Why yes, I did warn for Gen there because everybody knows I only read slash. (ok, not true, but you'd be surprised at how often the assumption is made, even outside fandom, no lie!)

Fandom: THE MAN FROM UNCLE
Pairing: Illya and Napoleon GEN NOT SLASH
Length: 5280 words
Author on LJ: wishfulaces
Author Website: over at AO3
Why this must be read: I find it amusing that an affair that takes place in Colorado has 5280 words in it. (I currently reside in the Mile High City, and am easily amused, so sue me.) I rarely recread general fic because as we all know I am a die hard slash fan. But every once in a while I branch out. And when I do I am happy to find little gems like this that include beautiful friendship and clever dialogue and all the wonderfulness that I look for in a good story about my two favourite men.

Each Other (5280 words) by aces
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Rating: General Audiences
Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Illya Kuryakin, Napoleon Solo

And please remember, if you enjoy this story, a comment to the author is all the payment they get! Show them some love!

Fandom: DEATH NOTE
Pairing: L and Light
Length: ~11000
Author on LJ: joyinthedance
Author Website: Joy's Fanfiction
Why this must be read:

The author's summary is: "L has his own dark secret. Perhaps this is why, in a strange way, he feels for Kira."

What is that secret? Well, it's a surprise, so I'm not telling you, but I can tell you that it's the kind of secret that usually comes off as cheesy in fan fiction, but Joy makes it work with excellent, believable writing. I was surprised at how well this secret fit with L, but the story simply sucked me into its world and made things seem to fit perfectly. This is a quality piece of writing, no doubt about it.

Selfish Mercy is a divergence AU. It just jumps directly into canon events at the midpoint climax, and then takes them in a different direction, in the course of things putting a different interpretation on canon events that had happened previous to the fanfic's beginning, but not changing them.

Because it assumes the readers know canon and because it opens in the middle of an action scene, it contains tremendous spoilers for any readers who are not familiar with canon, and it would be incredibly confusing as well. You really do need to know what happened in canon previously to this action scene for the fanfic to make any sense.

So, if you've read the manga or watched the anime, go read it for an excellent experience of fan fiction that takes cheese and turns it into a gourmet dish!

Selfish Mercy

Fandom: SUPERNATURAL
Pairing: Castiel/Sam
Length: 2,952 words
Author on LJ: portraitofafool
Author Website: Masterlist on LJ
Why this must be read:

Author's Summary: none given

This story is just painful. It explores the consequences of Sam's mental wall in an AU from the established canon in Season 6 and that wall eroding after five years. With disturbing imagery in the beginning of the story and an overall atmosphere of despair, portraitofafool makes our hearts cringe for Sam and the pain that Cas, and by extension most likely Dean, are going through watching their loved one breakdown little by little, day by day.

Even as Cas is able to provide Sam with some relief mentally via dreams and physically by holding him close, the reader is left with the excruciating knowledge that all this comfort is only temporary. There is absolutely no stopping Sam's eventual fall into insanity and Cas' and Dean's into grief. So be prepared to have your heart squeezed and your eyes to tear up even as you smile through the gentleness of Cas' love for this human and his colorful and peaceful efforts to give Sam some comfort and serenity.

Flowers Don't Grow Here

Fandom: The Vampire Diaries
Pairing: Stefan and Damon (gen)
Length: about 2100 words
Author on LJ: probable_stars
Author Website: fic journal

Why this must be read: I love the way this story jumps through time, showing bits of this relationship from the long decades Stefan and Damon lived through, showing scenes from the show with new insight, and even pressing further into a disturbingly dark future for them (and Elena). I love that everything changes, but there is this enduring consistency of their lives. Stefan and Damon, loving each other and needing each other and lashing out at each other. Brothers are the reason.


Excerpt

There is time and there is space and Stefan can't seem to make the two match up properly. Elena's smile is familiar, eyes dancing and smirk curled upwards, and if keeping it means showing up some dick history teacher, he'll gladly do it. Pearl Harbor? 1941. 1989. 1964. 1963. He shouldn't be doing this, shouldn't be drawing attention to himself in this way, but she's smiling and he can't seem to stop. '68. 1865. 1973. Tanner's asking about the Berlin Wall, Civil Rights, JFK. But all Stefan can remember is Lexie and hunger, blood and regret. And his brother, through it all there is his brother. An eternity of misery and a girl neither one could quite put away. 1954. No Damon. 1863. Damon and no Katherine and then no Damon and then Katherine. 1950-1953. Hunger, hunger, hunger, whole months of delirious hunger. Where is his brother? He has lost his brother. She smiles again, claps her hands prettily and Stefan is glad Tanner didn't ask for today's date. Isn't quite sure he'd have got that one right.


Big Red Machine

Introduction

Death Note is one of the more famous manga/anime series for a reason. It is a complex, exciting ride through many plot twists and mind games. To me, it has a feeling like one of the better-quality original Sherlock Holmes stories, a sense of various mysteries and schemes coming together in intellectually beautiful ways, all building up to a definitive and highly climactic ending, with very little filler along the way.

It is extremely plot-dense, with almost everything connecting, and the storyline has a tendency to skip over or summarize anything that doesn't directly advance the plot.

Before I begin describing the plot and themes, I need to say that Death Note has many surprise twists and, because of that, it is one of the most spoiler-heavy series out there. Almost everything concrete that I could say about the series will be a spoiler. There are even some major characters for which I cannot give a one-sentence description of their role in the plot without spoiling something important for you.

Because of this, I will need to be vague and generalize quite a bit, but the below overview will be safe from spoilers except for some basic facts, mostly ones revealed in the first few episodes, without which it would be nearly impossible to say anything at all.

( Read more )

In the spirit of this overview, try to keep any spoilers out of any comments you might leave.

Fandom: GENERATION KILL
Pairing: Brad Colbert/Nate Fick
Length: 4781
Author on LJ: hackthis
Author Website: LJ
Why this must be read:

hackthis does Nate's leaving-the-Corps paddle party and how. This story gives us Brad's POV of the party, with a pitch-perfect internal monologue that's bitter and broken as only she can write. It's a marvelous progression from restraint to freedom (and drunkenness to sobriety) in a quiet piece, full of the things the guys do not say to one another. And yet it's still hilarious, with perfect portrayals of the rest of the platoon. She breathes life into the characters in the little things and the result is sharp, witty, and melancholy. Much like the mini itself. Wonderful.

Brad was never a reluctant warrior until he met Nate Fick. Until he just wanted to give in to this one thing.

Sir, Not to Get Homoerotic About This…

Fandom: STAR WARS
Pairing: Gen featuring Mara Jade, Darth Vader, and Luke Skywalker
Length: two one-shots
Author on LJ: jedimara77
Author Website: fanfiction.net profile
Why this must be read: This well-written series of two short fics contains some breathtakingly intense moments. It offers fascinating glimpses into the most poignant and compelling relationship in Star Wars: that of Luke and his father. The impact is in no way diminished by the fact that the two never interact directly in this series.

In Son of Vader, Mara and Vader talk about Luke, a conversation that leaves Mara stunned and mystified. Father Before Me expands on Mara's reaction upon finally finding out the identity of Luke's father. She confronts Luke about it, and a deepening connection forms between them as they realize that they both know exactly what it feels like to have "everything you thought you knew turned upside down in one single second", and Luke finally voices some of his anger and hurt about the way he found out the truth about his father.

Son of Vader and Father Before Me