Yuletide Recs!
I've been through my initial skim of the archive now, and I have recs (maybe more to come!)
I'll be adding these recs to my [fic and] multi-fandom recs journal after the reveals, but I wanted to do the preliminary recs while the authors are still anonymous. Enjoy!
BOURNE LEGACY
* "if you want to sing out" (Aaron-centric, with some Aaron/Marta. "Aaron and words." A sort of perfect look at the progression of Kenneth's journey toward becoming Aaron...through words.)
* "broke everything new again" (Aaron/Marta. "Training drilled it into them, over and over: there was protocol but there was no routine." An insightful glimpse at the transitional period between an old life and a new one.)
* "Belong" (Aaron/Marta. "The first phase in any mission is always reconnaissance, and he hadn't done nearly enough. "If we could settle somewhere, what kind of work do you think you'd want to do?" he asked her casually over breakfast the next morning." A really interesting look at the difficulties of trying to build an identity - even for somebody like Aaron Cross, who's so well-versed in the art of creating personas. And a very real relationship between Aaron and Marta.)
CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY
* "Vivat Regina" (Persephone/Hades. "Persephone tells her side of the story." As the summary says. This Persephone is no fading flower.)
FAIRY TALES
* "These Gentle Wolves" (Little Red Riding Hood...mostly gen. "In which a girl goes into the woods, returns, and goes back again." A very interesting take on the old tale.)
* "Happy to Help" (Meta Villainy! "It's not easy working the Help Desk at the annual Fairy Tale Villains Conference. Some villains are just impossible to please." Because honestly? If you've ever attended a conference - or a convention - you'll probably recognize all these characters *g*)
HAWKEYE (Comics)
* "something good waitin' down this road" (Clint, Kate, Lucky, others. "Hawkeyes' House Rules for Dog Ownership and Other Misadventures. Or: Clint, Kate, a dog, and a study in moving forward." A perfect little story about the way families are forged.)
* "A Wedding and Some Arrows" (Clint, Kate, Carol Danvers/Jessica Drew. "Kate and Clint get drunk on a roof." It's Jess's wedding, and it's not Clint she's marrying. Charming, with Clint and Kate as "Hawkbros.")
JAMES BOND
* "That Untravelled World" (Skyfall. James, M, mention of others. "Every Christmas, they each have their own lies to tell." Just-right-for-canon "family feelings," but with little in the way of sentimentality. Very nicely done.)
LION IN WINTER
* "An imprint set in war" (Philip II of France/Richard I of England. "Philip's journey from Paris was the shorter distance, yet he arrived later, almost as dark was falling. Richard, knowing his tactics well, refused to be goaded so easily into impatience. "I'll wager you wish you hadn't burned the bridge at Porte Joie now," he said cheerfully by way of greeting. "You could have been here in time for dinner. It was splendid, by the way. We saved you some scraps."" An excellently written look at two no-longer-young men: antagonistic, competitive, and slightly fond in turn - all wrapped up in their long years of familiarity.)
LORD PETER WIMSEY - SAYERS
* "The Distant Hum of Engines" (Hilary Thorpe/Saint-George Wimsey, Harriet Vane/Peter Wimsey. "Saint-George discovers that there's more war work for him than just fighting; and that sometimes, you do get a second chance." It may turn out that this story needed more research, as the rather sheepish author's notes suggest, but as a reader, I have to say that it feels right, and Saint-George himself - clever, dedicated, a little damaged - in particular.)
RPF - MISC (Project Runway, Classical Greek)
* "It's a Delightful Day in the Neighborhood" (Tim Gunn! "Being an accounting of various features and figures in the New York City neighborhood of one Tim Gunn, in his own words." Funny, arch, and perfectly voiced. Tim Gunn should critique everything)
* "The Not Remotely Secret Memoirs of Alexander the Great, Aged 13¾" (Alexander/Hephaistion. "With love and undying fame at stake, Alexander takes matters into his own hands." A cleverly wrought, parodic youngster's diary in the style of Adrian Mole. A wonderfully anachronistic voice, but the insights and aspirations are all Alexanders. Charming, funny, and...a little bittersweet.)
THE UNUSUALS
* "The Precinct Gave To Me" (Pretty much the full cast! "It's the night before Christmas and, all through the Second Precinct, there's drama, bad puns and the case of the stolen Christmas shopping." This feels absolutely like an episode, in the pacing and the heart. Perfect voices.)
* "A Virtual Pandemic" (Casey Shraeger/Jason Walsh. "Forty-five minutes past the start of shift and not only had Walsh not shown up at the station, he wasn't answering his phone." So...okay, I usually don't gravitate toward Shraeger/Walsh fic, but I'm totally buying it here. Casey sounds exactly like Casey, and the scenes at the precinct are perfect.)
* (note: this is my gift!) "The Stakeout" (Walsh, Shraeger, Delahoy, Banks. "In which we find out some secrets." A perfect little story which could come straight out of canon, with wonderfully in-character voices, and great turns-of-phrase. Plus, the first paragraph is a thing of meta/near-meta beauty.)
This entry was originally posted at http://bethbethbeth.dreamwidth.org/654313.html. (Read
comments at Dreamwidth) If you'd like to comment on Dreamwidth, but don't have an account, you can use OpenID (How to use OpenID), or if you'd like a Dreamwidth invite, just ask!
