Fandom: PERSON OF INTEREST
Pairing: Harold Finch/John Reese
Length: 2282 words
Author on LJ: n/a
Author Website: AO3
Why this must be read:
I knew the name of this author from another small fandom: Wiseguy. She wrote great characterization and excellent prose and thus this was one of the first fics I read when I discovered Person of Interest fandom. It's a gut-grabbing fic, where Reese has been kidnapped by some bad guys and doesn't know how he's going to get out of the situation. Thus, it has the kind of stuff I love -- physical jeopardy for our hero, potential hurt/comfort and a man's partner coming to his rescue.

The author's summary says, What he needed was Finch's cavalry coming to the rescue. Except. Oh, yeah. He was Finch's cavalry.

( Read more )

I'm so happy to be able to drive the van for Person of Interest in this final month of our beloved Crack Van community and will be bringing you as many recs as I can during my time.

Proof of Life

Fandom: Fairy Tales: The Pied Piper of Hamelin
Pairing: none
Length: 1064 words
Author Website: at AO3

Why this must be read: This is a short but lovely coda, set many years after the incident at Hamelin. We catch up with the Piper, currently calling himself Patrick, as he traverses the United States, content to live a vagabond's life. He has no current regrets, although he might have a past one.

Clever and poignant. Enjoy.

Lost Things and People Too

If you like this, take a moment to tell the author. You will absolutely make her day!

Fandom: SUITS
Pairing: Harvey/Donna
Length: ~5100
Author on LJ: zinfic
Author Website: The author has a website, but at the moment, it's frozen by the webhost. In addition to her LJ, there's also her master list for a Stargate Atlantis fanverse here.

Why this must be read: And here's even more Suits porn!

This may be Harvey/Donna smut, yes. And a lot of this fic has been Jossed by the current season (season three when this was posted here). But in addition to being well-written, it keeps Harvey and Donna in character. It also breaks away from the format that most Harvey/Donna fics tend to take in the fandom, which is refreshing.


There are a multitude of reasons for why Donna doesn’t date much anymore. Some would say that the divorce made her bitter, but they couldn’t be more wrong. The divorce only made her relieved and gave her a completely new sense of freedom. Bitter doesn’t become her. No, the biggest problem is that she seems to have lost her touch when it comes to dating. Maybe she’s out of practice, or maybe there’s just something about her that screams ‘thirty-something divorcee’ and makes the decent guys keep their distance. It’s either that, or she’s somehow turned into an asshole-magnet.

Right now, she’s willing to bet on the second option.


Happy to See Me

Fandom: HOCKEY RPF
Pairing: Patrick Kane/Jonathan Toews
Length: 6343 words
Author on LJ: grim_lupine
Author Website: Author page on AO3
Why this must be read
I'll switch parings after this one, but I had to share one more. It's hot, and the D/s is there, but not the point. It's more power play (ha, that's so appropriate in hockey slash).

5 things everyone really didn't need to know about kaner and tazer's sex life, thanks (On AO3 - locked to registered users)
Story post on LJ

Hello fanfiction trawlers! I'm blythechild and I'll be driving the van for Criminal Minds this month before this comm goes dark in the New Year :(

The van hasn't stopped by the B.A.U. at Quantico for regular writing goodness in 3 years and the (most excellent, comprehensive, and pretty) fandom primer hasn't been updated since 2007. thepouncer did a great job back then so go check it out if you want show info or helpful fandom links - I'm not going to rehash the content of that post here.

( This blurb pretty much sums up the show's essence )

A lot has happened in 5 years and I feel that a little update is required.

( Here is the Coles Notes version of the show and casting updates for the past 5 years for those who are interested. )

Should anyone have any fandom links that are not included in thepouncer's original post, please let me know in the comments and I'll update them to this posting for posterity.

Since this is already a long-ish entry, I'll post my first rec in a separate entry ;)

Now, on to the reccing! I am a 'shipper so most of my recs will have a relationship aspect to them, but I'll try to offer a variety of stories. Hopefully, there will be something for everyone.

