Fandom: Alias
Author on LJ: jennyo
Author Website: Jennifer-Oksana's
Pairing: Jack/Irina
Rating: PG-13

I meant to recommend more Alias fan fiction this month than I ended up recommending, so just under the wire (I hope) one last rec--

Why this must be read: I know they couldn't have really had sex in her CIA jail cell, but I really liked the way Jenny-O captures the Jack and Irina dynamic and Irina's perspective in this short S2 story.

Tango

Fandom: The Sentinel
Title: Calling The Beasts by K. Ryn
Pairing: None
Author on LJ: None as Far as I know
Author Website: K. Ryn's Tales Of The Sentinel
Why this must be read:

Old fandom saying, when reading K. Ryn's fics...pack a lunch.

I knew from the beginning of this month, that I wanted my last rec for the Sentinel to be a K. Ryn story.

K. Ryn is a master of the long, plotty and absolutely engrossing stories. And when I say long, I mean long. Hence the lunch joke. They are the perfect stories to print out and take with you on vacation or a long car ride. They draw you in and you scarcely notice the time pass. She paints amazing images with her words and Calling The Beasts is a prime exmaple of that. It's one of her shorter stories, at 177k and puts Blair into a hostage situation...with a class of children ending up under his care leaving Jim, and the rest of Major Crime, to figure out a way to rescue Cascade's favorite troublemagnet....

K.Ryn loves to play with the shaman side of Blair's character, giving it a look most people wouldn't be able to and she calls that into play in this story. It's an absolutely fascinating ride and, like all of her fic, absolutely captivating.

Calling The Beasts by K. Ryn

Fandom: Starsky & Hutch
Pairing: Starsky & Hutch
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Website: N/A

For my recs this month, you are going to see a lot of the same authors. Some stories will be gen (pre-slash), others your typical NC-17 slash stories. The common theme is going to be that I will be rec'ing writers whom I consider to be the best in Starsky & Hutch fandom, the creme of the crop if you will.

And if you are rec'ing wonderful S/H authors, you have to first start with Flamingo, who has revitalized the fandom with her zines, fiction and putting together the S/H Slash Archive.

Why this must be read: "Happy Birthday to You" is one of Flamingo's lesser known stories. It is a little gem that I go back and read over and over again because it is so delightful. Flamingo can write drama, angst, hot love scenes and in this story she tackles humor with her usual flair for perfection. To me, writing humor and being able to pull it off successfully, shows the true talent of a writer. With this story, Flamingo has shown she can do all.

It has the usual cliches, Starsky and Hutch get drunk, they wind up in bed together, but she adds a twist. They go back, get drunk again and repeat the action with much laughter and hot sex! I will never go to another Mexican restaurant again without thinking of this story.

So, grab a melon margarita, this story and sit back and enjoy.

Happy Birthday to You

Vidder: Xanthe
Musical artist: Bette Midler
Pairing: Jed/Leo (friendship or slash)
Vidder on LJ: xanthefic
Vidder's website: Walter Watching
Why this vid kicks ass:

There aren't too many TWW vids out there but this one is just beuatiful. Yeah, the song is kind of sappy but accompanied with the clips Xanthe uses (Season One to Season Three) it just really communicates Jed and Leo's relationship and the depth of feeling behind it wonderfully. It can be viewed either from a purely friendship based point of view or from a slashy one, but as Xanthe says on the vid page, it doesn't really matter. It's well edited and just a beautiful testament to their friendship/love.

Wind Beneath My Wings

Fandom: Pirates of the Carribean
Pairing: Jack/Barbossa
Author on LJ: pogrebin
Author Website: Zero
Why this must be read:

I first encountered pogrebin’s fic through the Harry Potter fandom, and her writing never fails to amaze. This is, so far as I’m aware, her only PoTC fic, and it is incredible, gorgeous and powerful for all that it is brief.

The real truth is:

Exactly seven hours, nine minutes and fourteen seconds after he watches The Black Pearl fall off the edge of the earth he places the gun to his temple.

The real truth is:

His hands shake so badly when he pulls the trigger that the bullet sinks into the trunk of a palm tree instead of his head, and the hollow sound the gun makes when he throws it away was what leads him to discover the rum.

