longlivehumour: 7. do you always want what you think you want? (maurice sendak)
[personal profile] longlivehumour
FANDOM: Star Wars (Prequels)
FIC LINK: What Is My Heritage? and Coming Home
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] Potboy
RATING/WARNING(S): G | violence, brief references to sexual violence
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 7,700 and 18,300 respectively
MAIN CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Yoda, Dooku

FIC SUMMARY: Two stories focusing on Qui-Gon Jinn as a young padawan, never quite able to fit in. In the first, Qui-Gon asks to be sent home to figure out where he belongs. In the second, Dooku enters the game and Yoda meddles.
Best read together.

RECCER'S NOTES: I rarely read "character as a Youth" stories, since the child protagonists are too often depicted as smaller, blander versions of their adult selves, but this story proves me wrong. Qui-Gon is remarkably well-written: he feels like a real person (who happens to be a child) and the essence of his character shines through every thought and action, in his choices and the way he reacts to events. He is himself, forty-odd years earlier, fundamentally different but lacking nothing. Dooku, too, is not-himself yet himself. There's no hidden seed of darkness: the darkness is right there in the open, yet he's a Jedi and a firmly moral person, albeit one whose morals do not necessarily agree with yours.

Excellent characterisation which does justice to all three main characters, some very sharp criticism/examination of the Jedi Order and finally, a stonking good adventure story. (Also a very satisfying answer to the question of who the hell was Qui-Gon's master: both, of course.) I love it, I love it, I love it.

Eight hundred years of Jedi experience, Yoda thought, and he was not prepared for this. So many Masters and Padawans, taking the same routes, making the same responses to the same problems, and after a while you no longer saw the faces. Only the process, only the Order itself in its monumental evolving beauty.

How had this boy happened now? A thousand years ago there had been Jedi like this - obeying the Force in their own way, and obeying nothing else. Strange, wild, uncomfortable beings, untameable, splendid, chaotic. A thousand years ago they had been needed, to fight the Sith. But the Sith were dead, and what the galaxy required now was Jedi who could bring order, and exist in order.
facethestrange: (btvs: dawnie: adorable)
[personal profile] facethestrange
FANDOM: Runaways (TV)
FIC LINK: Do You Want To Build A Snowman
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] supersonicsidekick
RATING/WARNING(S): G
WIP?/WORD COUNT: complete, 644 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Gertrude Yorkes, Molly Hernandez

FIC SUMMARY: Molly and Gert enjoy something they never thought they would get to experience living in Los Angeles: a snow day.

RECCER'S NOTES: A pre-canon ficlet about Molly, Gert and their best/worst snowman ever. It's funny, touching and sweet, and it always makes me smile. :) If you just want to read a happy story, this one doesn't require canon knowledge, but at the same time it's perfectly in character.

I got it as a gift during the Marvel/DC Holiday Bingo Exchange.
facethestrange: (bsg: hera)
[personal profile] facethestrange
FANDOM: Labyrinth (1986)
FIC LINK: The Labyrinth of Time
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] Serenade
RATING/WARNING(S): G
WIP?/WORD COUNT: complete, 1568 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Sarah Williams

FIC SUMMARY: Life was a series of labyrinths. You had to figure out which path to take.

RECCER'S NOTES: A character meeting their younger self is one of my favorite tropes ever, and this story is such a beautiful example of it. ❤ Adult Sarah meets herself twice and each version of her helps the other versions in different ways. Everything is wonderfully connected and leads to a really touching conclusion.

This fic is a gift I received during the [community profile] past_imperfect exchange.
ozqueen: (Default)
[personal profile] ozqueen
Edit: apparently I had already rec'd my previous link, Small Favours, so here is another Mummy fic to make up for my poor memory :p

FANDOM: The Mummy (1999)
FIC LINK: Coincidence... and Fate
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] UrbanAmazon
RATING/WARNING(S): Teen
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 12643
MAIN CHARACTERS: Evy Carnahan O'Connell, Rick O'Connell, Ardeth Bay, Beni Gabor, Jonathan Carnahan, Colonel Guizot

FIC SUMMARY: What if Rick had been a medjai from the start? One decision sets the adventure in motion, but the thing about decisions is that there's always more than one option to choose. Some things unfold differently, yes, but some manage to fall into place like the tumblers on a puzzle-box key, turning round and round until things go click.

