activity, you must first file for a permit at your public Police-station!"

For some unfathomable reason, it worked. The steersman blanched; he hurriedly stuffed his revolver into his coat and used both hands to wrench the cabin back to align with the current...

An Ordinary Meeting

Title: Be Bold, But Not Too Bold
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Pairing: Vincent Valentine/Tifa Lockhart
Categories: post-canon, romance, first time
Length: Long (~17k)
Warnings: canon appropriate violence

Author on LJ: memoriamvictus
Author Website: Memoriam's AO3

Review: This is a post-Advent Children, post-Dirge of Cerberus fic focused on Tifa and Vincent. Tifa is still running her bar in Edge and generally juggles life and it’s a very, very chaotic night for her when Vincent drops in for a visit and there is some general bonding over past and present and also a long term crush is revealed and leads to… other things. There is some action and implied misogyny and a bit of a revenge subplot that has more attempted violence, but for the most part this is focused on these two characters sharing a few relatively quiet moments, talking about the past and coming together. (And that part is hot.)

The fic sets Tifa’s current life situation and general badassery up by having her deal with a sleezy client in the first scene. She’s mostly just her own private person running a bar now, even if people know who she is and that she used to be part of Avalanche, but she still can hold herself in a fight. So basically this all starts with a fist brawl. The action is well set up and realistic.

The amazing parts of this story are actually the slow-build, and the characterisation. Through the bonding moments it becomes clear how the shared past affected both their lives and their present, even if they are moving into new territory now. There are wonderful characterisation moments when their affection and their character traits shine through in the way they treat each other and talk to each other, Tifa being frank and sometimes putting her foot in her mouth with her assumptions - and Vincent being his quiet self and trying to hide his feeling and not intrude.

The writing is very beautiful, but it’s really the characterisation in this one that makes it one of my favorites.

Be Bold, But Not Too Bold

Title: Howl
Fandom: Mad Max: Fury Road
Pairing: Furiousa/Max
Categories: AU, Domestic, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, Supernatural,
Length: Long (20k)
Warnings: Canon typical violence

Author on LJ: raleighpuppy
Website: Raleighpuppy's Ao3

Summary: There's a dingo hanging around The Citadel at night and, when Furiosa befriends the dingo, she notices a few odd coincidences involving the dingo, which she names Max, and another Max quite dear to her.

And then a new threat appears.

Review: Max makes such a cute were-creature! The story is nice and straightforward which is in-keeping with the feel of the movie.

It allows us to get to know Max better and it's nice to see him getting a happier ending.

The fic also has an interesting take on lycanthropy. I can't say much more without giving anything away. But this is definitely worth a read if you like modernized Supernatural worlds.

Howl

Title: Shelter Me Series
Fandom: Leverage
Pairing: Parker/Eliot Spencer/Alec Hardison
Categories: Action Adventure, Friendship, First Time, Hurt/Comfort
Length: Long (20k)
Warnings: Off screen torture

Author on LJ: http://thingswithwings.dreamwidth.org/
Website: Ao3

Summary: Eliot's their hitter, and taking on any physical threats to the team is his job, but there's something beyond professionalism – even beyond the obvious fact that Eliot relishes the fight itself – in the way he puts his body between Parker or Alec and any potential threat. Alec has a good view of Eliot's back on a lot of jobs, and he reads something in the tight line of Eliot's shoulder, in the slow turn of his foot as he steps into a fighting stance.

Something possessive.

Review: This is an interesting take on both a post-canon fic and a fic for our favorite trio of thieves to get together.

Even though the fic is narrated from Alec's POV, it is very much centered around Eliot and his changing role in the team. I'm glad to see it after the recklessness that was shown in the Rundown Job, our only Canon evidence of how a team of just Eliot, Alec, and Parker would function.

The romance is nice and slow building, and different enough to feel right for people who see the world as differently as Parker and Eliot seem to. The first fic covers their getting together.