Strike

Fandom: LORD OF THE RINGS
Pairing: Aragorn/Faramir, Arwen/Eowyn, and combinations thereof
Author on LJ: cruisedirector and ashinae
Author Website: http://www.littlereview.com/fanfic/lotr.htm
Why this must be read:

Greetings. I'm Melina, and I'll be your LOTR tour guide for the very merry month of May. I'm glad you've just had a month of mostly hobbits with vissy, because this month we'll be going in a different direction. My LOTR interests are mostly in the world of Men, with an occasional foray into Elvish realms :)

Pulling out into traffic with no further ado....

If you want to write Aragorn/Faramir as a slash pairing, you have a serious problem in the form of Éowyn and Arwen. Many authors ignore them, or worse, so it's a lovely thing to read stories that bring the guys together in a believable way while keeping their (very much beloved) wives in the picture.

Your Cruise Director and Ashinae do just that in this beautifully written series of interconnected stories, starting first with Light of Heart and Apple Harvest, which give us lovely moments between Éowyn and Faramir and Arwen and Aragorn before bringing the guys together. The characters remain true to those we know and love, and their interactions feel very authentic in light of each person's culture and experiences. Set as it is early in the Fourth Age (or at the very end of the Third) there is a wonderful sense of renewal and restoration -- and joy -- underlying this series, even when the characters reflect on the sorrows of the past.

The stories comprising this series range from PG to NC-17.

Seasons of Wonder (scroll down the page). The story parts are as follows:

Start with the author's Story Notes. Then onto:
Light of Heart
Apple Harvest
Cloaked by Snowfall
Seasons of Wonder
Festivity
Secrets Among Brothers
The Scent of Trees
Abundance
Bedtime Story
Careful

(Because I won't be able to rec everything she's written individually, let me just mention you can't go wrong with any of the stories on Your Cruise Director's LOTR page. Lovely stuff all over.)

Fandom:HIGHLANDER
Pairing: Duncan / Tessa ; Richie
Author on LJ: don't know if the author is on LJ
Author Website:Kat's Parson Highlander fanfiction

I'll be driving the van in May and it's a first for me. Highlander was the first fandom I went searching for when I got online in 1995.

First fandom I read fanfic in. First fandom I read slash in. (After I ran out of stories to read that weren't slash). I read all genres in Highlander: gen, het, slash, AU, MPREG, etc if they are entertaining and the writer makes me believe it.

So my recs will be eclectic in ratings, genre.


Why this must be read: This takes place in season one with a what if twist. It's a "family" fic with Duncan, Tessa and Richie before the Darkness episode. What if Richie had come into Duncan and Tessa's lives years before.

At the time it was first put online a few others writers had the same idea for an AU. Melanie Joan Riley has one "All our yesterdays" that's worth reading but Kat Parson's is my favorite. It's season one Duncan with the laughter, joy and the color Tessa brought into his life; it's a good strong Tessa story and an adorable Richie. Free Fall, The Gathering and the Darkness episodes are used.

I still adore this story. I love to discuss fanfic so feel free to comment.

Might have been

Fandom: FARSCAPE
Pairing: Crais/OFC
Author on LJ: None that I know of.

Why this must be read:

I've held off reccing Crais stories until the end of my tenure. He is my favourite character (albeit narrowly) and I had trouble deciding which one to pick. So I'm going to rec three instead *g*.

( Once upon a time, there was a Peacekeeper Captain ... )

Crais attracts far more Original Female Characters than any other member of the Farscape cast, probably because John is so very attached to Aeryn for most of the series. Crais, on the other hand, is a free agent, something that's bound to draw attention of Mary Sue.

The heroine of this story, however, isn't such a creature. She's a beautiful woman who draws the attention of a canon character, true, but the difference here is that the story isn't really about her. It's about the concept of irreversible contamination, the idea that Crais has been brought up with that forbids any close contact between Peacekeepers and alien species. This is something that doesn't get enough attention in fanfic, IMHO, and it's nice to see an author dealing with it in such an interesting way.

Moreover, it's well-written, and a great look at the inside of Crais' head. Don't let the OFC scare you; you'll be missing out on something well worth reading.

The Wildorian Woman

Vidder: Georgina
Musical artist: Tom Jones and Art of Noise
Pairing:
Vidder on LJ: eponymous
Vidder's website: juppy.org
Why this vid kicks ass:
This video is what made me actually want to see footage of the pop boys, rather than just trawling the fandom for good fic. It's NSync and Backstreet, it's funny, it's fun, it features lots of adorable slashy moments, and the timing is perfect. And the final clip always, always makes me laugh.