I'll be adding these recs to my [fic and] multi-fandom recs journal after the reveals, but I wanted to do the preliminary recs while the authors are still anonymous. Enjoy!
BOURNE LEGACY
* "if you want to sing out" (Aaron-centric, with some Aaron/Marta. "Aaron and words." A sort of perfect look at the progression of Kenneth's journey toward becoming Aaron...through words.)
* "broke everything new again" (Aaron/Marta. "Training drilled it into them, over and over: there was protocol but there was no routine." An insightful glimpse at the transitional period between an old life and a new one.)
* "Belong" (Aaron/Marta. "The first phase in any mission is always reconnaissance, and he hadn't done nearly enough. "If we could settle somewhere, what kind of work do you think you'd want to do?" he asked her casually over breakfast the next morning." A really interesting look at the difficulties of trying to build an identity - even for somebody like Aaron Cross, who's so well-versed in the art of creating personas. And a very real relationship between Aaron and Marta.)
CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY
* "Vivat Regina" (Persephone/Hades. "Persephone tells her side of the story." As the summary says. This Persephone is no fading flower.)
FAIRY TALES
* "These Gentle Wolves" (Little Red Riding Hood...mostly gen. "In which a girl goes into the woods, returns, and goes back again." A very interesting take on the old tale.)
* "Happy to Help" (Meta Villainy! "It's not easy working the Help Desk at the annual Fairy Tale Villains Conference. Some villains are just impossible to please." Because honestly? If you've ever attended a conference - or a convention - you'll probably recognize all these characters *g*)
HAWKEYE (Comics)
* "something good waitin' down this road" (Clint, Kate, Lucky, others. "Hawkeyes' House Rules for Dog Ownership and Other Misadventures. Or: Clint, Kate, a dog, and a study in moving forward." A perfect little story about the way families are forged.)
* "A Wedding and Some Arrows" (Clint, Kate, Carol Danvers/Jessica Drew. "Kate and Clint get drunk on a roof." It's Jess's wedding, and it's not Clint she's marrying. Charming, with Clint and Kate as "Hawkbros.")
JAMES BOND
* "That Untravelled World" (Skyfall. James, M, mention of others. "Every Christmas, they each have their own lies to tell." Just-right-for-canon "family feelings," but with little in the way of sentimentality. Very nicely done.)
LION IN WINTER
* "An imprint set in war" (Philip II of France/Richard I of England. "Philip's journey from Paris was the shorter distance, yet he arrived later, almost as dark was falling. Richard, knowing his tactics well, refused to be goaded so easily into impatience. "I'll wager you wish you hadn't burned the bridge at Porte Joie now," he said cheerfully by way of greeting. "You could have been here in time for dinner. It was splendid, by the way. We saved you some scraps."" An excellently written look at two no-longer-young men: antagonistic, competitive, and slightly fond in turn - all wrapped up in their long years of familiarity.)
LORD PETER WIMSEY - SAYERS
* "The Distant Hum of Engines" (Hilary Thorpe/Saint-George Wimsey, Harriet Vane/Peter Wimsey. "Saint-George discovers that there's more war work for him than just fighting; and that sometimes, you do get a second chance." It may turn out that this story needed more research, as the rather sheepish author's notes suggest, but as a reader, I have to say that it feels right, and Saint-George himself - clever, dedicated, a little damaged - in particular.)
RPF - MISC (Project Runway, Classical Greek)
* "It's a Delightful Day in the Neighborhood" (Tim Gunn! "Being an accounting of various features and figures in the New York City neighborhood of one Tim Gunn, in his own words." Funny, arch, and perfectly voiced. Tim Gunn should critique everything)
* "The Not Remotely Secret Memoirs of Alexander the Great, Aged 13¾" (Alexander/Hephaistion. "With love and undying fame at stake, Alexander takes matters into his own hands." A cleverly wrought, parodic youngster's diary in the style of Adrian Mole. A wonderfully anachronistic voice, but the insights and aspirations are all Alexanders. Charming, funny, and...a little bittersweet.)
THE UNUSUALS
* "The Precinct Gave To Me" (Pretty much the full cast! "It's the night before Christmas and, all through the Second Precinct, there's drama, bad puns and the case of the stolen Christmas shopping." This feels absolutely like an episode, in the pacing and the heart. Perfect voices.)
* "A Virtual Pandemic" (Casey Shraeger/Jason Walsh. "Forty-five minutes past the start of shift and not only had Walsh not shown up at the station, he wasn't answering his phone." So...okay, I usually don't gravitate toward Shraeger/Walsh fic, but I'm totally buying it here. Casey sounds exactly like Casey, and the scenes at the precinct are perfect.)
* (note: this is my gift!) "The Stakeout" (Walsh, Shraeger, Delahoy, Banks. "In which we find out some secrets." A perfect little story which could come straight out of canon, with wonderfully in-character voices, and great turns-of-phrase. Plus, the first paragraph is a thing of meta/near-meta beauty.)
This entry was originally posted at http://bethbethbeth.dreamwidth.org/654313.html. (Read
comments at Dreamwidth) If you'd like to comment on Dreamwidth, but don't have an account, you can use OpenID (How to use OpenID), or if you'd like a Dreamwidth invite, just ask!