Recs (uber-Xena)
Before I get to the goods -- it's occurred to me that I rarely, if ever, give any plot synopses when I rec. Maybe because when I'm reading recs, I don't usually pay much attention to what the reccer says the story's about. I just want to know if they think it's worth reading or not. At any rate I will try to be better about that from now on, in case there are people more concerned with these things than I am.
So. Back in the day, I was all about the subtext on Xena. But because there is so much of that show that turns me off (the fantasy elements, the gods, all that Judeo-Christian stuff they started getting into), I gravitated toward uber fic more than canon. Here are some of what I consider the classics from that time.
Lucifer Rising by Sharon Bowers -- A newspaper reporter gets shot while trying to get the scoop on an organized crime boss and ends up recuperating at her house. This is one of those ubers with closer ties/parallels to the show; the Xena character has the dark past she's trying to overcome, there's a Lyceus character whose death figures strongly in her motivations, and there's a fair bit of violence and action.
Chicago 5 AM by LN James -- (I can't find a link for this at the moment, but I have a copy should anyone be interested.) A private eye and an FBI rookie go undercover as lovers in the leather scene. There's a big cheese factor here, including the naming of characters after their canon counterparts (Tina Amphipoli, Mariel Potidean, Cirra Callistone, Ari Warinopolis), which is a pet peeve of mine. But the story is nice and I'm always up for a bit of kink.
The Deal by M. Ryan -- A talented and driven woman takes over the news director spot at a TV station in order to honour agreements she's made with various people in her life, but everything gets complicated when she falls for one of her reporters. There is golf in this story. The fact that I love it anyway speaks volumes about the quality of the writing. Fun, touching, totally believable. Unlike the previous two recs, this story stands more or less alone -- verging on "original" territory.
Tropical Storm by Melissa Good -- The first in a continuing series featuring IT superstars Dar and Kerry. When this was being written, I was one of those salivating fans on the mailing lists, checking my email every 5 minutes in hopes of an update. Again, this is more "original" than some ubers in that there's a Xena character and a Gabrielle character, but the connections with canon pretty much end there.
Glass Houses by Llachlan -- A film director and her lead actress make a connection while producing a movie of version of "Tropical Storm." Yes, the story I just recced. This was another story I read while it was being written and posted to mailing lists, and Llachlan made some changes after the fact (including the title). I found this disorienting when I reread it just recently, but I couldn't really say what was different, so I don't think it was anything too major. I think I was predisposed to like this story because it includes filmmaking (sort of the opposite of what I was just saying about golf in "The Deal"). The major accomplishment, though, is that it manages to includes so much "meta" or "self-reflexive" content (including Melissa Good as a character, referencing her immense online popularity) without being too in-jokey.
Surfacing by Paul Seely and Jennifer Garza -- A secret agent falls for a lawyer and decides she wants out of the biz. I could do without the past-life regression stuff, and I prefer my character development a little more subtle, but the characters themselves are so compelling and the plot is so solid that I have to love this story. Intrigue, action, and humour more than make up for the whole "we were lovers in a past life so we are instantly and unquestioningly devoted to each other the moment we meet, despite not knowing each other from Adam" thing. The sequel, Persistence of Memory, is good too.
So. Back in the day, I was all about the subtext on Xena. But because there is so much of that show that turns me off (the fantasy elements, the gods, all that Judeo-Christian stuff they started getting into), I gravitated toward uber fic more than canon. Here are some of what I consider the classics from that time.
Lucifer Rising by Sharon Bowers -- A newspaper reporter gets shot while trying to get the scoop on an organized crime boss and ends up recuperating at her house. This is one of those ubers with closer ties/parallels to the show; the Xena character has the dark past she's trying to overcome, there's a Lyceus character whose death figures strongly in her motivations, and there's a fair bit of violence and action.
Chicago 5 AM by LN James -- (I can't find a link for this at the moment, but I have a copy should anyone be interested.) A private eye and an FBI rookie go undercover as lovers in the leather scene. There's a big cheese factor here, including the naming of characters after their canon counterparts (Tina Amphipoli, Mariel Potidean, Cirra Callistone, Ari Warinopolis), which is a pet peeve of mine. But the story is nice and I'm always up for a bit of kink.
The Deal by M. Ryan -- A talented and driven woman takes over the news director spot at a TV station in order to honour agreements she's made with various people in her life, but everything gets complicated when she falls for one of her reporters. There is golf in this story. The fact that I love it anyway speaks volumes about the quality of the writing. Fun, touching, totally believable. Unlike the previous two recs, this story stands more or less alone -- verging on "original" territory.
Tropical Storm by Melissa Good -- The first in a continuing series featuring IT superstars Dar and Kerry. When this was being written, I was one of those salivating fans on the mailing lists, checking my email every 5 minutes in hopes of an update. Again, this is more "original" than some ubers in that there's a Xena character and a Gabrielle character, but the connections with canon pretty much end there.
Glass Houses by Llachlan -- A film director and her lead actress make a connection while producing a movie of version of "Tropical Storm." Yes, the story I just recced. This was another story I read while it was being written and posted to mailing lists, and Llachlan made some changes after the fact (including the title). I found this disorienting when I reread it just recently, but I couldn't really say what was different, so I don't think it was anything too major. I think I was predisposed to like this story because it includes filmmaking (sort of the opposite of what I was just saying about golf in "The Deal"). The major accomplishment, though, is that it manages to includes so much "meta" or "self-reflexive" content (including Melissa Good as a character, referencing her immense online popularity) without being too in-jokey.
Surfacing by Paul Seely and Jennifer Garza -- A secret agent falls for a lawyer and decides she wants out of the biz. I could do without the past-life regression stuff, and I prefer my character development a little more subtle, but the characters themselves are so compelling and the plot is so solid that I have to love this story. Intrigue, action, and humour more than make up for the whole "we were lovers in a past life so we are instantly and unquestioningly devoted to each other the moment we meet, despite not knowing each other from Adam" thing. The sequel, Persistence of Memory, is good too.