Kiss (it's about halfway down the page)

Fandom: FARSCAPE
Pairing: Crais/Aeryn
Author on LJ: sabine101
Author Website: you guys are just fucked

Why this must be read:

( Further adventures of Captain Crais ... )

There are a few stories out there that deal with the possibility of Crais/Aeryn set between John's death and the end of Season Three, and this is one of my favourites. The Aeryn here may not be Aeryn as we saw her on screen, but it's always good to recall how that Aeryn was filtered for us through John's point of view to one degree or another.

I like to think of this as Aeryn with all the filters stripped out, with nothing between a brutally honest portraid of her and the reader. None of John's soft romantic focus here, and that's entirely appropriate given the time period. Makiko shows us a woman raised a soldier, trying in a number of ways - including her blunt seduction of Crais - to get back to where she was. But sometimes you can't quite make it home again.

She hates her frelling body and there isn't enough pain in the world.

Hard/Work

Fandom: Starsky & Hutch
Pairing: Starsky/Hutch
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Website: Charlotte Frost

This novel holds a special place in my heart. Back in 1997, when I first starting reading Starsky & Hutch slash, this was one of the first zines I bought. I still have it today in my collection.

Why this must be read: Because I prefer novels to anthologies, this story grabbed my attention. It has all the great elements we love in Starsky & Hutch fandom: friendship, danger, intrigue, hurt/comfort (lots of that) and hot first time sex.

The premise is that Starsky & Hutch are undercover for a mob boss (who thinks they are lovers), when their cover is blown. Hutch is given a choice, go to bed willingly with the mob boss or see Starsky killed before his eyes. Hutch will do anything to save his friend, so he gos off with the guy. (Don't fear I wouldn't rec a rape story). Things happen...and in the end the boys are reunited and start to explore their feelings for one another. One of Charlotte's best novels, especially for those of you who love a good hurt/comfort piece.

Follow the links to the story, I've linked you to the title page:

Phantoms

Fandom: FARSCAPE
Pairing: Crais/Aeryn
Author on LJ: double_helix
Author Website: Into the Heart

Why this must be read:

First, a warning: this is not a nice story, even by the standards of Crais/Aeryn, which doesn't generally run to '... and then they lived happily ever after.' But it is a good story.

I know, because it takes some excellent writing to get me to step away from my personal view of canon to the extent required here - I can't see the Aeryn in my head going this far, even at her lowest ebb.

Yet in another way, it's absolutely perfect. For Crais, Season Three started off bad and just kept getting worse, as everyone and their dog (or Colarta tracker) took a turn at beating him up. Why shouldn't Aeryn have a go, as well? I find this very hard to read precisely because in that sense it does feel like something that could have happened, if we'd been allowed to see it.

In a way, this is like an mirror image of my previous rec Hard/Work, taking the same pieces and turning them around in a different way. One of the wonderful things about fanfiction is the multiple perspectives it allows, and this is a fascinating one even if I don't share it.

Strength

Fandom: THE X-FILES
Pairing: Mulder/Scully UST
Author on LJ: nandamai
Author Website: Nanda's Lament

Hey folks, Punk Maneuverability here. I'll be driving the crack van for The X-Files this month. We're mostly going to see a lot of Mulder/Scully with the occasional detour for some gen. No slash because all my favorites have already been recced. Here we go. Buckle up.

Why this must be read: Consider this an introduction both to the canon Mulder/Scully relationship and the way it's written about in fanfic. This is fiction, but sort of meta at the same time because it employs fandom's favorite ways of teasing Mulder and Scully. It's funny, playful, and crammed full of UST.

You will catch yourself staring at his ass when he bends over to lift the bags out of the trunk. Mentally slap yourself.

Your Platonic Relationship: An Owner's Manual

Hello, my name is Kathleen and I will be your Sentinel rec driver for May.

Fandom: THE SENTINEL
Pairing: J/B
Author on LJ: brighidestone
Author Website: The Brighid E. Stone Memorial Reading Room
Why this must be read:

Brighid has managed to find the perfect blend of sweetness and humor in this gem of a story. She has not only flawlessly captured Blair's voice but has nailed the way Jim communicates (not through words but through his actions). Watching Blair's slow realization that he and Jim have been married for eighteen months and he was the last to know is guaranteed to put a smile on your face.

Her own summary for the story: Blair gets locked *in* a closet and then has to get back out...

ETA: Link to story: Wine, Women and Schlong

Be sure to leave feedback for the author if you enjoyed the story.

