Days 7-10: Multiple fandom/pairing, 5 recs
Day 07 - A fic for a pairing with a lot of baggage.
Fandom Category: Twilight
Pairing: Bella Swan/Jacob Black
Fic Title: No Good Deed
Author: MeraNaamJoker
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8357521/1/No-Good-Deed
Rating/Warning(s): M/R. Warnings for language and sexual content
Genre: Breaking Dawn AU
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: Anyone familiar with Twilight knows that to say Bella and Jacob have a lot of baggage is an understatement. In this AU, Bella doesn't become a vampire--she divorces Edward and leaves the Cullens to raise her baby on her own after Edward tries to abort the pregnancy against her wishes. 8 years later, a posthumous letter from Edward comes to his daughter--now named Saisha--imploring her to convince Bella to reconcile with Jacob since his actions have caused the both of them so much pain. This is actually a really thoughtful story, with a much more mature and confident Bella--one who recognizes her mistakes, owns up to them, and is willing to tackle her issues with Jacob in a reasonable and adult fashion. Jacob, while understandably resentful at first, is similarly able to put aside his own anger and meet her halfway to work things out. Of course, things hardly go smoothly and the author doesn't just ignore the issue of imprinting, choosing to address and resolve it in a very interesting way.
Day 08 - A fic for a pairing about a wedding and/or baby.
Fandom Category: The Avengers
Pairing: Natasha Romanoff/Clint Barton
Fic Title: Kobayashi Maru
Author: anuna_81/Anuna
Link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/465017
Rating/Warning(s): Unrated, but I would say PG-13ish to be safe.
Genre: Romance
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: There's a tendency to go the overly fluffy and sappy route with pregnancy fic, often to an unrealistic degree, so I appreciate the struggle Clint and Natasha undergo with their situation, which I thought were true to their personalities. I really love Clint and Natasha's relationship in this story and there's some wonderful team interaction as well.
Fandom Category: X-Men
Pairing: Jean Grey/Scott Summers
Fic Title: Five Pounds
Author: minisinoo/Minisinoo
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/392909/1/Five-Pounds
Rating/Warning(s): K/G
Genre: Fluff
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I love the idea that the X-Men and Xavier also run an operation where they try to place mutant babies given up for adoption with loving, understanding families. In this story, one infant they bring home unexpectedly ends up staying permanently. Just a lovely, lovely story, written by an author who knows firsthand what it's like to be a parent and it shows.
Day 09 - A fic for your favorite live action TV show pairing.
Fandom Category: Glee
Pairing: Tina Cohen-Chang/Mike Chang
Fic Title: Careers Week
Author: katy_moon_beam/wildpeace
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7159616/1/Careers-Week
Rating/Warning(s): T/PG-13
Genre: AU, Romance
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: This story has been seriously jossed at this point, but I still love it and consider it my head canon for Tina and Mike (seriously, nobody talk to me about what happened to my babies on this show, I am done with Glee. *sob*). The author does a fantastic job of exploring the pros and cons of whether you should go to college to stay with your high school girlfriend/boyfriend, which is a sticky and relatable issue that many people have had to deal with. I also love the reasoning behind Tina's choice of major--to me, her decision is plausible and internally consistent with her character.
Day 10 - A fic for your favorite Movie pairing.
Fandom Category: The Mummy
Pairing: Evelyn Carnahan/Rick O'Connell
Fic Title: The "Conversations" series
Author: roboticonograph/robot-iconography
Link: Conversations on a Barge
Conversations Atop a Camel
Conversations Around a Campfire
Conversations on a Doorstep
Rating/Warning(s): K-K+/G-PG
Genre: Fluff, missing scene fic
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I adore this series. All of the stories are written entirely in dialogue, not a single line of prose, and it works so well. You never lose track of the action or the events happening in the story and I found that I could imagine for myself what the characters were doing as they were speaking. And you still got fantastic moments that reveal important bits of characterization even despite it being all dialogue. In addition, the author has each of the characters' voices down to a T, which makes the characters' exchanges all the more glorious. Truly masterful writing.