The second fic in the series is kink heavy so make sure you read the tags

Shelter Me Series

Title: Black Water Rising
Fandom: Agent Carter
Pairing: gen
Categories: casefic, action/adventure, hurt/comfort, huddling for warmth, team, friendship
Length: long, 29,221 words
Warnings: none

Author on Livejournal: sholio
Author Website: Sholio on AO3

Summary: An apparently abandoned Hydra facility turns into a deathtrap for Peggy and the SSR team. Set after 1x08.

Review: It really could not be more of a stereotypical villain lair if they'd taken the design straight from one of those execrable Captain America comics, Peggy thought, shining her torch above and around the empty, echoing halls. And it was entirely cleaned out. Not a stick of furniture, not even so much as a bolt. When Hydra cleared out, they really cleared out.

This is a solid gen adventure that delivers something I'd very much had the desire to see after watching the series -- our three favourite SSR agents working together and respecting each other for their strengths and understanding each other's weaknesses, all of which get showcased during the course of the story. It's a great teamfic full of banter and tropeyness (but never too much to take over the story) which makes me wish there was more of its like out there.

Thompson's *cough* still a prat, but he's their prat and still wants to do the right thing, even if he always(?) falls down with the execution, even if we're still not sure he'd come through in the crunch, but he gets the chance to be brave and tenacious here and show some real strength. Sousa gets to be quietly smart and self-sacrificing. Peggy is competent and in-charge despite the nominal ranks, but also permitted to be human, isn't invulnerable or without fear. Above all it's teamwork that enables them to survive their situation in this fic, and every member of the trio playing their part.

Black Water Rising

Title: Clutter
Fandom: Inuyasha
Pairing: Kagome Higurashi/Sesshoumaru
Categories/Genres: Alternate Universe, Fluff, Romance, Humor
Length: Long (~20000 words)
Warnings: N/A

Author on LJ: forthrightly
Author Website: Forthright

Summary:

AU. Mrs. Higurashi decides to help her daughter put her life together; enter Sesshoumaru, professional organizer extraordinaire. Kagome resents having a perfect stranger rummaging through her messes, but he's bound and determined to show her the folly of her easy-going ways. A romantic comedy told in 100-word snippets.

Review:

If I had never watched a minute, nor read a page of Inuyasha in my life, my life would be poorer not for never having known it, but for having missed this fic. Clutter exists in my mind as the quintessential fanfiction version of a nineties romcom. There's a quirky premise, a lead pair who push and pull with fantastic chemistry, and a supporting cast of (sometimes inanimate) characters that add humor and depth and the occasional wrench thrown into the lead pairing's respective lives.

For the uninitiated, forthright's use of the drabble can be jarring, and the number of chapters dauntinng, but it's easy enough to adapt, namely because forthright is a master of the format. Each 100 word segment works to move the story forward. Forthright is also generous with the punchlines, the humor light and quick and charming.

Clutter

Title: The ninth fold
Fandom: Prison Break
Pairing: Alex Mahone/Michael Schofield Categories/Genres: Romance, Angst
Length: 31323
Warnings:

Summary: Nine turns of Michael Scofield's life.

Review:
A sweet and simple story for a stressful week. I have been trying to find a fic that captures the intensity between Michael and Mahone but I've not found one yet.
This fic is well written and in character. Which I have found is rare with Michael since his character is so subtle many writers end up writing him as submissive without meaning to.
I love that in this fic Mahone gets some swans of his own. I always felt he would have appreciated them more than Sara who always seemed so annoyed with them.

The ninth fold

Title: of the nature of the wound
Fandom: Check, Please!/Hockey RPF
Pairing: Eric Bittle/Jack Zimmermann, Larissa “Lardo” Duan/Shitty Knight, Patrick Kane/Jonathan Toews, Jamie Benn/Tyler Seguin, Past Kent Parson/Jack Zimmermann
Categories/Genres: Angst, AU, Drama, Epistolary, Established Relationship, First Time, Fluff, Friendship, Humor, Romance
Length: Long (33936 words)
Warnings: Homophobic language by hockey players

Author on LJ: N/A
Author Website: buchanan

Summary:

His first year in the NHL isn't easy, but Jack has spent his entire life playing through the hurt.

