Fandom: STAR WARS
Pairing: Gen
Length: 125,000 words
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Websites: Kenya Starflight's FFN Profile, Me, Myself, & Vader, kenyastarflight at deviantART

Why this must be read:

Luke Skywalker finds a crashed TIE fighter on Yavin soon after the destruction of the Death Star, and is surprised to find the pilot is none other than his worst nightmare: Darth Vader. To make matters worse, not only does the Rebel Alliance have to decide what to do with the Emperor's right-hand man, he's apparently lost his memory!

This is one of the more enjoyable Anakin Skywalker-redemption stories I've read. The amnesia set-up may seem to be a bit of a cliché, but it works out very well. The characters react as you'd expect. No one trusts Vader at first, and no one knows his true identity as Anakin Skywalker, except for ghostly Obi-Wan -- and he's not telling.

Each story in the trilogy occurs around the same time as the corresponding original trilogy movie, with some of the same events, such as the evacuation of Hoth, the training on Dagobah, and the attack on the second Death Star.

Some may claim this story is a bit fluffy, but I find the characters and their actions quite valid considering the circumstances. Vader has lost his memory completely. He has to start fresh, but his basic personality is still intact. The Anakin Skywalker of the prequels, mellowed a bit by age, starts to shine through.

This is a nice story to curl up with and just enjoy. We all need a bit of angsty fluff once in a while.

* * *

( Excerpt )

Part I: Innocence
Part II: Experience
Part III: Recompense

Fandom: GUNDAM WING
Pairing: Heero/Duo, Trowa/Heero (one-sided), Quatre/Wufei
Author on LJ: colorfulshadows
Author Website: N/A
Why this must be read:

Dev-Aki writes awesome short stories. Her characterizations are usually spot-on. Moreover, being the rabid 1x2 (Heero/Duo) fan that I am, that I would willingly read (and rec!) a story from Trowa's POV. Even more so, a story that features Trowa in love with Heero.

However, this story is so good that I couldn't help but like it. Trowa's actions here are unmistakably human. He makes some big mistakes, and at the end everything isn't all magically alright. Even Heero and Duo have their faults in the way they act. It's kind of gritty, it's a lot angsty, but something about the realism kind of makes it also strangely heartwarming.

Not to mention there is a beautiful 1x2 love story.

The Little Red Book

Fandom: SPORTS NIGHT
Pairing: Implied, possibly unrequited Dan/Casey.
Author on LJ: phoebesmum.
Author Website: Nope. All her fic is stored in her memories section.
Why this must be read:

Oh, 'cause it's post-show, post-Casey bitter Dan, with therapy and a flicker of illness deeper than a broken heart. It's pretty short (though not for this fandom, woe), but it ends on a nice punch, so I can forgive a little.

The thing with Hilary is that she can take these canon things and grow their implications, she's got an interesting handle on everybody's voices, she brings characters into situations where they weren't involved in canon (Isaac's opinion on Abby's methods, for example)--her fic is not stagnant, stuck in show-time, comprised solely of banter, sports references, and wordplay.

Her fic is dynamic.

( excerpt. )

The woman makes a good point, my friends.

Every Day a Little Death: because you can never have too much bitter!Dan.

And leave feedback!

Fandom: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
Pairing: None
Author on LJ: __shy__

Why this must be read:

It's a very well written story about Will and his thoughts and feeling after he's back in Port Royal. We learn how he came to the decision to rescue Jack. The dynamics between the characters are spot on. And the idea that Will should make Jack's gibbet is excellent.

( Excerpt )


So it had all been for nothing.