RECCER'S NOTES: A canon-divergence AU which interweaves amazing possibilities into the existing story we already know. The humour and characterisation here is amazing -- I especially love Evy, and Rick and Ardeth having to work together with differing levels of faith in their journey together.

There is a smidge of Evy/Rick, or at least the fic ends with the implication matters will take off in that direction, but the main course of the story is on Rick as a Medjai, and how it may have impacted the story and other characters he comes into contact with.

Really clever, and really great characterisation. :)



ozqueen: (misc: pin up: book)
[personal profile] ozqueen
FANDOM: The Mummy (1999/series)
FIC LINK: Small Favours
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] jonesandashes
RATING/WARNING(S): G
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 2329
MAIN CHARACTERS: Jonathan Carnahan, Evy Carnahan

FIC SUMMARY: Jonathan makes the introductions. When Mr. Humbert takes Evy’s hand in his giant paw, he frowns. “I thought you said her name was Louise?”

-- Evy and Jonathan, a few years before the movie.

RECCER'S NOTES:

This is a quick, hilarious read that feels perfectly in character. Everyone's voices are spot-on, and so is the little scheme Jonathan is running. I love that Evy does her best to be moral and upstanding about it, but, in the end, helping Jonathan out of a fix is what she does best.



longlivehumour: Roses are red / antiplastic is blue / bananas are fantastic / and so are you (ninth doctor)
[personal profile] longlivehumour
FANDOM: Sherlock Holmes (Downey films)
FIC LINK: Two Shoes for a Hat
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] rachelindeed
RATING/WARNING(S): Gen | none
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 2,400
MAIN CHARACTERS: Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, (Mike Stamford)

FIC SUMMARY: They have a barter system. It started early.

RECCER'S NOTES:
Almost every version of Sherlock Holmes has its version of the first meeting of Watson and Holmes, and this, as far as I am concerned, is the definitive Ritchieverse canon. The distinctive voice and manner of this universe's Holmes and Watson are captured perfectly, yet somehow it also carries the feelling of the original stories. An all-round delightful fic.



And since in some timezone it's still technically my birthday, and the sun will burn cold before I ever finish a fanwork before the deadline, I thought I'd gift fic recs instead. So! I have an Access database, an obsessive mindset, and far too much free time. Until I get bored or you do, I and they are at your disposal. Ask away!

Fandoms behind the cut )
thady: (DIV  -  Autumn fox)
[personal profile] thady
FANDOM: HARRY POTTER
FIC LINK: The Daring Win.
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] Lomonaaeren | on LJ: [livejournal.com profile] lomonaaeren
RATING/WARNING(S): R | content notes )
WIP?/WORD COUNT: novel | ~ 106,000 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Dolores Umbridge, Harry Potter, Albus Dumbledore, Sirius Black, assorted others

FIC SUMMARY: The year: 1987. The place: Muggle London. The situation: The Boy-Who-Lived is being treated horribly by his Muggle relatives. A young witch must take him in for the Ministry’s good and his.
The witch’s name: Dolores Umbridge.

RECCER'S NOTES: Please don't let the summary and the warnings deter you. It's much better than I expected.
While Dolores begins as despicable as we know her in the books, she learns to grow here in this story. I love her character development. While she starts out with manipulating Harry, she develops so much that I was surprised.
It's not always an easy story to read, but I was always eagerly anticipating another chapter.

longlivehumour: Tyger, tyger, burning bright (sendak)
[personal profile] longlivehumour
FANDOM: Star Wars
FIC LINK: Zero
AUTHOR LINK: Apache (scroll down the page)
RATING/WARNING(S): G
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 4,200
MAIN CHARACTERS: Finis Valorum, Qui-Gon Jinn

FIC SUMMARY: Valorum tries to discover Jinn's human side. Part of the "Fin & Jinn" series. Follows "Well Begun".