Review:

Note: While Check, Please! doesn't require knowing anything about hockey beyond the fact that it's a team sport played on ice, of the nature of the wound does require a functional knowledge of professional hockey and how its seasons are scheduled. Being a hockey RPF crossover, this fic does incorporate real hockey players, and knowledge of those players provides useful context for their roles in the fic.

A lot of the Check, Please! fic I read tends to be of the lighter variety. Humorous and/or cute, and generally threaded through with the pervasive sense of, 'oh, you adorable boys'. Considering how light-hearted the canon is, it's probably not surprising that the fanfiction I choose to read follows in that direction.

of the nature of the wound is not one of those fics. It's also not an easy fic to get through, namely because it focuses on Jack's anxieties about being a closeted professional hockey player. You could, uncharitably if honestly, call it Jack's downward spiral of anxiety and loneliness.

buchanan's fic exemplifies the proverb “it is always darkest just before the dawn” in that it feels very much like the very beginning of a story that we are not (yet) privy to, not just in terms of Jack and Bitty's burgeoning relationship, but also the NHL as a whole upon the coming out of one of its most recognized hockey duos. Hopefully more of that will unfold in buchanan's expected sequel.

And now that I've given you a lot of reasons not to read the fic, I suppose I should mention why I am actually reccing it: buchanan does a fantastic job of weaving the fluffy and fictional Check, Please! microcosm into the much colder real world, where people change and move past who they were and sometimes grow apart, and where they succeed, fail, break, and struggle to mend what is broken. Jack Zimmermann does not feel like a fictional character as buchanan writes him. Nor does Eric Bittle, nor even Chowder, who is something of a caricature even in the comic's canon. It truly is a testament to buchanan's grasp of emotional complexity that I clung, riveted until the end, in spite of the fic's darker tone and truly annoying ten-line section breaks. (No, seriously, keep a finger on the space bar or page down key.)

of the nature of the wound

Title: A Different World
Fandom: Eureka
Pairing: Jack Carter/Nathan Stark
Categories/Genres: AU, Romance
Length: 24058
Warnings: Hurt/Comfort

Summary:
Okay, so Henry said that the timeline had changed and certain things could be different now but that in no way prepared Jack for a ghost showing up on his doorstep.
He felt he should've been better prepared for that.

Review: It's probably best if you are all caught up on Eureka before you read this fic. It's set's off after the group has changed the past and have returned to the new timeline. Except one difference to the series is that Nathan is alive when they come back. The reason why you should read this fic out of all the variations of it that exist is that this one leans more towards sweet and happy.

There is an especially cute moment where Jack and Jo are drunk and are absolutely adorable.

“I was jealous,” Jack said.

Jo scrunched her face up in confusion for a moment before realising that he was responding to her earlier question. “Ohhh! Wait, about Allison with Stark? I thought you’d decided that wasn’t a thing.”

Jack nodded violently. “We did...I had! I think it’s just because it’s Stark, you know? And all his...” he waved his hand in the air “...Starkishness!”

“He is very Starkish,” Jo agreed, “I think it’s the beard.”

A different World

Title: And I'm crashing into you
Fandom: The Flash (CW)
Pairing: Barry Allen/Cisco Ramon
Categories/Genres: Friends with benefits, Jealousy, Hurt/Comfort
Length: 19750
Warnings: None

Author on AO3:
Poisonivory

Summary: Cisco fixes things that are broken, like super-suits and hearts. It's what friends do, right?

Review:
In the mood for puppy's in love? This fic is heart thumpingly sweet. Not my favourite pairing in the flash fandom but the best written fic in the fandom I have read so far. These geeky puppys get each other so easily you feel no awkwardness between them even through bad romantic decisions and bad priorities.

