Dusty and His Dads
I'm not really reading dS fic anymore, but always make an exception for certain writers. Moo sent me Dusty and His Dads and it took me a while to get to it (SORRY!), but the wait made the surprise all the much sweeter.
I read this story as a non-fan of dS and this is how I can say with certainty that the fic would appeal to a broader audience than just dS fanfic readers. Moo fully fleshes out the characters that we know so that anyone can discover them through her work, but not in such a way as to make the characterizations boring to those who already know them. It's through throw-away lines and little expressions and snapshots that she eventually paints a portray of who Ray Vecchio and Benton Fraser were once upon a time and who they are now, ten years in the future.
While this is a 'slash' fic, I think even gen readers could read this story without any major issues. The characters' relationship is important to the plot, but it's not the main focus (and it's definitely not explicit). This is a story about the many ways that exist to make a family and a kid who is so realistic I could totally picture him as a boy I used to baby-sit. *laughs*
Tender, funny, and even painful at times, this story is a slice of life filled with characters you can care about. It had me laughing out loud at times (I mean, 'Moo Moo Barbeque'?!), ready to berate Ray and/or Benton at others, and really feeling Dusty's emotional rollercoaster throughout.
Fans of Moo's work will find this one different from her previous work, as it is more realism and less fable. Different, but just as good, and I think she's just gathering speed in her creative process.
I read this story as a non-fan of dS and this is how I can say with certainty that the fic would appeal to a broader audience than just dS fanfic readers. Moo fully fleshes out the characters that we know so that anyone can discover them through her work, but not in such a way as to make the characterizations boring to those who already know them. It's through throw-away lines and little expressions and snapshots that she eventually paints a portray of who Ray Vecchio and Benton Fraser were once upon a time and who they are now, ten years in the future.
While this is a 'slash' fic, I think even gen readers could read this story without any major issues. The characters' relationship is important to the plot, but it's not the main focus (and it's definitely not explicit). This is a story about the many ways that exist to make a family and a kid who is so realistic I could totally picture him as a boy I used to baby-sit. *laughs*
Tender, funny, and even painful at times, this story is a slice of life filled with characters you can care about. It had me laughing out loud at times (I mean, 'Moo Moo Barbeque'?!), ready to berate Ray and/or Benton at others, and really feeling Dusty's emotional rollercoaster throughout.
Fans of Moo's work will find this one different from her previous work, as it is more realism and less fable. Different, but just as good, and I think she's just gathering speed in her creative process.