RECCER'S NOTES: This is part of a series exploring the friendship between Qui-Gon Jinn, Jedi Master and troll, and Finis Valorum (as in, "I move for a vote of no confidence in Chancellor"). The latter has exactly seven lines in canon (I checked), but his character is fully fleshed out here and his rather odd friendship with Qui-Gon is as believable as it is inevitable. This particular story takes place when both characters are young men, each still trying to decipher the other.

I wish I knew if this author is still writing somewhere. They have a very thoughtful approach to storytelling and character that I'd love to see again.

Aaaand I'm done!
longlivehumour: Levi - So ist es immer (levi)
[personal profile] longlivehumour
Given two W fics for the same fandom, I refuse to choose. Have both, and may they serve you well.

FANDOM: Attack on Titan
FIC LINK: wound deep in your chest, heartless
AUTHOR LINK: [personal profile] 100demons
RATING/WARNING(S): T | swearing, canon-typical violence
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 4,400
MAIN CHARACTERS: Levi, Hange Zoë, Erwin Smith

FIC SUMMARY: Be good or Levi will carve you up with his knives. Eat your greens or else Levi will come and cut your eyes out while you still breathe.

RECCER'S NOTES: A delightful, believable fic about Levi's early days in the Corps. (It also begins by quoting a Margaret Atwood poem, and how can you go wrong after that?) The language is vivid, precise, and humorous, and Levi and Hange's interactions are a thing of beauty.
Horse shit and sunrises.



FANDOM: Attack on Titan
FIC LINK: We Are The Lost, We Are The Hunters
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] PresquePommes
RATING/WARNING(S): G | Mild spoiler for the first episode of Season 2 (ch. 35)
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 2,700
MAIN CHARACTERS: Levi, Sasha Braus

FIC SUMMARY:
"He realizes very quickly that of all people he could have been lost in the forest with, Sasha Braus is, without a doubt, the most preferable."
Because if the 104th was a graduating class, Sasha is the one who'd be voted "Most Likely To Survive Under Extreme Circumstances," and everybody who writes this scenario seems to forget that the extent of Levi's wilderness survival skills is made evident by one simple statement:
"Look at all these big-ass trees."

RECCER'S NOTES: This fic made me crave more Sasha-and-Levi stories. There aren't any, of course, and this is hardly surprising since I'm not sure the two have even spoken in canon, but despite (or perhaps because of) how dissimilar they are, here they come together wonderfully. Sasha's voice in particular is a joy.
longlivehumour: Tyger, tyger, burning bright (Default)
[personal profile] longlivehumour
FANDOM: Blake's 7
FIC LINK: What Might Have Been
AUTHOR LINK: [personal profile] firerose (own site | AO3)
RATING/WARNING(S): G, Pre-Way Back
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 6,500 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Roj Blake, Kerr Avon

FIC SUMMARY: Blake struggles with fundamental questions of trust, friendship and political ideology in the harsh environment of the Earth domes.

RECCER'S NOTES: In honour of my first post, here is the first fanfic I ever read. Ten years (!) and several thousand fics later, it still stands as one of my all-time favourites. Blake's voice comes alive when he talks politics; Avon is simultaneously a very different person and very much himself. Life in the domes is described in elegant detail, and while it might not be correct to call it a thriller there's an undercurrent of tension to every scene. While still being canon-compliant, the story puts a very different spin on Avon and Blake's relationship, and it packs a hell of a punch. I hope it'll stick in your head the way it did in mine.
ozqueen: (tv: veronica mars: a clue)
[personal profile] ozqueen
FANDOM: Veronica Mars
FIC LINK: The Money Shot
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] igrockspock
RATING/WARNING(S): Teen
WIP?/WORD COUNT: Complete | 5289 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Veronica Mars, Keith Mars, Dick Casablancas, Logan Echolls

FIC SUMMARY: Eight weeks and six days after Lily's funeral, Veronica takes her first case: catching Richard Casablancas, Sr. on camera with a local stripper. All she has to do is lie to her dad long enough to get the money shot. Should be easy, right?