Fandom: OZ
Pairing: Beecher/Keller
Author on LJ: rowanfairchild
Author Website: Obsessive, But Friendly Web
Why this must be read:

Hi! I'm Actizera, your reccer of Oz fic for the month of May. I make no secret of the fact that, although I have a deep and abiding love for many (maybe even most) characters on the show, when it comes to fic I'm a Beecher and/or Keller chick to the bone. Whether they're written about individually or as a couple, I do adore my violent, fucked-up boys. (I may have one or two non-B/K recs up my sleeve, though...you just never know...).

I thought I'd start out the month with a brilliant, smoking-hot PWP—because who doesn't love those? And this is one of my all-time favorites. In this story, Rowan approaches the B/K sexual relationship from Beecher's perspective. His issues, his guilt, his god-awful nightmares all still plague him with angst and grief, just as they have all along; even frequent sex with Chris Keller isn't enough to change *that*. But his relationship with Keller does provide some respite from the suffocating confines of Oz, from stewing over his problems, from his feelings of isolation—and Rowan captures it all perfectly. She has an uncanny way of bringing characters and emotions across very vividly in a few well-chosen words; everything rings true and nothing is wasted.

And the sex...my GOD, the sex. I can read this one over and over again, and somehow it just never gets any less hot. All of it perfectly in character, all of it so vivid that it has provided me with some of my favorite enduring B/K images. Even if you're not a Beecher character-study junkie like I am, I can guarantee you'll come away from this story fanning yourself and begging Rowan to write more dirty, dirty porn. *g*

Cells

Fandom: FIREFLY
Pairing: Simon/Kaylee implied
Author on LJ: celli
Author Website: http://www.fanfic101.com

Why this must be read:

Hello, I’m Kadollan, and I’ll be your Firefly reccer for May.

For my first recommendation, I offer you a vignette, set after Objects in Space. Lane gives us a brief insight into what Kaylee might have been feeling in the aftermath of Jubal Early’s visit to Serenity. Kaylee’s thoughts and modes of speech are not as perfectly nuanced as some other Firefly fics I’ve read, but the overall tone is just right. Kaylee’s feeling scared and guilty, Simon is strong and reassuring, and River is…. River. All in all, it’s worth the time.

NB: The rating is my best estimate.

Let Be

Fandom: HARRY POTTER
Pairing: Remus/Sirius, James/Lily
Author's Website: Ink Stigmata
Author on LJ: monkeycrackmary

Why this must be read: As you will see, I'm a Remus/Sirius shipper. Totally love this pair, whether angsty and bitter post-Prisoner of Azkaban or lighter and fluffier and more fun in the Marauders Era.

I chose this fic because it features the many things I love about this pairing. It's fun and romantic and angsty in a "Fuck, I have the hots for my best friend" sort of way. It shows the Marauders at a time where the shadow of Voldemort isn't hanging over them, making us see characters in a whole new different light: James the lovable oaf, Lily the kick-ass babe, Sirius the joker, Remus as the fastidious straight man and even Peter here is actually likeable.

Although this is a primarily Sirius/Remus fic, Mary writes a wonderful albeit zany courtship between James and Lily, where she shows us how a combative relationship slowly turns into something more wondrous. I love the interplay between the friends and that's the reason why this fic works for me. Mary channels JK Rowling and adds her own slashy twist to the Marauders Era, especially with Remus and Sirius. They are written in such a way that it's no surprise that they get together. By the middle of the story, you are actually waiting for them to hook up.

And be on the lookout for the red queen, she almost steals the scenes where she is in.

concerning flying lessons, snuffboxes, and one hundred galleons

Fandom: SMALLVILLE
Pairing: Clark/Lex
Author on LJ: kittyfisher
Author Website: Kitty's House of Pleasure and Pain

Hiya, I'm Bunny and I'll be your Smallville pimp for May.

First Story: Kitty Fisher's Blood Sports

Why this must be read:
For my first recc, I'm going for the series of stories that made me a dedicated Lex as a bottom in opposition to the entire rest of the fandom. They are hot as hell, bondage, cross-dressing, kinky. There are eight in the series, linked on her site. I'll do something sappy next time around.

The first line to get you there:

What he thought of when he looked at Lex, was skin. Skin. Nothing sweet and normal and neighbourly. Just skin; wet and sweating. For him.


So onto the story now:

Bait at Kitty's site

or on the archive at SSA:

Bait