In Blood Only by EM Snape (R)
My 500th rec! Woo-hoo! I thought I'd celebrate with a super!epic:)
Title: In Blood Only by EM Snape
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: essentially gen (see warnings)
Categories: angst, dark (by my standards), action, family
Length: Exceedingly Epic (~170,000 words)
Warnings: secondary character death, references to pre-story underage sex, torture, thoughts of suicide, not compliant with books 6 and 7
Author on LJ: n/a?
Website: n/a
Review:
Through an exceedingly non-romantic night of unhappy sex, Snape impregnates Lily. Sixteen years later, he and Harry learn of their relationship. They don't take it well.
I love a good sappy Snape-is-Harry's-father-and-becomes-a-better-man-because-of-it story. This is not one of those stories. Harry and Snape barely manage civility throughout most of the fic and they never reach a point where they share, say, open affection. At the same time, however, their relationship is probably the most realistic possible depiction of Snape as Harry's father and the sheer believability of said relationship makes the story an intriguing one.
Fans of melodramatic or nice Snape should steer clear, as the Snape in this fic is one of the most practical, angry, and flat-out ruthless characters I've ever read. Not necessarily great father material but very, very plausible as a spy who managed to survive twenty years of deceiving Voldemort. More than anything else, the characterization of Snape is what makes this story work: he (and thus the story) never sinks to melodrama and while he (and the story) aren't pretty or sweet, they are quite fascinating to read.
This is not a fic I could read every day, but sometimes I'm in the mood for something completely realistic and hard, but still with a reasonably happy ending. If you're looking for fluff, steer clear. If you want a serious and believable exploration of Snape as Harry's father, however, this is the fic for you.
In Blood Only
Title: In Blood Only by EM Snape
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: essentially gen (see warnings)
Categories: angst, dark (by my standards), action, family
Length: Exceedingly Epic (~170,000 words)
Warnings: secondary character death, references to pre-story underage sex, torture, thoughts of suicide, not compliant with books 6 and 7
Author on LJ: n/a?
Website: n/a
Review:
Through an exceedingly non-romantic night of unhappy sex, Snape impregnates Lily. Sixteen years later, he and Harry learn of their relationship. They don't take it well.
I love a good sappy Snape-is-Harry's-father-and-becomes-a-better-man-because-of-it story. This is not one of those stories. Harry and Snape barely manage civility throughout most of the fic and they never reach a point where they share, say, open affection. At the same time, however, their relationship is probably the most realistic possible depiction of Snape as Harry's father and the sheer believability of said relationship makes the story an intriguing one.
Fans of melodramatic or nice Snape should steer clear, as the Snape in this fic is one of the most practical, angry, and flat-out ruthless characters I've ever read. Not necessarily great father material but very, very plausible as a spy who managed to survive twenty years of deceiving Voldemort. More than anything else, the characterization of Snape is what makes this story work: he (and thus the story) never sinks to melodrama and while he (and the story) aren't pretty or sweet, they are quite fascinating to read.
This is not a fic I could read every day, but sometimes I'm in the mood for something completely realistic and hard, but still with a reasonably happy ending. If you're looking for fluff, steer clear. If you want a serious and believable exploration of Snape as Harry's father, however, this is the fic for you.
In Blood Only