RPF (SPN): Kaleidoscope by peppervl (Misha Collins/Richard Speight Jr, PG-13)
Title: Kaleidoscope
Author: peppervl
Artist: candylovinangel
Fandom: Supernatural RPF
Pairing/Characters: Misha Collins/Richard Speight Jr
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Psychic Powers, not!AU
Word Count: 21,717
Summary: In a world much like ours except where psychic powers are common, Misha can see auras and Richard is a dream walker. When Richard asks Misha for help reading a producer he isn't sure about working with, Misha's power spirals out of control. Desperate for help, he calls on Richard, who find himself drawn into the mystery and fascinated as he gets to know Misha better. Together, they work to get Misha's ability under control, but a mistake leaves Richard feeling guilty and Misha lost. Is it too late, or can they work post out to figure out both how to fix Misha's issue and their changing feelings for each other?
Link to masterpost: http://gabriel-bigbang.livejournal.com/25890.html
Download Report: Four posts on LJ. PDFs with and without page numbers (\O/), PRC/MOBI, and EPUB versions available on Dropbox.
I will also note that every single image, including separators, has alt text. I think I'm in love.
This turned out pretty good. It wasn't perfect, but it was satisfying for what it was and I enjoyed the time I spent reading it. There are some SPaG errors, noticeable but not too distracting. The writing can be a bit repetitive in places and the characters have a tendency to constantly think important plot points to themselves, but overall I found that the mechanics didn't get to much in the way of the story.
This is one kind of romance I like, where the characters take time to get to know each other, where they may be attracted and like each other and have that crush thing going on, but aren't immediately leaping into bed (not that leaping into bed is necessarily a bad thing ;)). Misha and Richard meet, and then seem to keep finding reasons--or excuses--to call on each other for help, until they're good friends. Like real people or something.
There's some schmoop, some hurt/comfort, some romance, but it's all low-key and not overblown. Misha and Richard act like grown-ups in a relationship, with their own lives and careers. One of the things I liked best was the recurring theme of them having to negotiate between their two different careers. They both were in and out of LA throughout the story as they worked, and there was the constant issue of how they were going to manage being together while keeping their established lives intact. I liked seeing them cope with "normal" issues in their romance, instead of the Big Misunderstanding or the Evil Ex. They interacted rationally and reasonably, but passionately because they cared for each other. It was nice to read.
There were a couple of weak spots in the plot. The biggest weak spot is the length of Misha's aura overload. It goes on for several weeks, and yet he still refuses to see a specialist about it because he doesn't want the fans to have something to gossip about. Not only is this a relatively feeble reason to begin with, it's even weaker because the overload is more than just a minor inconvenience. It's severely affecting Misha's life, preventing him from driving and causing headaches and nausea and essentially keeping him housebound when he's not working. I had a hard time believing that he would go that long without seeking professional treatment just because he was worried about some gossip about his health. Clearly, the plot device reason for this was so that Richard could be central to the solution instead of a stranger, but I needed a bigger Band-Aid over the plot hole.
The other thing that bothered me was the story structure itself. Both this story and the J2 companion story, "Prism," (http://butterflywrites.livejournal.com/42676.html)* begin near the end, with the characters facing a relatively minor problem that's arisen after the main events of the story are long over. Usually I really enjoy this as a storytelling device, but in the case of "Kaleidoscope" I found it distracting and confusing rather than intriguing. The problem facing Misha and Richard just wasn't very compelling, and I felt that the story would have been better if it had been told in chronological order. YMMV, of course.
*Since "Kaleidoscope" essentially leads right into "Prism," with a link to it and everything (though it's not a cliffhanger or sequel), I thought I'd mention that I didn't like "Prism" nearly as well as "Kaleidoscope." It shared a lot of the same tropes as "Kaleidoscope," but nearly everything that I enjoyed being low-key in "Kaleidoscope" was overdone in "Prism." If you're into heavier hurt/comfort and angst it may hit that button, but it's not something I'd give an overall rec for like I would "Kaleidoscope."
Bottom line: This is a pleasant little romance with bonus psychic powers on the side. It's not the greatest or most perfect story in the world, but if you're looking for a way to kick back and relax into a story for a while, this is a good way to do it.