Fandom Category: Twilight
Pairing: Bella Swan/Jacob Black
Fic Title: No Good Deed
Author: MeraNaamJoker
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8357521/1/No-Good-Deed
Rating/Warning(s): M/R. Warnings for language and sexual content
Genre: Breaking Dawn AU
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: Anyone familiar with Twilight knows that to say Bella and Jacob have a lot of baggage is an understatement. In this AU, Bella doesn't become a vampire--she divorces Edward and leaves the Cullens to raise her baby on her own after Edward tries to abort the pregnancy against her wishes. 8 years later, a posthumous letter from Edward comes to his daughter--now named Saisha--imploring her to convince Bella to reconcile with Jacob since his actions have caused the both of them so much pain. This is actually a really thoughtful story, with a much more mature and confident Bella--one who recognizes her mistakes, owns up to them, and is willing to tackle her issues with Jacob in a reasonable and adult fashion. Jacob, while understandably resentful at first, is similarly able to put aside his own anger and meet her halfway to work things out. Of course, things hardly go smoothly and the author doesn't just ignore the issue of imprinting, choosing to address and resolve it in a very interesting way.
Day 08 - A fic for a pairing about a wedding and/or baby.
Fandom Category: The Avengers
Pairing: Natasha Romanoff/Clint Barton
Fic Title: Kobayashi Maru
Author: anuna_81/Anuna
Link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/465017
Rating/Warning(s): Unrated, but I would say PG-13ish to be safe.
Genre: Romance
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: There's a tendency to go the overly fluffy and sappy route with pregnancy fic, often to an unrealistic degree, so I appreciate the struggle Clint and Natasha undergo with their situation, which I thought were true to their personalities. I really love Clint and Natasha's relationship in this story and there's some wonderful team interaction as well.
Fandom Category: X-Men
Pairing: Jean Grey/Scott Summers
Fic Title: Five Pounds
Author: minisinoo/Minisinoo
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/392909/1/Five-Pounds
Rating/Warning(s): K/G
Genre: Fluff
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I love the idea that the X-Men and Xavier also run an operation where they try to place mutant babies given up for adoption with loving, understanding families. In this story, one infant they bring home unexpectedly ends up staying permanently. Just a lovely, lovely story, written by an author who knows firsthand what it's like to be a parent and it shows.
Day 09 - A fic for your favorite live action TV show pairing.
Fandom Category: Glee
Pairing: Tina Cohen-Chang/Mike Chang
Fic Title: Careers Week
Author: katy_moon_beam/wildpeace
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7159616/1/Careers-Week
Rating/Warning(s): T/PG-13
Genre: AU, Romance
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: This story has been seriously jossed at this point, but I still love it and consider it my head canon for Tina and Mike (seriously, nobody talk to me about what happened to my babies on this show, I am done with Glee. *sob*). The author does a fantastic job of exploring the pros and cons of whether you should go to college to stay with your high school girlfriend/boyfriend, which is a sticky and relatable issue that many people have had to deal with. I also love the reasoning behind Tina's choice of major--to me, her decision is plausible and internally consistent with her character.
Day 10 - A fic for your favorite Movie pairing.
Fandom Category: The Mummy
Pairing: Evelyn Carnahan/Rick O'Connell
Fic Title: The "Conversations" series
Author: roboticonograph/robot-iconography
Link: Conversations on a Barge
Conversations Atop a Camel
Conversations Around a Campfire
Conversations on a Doorstep
Rating/Warning(s): K-K+/G-PG
Genre: Fluff, missing scene fic
WIP?: No
Why This Must Be Read: I adore this series. All of the stories are written entirely in dialogue, not a single line of prose, and it works so well. You never lose track of the action or the events happening in the story and I found that I could imagine for myself what the characters were doing as they were speaking. And you still got fantastic moments that reveal important bits of characterization even despite it being all dialogue. In addition, the author has each of the characters' voices down to a T, which makes the characters' exchanges all the more glorious. Truly masterful writing.