February 9th, 2004 
08:54 am Argonauts All by Angela Field (PG13)
Fandom: HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS
Pairing: n/a
Author on LJ: n/a
Author Website:Circe's Realm, Hercules stories on the Heroes' Path section.
Why this must be read: Most of Angela's stories are in print fanzines, but she's starting to put a few new ones online. She writes action-adventure with a side helping of hurt/comfort, and she doesn't neglect the fantasy and sword-and sorcery elements that really make Hercules fanfiction for me. My favorite of her online stories so far is the first of her Argosy stories, an AU version of how Hercules and Iolaus meet Jason and start the voyage on the Argo. This version uses a few more elements of the original mythology and combines it with a murder mystery plot, as Herc and Iolaus try to discover who is killing the heroes who have come together in a competition to join the Argo's crew.

Argonauts All
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08:59 am Lost Horizons by Amy B. (PG to NC-17)
Fandcom: HARD CORE LOGO/DA VINCI's INQUEST
Genre: Slash, crossover
Pairing: Joe/Billy, Billy/other, Dominic/Bobby
Author on LJ: Not as far as I know
Author website: Merry Go Round

Why this must be read:

Since I didn't get a chance to do any recs for the last few days, today I'm giving you a whole series to sink your teeth into. This lengthy and intriguing work takes us into the world of Da Vinci's Inquest, a Canadian detective series in which Callum Keith Rennie appeared frequently. You don't really have to know anything about the show for the series to be enjoyable.

I've linked to the page listing all of the chapters, so go sink your teeth in and enjoy!

Lost Horizons
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10:04 am The Pillow Book of Tim Bayliss by Maggie The Cat(G)
Fandom::HOMICIDE:LIFE ON THE STREET
Author on lj: [livejournal.com profile] stubbleglitter
Author's websites Elaysian Fields for H:LOTS and others at http://glock_cat_tripod.com/index.html Unaware for popslash at http://boudicca.com/unaware
Pairing: none
Summary:: If our favorite tormented detective kept a pillow book, like in the movie, what might he write? (Haven't seen the movie? Rent it. I'll wait. mmm, Ewan, another pretty man.) Basically, the highs and lows of Homicide as seen by Tim Bayliss.
Why this must be read: Don't let the rating or lack of pairing fool you. This is an amazingly sensual experience, as well as a trip through Tim Bayliss' busy brain.
Excerpt )
Link:: http://maggiecat.tripod.com/hlots/pillowbook.html
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10:13 am Hindsight by Laras Dice (R/NC-17)
Fandom: ALIAS
Pairing: Sydney/Vaughn
Author on LJ: [livejournal.com profile] larasdice
Author Website: Brief Encounter
Why this must be read:
Lara is possibly the best Vaughn author out there. She had found a way to get into his mind like no one else. In this story, set post-Season one, Sydney is discovered by SD-6 and forced into Witness Protection, forcing Vaughn to make a decision that could change everything.

Hindsight
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12:36 pm The Key by Ariadne (R)
Fandom: MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.
Pairing: Napoleon Solo/Illya Kuryakin
Author on LJ: no, dammit. LJ now! LJ now!
Author Website: no more, but her fic can be found here: http://lyrebird.aithine.org/stories.htm

Why this must be read:

Napoleon and Illya are in pursuit of Roger Schuyler, an ex-UNCLE agent who is now working for Thrush. Schuyler is malicious and nasty and likes playing with knives...and, to top it off, he's Napoleon's former superior and lover.

Napoleon must deal with his unresolved feelings of anger, shame and betrayal. Illya has to grapple with his own jealousy and growing suspicion about Napoleon's judgment. The espionage elements further the slashy angst, and the frustrated interpersonal dynamic is reflected in their unravelling working relationship.

I tend to find 'other man' scenarios annoying. But this story works for me because the focus is squarely on the simmering NS/IK tension. The atmosphere is gritty and off-kilter, much like Season 4. And yes, I get a kick out of seeing a Napoleon who's skirting the edge of personal and professional disaster.

This story is a near-perfect fusion of action espionage and tense relationship.

The Key
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12:46 pm A Bruised Road by k, PG
Fandom: THE O.C.
Pairing: Ryan/Seth
Author on LJ: [livejournal.com profile] callmesandy
Author Website: lowercase k
Why this must be read:

The author has this listed as a Seth/Ryan story, but to me it's more of a Ryan story. Ryan is, pretty much without contest, the show woobie. He's had a hard life. He's messed up. And that's how we like him. There is a great Ryan POV here, as he spends time with his old family and his new one. And it kind of hurts. But in the good way.

You find pop culture references in The O.C. fic a lot. That's because you find them on the show a lot. Especially ones related to the college radio type music that generally makes up the show's soundtrack. So OC writers get a lot of opportunities to show off what cool music we listen to and what obscure comic books we read. Which tends to work out, because, hey. Fangirls for a reason. Here, k takes a Wilco reference, and runs with it. But in the good way.