This review was originally posted to the spnanonhaven Fiction Discuss post
Author: peppervl
Artist: candylovinangel
Fandom: Supernatural RPF
Pairing/Characters: Misha Collins/Richard Speight Jr
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Psychic Powers, not!AU
Word Count: 21,717
Summary: In a world much like ours except where psychic powers are common, Misha can see auras and Richard is a dream walker. When Richard asks Misha for help reading a producer he isn't sure about working with, Misha's power spirals out of control. Desperate for help, he calls on Richard, who find himself drawn into the mystery and fascinated as he gets to know Misha better. Together, they work to get Misha's ability under control, but a mistake leaves Richard feeling guilty and Misha lost. Is it too late, or can they work post out to figure out both how to fix Misha's issue and their changing feelings for each other?
Link to masterpost: http://gabriel-bigbang.livejournal.com/25890.html
Download Report: Four posts on LJ. PDFs with and without page numbers (\O/), PRC/MOBI, and EPUB versions available on Dropbox.
I will also note that every single image, including separators, has alt text. I think I'm in love.
This turned out pretty good. It wasn't perfect, but it was satisfying for what it was and I enjoyed the time I spent reading it. There are some SPaG errors, noticeable but not too distracting. The writing can be a bit repetitive in places and the characters have a tendency to constantly think important plot points to themselves, but overall I found that the mechanics didn't get to much in the way of the story.
This is one kind of romance I like, where the characters take time to get to know each other, where they may be attracted and like each other and have that crush thing going on, but aren't immediately leaping into bed (not that leaping into bed is necessarily a bad thing ;)). Misha and Richard meet, and then seem to keep finding reasons--or excuses--to call on each other for help, until they're good friends. Like real people or something.
There's some schmoop, some hurt/comfort, some romance, but it's all low-key and not overblown. Misha and Richard act like grown-ups in a relationship, with their own lives and careers. One of the things I liked best was the recurring theme of them having to negotiate between their two different careers. They both were in and out of LA throughout the story as they worked, and there was the constant issue of how they were going to manage being together while keeping their established lives intact. I liked seeing them cope with "normal" issues in their romance, instead of the Big Misunderstanding or the Evil Ex. They interacted rationally and reasonably, but passionately because they cared for each other. It was nice to read.
There were a couple of weak spots in the plot. The biggest weak spot is the length of Misha's aura overload. It goes on for several weeks, and yet he still refuses to see a specialist about it because he doesn't want the fans to have something to gossip about. Not only is this a relatively feeble reason to begin with, it's even weaker because the overload is more than just a minor inconvenience. It's severely affecting Misha's life, preventing him from driving and causing headaches and nausea and essentially keeping him housebound when he's not working. I had a hard time believing that he would go that long without seeking professional treatment just because he was worried about some gossip about his health. Clearly, the plot device reason for this was so that Richard could be central to the solution instead of a stranger, but I needed a bigger Band-Aid over the plot hole.
The other thing that bothered me was the story structure itself. Both this story and the J2 companion story, "Prism," (http://butterflywrites.livejournal.com/42676.html)* begin near the end, with the characters facing a relatively minor problem that's arisen after the main events of the story are long over. Usually I really enjoy this as a storytelling device, but in the case of "Kaleidoscope" I found it distracting and confusing rather than intriguing. The problem facing Misha and Richard just wasn't very compelling, and I felt that the story would have been better if it had been told in chronological order. YMMV, of course.
*Since "Kaleidoscope" essentially leads right into "Prism," with a link to it and everything (though it's not a cliffhanger or sequel), I thought I'd mention that I didn't like "Prism" nearly as well as "Kaleidoscope." It shared a lot of the same tropes as "Kaleidoscope," but nearly everything that I enjoyed being low-key in "Kaleidoscope" was overdone in "Prism." If you're into heavier hurt/comfort and angst it may hit that button, but it's not something I'd give an overall rec for like I would "Kaleidoscope."
Bottom line: This is a pleasant little romance with bonus psychic powers on the side. It's not the greatest or most perfect story in the world, but if you're looking for a way to kick back and relax into a story for a while, this is a good way to do it.
This review was originally posted to the spnanonhaven Fiction Discuss post