birthday and Yuletide recs
First of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY karakara98! May it be as awesome as you are!
Second, here are my first batch of Yuletide recs! I've only gotten as far as the Gs - there will be more to come!
A Divine Taste For Travel and Witticisms, A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver. This was the first story I read this year, and it absolutely floored me. As strange as it sounds, it's kind of hard to put into words how much this story means to me. It could have emerged from my 12-year-old psyche. The book it's based on is the YA biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine that made me a medievalist. I was so fascinated by this woman and her story that I had to start looking more deeply into her life and the time in which she lived, and from there, it grew into a serious academic interest and deep love for the Middle Ages. In this fic, Eleanor goes on a Grand Tour of Heaven, meeting other powerful women, including several of the other people who sparked my early interest in history. If I ever have a daughter, I'm going to name her Eleanor. Now it's in honor of my father, but before that, it was because of the two Eleanors who meet in this story.
An Inclement Day for Picnicking, Anne of Green Gables. A sweet little bit of fluff, with authentic-feeling characters, wonderful friendship, and an Anne-ish scrape.
Rilla of Toronto. Decent modernization of a post-series-ending interaction between Rilla and Una. Must give it a shout-out because I think Rilla went to my Queen's :)
Force Majeure, American Revolution alternate reality, for someone I know. Alexander Hamilton is a wizard in service to George Washington in the American Revolution. Weird and wonderful, and beautifully written. I'm not sure how I feel about all of the relationships, but the world-building is exceptional.
I was very pleased to see several Alphas stories! This was my favorite: Binary Data. An average morning from Gary's perspective. Excellent characterization, and a perfect depiction of Gary's stream of consciousness as he drifts in and out of his electronic signals.
Lullaby, Stephen King's Dark Tower. A little snippet of Eddie and Roland, when neither can sleep. I really like Eddie's voice in this one - all of the pop-culture references ring very true.
Go and Catch a Falling Star. Independently recommended to me by orichalcum, but I'd already found it and loved it. My thought when I read it was that it wasn't written for hca but it could have been! It's about strange doings near Duke's Denver, and what happens when Lord Peter Wimsey, Harriet Vane, the Doctor, Amy, and Rory all show up to investigate. I was a little disappointed in the Harriet characterization (I've got high standards!), but Bunter was awesome, the Doctor's side of things was very well-written, and I really want to see Amy's dress. A fun time all around!
And now for another Doctor Who crossover, also recommended by someone after I'd already found it :) velvetmouse re-pointed me towards A Change in the Wind. Apparently two people, independent of each other, requested a story based on the premise that Mary Poppins is actually a Time Lady. Well, why else is her carpetbag bigger on the inside?
Nasty Habits, Song of Ice and Fire. Varys makes up a drinking game, and Littlefinger is Littlefinger. The author says it's more based on the TV show than the books, and it reminds me of why I loved Varys and Littlefinger so much in the show: because they were so often the ones who remembered to laugh. Set early in the books; no real spoilers for either books or show, but with the wonderful snap of humor that these two characters have in the show.
To Whom You Gave Life Song of Ice and Fire. Snippets of Catelyn's thoughts about her children, with beautiful flashes of emotional truth throughout.
And from the sublime to the ridiculous: Texts from Cephalopods, recommended by contrariety. All of those silly octopus Youtube videos, narrated through texts from the octopus's POV. Absolutely hilarious!
Second, here are my first batch of Yuletide recs! I've only gotten as far as the Gs - there will be more to come!
A Divine Taste For Travel and Witticisms, A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver. This was the first story I read this year, and it absolutely floored me. As strange as it sounds, it's kind of hard to put into words how much this story means to me. It could have emerged from my 12-year-old psyche. The book it's based on is the YA biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine that made me a medievalist. I was so fascinated by this woman and her story that I had to start looking more deeply into her life and the time in which she lived, and from there, it grew into a serious academic interest and deep love for the Middle Ages. In this fic, Eleanor goes on a Grand Tour of Heaven, meeting other powerful women, including several of the other people who sparked my early interest in history. If I ever have a daughter, I'm going to name her Eleanor. Now it's in honor of my father, but before that, it was because of the two Eleanors who meet in this story.
An Inclement Day for Picnicking, Anne of Green Gables. A sweet little bit of fluff, with authentic-feeling characters, wonderful friendship, and an Anne-ish scrape.
Rilla of Toronto. Decent modernization of a post-series-ending interaction between Rilla and Una. Must give it a shout-out because I think Rilla went to my Queen's :)
Force Majeure, American Revolution alternate reality, for someone I know. Alexander Hamilton is a wizard in service to George Washington in the American Revolution. Weird and wonderful, and beautifully written. I'm not sure how I feel about all of the relationships, but the world-building is exceptional.
I was very pleased to see several Alphas stories! This was my favorite: Binary Data. An average morning from Gary's perspective. Excellent characterization, and a perfect depiction of Gary's stream of consciousness as he drifts in and out of his electronic signals.
Lullaby, Stephen King's Dark Tower. A little snippet of Eddie and Roland, when neither can sleep. I really like Eddie's voice in this one - all of the pop-culture references ring very true.
Go and Catch a Falling Star. Independently recommended to me by orichalcum, but I'd already found it and loved it. My thought when I read it was that it wasn't written for hca but it could have been! It's about strange doings near Duke's Denver, and what happens when Lord Peter Wimsey, Harriet Vane, the Doctor, Amy, and Rory all show up to investigate. I was a little disappointed in the Harriet characterization (I've got high standards!), but Bunter was awesome, the Doctor's side of things was very well-written, and I really want to see Amy's dress. A fun time all around!
And now for another Doctor Who crossover, also recommended by someone after I'd already found it :) velvetmouse re-pointed me towards A Change in the Wind. Apparently two people, independent of each other, requested a story based on the premise that Mary Poppins is actually a Time Lady. Well, why else is her carpetbag bigger on the inside?
Nasty Habits, Song of Ice and Fire. Varys makes up a drinking game, and Littlefinger is Littlefinger. The author says it's more based on the TV show than the books, and it reminds me of why I loved Varys and Littlefinger so much in the show: because they were so often the ones who remembered to laugh. Set early in the books; no real spoilers for either books or show, but with the wonderful snap of humor that these two characters have in the show.
To Whom You Gave Life Song of Ice and Fire. Snippets of Catelyn's thoughts about her children, with beautiful flashes of emotional truth throughout.
And from the sublime to the ridiculous: Texts from Cephalopods, recommended by contrariety. All of those silly octopus Youtube videos, narrated through texts from the octopus's POV. Absolutely hilarious!