Not Even Silence in Chicago series by binz and shiplizard (NC-17)
Title: Not Even Silence in Chicago series
Fandom: Dresden Files
Pairing: gen and Harry Dresden/John Marcone (some Harry/others, and many background/side pairings)
Categories: AU, Post-Apocalyptic, Drama, Angst, Horror, Case!Fic
Length: Super Epic (112,942 words [4,827 + 1,858 + 18,122 + 88,135])
Warnings: Spoilers through Changes. Character death. Graphic depictions of violence and gore, cannibalism, amputation, possible TW for eating disorders (secondary character with ED, voluntary starvation and binge consumption a theme), brief mention of noncon (White Court vampire attack), TW for quakes and destruction.
Author on LJ: beachkid /
binz and shiplizard /
sidhebeingbrand
Author Website:
binz and
shiplizard
Author's Summary:
Post-apocalyptic Chicago: Harry Dresden, the itinerant Winter Knight, is contacted by the errant Sheriff Karrin Murphy. Something is brutally murdering people in Wisconsin, and the local militia is driving off anyone who tries to check it out. It's up to Harry to root out the threat-- and figure out where his loyalties lie, between the Faerie Court he sold himself to, and the people he's always tried to save.
Review:
Dry Bones Can Harm No One has been at the top of my list of fics to rec for our Dark/Horror week for ages, and the whole series is excellent. Set in a dystopian post-apocalyptic world, the first story lays out the AU--Marcone is now running what's left of the Chicago-area society and Harry is the Winter Knight--showing the world and their budding relationship. It has an excellent PoV, and you really feel in the moment as one character saves the other from a roadside attack by hostile forces and later when they're safe in Marcone's Fort. The second is a fun PWP set at the tail-end of the first, and makes you get the two as a couple, with their playfulness and snark, and there's a hint of angst regarding their changed circumstances. The following story is heartbreaking, with Harry and John at odds when John makes a unilateral move that he sees as right but endangers both Harry and Bob. John's actions are a betrayal of trust, and Harry's reaction of cutting himself off from his human contacts in the Chicago Fort is understandable but not very healthy for him. I like that the resolution is very adult; both of them have made mistakes and acknowledge that, and it leaves you hopeful for their relationship despite complicated outside obligations and loyalties that might pull them apart.
In the third fic, Harry mentions something happening in Wisconsin he didn't want to talk or think about...that something is the final story, which is an epic-length horror-suspense-thriller. Harry goes to investigate a series of grizzly murders and stumbles upon a isolated outpost. Their insular society--run by a militia group--and some of the people there-in are creepy, let alone the supernatural horror that's in their midst. There are some excellent original characters, some of whom I got really attached to (um, so please note the warnings). Harry does a lot of leg work on the case, trying to sort out the facts with unhelpful locals and daunting odds. Alternating with Harry's investigation are flashbacks that flesh out the AUs backstory and show what happened to Harry and his various friends during and after the apocalypse. There is angst and horror and terror, but also real moments of human connection and friendship and hope. As one commenter on the story put it: "it broke my heart, wore me down, and still managed to put me mostly back together again in the end."
There were moments I felt some wobbles in continuity between the four stories where they didn't 100% mesh-up, though it could be attributed to reading a very long series and losing track of little details. Regardless, the series is great if you're into post-apocalyptic world-building and including a creepy epic-length tale with a hopeful ending. If you want to read just Dry Bones Can Harm No One for the creepy horror story, it can stand on its own with the flashbacks giving plenty of background information.
Again, please note the warnings, particularly in regards to character death and cannibalism. Also violence and gore. Some of the imagery and situations are frankly haunting, and stuck with me for ages after I first read the stories.
Not Even Silence in Chicago series page
Part 1: Not Even Silence In The Mountains
Part 2: Upside Down in Air
Part 3: This, And Only This, We Have
Part 4: Dry Bones Can Harm No One
Fandom: Dresden Files
Pairing: gen and Harry Dresden/John Marcone (some Harry/others, and many background/side pairings)
Categories: AU, Post-Apocalyptic, Drama, Angst, Horror, Case!Fic
Length: Super Epic (112,942 words [4,827 + 1,858 + 18,122 + 88,135])
Warnings: Spoilers through Changes. Character death. Graphic depictions of violence and gore, cannibalism, amputation, possible TW for eating disorders (secondary character with ED, voluntary starvation and binge consumption a theme), brief mention of noncon (White Court vampire attack), TW for quakes and destruction.
Author on LJ: beachkid /
binz and shiplizard /
sidhebeingbrand
Author Website:
binz and
shiplizard
Author's Summary:
Post-apocalyptic Chicago: Harry Dresden, the itinerant Winter Knight, is contacted by the errant Sheriff Karrin Murphy. Something is brutally murdering people in Wisconsin, and the local militia is driving off anyone who tries to check it out. It's up to Harry to root out the threat-- and figure out where his loyalties lie, between the Faerie Court he sold himself to, and the people he's always tried to save.
Review:
Dry Bones Can Harm No One has been at the top of my list of fics to rec for our Dark/Horror week for ages, and the whole series is excellent. Set in a dystopian post-apocalyptic world, the first story lays out the AU--Marcone is now running what's left of the Chicago-area society and Harry is the Winter Knight--showing the world and their budding relationship. It has an excellent PoV, and you really feel in the moment as one character saves the other from a roadside attack by hostile forces and later when they're safe in Marcone's Fort. The second is a fun PWP set at the tail-end of the first, and makes you get the two as a couple, with their playfulness and snark, and there's a hint of angst regarding their changed circumstances. The following story is heartbreaking, with Harry and John at odds when John makes a unilateral move that he sees as right but endangers both Harry and Bob. John's actions are a betrayal of trust, and Harry's reaction of cutting himself off from his human contacts in the Chicago Fort is understandable but not very healthy for him. I like that the resolution is very adult; both of them have made mistakes and acknowledge that, and it leaves you hopeful for their relationship despite complicated outside obligations and loyalties that might pull them apart.
In the third fic, Harry mentions something happening in Wisconsin he didn't want to talk or think about...that something is the final story, which is an epic-length horror-suspense-thriller. Harry goes to investigate a series of grizzly murders and stumbles upon a isolated outpost. Their insular society--run by a militia group--and some of the people there-in are creepy, let alone the supernatural horror that's in their midst. There are some excellent original characters, some of whom I got really attached to (um, so please note the warnings). Harry does a lot of leg work on the case, trying to sort out the facts with unhelpful locals and daunting odds. Alternating with Harry's investigation are flashbacks that flesh out the AUs backstory and show what happened to Harry and his various friends during and after the apocalypse. There is angst and horror and terror, but also real moments of human connection and friendship and hope. As one commenter on the story put it: "it broke my heart, wore me down, and still managed to put me mostly back together again in the end."
There were moments I felt some wobbles in continuity between the four stories where they didn't 100% mesh-up, though it could be attributed to reading a very long series and losing track of little details. Regardless, the series is great if you're into post-apocalyptic world-building and including a creepy epic-length tale with a hopeful ending. If you want to read just Dry Bones Can Harm No One for the creepy horror story, it can stand on its own with the flashbacks giving plenty of background information.
Again, please note the warnings, particularly in regards to character death and cannibalism. Also violence and gore. Some of the imagery and situations are frankly haunting, and stuck with me for ages after I first read the stories.
Not Even Silence in Chicago series page
Part 1: Not Even Silence In The Mountains
Part 2: Upside Down in Air
Part 3: This, And Only This, We Have
Part 4: Dry Bones Can Harm No One