Genre: ANGEL
Pairing: Angel/Doyle (sort of...)
Author's Website: http://www.lyricalmagic.com/
Author's LJ: destina
Why this MUST be read:

This one's a bit on the dark side but definitely worth it. Angel POV, but still all about Doyle so it fits my current ongoing theme.

Basically, this one explores just how far Angel would be willing to go to "save" those he cares about, deftly exploring the darker corners of the souled vampire's psyche and showing us the side of him that is possessive, obsessive and just a little unhinged... the side of him that just can't let things go. I love fanfiction that focuses on the darker side of Angel, and this one definitely delivers quite a punch.

The Summoning

I'm reccing a couple of post-cols today.

Fandom: X FILES
Title: Little Earth, by Xanthe
Pairings: Skinner/Samantha, Mulder/Scully, Scully/CSM
Author on LJ: xanthefic
Author website: Xanthe's fic

Why this story must be read: Post-col is another of my favorite genres in XF because it allows writers to explore the darker side of the show's universe, namely the unexplored questions of, 'What if alien colonization was not averted?' What if the good guys didn't win?' The answers are not always happy, and Little Earth is no exception to that.

What makes this a must-read is not the just the imaginative, heartbreaking future Xanthe creates, but also the character she focuses on: Samantha. Now a grown woman, we see where she has been all the years, and we join her in her journey forward. We see Mulder, Scully, CSM and Skinner through *her* eyes, and it is a fascinating look from a very different angle. From them, Samantha learns about the human qualities and emotions she's been isolated from for years, and from her and from them, we learn that despite losing the battle for humankind, those qualities of *humanity* -- love, friendship, commitment, independence, freedom, respect, loyalty -- cannot ever be extinguished from us.

The descriptions are lush, the story is well-plotted, and the emotions of everyone leap off the page. It's impossible not to feel for Mulder, Scully, Skinner and Samantha as they struggle to survive after all hope is gone. Astonishingly, this fic was written in 1999, and it still holds up wonderfully today, which in my mind, makes it a true 'classic'.

Bring your tissues.

Little Earth

Fandom: Big Wolf on Campus
Pairing: Merton/Lori
Author on LJ: irenak
Author Website: Fanfiction.net Profile
Why this must be read:

Yes, you read that right: a BWoC het fic! Gasp! Shock! And it’s good--not a Mary Sue in sight.

Future-fics usually aren’t my thing, but this story takes the Merton and Lori from canon, and lets them grow up without distorting who they are. There is a nice sense of friendship between Merton and Lori, and of possibility. Bittersweet and hopeful all at once, this is one of the only good Merton/Lori fics I’ve been able to find thus far.

Reunion

Fandom: FARSCAPE
Pairing: None
Author on LJ: eve11

Why this must be read:

( Salvaging Stark. )

In Resurgam Eve11 imagines a background for Stark with amazing lyrical beauty. The prose only enhances the brutality of what he's suffered from his earliest years in a slave camp to his time as a prisoner of the Scarrans. I can't say much more about this other than 'read it now!' but I also appreciate the unobtrusive original character. As far as I'm concerned, this is Stark's origin story.

When he was seven cycles old the world started to fade away. Color abandoned him first; vibrant red faded to rust, blue sunk in to black, violet and white merged together into gray. The sky was permanently cloudy, the sun went from orange to a gray ghost at his back. In the fields, the flowers dimmed.

Resurgam

Fandom: X FILES
Pairing: Doggett/Reyes, implied Mulder/Scully
Author on LJ: jsmichel
Author Website: Bibliotech


Why this must be read: This is another post-col which does a masterful job at depicting a world we never saw on our screens, this time focusing on the 'new kids on the block', Doggett and Reyes. JS captures Doggett's voice perfectly, level-headed and dry and just a bit wistful, and does an equally impressive job continuing the tone of Doggett's relationships with the other three that he had on the show; he's still protective of Scully, wary and yet companionable with Mulder, and his relationship with Monica has an ease that only comes from years of trust and affection. They're sexy in an adult way, practical and teasing and in sync with each other.

And, oh my, the writing is excellent. I love JS's style, an unflowery language with biting, dead-on details interspersed throughout. There are also pop culture references here and there which, in my opinion, befit a man like Doggett who eats Poptarts and cracks Brady Bunch jokes. The writing also parallels well the stripped-down existence they're living, and the bleakness surrounding their futures. Yet for all the hopelessness, there is still a vein of life and normalcy that runs through this story; it's not happily-ever-after, but there's a contentment in Doggett for what he has now, and that is immeasurably satisfying.

