Fandom: THE O.C.
Pairing: Ryan/Theresa, Ryan/Seth
Author on LJ: missdeviant

Why this really should be read:
And I'm back to the post-finale stories. This is one of my favorites from a favorite author: so very very Ryan in his motivations and pains. Quiet and spare, it's a wonderful story about duty.

From the beginning: It’s only been since coming back to Chino that he’s started to think during all the time he spent in the O.C., he was focusing his attentions on the wrong people.

Duty

Fandom: HARRY POTTER
Pairing: Remus/Hermione (Ron/Hermione; Remus/Sirius)
Author on LJ: loneraven
Author Website: Sleeping With Ghosts
Why this must be read:

Remus/Hermione is a sadly, sadly underrepresented pairing in this fandom, and this story is quite possibly my favorite out of the small pool of good fic about them that does exist, because it accurately hits all the notes of where they've been and where they're going.

Then there's the title. Sonnet 116 is always a big hit with me, and this fic ties the themes in nicely while *understanding* the quiet, deep nature that any friendship-cum-romance between Remus and Hermione would have. It's not a romance. It's actually about the end of romance and how hard it is to be alone after you've been half of a couple, and, of course the acceptance that you don't have to be lonely even if you are alone.

( an excerpt )

It's beautifully characterized and subtle and rings absolutely true to me. I wish I'd written it.

Love Is Not Love by loneraven

Fandom: POPSLASH - *NSLASH
Pairing: JC/Lance, Justin/Joey
Author on LJ: go4it
Author Website: A Rare Gleam

Why this must be read:

Because I have a smart kink. And well-researched AU's are a treat. I like the tone of this story and the pace is nice and slow. It's something different.

( Petal Perfect Purple )

Truckin'.

We need fandom drivers for September and beyond in the Alias, Hornblower, Oz and Sports Night fandoms!

We are set for September, but need October reccers in Blakes 7, Farscape, U.N.C.L.E., Pirates of the Carribean, The O.C., The Professionals and Starsky & Hutch fandoms.

Go HERE to help out!


Also, are there any Pride and Prejudice fen in the audience? imacartwright prepared a lovely P&P Overview, but Real Life has prevented her making any fic recs for the past two months. Please comment below if you'd be willing to make some recs in September in this fandom. Thank you! ETA: this spot has been filled.

Attn. Drivers: Tomorrow's the last Friday of the month, which means it's time for Friday Night Drive-In, a.k.a. Fan Vid Recs.

Reccers may post 1 vid rec for their fandom, formatted as follows:

Subject Line: VID REC: Fandom - Song Title

Vidder:
Musical artist:
Pairing:
Vidder on LJ:
Vidder's website:
Why this vid kicks ass:


Because the vidder community has some unique ownership issues, it’s important that reccers be extra careful when making vid recs. Depending on the vidder’s preferences regarding public access to their work, please link your rec in the appropriate manner:

1. If the video is publicly accessible, direct link to the web page the vid is linked on, or if it’s the vidder’s request, to the HTML splash page of their site.

or…

2. Link to the site with instructions on acquiring the password, if the site is protected – do not reveal the password yourselves.

or…

3. Provide contact info for the vidder if their vids are only available privately (tapes, dvd-R’s, collections, etc.).


Do not:
Hotlink, i.e. link directly to the video file rather than the webpage.
Re-upload videos that a vidder has removed from the web.
Delay in removing a vid rec if requested to do so by the vidder.

Thank you!

Fandom: HORATIO HORNBLOWER
Pairing: Bush/Edrington Archie/Horatio/Edrington (implied)
Author on LJ: q_skud_
Author Website: The Scriptorium
Why this must be read:

The pairing is--on the surface--impossible. Two characters who never meet in canon. And yet, the pairing is perfect. The sober Lieutenant Bush and the snarky Major My Lord Edrington, just work so well. Set during an invented shore leave early in Mutiny, Nature and Degree is all about Bush. He's new to his ship. He's just starting to observe and get to know his shipmates. And he does not like what he sees.

Skud's characterizations are brilliant. Her Bush is a man on the edge; angry, mistrustful, paranoid, and yet entirely sympathetic. We the readers know that he has every reason to be worried about the state of affairs on his new ship. Her Edrington meanwhile is complex and multilayered. Yes, he's the Slutbunny we all know and love, but he's also a gentleman and a soldier and a friend. Their interaction is both rough and tender, searing emotional honesty and mind-blowing not-at-all-gentle sex.

In the same universe as commodorified's All the King's Men which I recced at the beginning of the month, but very much a seperate and distinct story which is why I thought it was more appropriate to rec them seperately.

Nature and Degree

Fandom: OZ
Pairings: Beecher/Keller
Author on LJ: fictionbya
Author's website: Not sure?
Why this MUST be read:
In case anyone was starting to think that I'm stuck in the Oz fics of yesteryear, I offer up "Two Truths and a Lie," by the talented Adastra. The story was posted for the recent secret_id community challenge, in which authors posted a story anonymously and readers had to guess who wrote each one. The challenge was to write a fic in which someone tells a lie and someone tells the truth. Adastra took the "guessing" theme of the game right into the fic, and the result is a subtle, compelling story that examines the meaning of truth and lies in a place like Oz.

It's another long, aimless night in the pod, and Beecher, who is thinking too much again, is fishing for Keller to open up to him a little. But Keller never makes anything that simple; Beecher has another lesson to learn, and Keller teaches it to him in classic Keller-style, suggesting they play a little game. And Toby learns that the truth is often a double-edged sword.

This is my absolute favorite kind of fic: a story with layers for the reader to peel, loaded with insights and connections beyond what's simply going on in the scene. Adastra writes beautifully, and her story, written from Toby's POV, pulls off that tricky balancing act between bitter and sweet, the complex combination that is so much a part of the Beecher/Keller relationship.

Excerpt:

Maybe this is the way it will always be between them. Truth and lies indistinguishable; no desire to determine which is which. Maybe this is how it has to be.

Go read Two Truths and a Lie.

Fandom: POPSLASH - *NSLASH
Pairing: JC/Justin
Author on LJ: nonchop
Author Website: None

Why this must be read:

Written for lilysaid's Boys In Their Dresses challenge. There were so many good stories there that I could have recced but this one struck a chord with me. I like that it's written in present tense; that lends to the feeling that this story is happening right now, is unfolding right before your eyes. I like how relentless this JC is. He doesn't coddle Justin, like I've seen so many times before. And I like that this Justin is so uncertain, so convinced that there's only One Way to do things.

( Read more... )

Run.