Yuletide recs
Mar. 16th, 2017 11:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
luzulaI am now "done" with Yuletide 2016, where "done" means that I have read everything that looked interesting to me that is under 5000 words, and put longer stories on my ereader (I've read some of those, but far from all). I was determined to actually post recs this year, so here you go:
The Ending From the Beginning (1995 words) by Northland (Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin)
An interesting look at Penthe as an old woman, with lovely writing.
The Minnow and the Dragon (3100 words) by raspberryhunter (Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin)
Domestic-but-magical fic in the best Le Guin tradition. I love the differences between how Yarrow and her brother think about things.
sing it again (2757 words) by Scribe (Hadestown - Mitchell, Greek and Roman Mythology)
Wow. This is from the perspective of the Fates, and it's so good. I love seeing their perspective on the world and how they see every person, not just the heroes of the stories.
Overall there was a good crop of Hadestown fic this year.
The Saga of Hearthruler Whitebeard and Snowsgrace Dreamfinder (4623 words) by melannen (Expert Judgment on Markers to Deter Inadvertent Human Intrusion... - Sandia Labs)
I did not actually know the story of the London cholera epidemic, so if you don't either, just read about the main characters on Wikipedia first. Anyway, this is a really clever fusion. I don't want to reveal the ending, but it is perfect.
Flintlock through the heart, and you're to blame (1451 words) by bookwyrm (Hark! A Vagrant, Barrett's Privateers (Song))
Pirate/naval captain slash! This is both really funny (the ship names, ahaha) but also quite touching.
Catalonia (1155 words) by lynndyre (Aubrey-Maturin Series - Patrick O'Brian)
No actual plot, just a moment in Catalonia, but it's a well-written character study.
Pay me Baby, Treat me Right. (1803 words) by tricatular (Ea-nasir Tablet RPF)
*snorts* Ancient Sumerian slash based on a clay tablet with customer complaints. There were several fics in this fandom; this one was my favorite.
Bed of Roses (2530 words) by eleanor_lavish (Pride (2014))
In general there is not a lot of fic for this movie, but a lot of what there is is good. This one feels like a natural extension of Jonathan and Gethin's relationship in the movie.
Arse-chive of my Own: Pounded in the Butt By the Lack of Tingleverse Fics in Yuletide 2016 (1644 words) by Buckaroo69 (Tingleverse - Chuck Tingle, Yuletide (Anthropomorfic))
I have not even read the canon, but fannish osmosis is your friend. I think the best part of this is the in-character comment replies, really.
Savage Lovecast Episode 69: Pounded in the Butt By Savage Lovecast Episode 69 [Transcript] (2144 words) by Edonohana (Savage Love (Podcast) RPF, TINGLE Chuck - Works)
And another winner in the same canon. Actually I do listen to Savage Love, and it's hilariously in character there!
Beatrice, or, The Mechanical Yule Goat (3638 words) by VerySleepy (Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage)
I love the idea of the Yuletide exchange going back to antiquity, with Virgil writing the Aeneid as fic for Homer's epics. Otherwise, very canon-like steampunk shenanigans.
Thorn (4085 words) by anthean (Dark Is Rising Sequence - Susan Cooper)
Will/Bran fic with very good setting--it feels like you're right there with them and the sheep.
The Steerswoman's Trail (3447 words) by keerawa (Steerswoman Series - Rosemary Kirstein)
Great Bel POV, with attention paid to the cultural differences between her and Rowan, as well as to their friendship.
Merrily in Springtime (5419 words) by genarti (Robin Hood (Traditional))
Interesting--I'd never considered this pairing, but it felt very natural, and I liked how it looked at different attitudes toward societal injustice.
The Ending From the Beginning (1995 words) by Northland (Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin)
An interesting look at Penthe as an old woman, with lovely writing.
The Minnow and the Dragon (3100 words) by raspberryhunter (Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin)
Domestic-but-magical fic in the best Le Guin tradition. I love the differences between how Yarrow and her brother think about things.
sing it again (2757 words) by Scribe (Hadestown - Mitchell, Greek and Roman Mythology)
Wow. This is from the perspective of the Fates, and it's so good. I love seeing their perspective on the world and how they see every person, not just the heroes of the stories.