"Okay, John Cusack's in it. And some other people. That guy. Hey, it's that guy. John Cusack and his girlfriend go visit her dad in prison but the girlfriend can't bring herself to go in." Seth frowns. "Okay, that's a really inadequate metaphor. Analogy. But prison."

"She won't go in?" Ryan would like to do that. He won't, but it's tempting.


A Bruised Road
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02:00 pm Golden by Andraste (PG)
Fandom: X-MEN MOVIEVERSE
Pairing: Xavier/Magneto
Author on lj: [livejournal.com profile] andrastewhite
Author's website: Blue Shades
Why this must be read:

One fascinating relationship in the X-Men movies is between Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr, now a deadly enemy but once his closest friend. It's fairly easy in movieverse to get the idea that they were actually once more than friends, to the point that the Xavier/Magneto pairing is frequently assumed even in stories that focus on other characters entirely. It's a tragic pairing by its nature, with any happiness we see overshadowed by our knowledge that their bitter conflicts will eventually tear them apart.

In "Golden," Andraste gives us a brief look at the pair shortly before the first movie, in a late-night phone conversation that's a perfect example of the tangle of pain and love between them. It's also a nice look at Charles Xavier, who's not quite what his students think. It's wry and sharp and just as painful as it should be, especially for readers who've seen either of the movies and know that it's all about to get much, much worse.

excerpt behind the cut )

Golden
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09:54 pm Fast Food? By Sally Manton (G)
Fandom:BLAKES7
Pairing:None
Author on LJ:?
Why this must be read:
Blakes7 canon moves directly from Blake's, Avon's and Jenna's hijack of the vast alien spaceship Liberator to their arrival at Cygnus Alpha...presumably, four months later (because the prison ship London, which is obviously a horrible old tub, gets to Cygnus Alpha first, and the mutiny came halfway through the eight-month voyage from Earth to Cygnus Alpha).

Many episodes later, we learn that the ship was built by an alien race, the Altas (although it's never explained what for; Willa Shakespeare's "intergalactic knocking shop" explanation seems as plausible as any). But what, exactly, characterizes Alta cuisine?

Sally Manton posits that a desperate five-hour search at last produced water some kind of communal shower, Jenna had suggested-communal meaning at least five hundred people and vast vats that fed out processed mush in flavours unimagined by man or beast--although Blake's and Avon's boarding school experience at least taught them what a pureed Sirian slimeworm tastes like. But at last, after an early entry in the Blake-Avon snipe sweepstakes (what one might call .tiff files), they find...not a winner, he thought, not that good--survival rations, I think.

Read it because it's funny, admirably disgusting when it needs to be, lightly sketched but perfectly characterized, and an all-too-plausible look at shipboard life when the damn thing doesn't come with an instruction manual.

Fast Food?
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10:43 pm Seduction by Lenore (NC-17)
Fandom: SMALLVILLE
Pairing: Clark/Lionel, Clark/Lex
Author on LJ: [livejournal.com profile] scribblinlenore
Author Website: Lenore’s Stories
Why this must be read:

[livejournal.com profile] velvetglove introduced you to Lenore's Smallville fic in October with That Old Schizophrenic Jealousy, a wickedly funny and poignant look at the challenges of living and loving with a secret identity. Seduction shows a more sinister side of Lenore's fantastic range when Clark falls prey to Lionel Luthor's seductive machinations.

This pairing has a rabid, if comparatively small, following in the fandom - every pairing is small in relation to the ubiquitous Clex - especially for those who like a little squick in their fic. Lionel has all the smooth charm of his son, but without any of the love for Clark that tempers Lex's darker impulses. Quite the contrary, in fact. Fics in this genre tend to be coercive (as with Seduction) or fully non-con, both of which are a-okay with me. In my opinion, Seduction is the best of the bunch.

If you’re still not sure, take a look at the absolutely gorgeous cover art, and then click past it to read the story: Seduction. (40K)
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11:43 pm Blue Tattoo by Miss Muskeg (R)
Fandom: HARD CORE LOGO
Genre: Slash
Author on LJ: Not as far as I know
Author website: None as far as I know

Why this must be read:

Since I couldn't do any recs over the weekend, I figured I'd give you two today, especially since I might be too busy with births tomorrow to get to any recs then.

This is another one from the old Ten Buck Fuck site that I despaired of finding until [livejournal.com profile] terrio found it for me. It's mostly a look back at the past, although it's set after the movie. There's a soupcon of Dickens' Christmas Carol running through the story, but the characterizations are pure punk, pure Hard Core Logo. This story is definitely one of my favorites.

Here's a peek. )

Blue Tattoo.
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