(no subject)
Recs! At last!
Apologies to the Supernatural crowd but it's been ages since I last recced SPN and my memories are chaotic so a lot of stuff didn't make it on here just because I couldn't find it again (or I deleted it - that happens too).
Supernatural
Violent World Our Fathers Bought by likethesun2
I've been meaning to rec this for ages and I'm a little surprised I haven't (shows how long it's been since I did an SPN recs set). Anyway, this is a gen story featuring related but not connected incidents in the lives of the Winchester brothers. I'm a big fan of the 'everything comes around again' theme that you see constructed beautifully in this story, because these things inevitably do, but I'm also a fan of likethesun2 and the way she rounds out the emotion in stories, protrays full and complex characters with thoughts and emotions hovering around them like clouds. An awesome writer, really worth checking out.
I See You Better in the Dark by hansbekhart
I read this recently and you're probably all familiar with the author but I'm reccing it anyway because it's a very different approach to the sexual relationship between Sam and Dean. It weaves and winds, doesn't follow a simple narrative, and has a dream-like quality which echoes something of the way Sam and Dean are coming to grips with the situation. A real pleasure to read.
Dust and Air by vaznetti
Goddamn, sometimes someone in this fandom takes a side character and makes sheer gold out of their story. This is for anyone who ever asked, 'Why Missouri?' because vaznetti nails the answer.
Carry On My Wayward Gnome by groaty
Gnomes, people! What more do you want? Sam and Dean get set upon by gnomes. Dean channels his inner Gollum and, you guessed it, hilarity ensues!!
Ingwaz and Anzus by thepurpleswitch
A creepy little gen story with an unusual and interesting evil behind it. The title, I believe, refers to the runes and if you know something about runes, which I don't, you might find some interesting layers in this story. And damned if that ending doesn't leave you begging for a Sam and Dean mpreg sequel (oh, I am *so* going to get in trouble for saying that... *g*). A very compelling and unusual tale with excellent Sam and Dean characterisations.
Heroes
Twenty Things Learned on Road Trips by trollprincess
Which is really an excuse to give us twenty snapshots of the Heroes gang. But who cares what the excuse is; it's concise, it's neat, it's sweet, and some of the little pieceas will break your heart.
Apples Can't Talk by sparky77
A Nathan and Peter story more than a Nathan/ Peter story. I love the way sparky77 explores Nathan's ability to fly, really gets into how it affects him, how he might fear it, hate it and need it at the same time (and if that's not a metaphor for something else, I don't know what is). Nathan as the reluctant superhero always *gets* me and I love how this story really illustrates that side of him.
The Colours of Gabriel Gray by piecesofalice
A short, Sylar piece using colour as metaphor; which I find particularly suited to Sylar because colour dysphasia is a form or dissassociation from the norms and codes of behaviour, as is sociopathy. There's something about highlighting colours individually (rather than collectively) that really gets into Sylar's mindset.
Your Destiny Lies With Me by tangleofthorns
I would probably read tangleofthorns is she took to pairing up random names from the phonebook, so the fact that's Hiro and Ando is hardly the point. But the fact that's Hiro and Ando does make it kind of adorabl. It's short, and light on the slash, but so worth a quick visit.
Your Young Men Shall See Visions by linaerys
I love this story so much I want to have its babies. It's Nathan and Peter when Peter was in his college years, working out his relationship with his brother as he works out his place in the world and kind of making a stuff-up of both. If you're a Peter/ Nathan fan (or even if you're not, goddammit!) you should go to linaerys's LJ and click on the links on the side for all her work in that pairing because they're intelligently written, heartbreakingly real, and they portray the characters as adults; it's hard to explain what I mean by that, but think of characters who make decisions, fail, fuck-up, think, talk act, with the degree of complexity that can only come from experience. It's a sort of ease that comes from not knowing why you do what you do but learning to live with the ignorance. Peter makes this transition during the story and it's wonderfully done, compelling, beautiful and not happy but they might just be able to live with it.
Crossovers
Heroes/Smallville
Collaring All That Rebel Blood by linaerys
There was some challenge or ficathon recently that involved pairing Lex (from Smallville) with anyone and everyone. I've never watched an entire episode of Smallville so I know precious little about this character, except that he seems to be somewhat sexually liberal. So anyway, in this story Lex and Nathan are imprisoned in the same cell (a la Oz - I keep saying there should be a prison challenge where you put two random characters in a cell and see what happens!) and they handle their paranoia, their fear, their desperation and, more importantly, their struggle for dominance together. It's not just a sexy story but it's a story about sex and how it has this whole new aspect to it in extreme situations. I love stories that show how sex is more than a physical thing and this story is a fine example.
Profit/Smallville
Scion by scribblinlenore
And sometimes sex is sex! And that's good too! So you haven't seen Profit? well, two things you should know about Jim Profit: he's played by Adrian Pasdar (Nathan from Heroes) and he's a high-functioning psychopath. If you know the show, this story is very faithful to the way the episodes usually unfold. There's scheming and backstabbing and a lot of dirty work on Jim's part, and it doesn't always turn out the way he expected but he always seems to come up smelling like roses. He narrates the show as well, which scribblinlenore has also successfully emulated (to the point that you can *hear* him). If you only know Lex in this pairing, read it anyway, because he's not only met his match, he's a rent boy, and it's one hell of a fantastic, sexy-fun story.