RECCER'S NOTES:

This fic explores all the chaos and stress the Mars family are going through right before we meet them in canon. Veronica's voice is spot on and her interactions with Keith are perfect. It's definitely the perfect set up for the first season and the Veronica we come to know and love.



merryghoul: carnival ride (carnival ride)
[personal profile] merryghoul
FANDOM: The Americans (TV)
FIC LINK: One day in the life
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] gorseflower
RATING/WARNING(S): Not Rated/Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
WIP?/WORD COUNT: No/2630
MAIN CHARACTERS: Elizabeth Jennings, Elizabeth's Mother

FIC SUMMARY: Nadya's mother is sick, her classmates lack revolutionary commitment and the Communist future is still far from being built. But she struggles on.

RECCER'S NOTES: A glimpse at Elizabeth's life before she was a spy back in Russia, and how crapsack her life could have been at that time with an ailing mother, an awful neighbor, and no time to spend time as a child. (Although the fic is a pre-season fic, there is information revealed from the latest season of the show.)
thady: (Natsume  -  Natsume)
[personal profile] thady
FANDOM: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends
FIC LINK: Three for Family.
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] NightsMistress
RATING/WARNING(S): PG-13
WIP?/WORD COUNT: one-shot | ~ 3,600 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Natsume Takashi, Fujiwara Touko, Fujiwara Shigeru

FIC SUMMARY: The more Touko hears about Natsume Takashi, the more confused she becomes. The stories she hears are of a selfish child acting out for attention, or worse, but all she can see is a sad, lost child in need of a place to put down roots so that he can settle his mind.

RECCER'S NOTES: This is such a wonderful characer study of bot Touko and of Natsume as we see him through her eyes. I love the way the story flows, and how Touka sees more than the others do. There's such a gentleness and kindness to her that makes me love her just the more.

dirty_diana: model Zhenya Katava wears a crown (Iris)
[personal profile] dirty_diana
FANDOM: The Flash on CW / DC's Legends of Tomorrow
FIC LINK: Snapshots
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] TelepathJeneral
RATING/WARNING(S): unrated by author (teen in my opinion)
WIP?/WORD COUNT: complete / 5000 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Mick Rory, Leonard Snart, Lisa Snart

FIC SUMMARY: Before a particle accelerator, an ice gun, and a scarlet speedster transform Central City, the Snart siblings could almost be considered normal.

Almost.

RECCER'S NOTES: An adorable pre-series look at Leonard Snart, the friend he commits crimes with, and the sister he'd do anything for. Nails that strange brew of kindness and toughness that comes with Wentworth Miller's Captain Cold.
thady: (DIV  -  Stars blue)
[personal profile] thady
FANDOM: The Secret Garden
FIC LINK: A Garden in the Punjab.
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] Rosie_Rues
RATING/WARNING(S): PG-13
WIP?/WORD COUNT: one-shot | ~ 8,300 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Mary Lennox, OFC, Ayah

FIC SUMMARY: There is another garden, in India. These are the women of that garden, over two generations, Mary's mother and ayah, and both their two daughters. In the end, I'm afraid, this is only where the story begins, but I hope it opens up the original story and takes us out into the world beyond the secret gardens.

RECCER'S NOTES:

This is such a lovely story. I love how this unfolds, the strands of the story parting and coming back together. I love the original characters here, and the background characters. They really come to life here.

thisbluespirit: (spooks - Ruth!)
[personal profile] thisbluespirit
FANDOM: Spooks (MI-5)
FIC LINK: Notes on an Exile
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] delgaserasca
RATING/WARNING(S): G | None
WIP?/WORD COUNT: 2962
MAIN CHARACTERS: Malcolm Wynn-Jones, Colin Wells

FIC SUMMARY: "Before he leaves, Colin debates over whether or not to write a note."

For three months in 1998, Colin is sent to work at the Manchester office. Malcolm sends him tea.

RECCER'S NOTES: Wonderful, low-key but heart-warming* friendship piece for the two desk spooks, as Colin goes into exile and misses Malcolm. There are so many lovely little Spooks-y details in here (the Manchester officers wonder if Colin is a mole, peeling off the front of postcards, and tea, and bugs etc.), all on top of the delightful handling of the two and their friendship, as a briefly-referred-to incident from their past is explored and expanded, and then even a happy ending. Gosh. (Well, for the moment. It is Spooks, after all.)