Fandom: CRIMINAL MINDS
Rating: R or FRAO
Pairing: Emily Prentiss, Spencer Reid
Length: 8,535 words
Author on LJ: madlorific
Author Website: Criminal Minds stories on AO3 and sticky post on LJ

Why this must be read: The synopsis of this story is that Prentiss discovers that Reid has a tattoo, which is fairly trope-tastic and doesn't appear to be the basis for a fantastic fic.
But it is.
Lori has an uncanny ability to channel the voices of any character she writes about in a thoroughly genuine way, even when their actions become out of character. While she has been recc'd here before (in more than one fandom) and her longer fics are the stuff of fan fiction legend, I find that she can get bogged down by too much detail. In Marked, she manages to express the evolution of a relationship with very few strokes and she does so while handicapping her verbose characters with silence. Basically, there's no way that this story should work at all and yet I believe that it is one of her best efforts. Add to that mystery tattoos, a confident Spencer Reid, and higher order mathematics as a form of seduction… and you get a recipe for awesomesauce.

Marked by Mad_Lori on AO3

Marked by madlorific on LJ

I highly recommend all of Lori's stuff, and if you love Prentiss/Reid and haven't read her How To Fight Loneliness series, you must do so at once. Go… I'll wait right here until you get back…

If you enjoy this work, please remember to take the time to let the author know!

I promise I won't rec quite this often after this weekend. After this, it'll be one every other day. Largely.

Fandom: BLAKE'S 7
Pairing: Avon, RPF (Gareth Thomas, Michael Keating, Jacqueline Pearce, Sheelagh Wells, "OCs" i.e. some real fans, some OCs)
Length: 50 odd zine pages

Why this must be read: Another 1988, and another one that's quite famous - I assume it hasn't been recced before because it's zine only, but it's a zine that I often see on eBay. The premise is that Avon and Paul Darrow are swapped while Darrow is at a B7 con. Thus, Kerr Avon has to endure... everyone being really nice to him!!! When I read the premise of this fic, I assumed it would be a hilarious string of 'Avon fails to deal with modern life' incidents, and it is, but more than that it's a chance for Avon to examine his behaviour and his established relationships from the outside and potentially make different choices. It's genuinely thought-provoking and moving. Out of his own universe, Avon gets to be both more adorable (very excited about steak and clothes and toys he could re-sell in the future), more out of his depth/vulnerable and more terrifying (dangerous killer in amongst normal people) than I've really seen elsewhere. Vv interesting and plausible characterisation.

The fic is also interesting as a historical document, giving a detailed and (I assume) accurate account of what a B7 con in the late 80s was like. And the illustrations by Gail Bennett are lovely. I uploaded a few of my scans to the Fanlore article, which is linked below.

( Excerpt )

Link: To the long extract; to the listing on Fanlore; to the current eBay listings for the zine

Fandom: THE X-FILES
Pairing: Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Length: 3,346 words
Author on LJ: flywoman
Author Website: AO3
Why this must be read:

Set during season five, immediately before "Patient X," this story starts out with a by-the-book look at the relationship between Dana Scully and Fox Mulder, told from Scully's POV: what she has to put up with as his partner, especially during that annoying time when he was being the skeptic, and why she stays. But then it veers in a different direction, and comes to an wholly unexpected conclusion, with a brief appearance by Psychic Scully to round things off nicely.

Read Mute Persuasion.

Hi kids, RabidChild here! Wheee – I finally get to drive the Crack Van for White Collar – hold on tight, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride!

Fandom: White Collar
Pairing: Neal Caffrey/Peter Burke/Elizabeth Burke
Length: 33k
Author on LJ: elrhiarhodan
Author Website: Master List
Why this must be read:

I thought I’d start off the month by reccing a story by one of the most prolific, venerated writers in the fandom (full disclosure: she’s a close pal): Elrhiarhodan. This writer has been around almost since the fandom began, and her specialty, to me, seems to be finding original ways to pair Neal Caffrey up with Peter Burke, with or without the lovely Elizabeth, then to tear them apart only to make everything right again in the end (with a side dish of extra-sexy). This story is a particularly good example of that, only Neal's reasons for not wanting to finish what he’s started with the Burkes – not yet, anyway – are surprising and ones that I will not spoil.

The thing I love about this story are the two men’s journeys, and particularly how much Peter is pining for Neal, because I am an angst junkie. Even at over 33k, and with a few tags and timestamps, the reading of this story will just fly by for you. I can’t recommend it enough – or Elr’s other stories – check them out.

Between the Darkness and the Dawn