Apologies to the Supernatural crowd but it's been ages since I last recced SPN and my memories are chaotic so a lot of stuff didn't make it on here just because I couldn't find it again (or I deleted it - that happens too).
Supernatural
Violent World Our Fathers Bought by likethesun2
I've been meaning to rec this for ages and I'm a little surprised I haven't (shows how long it's been since I did an SPN recs set). Anyway, this is a gen story featuring related but not connected incidents in the lives of the Winchester brothers. I'm a big fan of the 'everything comes around again' theme that you see constructed beautifully in this story, because these things inevitably do, but I'm also a fan of likethesun2 and the way she rounds out the emotion in stories, protrays full and complex characters with thoughts and emotions hovering around them like clouds. An awesome writer, really worth checking out.
I See You Better in the Dark by hansbekhart
I read this recently and you're probably all familiar with the author but I'm reccing it anyway because it's a very different approach to the sexual relationship between Sam and Dean. It weaves and winds, doesn't follow a simple narrative, and has a dream-like quality which echoes something of the way Sam and Dean are coming to grips with the situation. A real pleasure to read.
Dust and Air by vaznetti
Goddamn, sometimes someone in this fandom takes a side character and makes sheer gold out of their story. This is for anyone who ever asked, 'Why Missouri?' because vaznetti nails the answer.
Carry On My Wayward Gnome by groaty
Gnomes, people! What more do you want? Sam and Dean get set upon by gnomes. Dean channels his inner Gollum and, you guessed it, hilarity ensues!!
Ingwaz and Anzus by thepurpleswitch
A creepy little gen story with an unusual and interesting evil behind it. The title, I believe, refers to the runes and if you know something about runes, which I don't, you might find some interesting layers in this story. And damned if that ending doesn't leave you begging for a Sam and Dean mpreg sequel (oh, I am *so* going to get in trouble for saying that... *g*). A very compelling and unusual tale with excellent Sam and Dean characterisations.
Heroes
Twenty Things Learned on Road Trips by trollprincess
Which is really an excuse to give us twenty snapshots of the Heroes gang. But who cares what the excuse is; it's concise, it's neat, it's sweet, and some of the little pieceas will break your heart.
Apples Can't Talk by sparky77
A Nathan and Peter story more than a Nathan/ Peter story. I love the way sparky77 explores Nathan's ability to fly, really gets into how it affects him, how he might fear it, hate it and need it at the same time (and if that's not a metaphor for something else, I don't know what is). Nathan as the reluctant superhero always *gets* me and I love how this story really illustrates that side of him.
The Colours of Gabriel Gray by piecesofalice
A short, Sylar piece using colour as metaphor; which I find particularly suited to Sylar because colour dysphasia is a form or dissassociation from the norms and codes of behaviour, as is sociopathy. There's something about highlighting colours individually (rather than collectively) that really gets into Sylar's mindset.
Your Destiny Lies With Me by tangleofthorns
I would probably read tangleofthorns is she took to pairing up random names from the phonebook, so the fact that's Hiro and Ando is hardly the point. But the fact that's Hiro and Ando does make it kind of adorabl. It's short, and light on the slash, but so worth a quick visit.
Your Young Men Shall See Visions by linaerys
I love this story so much I want to have its babies. It's Nathan and Peter when Peter was in his college years, working out his relationship with his brother as he works out his place in the world and kind of making a stuff-up of both. If you're a Peter/ Nathan fan (or even if you're not, goddammit!) you should go to linaerys's LJ and click on the links on the side for all her work in that pairing because they're intelligently written, heartbreakingly real, and they portray the characters as adults; it's hard to explain what I mean by that, but think of characters who make decisions, fail, fuck-up, think, talk act, with the degree of complexity that can only come from experience. It's a sort of ease that comes from not knowing why you do what you do but learning to live with the ignorance. Peter makes this transition during the story and it's wonderfully done, compelling, beautiful and not happy but they might just be able to live with it.
Crossovers
Heroes/Smallville
Collaring All That Rebel Blood by linaerys
There was some challenge or ficathon recently that involved pairing Lex (from Smallville) with anyone and everyone. I've never watched an entire episode of Smallville so I know precious little about this character, except that he seems to be somewhat sexually liberal. So anyway, in this story Lex and Nathan are imprisoned in the same cell (a la Oz - I keep saying there should be a prison challenge where you put two random characters in a cell and see what happens!) and they handle their paranoia, their fear, their desperation and, more importantly, their struggle for dominance together. It's not just a sexy story but it's a story about sex and how it has this whole new aspect to it in extreme situations. I love stories that show how sex is more than a physical thing and this story is a fine example.
Profit/Smallville
Scion by scribblinlenore
And sometimes sex is sex! And that's good too! So you haven't seen Profit? well, two things you should know about Jim Profit: he's played by Adrian Pasdar (Nathan from Heroes) and he's a high-functioning psychopath. If you know the show, this story is very faithful to the way the episodes usually unfold. There's scheming and backstabbing and a lot of dirty work on Jim's part, and it doesn't always turn out the way he expected but he always seems to come up smelling like roses. He narrates the show as well, which scribblinlenore has also successfully emulated (to the point that you can *hear* him). If you only know Lex in this pairing, read it anyway, because he's not only met his match, he's a rent boy, and it's one hell of a fantastic, sexy-fun story.