Big Damn Zombies, Sir by shrift (PG)

[jane_elliot]

I'm heading out of town and may not have internet access. Thus, as an early Christmas present, I'm posting all of my remaining recs at once. Enjoy!

Title: Big Damn Zombies, Sir by shrift
Fandom: Firefly
Pairing: gen
Categories: humor, crack, favorite
Length: ~3,500 words
Warnings: n/a

Review:
Jayne gets turned into a zombie. Hilarity ensues.

Sometimes you just want something that makes you smile and nothing is quite as smile-inducing as Jayne lumbering about the ship, gnawing on people's heads and plaintively asking for brains. Characterization is spot-on all around and as a special treat, you get a little Zombie!Jayne ditty at the end. Enjoy!

Big Damn Zombies, Sir

Getting to Know You by miss_pryss (hard R)

[jane_elliot]

Title: Getting to Know You by miss_pryss
Fandom: Die Hard 4
Pairing: Matt/John
Categories: friendship, fluff, post-canon
Length: ~10,000 words
Warnings: n/a

Review:
While recovering in the hospital, John and Matt make a mutual pact to start having some fun together.

This is such a sweet, fun, and fluffy way of getting John and Matt together. I loved their Sunday play dates and the various adventures that they embarked on and the fact that they took turns picking what they were going to do. Even more, I loved all of the secondary characters: Lucy and Chen and even Warlock's two-line cameo. Most of all, however, I loved the way that Matt and John take the time to become friends before they become anything more. A lovely story about friendship and fun.

Getting to Know You

A Time to Forget by GatewayGirl (NC-17)

[jane_elliot]

Title: A Time to Forget by GatewayGirl
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairing: Harry/Snape
Categories: post-canon, angst, amnesia
Length: ~25,000 words
Warnings: n/a

Review:
While teaching at Hogwarts, Harry discovers a secret room. Inside that room is Snape, still alive but missing some very important memories.

I love how difficult it is to classify this story: on the one hand, Severus is younger than Harry and his mind is that of a teenager. On the other hand, there is no deaging involved -- Snape's just been in suspended animation for a couple of decades, while Harry caught up (and surpassed) him in age. And the mental deaging is a side effect of the amnesia, rather than him actually having the mind of a teeager.

All of this results in a story with some very unique moral and ethical implications as Harry and Severus interact with each other, especially as Severus's memory slowly starts to come back. You've also got some great interaction between Severus and the other students, as Snape's memories are no longer politically correct and he is, to some extent, still an adult.

I will admit that this story feels a little unbalanced -- the beginning (before Snape's awake) feels long, and the ending feels rushed. Compared to the sheer awesomeness that is a sorta-but-not-really teenage!Severus, however, that's a minor quibble. Mix in some great characterizations and fantastic writing, and you've got a wonderful Harry Potter fic for Snarry fans.

A Time to Forget

No Refunds or Exchanges by astolat (NC-17)

[jane_elliot]

Title: No Refunds or Exchanges by astolat
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Pairing: Rodney/John
Categories: AU, angst, humor, virgin (to gay sex), fluff, favorite
Length: ~10,000 words
Warnings: n/a

Review:
Rodney McKay's apartment on Atlantis is an absolute mess and Jeannie *refuses* to come play maid. What other option is there than a mail-order bride? What he gets is John Sheppard. (AU, obviously.)

This is one of my most reliable go-to fics if I need a pick me up. Astolat's dialogue sparkles, as always, and the story is the perfect length to sustain the ridiculous (and utterly awesome) plot. I especially love the way that she manages to convey John's thoughts even though the story is from Rodney's POV (and Rodney, himself, is clueless).

Fluffy and fun with just enough angst to keep things interesting, this is one of my favorite SGA fics of all time.

No Refunds or Exchanges

Come at Me by Closer (hard R)

[jane_elliot]

Title: Come at Me by Closer
Fandom: Avengers
Pairing: Tony/Pepper/Steve
Categories: friendship, drama, virgin
Length: ~27,000 words
Warnings: n/a

Review:
After the movie, Tony and Pepper adopt Steve. It starts as friendship, but...

I adore the characterizations in this story. Everyone is spot-on and real, but Closer does an especially good job with Tony, Pepper, and Bruce, all of whom are layered and wonderful -- it's easy to see why Steve would want these people to be his friends. All of the relationships, be they romantic or platonic, are unique and distinct and lovely to read. A relaxing, peaceful exploration of the development of an OT3.