Overall there was a good crop of Hadestown fic this year.
The Saga of Hearthruler Whitebeard and Snowsgrace Dreamfinder (4623 words) by melannen (Expert Judgment on Markers to Deter Inadvertent Human Intrusion... - Sandia Labs)
I did not actually know the story of the London cholera epidemic, so if you don't either, just read about the main characters on Wikipedia first. Anyway, this is a really clever fusion. I don't want to reveal the ending, but it is perfect.
Flintlock through the heart, and you're to blame (1451 words) by bookwyrm (Hark! A Vagrant, Barrett's Privateers (Song))
Pirate/naval captain slash! This is both really funny (the ship names, ahaha) but also quite touching.
Catalonia (1155 words) by lynndyre (Aubrey-Maturin Series - Patrick O'Brian)
No actual plot, just a moment in Catalonia, but it's a well-written character study.
Pay me Baby, Treat me Right. (1803 words) by tricatular (Ea-nasir Tablet RPF)
*snorts* Ancient Sumerian slash based on a clay tablet with customer complaints. There were several fics in this fandom; this one was my favorite.
Bed of Roses (2530 words) by eleanor_lavish (Pride (2014))
In general there is not a lot of fic for this movie, but a lot of what there is is good. This one feels like a natural extension of Jonathan and Gethin's relationship in the movie.
Arse-chive of my Own: Pounded in the Butt By the Lack of Tingleverse Fics in Yuletide 2016 (1644 words) by Buckaroo69 (Tingleverse - Chuck Tingle, Yuletide (Anthropomorfic))
I have not even read the canon, but fannish osmosis is your friend. I think the best part of this is the in-character comment replies, really.
Savage Lovecast Episode 69: Pounded in the Butt By Savage Lovecast Episode 69 [Transcript] (2144 words) by Edonohana (Savage Love (Podcast) RPF, TINGLE Chuck - Works)
And another winner in the same canon. Actually I do listen to Savage Love, and it's hilariously in character there!
Beatrice, or, The Mechanical Yule Goat (3638 words) by VerySleepy (Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage)
I love the idea of the Yuletide exchange going back to antiquity, with Virgil writing the Aeneid as fic for Homer's epics. Otherwise, very canon-like steampunk shenanigans.
Thorn (4085 words) by anthean (Dark Is Rising Sequence - Susan Cooper)
Will/Bran fic with very good setting--it feels like you're right there with them and the sheep.
The Steerswoman's Trail (3447 words) by keerawa (Steerswoman Series - Rosemary Kirstein)
Great Bel POV, with attention paid to the cultural differences between her and Rowan, as well as to their friendship.
Merrily in Springtime (5419 words) by genarti (Robin Hood (Traditional))
Interesting--I'd never considered this pairing, but it felt very natural, and I liked how it looked at different attitudes toward societal injustice.
(no subject)
Date: 2017-03-17 12:06 am (UTC)I haven't gotten very far with Yultide 2016 myself, but I did find and enjoy an Eartha Kitt/Paul Newman/James Dean fic. ;-)
(no subject)
Date: 2017-03-17 08:30 pm (UTC)And I've really got a whole bunch more Yuletide fic on my ereader, we'll see when I get around to reading that...
(no subject)
Date: 2017-03-17 08:46 pm (UTC)Also I will note that you have already read the Steerswoman books and cross them off my potential bookclub list. :D
(no subject)
Date: 2017-03-18 11:07 am (UTC)I dunno, I might be persuaded to reread the Steerswoman books (they are really good!). But OTOH I think the first book alone is not that good as book club material, since the worldbuilding reveals are spaced out over the whole series, and I think I'd find it very hard to have a meaningful discussion of just the first one without spoiling the rest.
(no subject)
Date: 2017-03-17 09:08 pm (UTC)*hug*
(no subject)
Date: 2017-03-18 11:08 am (UTC)