Greetings fellow crack_van enthusiasts! I'm abby82 and I'll be taking the inaugural Forever Knight van 1962 Caddy for a spin. I'm delighted so see such a warm reception to FK here at crack_van. Hopefully you'll find something in my recs that'll strike your fancy. Sit back, relax and enjoy the scenery. Nick and the gang are here for the entire duration of our trip. And when the sun comes up, we'll simply thrown Nick into the trunk. Just as long as we don't let Schanke pick the music (sorry Schank, no polka), I think he'll be fine.


Fandom: FOREVER KNIGHT
Pairing: none
Length: 3327 words, one-shot
Author on LJ: brightknightie
Author Website: Bright Knight: Amy's Forever Knight Fanfiction
Why this must be read: Set during the first season, I couldn't think of another story more fitting to get Forever Knight on crackvan rolling. It has a little bit of just about everything: a homicide investigation, Natalie's work on Nick's "condition", a Myra story and even the insinuation that Nick is going into flashback mode. The main focus here is the Nick and Schanke partnership. It is a large and significant aspect of the show and Amy R. does a wonderful job of weaving in small touches that regular viewers of the show would pick up on. At the same time, those touches serve as a good introduction for anyone looking to explore the world of FK fanfiction. Forever Knight is sometimes summerized as the "Vampire Cop" show and Amy R's decision to tell this story through a Schanke POV doesn't ignore the vampire element of the show. Instead, she subtely references it as it would appear to Schanke, who is not privy to that information about Nick.

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A Little Salsa Picante by Amy R.

Vidder: Barkley
Musical artist: Olivia Newton-John/Electric Light Orchestra
Pairing: None
Vidder on LJ: barkley
Vidder's website: Barkley's Vids
Why this vid kicks ass: In fandom there's a grand tradition of people putting things together that just should not work, and yet, beyond all sense, somehow they not only work, they are glorious. For example, this songvid's premise is:

Stargate: Atlantis + Xanadu = rollerdancing space explorers.

Oh, yeah... *waves hands in awe* That's what I call absurd perfection!

Xanadu (scroll down)

Fandom: GLEE
Pairing: Kurt Hummel/Noah "Puck" Puckerman
Length: 4,147
Author on LJ: louiex
Author Website: fic or fanfic tag (couldn't find a master list, sorry)

Why this must be read: Slash and it's with my favorite Glee pairing, Kurt and Puck (because Foe Yay = hot)! This fic smutty smut smut and it's damn good. It's a porny setup that plays out wonderfully with just enough give and take - and Kurt talking dirty, too, which is yummy. I'm reccing this so early because one of the saddest things about riding this ship in the beginning was the lack of porn - and while I love non-porny fic just as much as the next girl/boy, I'm all for eating my dessert before my dinner.

Show Me Secrets You Didn't Know Was Inside is also a good example of how smut is at its best when it's supported by well written characters.


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Show Me Secrets You Didn't Know Was Inside
Sequel: It's A Wonderful Surprise To See Your Shoes and Your Spirits Rise

Fandom: ENTOURAGE
Pairing: Vince/Eric, Vince/OFC
Length: One-shot over 20k
Author on LJ:fourteencandles
Author Website: (Fic Index
Why this must be read: The thing about Fourteen Candles is that she writes gorgeous, plotty, long fics that feel like the truth in the way that a lot of fanfic feels like lovely fantasy or wish fulfillment. The story feels real, feels like we've seen it play out in headlines before.

This story is her take on the romantic comedy and if Hollywood actually did romantic comedies with the character development, plotting, and consequence of this story, I'd still be watching them.


So: A Hollywood Love Story

Fandom: LORD PETER WIMSEY
Pairing: Peter/Harriet
Length: 950
Author: nineveh_uk
Author Website: See the wimseyfic tag on her LJ
Why this must be read:

Fanfic and slash go together like a horse and a carriage. In the case of Wimseyfic, it's not a huge step from the canon presentation of the obvious affection between Peter and Bunter to something that allows Bunter's "savage libido" rather more free play, so unsurprisingly, Peter/Bunter is a popular pairing. When Peter marries, everyone knows – even Peter's mother - that some kind of modus operandi will have to be found that allows him to balance his relationship to Bunter with his relationship to Harriet. nineveh_uk comes up with a remarkably original solution, and yet somehow manages to make it sound like something Sayers herself might have written (this is about to become recurring theme of the crackier recs – "If Sayers wrote fanfic, it would be JUST LIKE THIS!"). It is also remarkable, for Wimseyfic, for being sexually explicit. Read it, and blush.

Overmastered

Fandom: EUREKA
Pairing: Gen
Length: "Curses, Foiled" is 3,164 words; its sequel, "Astromancy," is 553 words.
Author on LJ: omorka
Author Website: Account at Eureka Fanfiction Archive; or omorka_fics on Livejournal
Why this must be read: I wouldn't have thought to have done a post-"I Do Over" fanfic from Fargo's POV, but it works really well! In "Curses, Foiled," the author takes what we know of Fargo's backstory but adds color and details. I particularly like her analysis of the Stark-Fargo relationship as a substitute father-son one.

Curses, Foiled

In the sequel, "Astromancy," this author continues to explore Fargo. He's usually just the "background dork" in Eureka fanfic, so it's interesting and different to see stories centered on him. I particularly like how this author writes Fargo as someone who *wants* something to believe in (hence, his interest in the supernatural and science fiction), but his scientific mind makes him skeptical.

Astromancy

Fandom: GLEE
Pairing: Kurt Hummel/Noah Puckerman
Length: 1800
Author on LJ: aggybird
Author Website: Fic List

Why this must be read: I love how incredibly funny this is. It makes me laugh and laugh and it's still very realistic - you can identify with the emotiions behind Puck's actions. I wish maybe it could've ended three lines earlier, just to keep that amazing dry wit all the way. I adore how being bad just didn't work out the way Puck planned.

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Jew Talking To Me?

From left: Kradison (Kris Allen, Allison Iraheta, Adam Lambert), Allison, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraud, Adam, Kris

Hey y'all. I'm Alice, and I will be your crack dealer for anything related to the fine, upstanding young men and women who made the Top 10 of this past season of American Idol, which ran on Fox from January to May of this year. And also some of their friends and family! Season 8 idols know how to share the, uh, love.

For those for whom competitive reality television is not a strong interest point, fear not: I didn't watch a single damn episode of this season. And yet look at me now, flush with both interesting facts about the participants of the show and a ream of excellent fic for you to read over this month! You really, really don't need to be a fan of the show to appreciate the Idols and enjoy the fic, trust me.

( HTML don't fail me not. )