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crack_van2004-11-12 07:41 pm
justacat.livejournal.com) wrote in crack_van2004-11-12 07:41 pm
Entry tags:
(no subject)
Fandom: THE PROFESSIONALS
Pairing: Bodie/Doyle
Author on LJ:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
mandragora1
Author Website: http://www.angelfire.com/home/pandoemonium/
Why this must be read:
"Caravans" takes place almost entirely in a car, as Bodie and Doyle drive from London to and then back from the home of a "former" IRA member to question him about some current goings-on. The purpose of their trip is fairly irrelevant, though, except as a backdrop, because really this story is a voyage through the workings of Doyle's mind as he attempts to understand and come to terms with some important truths about himself and Bodie. The author takes us along on this inner journey while not neglecting the outer one - it's very internal, which makes it all the more remarkable that the author manages so unobtrusively to paint an evocative and lovely picture of the external environment in which it's taking place, and to make it clear how the external and internal are so inextricably linked - Bodie and Doyle are the products of their environment. She's incredibly effective at capturing Britishness, or perhaps Englishness, and the story has a very authentic feel.
The characterization also feels quite authentic - I can very much buy into her portrayal of Doyle's thought processes and Bodie's reactions, and the interaction between the two of them. They snark realistically, but Doyle's confusion and Bodie's pain and feeling of betrayal, and their deep connection to each other, are never far from the surface. I love how they never stop being guys - blokes!; their difficulty saying what they actually feel, and their obliqueness when they do, the way seemingly throw-away comments are actually imbued with meaning, ring true and are a testament to the author's ability to "show not tell." And the resolution, while perhaps a trifle abrupt, is satisfying and uplifting (this will become a theme with me - I like good, happy endings), with even a nice bit of fairly hot smut (also a favorite of mine! *g*) thrown in for good measure. This is an understated and yet moving and effective story, one that bears up to repeated re-reading.
This is Mandragora's only story, which is a shame, because it's lovely.
Caravans (or in pdf format)
(originally published in The Bisto Kids, Infinity Press, 2001, which can be found on the Infinity Press website)
Pairing: Bodie/Doyle
Author on LJ:
mandragora1Author Website: http://www.angelfire.com/home/pandoemonium/
Why this must be read:
"Caravans" takes place almost entirely in a car, as Bodie and Doyle drive from London to and then back from the home of a "former" IRA member to question him about some current goings-on. The purpose of their trip is fairly irrelevant, though, except as a backdrop, because really this story is a voyage through the workings of Doyle's mind as he attempts to understand and come to terms with some important truths about himself and Bodie. The author takes us along on this inner journey while not neglecting the outer one - it's very internal, which makes it all the more remarkable that the author manages so unobtrusively to paint an evocative and lovely picture of the external environment in which it's taking place, and to make it clear how the external and internal are so inextricably linked - Bodie and Doyle are the products of their environment. She's incredibly effective at capturing Britishness, or perhaps Englishness, and the story has a very authentic feel.
The characterization also feels quite authentic - I can very much buy into her portrayal of Doyle's thought processes and Bodie's reactions, and the interaction between the two of them. They snark realistically, but Doyle's confusion and Bodie's pain and feeling of betrayal, and their deep connection to each other, are never far from the surface. I love how they never stop being guys - blokes!; their difficulty saying what they actually feel, and their obliqueness when they do, the way seemingly throw-away comments are actually imbued with meaning, ring true and are a testament to the author's ability to "show not tell." And the resolution, while perhaps a trifle abrupt, is satisfying and uplifting (this will become a theme with me - I like good, happy endings), with even a nice bit of fairly hot smut (also a favorite of mine! *g*) thrown in for good measure. This is an understated and yet moving and effective story, one that bears up to repeated re-reading.
This is Mandragora's only story, which is a shame, because it's lovely.
Caravans (or in pdf format)
(originally published in The Bisto Kids, Infinity Press, 2001, which can be found on the Infinity Press website)
no subject
no subject
I wish she'd write more - I'll have to try to
pressurepersuade her that she really should :)Caravans
(Anonymous) 2006-10-15 10:44 pm (UTC)(link)