Fandom: THE O.C.
Pairing: Ryan/Seth
Author on LJ: thisisbone
Author Website:http://www.geocities.com/coffeeslash/bone/
Why this must be read: Written (I believe!) before the canonical Event, this sweet ‘n sexy fic nails Seth’s adorableness and confusion at losing the big “v”. Bone gives hot, sweaty, and yet oh-so-kind Ryan taking care of a dorky, loveable Seth who is (guh) desperate. Sigh.

It’s Sexy!Caretaker!Ryan. It’s Hot!Begging!Seth.

It’s Bone, fer pete’s sake. Read it.


It’s My Party

Fandom: FARSCAPE
Pairing: None
Author on LJ: kixxa

Why this must be read:

I don't think you actually need much background to appreciate this great story - it's set some time in the first half of Season Four, but because it takes two characters away from the rest of the cast to sends them on a big adventure of their own it manages to avoid most of the complex continuity that had been set up by then. All you need to know is that John Crichton is a human being chased through the galaxy by a whole lot of people, and Rygel is a former monarch who would sell his own grandmother if he thought it would advantage him. And we love him anyway *g*.

The relationship between John and Rygel was always a lot of fun on the show itself, but it's not something that's inspired much fanfiction. This story opens with the pair of them getting themselves captured by slavers - and of course, Rygel promptly betrays John in order to gain some leverage with their captors. Too bad karma is going to catch up with him later ...

I don't often go for long stories, but this kept me reading continuously all the way to the end. Funny, exciting and full of interesting alien characters that could have stepped straight out of the show, this is a story that will also give you a good feel for canon. Well, if canon was The Crichton and Rygel Show.

The Devil You Know

Fandom: ROSWELL
Pairing:  Michael/Maria
Author on LJ: unknown
Author Website: again, unknown

Why this must be read:

You know all those fics where there are sparks between person a and person b? How they're fiery and passionate and you can see the tension? (those two sentences were slightly sardonic voice)

This fic, although there are sparks, is not one of those fic. When Maria and Michael touch, there are literally sparks. And they want to make them. They want to touch each other and make the sparks, and it is one long allegory about teenagers and uncontrollable hormones in a distinctly alien way.

The characterisation is wonderful - Isabel is just right, bossy and in control, and Liz is perfect, and over all this is a lovely, moderate length fic with some enjoyable plot and in character dialogue.

I give it four and a half out of five crack vans.

( an exerpt )
"What?" Isabel responded through gritted teeth. Glad you stuck to that no touching rule, Maria, she thought. God! Didn't anyone else know the meaning of self-control?

Fandom: Firefly
Pairing: None
Rating: PG
Author on LJ: anenko
Author's Website/Email:temporary_blue at yahoo.com, Website at Nonsensical (http://www.geocities.com/northlight12/)

Why this must be read:

This fic - aside from the fine writing, which I've already mentioned about Northlight - reflects what is, for me, one of the fundamental things about Firefly fic - we don't know these characters.

We love them, but we don't know them half so well as we would like. Partly it's the storytelling - we jump into the action part-way through the character's lives, and there's no reverse button to show us what went before. Partly it's the nature of the show's mythos - the lone stranger in the outer-most west. (Yes, there's nine of them and they are a crew, not alone, but I think a good case could be made for the way each and every person on Serenity is making their own journey.)

And partly it's because the show was canceled so damn fast.

Anyway. This is a story about soldiers and the families they leave behind. This is a story about Zoe, and where she came from, before Mal, and the war. Kinda. But not.

Dear Zoe

Fandom: FARSCAPE
Pairing: John/Chiana
Author on LJ: I don't know. Help would be appreciated.
Author Website: Grey Aera

Why this must be read:

( Explaining the love lives of various characters. Looks like an episode of Melrose Place. )

John/Chiana was one of those pairings that always looked as if it might become canon without ever quite getting there (outside one notable instance of time-displacement, anyway.) This was not for lack of trying on Chi's part, and in this story she gets what she always wanted. This is not a good thing.

This is not a comforting, romantic story in which two characters come together and heal each other. It's a story about two damaged people damaging each other. The author's not kidding when she says that it's a dark fic with decidedly adult themes, and an unflattering portrait of both central characters to boot - but that's what makes it so good. By Season Four, the audience knew that all the characters had their dark sides, and this explores them with a sharpness that's painful.

Why Don't We Do It In The Road?

Fandom: Firefly
Pairing: Wash/Zoe
Rating: PG-13
Author on LJ: don't know that the author has one
Author's Email: dumbphilomel@yahoo.com

Why this must be read:

Because it's April, National Poetry Month, and unlike songfic, there is no such thing as too much poetryfic. *g*

Because Wash and Zoe, in addition to being damn cute and heavy on the awww factor, are one of the most realistic and still interesting couples out there in TV land.

Because - like the best Wash and Zoe stories - this is does not make light of their troubles, even as it makes with the funny. I'd love to see this one actually filmed.

Lemon Lashes (who's been rec'ed before) writes a very believable Wash and Zoe. So does this author.


If All The World

Fandom: Firefly
Pairing: Mal/Wash/Zoe
Rating: NC-17
Author on LJ: don't know that the author has one
Author's Email: emungere@yahoo.com

Why this must be read:

Because there are nine people on Serenity, and that means thirty-six different relationships, if you just stick to the one-on-one variations. Even more, if you start throwing in triads. And of the whole lot, there are two very intense and slightly not-right but completely necessary pairbonds on the ship. Most people could pick up on the CSI as being one of them, but many skip over the not-quite-right nature of the Zoe-Mal bond.

To me, the interaction and connection between Zoe and Mal is the one essential relationship on Firefly. IMO, without that, the show's story would unravel. Their mutual trust (and occasional disagreement) provides a foundation by which these two characters base their interactions with the rest of the world. I don't think either Mal's love of the ship nor Zoe's devotion to her husband trumps this.

This story is an erotic little piece that touches on the deep connection between Zoe and Mal, and how there's places Wash can't hope to go.

On top of that, it has both the funny and the angst that the show delivers, with the near-whiplash switch from one to the other that War Stories did so well.

Secrets to Tell

Fandom: POPSLASH
Pairing: AJ/Howie
Author Website: Jericho's Dollhouse, but it seems to be either down or gone
Why this must be read:
I couldn't let the month go by without someone turning into a girl, and AJ is the lucky boy. (For those who may not be aware, there's a fairly significant subgenre in popslash of boys randomly turning into girls for a limited period of time. There's even an index of them, here, although I don't think it's up to date. If there's an explanation of the genderswap in the stories at all, it's usually very vague and handwavy.)

What I love about this story is that girl!AJ is every bit as as foulmouthed and full of attitude as the male version. The scene where she runs into Justin Timberlake is just...glorious.

( excerpt and a picture )

The Girl Can Drink