Title: Bring Me to Life by elfin (NC-17)
Pairing: Grissom/Nick, Grissom/other (implied)
Author on LJ: Haven't the foggiest
Author Website: http://www.sundive.co.uk/
Why this must be read:

News of a grisly murder in Chicago spooks Grissom quite badly. It's a natural enough reaction, since he knew the victim, but Grissom is so uncharacteristically rattled that Brass and Nick suspect that there's much more to the story than that.

Then, two more murders take place much closer to home, and it doesn't take long for the police and FBI to figure out that the person behind these killings is none other than one of the most notorious serial killers in history( minor spoilers within )

"Bring Me to Life" is a good, suspenseful read, with more than one moment that had me swearing quite inventively. Some readers might be distracted by the occasional British spelling or idiom, but any distraction will soon pass as you get caught up in the story.


Bring Me to Life

Title: And I See You
Fandom: The OC
Pairing/Characters: Ryan/Seth
Author on LJ: sdlucly
Author Website: hidden in plain sight
Why this must be read:

( The boy laughs, shaking his head. 'Dude, really, Sir? What, do I actually look like my dad?' He ponders his own question for a moment, before shaking his head. 'No, nope. Yeah, I'm a dashing man and all that, but no, my dad is really different from me. I got my curls from his side, though.' He pauses, and Ryan wonders how many words he can say without a breath. 'I'm Seth. Just, Seth.' )

Title: The Things I Cannot Change by DarkEmerald
Pairing: Lex Luthor/Simon Tam
Author on LJ: emeraldsedai
Author Website: unknown
Why this must be read: Cause, dude, who would come up with this crossover?! Only a crazy genius like emeraldsedai. If you like extreme AUs, then you’ll really enjoy this one. Lex is sent into the future…way into the future—Simon Tam’s time. I don’t want to give any more away, just go and enjoy! It’s a long read, but worthwhile.

Lex knew attraction when he saw it. He certainly knew it when he felt it. He remembered equating innocence with wholesome farm life and rural values, but Simon, with all his education and social status, struck Lex as far more innocent than Clark had ever been. It was something to do with trust. With a complete absence of lies. Lex wasn't sure he'd ever known anything quite like it. Combined with Simon's sheer competence, it was incredibly appealing.


The Things I Cannot Change

Fandom: ALIAS/X-FILES
Pairing: Mulder/Vaughn
Author on LJ: Nope, I don't think so
Author Website: Yes, but it's a dead link. Agent Diandra

Why this must be read:

There is a real lack of Alias cross-over fic out there. (Trust me I Googled for it) Which surprises me because Alias seems like a show that would lend itself to cross-overs, especially with shows like the X-Files that have lots of little plot holes and open ended mytharc questions for fanfic writers to play around with.

What I like about this fic is that Diandra draws on the commonalities between Vaughn and Mulder, how their complex secret lives make relationships difficult. And throw in that they are both in love with their partners, a little too much alcohol and we have a recipe for drunken sex and morning after regrets. But it's all handled with a light touch and dead-on Mulder voice. (I actually got all nostalgic for my X-files fandom love) There are a few lines that made me giggle like:

"He was a pretty good-looking guy. From certain angles, his nose looked slightly too big for his face, but I'm probably one of the last people who should pass judgment on that issue. Of course, I really don't know much about what is and isn't attractive in a man. I *am* straight, despite the evidence to the contrary that was literally laying in front of me that morning.

At least I'm reasonably certain that I am."


Sexy, breezy and true to both fandoms, Intoxicated is a great example of how much fun a crossover can be.

Intoxicated

Fandom: THE PROFESSIONALS
Pairing: Bodie/Doyle
Author on LJ: No
Author Website: No
Why this must be read:

This is not the type of story I normally recommend. I love really long, meaty, relationship-driven stories - while this story one does indeed focus on the relationship between Bodie and Doyle, it's only about 3 pages. I like smut - not just any smut, well-written, in-character smut, but still, I like sex in my slash, and smutless stories are seldom my favorites - and this story has none, though there are allusions. I like somewhat drawn-out resolutions - in this story it's all implications and inferences; there's no room for much more.

In fact, I hesitated to use one of my precious crack_van recs on such a small story. But in the end I simply couldn't omit it, because this little story has stuck with me since the first time I read it, and I've never been able to get it out of my head. The author manages in such a short space, with so few words and virtually no exposition, to sketch a clear and complete (or complete enough) picture of the situation Bodie and Doyle find themselves in and to capture the essence of their characters, especially Doyle's, and of their relationship. The interaction between Bodie and Doyle rings so very true for me here - true to canon and true to my own personal vision of their love, the way I want it to be.

This story moves me, and even with repeated re-readings its power hasn't faded. If I had to identify a single story that epitomizes the very heart of Pros' appeal for me as a slash fandom, this little gem would be it.

The Last Cherry

(originally published in Motet Opus 3 in B and D, Keynote Press, October 1999)

Title: Boreal by Jane St Clair
Pairing: Remus Lupin/Daniel "Oz" Osborne
Author on LJ: 3jane
Author Website: Janefic

Why this must be read:
There's some exploration of two characters I like very much, both independent, self-aware observers, with the emphasis on Remus because this is told from his POV. Both characters "feel" right to me (and I know both fandoms, so I am picky). It's a good length, a short meeting between two werewolves, with Remus on an Order of the Phoenix mission. I enjoy this story every time I read it, and that's not something you can say about many crossovers. I like the worldweary but dutiful Remus in this story, tempted by the possibility of a place of his own where he can acknowledge his dual nature. Also, Jane's porn is good. *g*

Boreal