As the summary says, "You gotta live it every day," and that's what this story is about.

( Excerpt )

Badlands

Fandom: X-MEN COMICVERSE
Pairing: Shadowcat/Shatterstar
Author on LJ: paxnirvana
Author Website: Paxnirvana's Circle of Hell
Why this must be read: Oh, lots of reasons. Kitty Pryde/Shadowcat is so often a neglected or badly-written character in X-fic, and I think she rocks ;) I like Pax's Kitty because she's intelligent but not perfect, insecure but not wimpy.

In canon, Kitty has left the X-Men to pursue a normal life as a college student, and Pax picks up the story during that period, giving us a great character story that's also got a fabulous plot and hot sex. It also gives us an interesting insight into the characters of Shatterstar and Rictor, and a good introduction to them if you're not familiar with them.

Catch a Falling Star

Fandom: The Sentinel
Pairing: None
Author On LJ: None
Author Website: The Sibilant Storybook
Why This Must Be Read:

This is arguably one of the funniest stories I have ever read in the Sentinel fandom. It is, without a doubt, Jim Ellison's worst nightmare. Not one Sandburg to deal with but four. Namely Blair and three cousins. Jim is, the poor guy, quite bewildered by the beginning and Sealie handles it with great flare and more than a little glee. It's not just a humor fic, there is a very strong plot behind it as the Sandburg penchant for attracting danger seems hereditary and the whole kit and kaboodle of them land themselves in the middle of a case involving a missing police officer and, in true Sandburg fashion, cause more than their fair share of headaches doing it.

Excerpt: "JIM…"

"Yeah, I know," Jim said without turning his head. "Scary, isn’t it."

"My God, what happened? Naomi didn’t have a litter?"

"Nah, I think it is an alien plot to take over the world with cloned Sandburgs."

"We’re doomed."

Too Many Chiefs And Not Enough Indians by Sealie

Fandom: BTVS
Pairing: Gen at first, and then Andrew Wells/male
Author on LJ: basingstoke
Author Website: Basingstoke

Why this must be read:

Timing is everything, so I have the privilege of reccing this recently posted story by Basingstoke. I heard lots of good things about it, and it definitely delivered. Basingstoke made me care deeply about a character whom I hadn't seen as anything but comic relief. The story plays with the concept of alternate realities, as is so popular in the Buffyverse, but here that gimmick works very well. The Andrew POV is limited--we see canon events and the other characters through his eyes, but everything rings true. This qualifies as slash, but the first half is gen and there aren't many sex scenes, so I urge nonslashers to read it.

This story is also heart-breakingly good, and it's an instant classic in the fandom.


Big Rock Candy Mountain

Fandom: Blakes 7
Pairing: Various
Author on LJ executrix
Author Website: No
Why this must be read:
This is B7 meets Greeneland, as in Graham Greene, several of whose novels are vaguely pastiched here. Greene's emphasis on guilt and repentance fits in with the way Executrix sometimes likes to see Avon as a Catholic in various stages of lapsedness, but since this is also Executrix meets Greene, the result is a lot more flippant and sardonic than unadulterated Greene would be. Like many of her fics, this is divided into sections, each inspired by a different bit of Greene and the way she weaves the ambience of each different novel or story into an Executrix core makes this a very literary piece of fanfic. But don't let that put you off if you aren't usually into that sort of thing. It would still be very readable as fanfic if you didn't know Greene from Adam. Here's Vila, explaining himself and his crewmates to an outsider:
( excerpt )

This Gun for Hire

Genre: ANGEL
Pairing: Doyle/Cordelia friendship
Author's LJ: roseveare
Author's Website: http://www.geocities.com/roseveare/
Why this MUST be read:

What if Doyle hadn't been able to convince Angel to take on a partner in his fight against the forces of darkness? What if Angel had just said no?

This AU retelling of the pilot episode remains one of my favorite Doyle fics of all time. Doyle and Cordelia are written perfectly in character and while Doyle is the hero of the piece, it never takes things to unbelievable levels. He doesn't single handedly fight off a pack of goons with flashy kung-fu moves and fancy toys. When Doyle saves somebody, it's usually a little messy and a little crazy and a lot more about luck than it is about skill, but that's okay. Because it's his heart that makes him a hero. Because he's a guy who would be just about the last choice for somebody's savior, and he knows it, but he's still there fighting the good fight. He might not be entirely sober when he saves the damnsel in distress, but he'll damn well be there giving it his all to make sure she's okay. And Roseveare captures that aspect of him perfectly here.

City Without...