And I'm crashing into you

Title: From That Moment On
Fandom: Marvel MCU
Pairing: Bucky Barnes/Tony Stark
Categories: AU, Hurt/Comfort, Pre-Canon, Romance
Length: Long (22k)
Warnings: torture, brain washing

Author on LJ:
Website: Ao3

Summary: The Winter Soldier and Tony Stark have run into each other many times over the years and, despite the brainwashing and the memory wipes, something about the genius just seems so familiar. It kind of makes the Soldier want to keep him safe.

Review: This is a fast moving alternate origin story for Iron Man that includes a multitude of great concepts.

I love protective Peggy Carter and the Howling Commandos, and the chance to see how things would changed if the Iron Man movie had been created taking the events of Captain America into consideration.

Also Tony meeting Bucky for the first time and informing him that he is being followed around by baby ducks.

From That Moment On

Title: You'll Get There in the End (It Just Takes a While)
Fandom: Star Trek XI
Pairing: Jim Kirk/Spock, past Nyota Uhura/Spock
Categories/Genres: Post-Canon, Drama, Romance, Angst, Pon Farr, Bonding, Friendship
Length: Long (33465 words)
Warnings: N/A

Author on LJ: seperis
Author Website: seperis

Summary:

"Spock. Just say 'I don't trust Starfleet not to mess up the only captain in the fleet who I can train up to my expectations and enjoys running into danger wearing a blindfold as much as I do'."

Review:

The format of this fic is a little confusing at first, jumping back and forth between two progressing timelines until they meet in the middle. Not to mention, seperis refuses to hold the reader's hand and explain everything in small sentences with smaller words. You'll Get There in the End (It Just Takes a While) demands that the reader think as they read and slot the pieces together. It's not always easy, and there are some recurring threads that are not particularly obvious as such, but in the end, when the story pulls in its loose threads and weaves them all together, there's a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment that few authors manage to create in their fic.

The thing is, I can easily imagine this fic being written chronologically, rather than alternating between the immediate post-movie and the onset of Jim's 'pon farr'. It would still be good reading, but it's unlikely that I'd find it fascinating enough to rec it. Its format creates a tension that vibrates like a plucked instrument string through the entire length of the fic, a quiet hum that grows in intensity right up until the climax, when the separate timelines resolve into a single chronological narrative.

seperis also makes the conscious decision not to include any sort of internal contemplation of emotion through the bulk of the fic. As odd as it was to read a romance fic where there was no mention of romantic emotion between Jim and Spock, it gave the climax that much more energy by contrast, their emotions distilled and crisp rather than worn smooth by repetition.

Unfortunately I can't give any sort of recommendation on the rest of The Reboot Series, as I haven't had the opportunity to read it. But going by the quality and complexity of You'll Get There, I'm guessing it's definitely worth checking out.

You'll Get There in the End (It Just Takes a While)

Title:Hold my Bones
Fandom: Bandom
Pairing: Gabe Saporta/Pete Wentz
Categories: Angst, Family, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort
Length: Long (22k)
Warnings: Past Sexual Assault, Past Child Abuse, Homophobia, PTSD, Anxiety, Panic Attacks

Author on LJ: inlovewithnight
Website: inlovewithnight

Summary: After Pete's summer at boot camp, Pete's parents move their family to New Jersey, where Pete meets Gabe Saporta and Gabe's dad. Contains on-screen panic attacks, discussion and descriptions of child abuse, references to child sexual abuse, dysfunctional family dynamics, teenagers exploring their sexuality (mentally and emotionally, not sexually). Upbeat ending with the implication of happy lives. Co-authored with lalejandra.

Review: This fic is primarily comfort, following Pete's period in Bootcamp. Still make sure you read the warnings first.

This is a touching take on highschool AUs. Pete is the new student at Gabe's school and Gabe finds himself helping Pete not only with school, but with dealing with his trauma.

InlovewithNight does a great job fully fleshing out ever character in the story, even the side characters. Despite its serious premise the story is ultimately very sweet.

Hold my Bones