Come at Me

A Clear View of the Sea by hesychasm (R)

[jane_elliot]

Title: A Clear View of the Sea by hesychasm
Fandom: The Eagle of the Ninth (books and movie)
Pairing: Mostly Esca/Marcus, with some slight progress towards future OT3
Categories: angst, post-canon, miscommunication
Length: ~17,000 words
Warnings: n/a

Review:
In preparation for Marcus's marriage to Cottia, he and Esca go to Marcus's new land and start to build a farm.

I have to admit, I've never read The Eagle of a Ninth, so I have no experience with canon!Cottia. Based on how she's portrayed in fanfic, however, she must've been one fantastic character, because she's utterly awesome in everything I've read that featured her. Frankly, the main reason for all the angst and drama in this story is the lack of Cottia, because if she'd been around, she would've gotten everyone straightened out right off the bat.

Fortunately for my angst-loving soul, there is no Cottia to knock some sense into the boys and thus they spend lots of time building the barn and not communicating in any useful fashion. I really enjoyed the details of the building of the farm from scratch (though building the villa seemed to be an awfully easy task) and I loved the increasingly fraught relationship between Esca and Marcus.

If people behaving rationally and talking openly about their feelings is your kink -- well, this is not the story for you. But if you're in the mood for angst and miscommunication, give this fic a shot.

A Clear View of the Sea

Lord of the Tansy Cakes by thesexbots (NC-17)

[jane_elliot]

Title: Lord of the Tansy Cakes by thesexbots
Fandom: A Knight's Tale
Pairing: Chaucer/Wat
Categories: humor, smut, crack
Length: ~3,000 words
Warnings: n/a

Review:
Chaucer, Wat, and Roland undertake a challenge of gastrointestinal fortitude to win the right to be Will's best man. Somehow, this leads to smut.

This fic is as light and lively as a tansy cake. (For the record, I have no idea what a tansy cake is.) As cracky as the movie and just as much fun, this is an entertaining morsel for anyone needing a smile.

Lord of the Tansy Cakes

Anywhere on this Road by Sineala (NC-17)

[jane_elliot]

Title: Anywhere on this Road by Sineala
Fandom: The Eagle
Pairing: Esca/Marcus
Categories: angst, drama, hurt/comfort, action, favorite
Length: ~31,000 words
Warnings: non-graphic mentions of pre-story rape

Review:
A retelling of the movie from Esca's POV, with some extra scenes (and, if possible, even more gayness).

So many Eagle stories brush over Esca's previous experience as a slave. This fic goes the other route, showing how all of Esca's behavior would be colored by his past as a body slave. As a result, the trust building that occurs between Esca and Marcus even more powerful, and their growing relationship even more laden with angst. The end result is a story that hits my trust and angst kinks *hard* and delivers a powerful emotional punch at the same time. A very potent read.

Anywhere on This Road

A Cure for Boredom by emmagrant01 (very, very NC-17)

[jane_elliot]

Title: A Cure for Boredom by emmagrant01 (very, very NC-17)
Fandom: Sherlock BBC
Pairing: Sherlock/John (essentially)
Categories: BDSM, smut, drama, smut, angst, smut, smut, smut (can't really emphasize the smut too much), favorite
Length: ~81,000 words
Warnings: John has sex with a *lot* of other people (but it's really all about Sherlock)

Review:
Sherlock is bored and John is complaining about a lack of sex. So, Sherlock takes John to a sex club. As you do.

I can't believe I haven't recced this fic before, considering this is quite possibly the best BDSM fic I've read for people who (like me) rarely read BDSM. I'm deeply impressed with the way the author manages to build up an intense sextual relationship between Sherlock and John without actually involving any sexual contact between the two of them. Equally impressive is the way she writes John's gradual understanding of his own submissive desires, without altering his character or making hims suddenly want to be submissive 24/7 (at least no more so than he already is). And I can't forget to mention her skill in writing OCs -- John's sexual partners are an essential part of the story, but at the same time, they don't take the story over. That's a fine line that emmagrant01 handles beautifully.

The slow escalation of the Dom/sub relationship between Sherlock and John, the growing sexual attraction between the two of them, and the emotional impact as all of this drama comes to a head -- all of it comes together for one of the most satisfying fics I've read in years.

A Cure for Boredom