* well, definitely heart-warming for Spooks at least...
dirty_diana: model Zhenya Katava wears a crown (peggy)
[personal profile] dirty_diana
FANDOM: Marvel Cinematic Universe / Avengers, fusion with His Dark Materials
FIC LINK: Lacuna
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] morpholomeg
RATING/WARNING(S): Teen / as in notes
WIP?/WORD COUNT: complete / 29 000 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Phil Coulson, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Melinda May

FIC SUMMARY:

There were many rumours about the Black Widow, some of which might even have been true. The most reliable of these were presented to Clint in maybe the sketchiest mission briefing he'd ever received, full of words like 'allegedly' and 'probably' and 'although it seems unlikely' which seemed out of place in a SHIELD file. There was only one piece of information that truly surprised him.

"We seriously don't know what her dæmon is, sir?" he asked Coulson.


RECCER'S NOTES: This is definitely my favourite His Dark Materials AU, for how perfectly the daemons are integrated in both characterisation and plot. The author takes advantage of Pullman's worldbuilding to create a believable allegory of normality and disability - but underneath all that is a lovely tale of Natasha, Clint, and how they became friends.
dirty_diana: Hawkeye and Black Widow in Avengers film (clintasha)
[personal profile] dirty_diana
FANDOM: Marvel Cinematic Universe / Avengers
FIC LINK: The Nine Lives of Natasha Romanoff
AUTHOR LINK: [archiveofourown.org profile] starrika
RATING/WARNING(S): Teen / canon-typical violence and general Red Room themed sketchiness
WIP?/WORD COUNT: complete / 11 700 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Phil Coulson

FIC SUMMARY:

She is Nataliya. She is Nathalie. She is Talia. She is Natasza. She is Natasha.

A story of how Natasha Romanoff found herself, with a little help from that annoying American with the bow.


RECCER'S NOTES: Lovely Natasha backstory, a beautiful sketch of how she fought to make herself, and the believable could-have-beens of her origins with SHIELD.

“Clint Barton,” he replied, perfunctorily shaking hands with LeClair. Natasha wondered if he always used Clint. She doubted Barton was his last name, but perhaps it was. The American had done nothing as he was supposed to; it was unexpected and refreshing. She rather hoped he would not be the next on her list, but if he kept turning up like this, the Red Room was bound to notice. The Red Room noticed everything.
dirty_diana: (kirk/mccoy)
[personal profile] dirty_diana
FANDOM: Star Trek TOS
FIC LINK: Expanding the Oecumene
AUTHOR LINK: [fanfiction.net profile] AAmuse
RATING/WARNING(S): none / K+
WIP?/WORD COUNT: complete / 48 500 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Spock, Pike, Number One, OCs

FIC SUMMARY: The events taking place during Spock’s final year at Starfleet Academy continue to shape him into the person and officer he will become. A tale about friendship and adventure.

RECCER'S NOTES: A tale of Spock's first, dangerous trip on the Enterprise with mentor-to-be Captain Pike. Plotty character explorations are always great. However it is easy for an author who loves a character (as we all do) to fall into the trap of only exploring the positives, or of doing a little fannish revisionist history. This story of what Spock's Academy days might have looked like never loses sight of the fact that Spock of Vulcan, later saviour of the known world, could also be a bit of a rebellious brat.
thady: (Princess Tutu  -  Ahiru duck)
[personal profile] thady
FANDOM: GOOD OMENS
FIC LINK: Moving in Circles (at LJ) [at DW | at ff.net]
AUTHOR LINK: [livejournal.com profile] emerald_embers | [personal profile] emerald_embers | Emerald Embers
RATING/WARNING(S): PG
WIP?/WORD COUNT: one-shot | ~ 3,400 words
MAIN CHARACTERS: Aziraphale, Crowley

FIC SUMMARY: Crowley's life in Sodom was going quite nicely until Aziraphale's cousins visited.

RECCER'S NOTES:

This was truly excellent. The character voices were spot on. And it balances humour and serious thought very well.