ladybird97 (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
ladybird97) wrote2020-12-31 01:41 pm
ladybird97) wrote2020-12-31 01:41 pm
Entry tags:
Yuletide 2020 Recs
Yuletide 2020 Recs
Just under the wire before authors get revealed!
First, of course, I must rec the story I received! High School Reunion: The Ballet, Bunheads. It’s a fun look at where all the girls have ended up ten years after the show. Charlie’s voice is hilariously true to form, and Boo and Sasha’s journeys make me warm and fuzzy, each in its own way.
Books and Literature
Ordinarily I’d just organize everything alphabetically, but I must rec this one first because it is the most brilliant Yuletide story I’ve read in a long time.
Cielo d’Oro, Name of the Rose. A long and intricate casefic that brings William and Adso to Pavia to solve another murder. IT IS AMAZING OH MY GOSH. The research and attention to detail are absolutely breathtaking. Symbolic dreams; meticulous descriptions of churches; incisive deductions - everything that makes the original what it is. Even better, there’s a deep dive into medieval music that proves to be crucial to the mystery - just the kind of intellectual rigor that you’d find in the original.
And the rest, alphabetically by fandom:
A Twenty Year Dark Night, Alex Stern. Casefic, in which Alex and Dawes just can’t let a missing-persons case go. Excellently unsettling details of both the Grays and the elitism that perpetuates injustice.
A Woman’s Weapons, Benjamin January Mysteries. Chloe comes to Dominique for help in righting a wrong. As with so much in the original canon, it’s an unlikely alliance to find justice for a crime that the rest of society overlooks, but that our characters _see_ and understand.
Ocean of Time, The Bone Key. Booth and Ratcliffe take an ocean voyage, and find the courage to tell each other the truth of their feelings along the way. The style is note-perfect! There’s an excellent cameo by Claudia as well.
Charlie Reborn, Jeeves, PG Wodehouse. FABULOUS rendering of Wodehouse's style, complete with Jeeves snarking about fashion, a suitably befuddled Bertie, and complications piling up on complications that all work out in the end.
Check Change Go! Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. A hilariously detailed look at how the Ministry of Thaumaturgy deals with Brexit.
Phonium, Kate and Cecelia. A delightful epistolary that perfectly captures the tone of the original in all the best ways, especially in the supportive relationships between Kate, Cecelia, and Thomas.
Flanked by the Almost Unfamiliar, A Memory Called Empire. Sweet fluff, literally and metaphorically: Mahit and Three Seagrass share pastries on a date, with lots of sensual food descriptions. It’s wonderful to see these two being happy!
Ephemera, Red White and Royal Blue. A collection of artifacts and documents from Henry and Alex’s life in the years after the book. Sweet, funny, full of thoughtful attention to detail, and genuinely moving.
Cherry Stone, Tillerman Saga. Maybeth’s POV, lyrical and poignant. It’s a beautiful rendering of her struggles, musicality, and instinctive kindness. I always wanted to see good things happen to her, and now I have.
Ars cantus mensurabilis, This Is How You Lose The Time War More letters through the years and across the time stream, each with allusions to a song embedded within it. AMAZING rendering of the original style, including the subtle differences in the lyricism of Red and Blue’s voices, while creating an intricate puzzle within a puzzle. I am SO IMPRESSED.
TV and Movies
The Brave Princess Bride, Brave. Merida is sick, and Elinor reads her a bedtime story. An absolutely DELIGHTFUL crossover, with appearances by the whole family, hilarious Merida reactions, and some lovely insights by Elinor about different modes of bravery.
The Three People, One Dog, and One Non-Human Non-Robot Not-a-Girl You Meet in Heaven, The Good Place. Vignettes from Jason’s time in the Good Place, and how he grew. It had me laughing through tears, just like the best episodes of the show did.
Lend a Better Hand than the One We’ve Been Dealt, Jane the Virgin. Outsider POV that fits seamlessly into the tone of the canon: charming and sincere, and with a lovely glimpse of Jane learning new ways that she can help others as she grows in her own career.
Star of Bliss, Lion in Winter. Five Christmases for Eleanor and Henry over the years. The language is AMAZING: perfectly-chosen turns of phrase and viciously sharp banter. Eleanor’s POV vividly shows how her intimacy with Henry can produce such intense love and hate alike.
The Wander and Wonder Place, Northern Exposure. Joel finds a reminder of New York. To say more would spoil the beautiful discovery that is this story: it’s an absolutely gorgeous rendering of a very specific moment along a very specific emotional journey. If you’ve ever missed New York, go read this <3
This Week on The Repair Shop: A Time Turner, a Victorian Portrait, and an Antique Wardrobe. The Repair Shop crew takes on some _very_ special items, with all of their exceptional skill, kindness, and sincerity. The wardrobe is the one from Narnia, of course, and that section is particularly lovely, especially its sensitive post-canon discussion of Susan.
By the Pricking of my Thumbs, Something Hammy This Way Comes. Slings and Arrows. Oliver starts haunting Darren; hilarity ensues. The Darren POV is perfect; the Darren-Geoffrey banter is even better; the little glimpse of Ellen is best of all.
Just under the wire before authors get revealed!
First, of course, I must rec the story I received! High School Reunion: The Ballet, Bunheads. It’s a fun look at where all the girls have ended up ten years after the show. Charlie’s voice is hilariously true to form, and Boo and Sasha’s journeys make me warm and fuzzy, each in its own way.
Books and Literature
Ordinarily I’d just organize everything alphabetically, but I must rec this one first because it is the most brilliant Yuletide story I’ve read in a long time.
Cielo d’Oro, Name of the Rose. A long and intricate casefic that brings William and Adso to Pavia to solve another murder. IT IS AMAZING OH MY GOSH. The research and attention to detail are absolutely breathtaking. Symbolic dreams; meticulous descriptions of churches; incisive deductions - everything that makes the original what it is. Even better, there’s a deep dive into medieval music that proves to be crucial to the mystery - just the kind of intellectual rigor that you’d find in the original.
And the rest, alphabetically by fandom:
A Twenty Year Dark Night, Alex Stern. Casefic, in which Alex and Dawes just can’t let a missing-persons case go. Excellently unsettling details of both the Grays and the elitism that perpetuates injustice.
A Woman’s Weapons, Benjamin January Mysteries. Chloe comes to Dominique for help in righting a wrong. As with so much in the original canon, it’s an unlikely alliance to find justice for a crime that the rest of society overlooks, but that our characters _see_ and understand.
Ocean of Time, The Bone Key. Booth and Ratcliffe take an ocean voyage, and find the courage to tell each other the truth of their feelings along the way. The style is note-perfect! There’s an excellent cameo by Claudia as well.
Charlie Reborn, Jeeves, PG Wodehouse. FABULOUS rendering of Wodehouse's style, complete with Jeeves snarking about fashion, a suitably befuddled Bertie, and complications piling up on complications that all work out in the end.
Check Change Go! Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. A hilariously detailed look at how the Ministry of Thaumaturgy deals with Brexit.
Phonium, Kate and Cecelia. A delightful epistolary that perfectly captures the tone of the original in all the best ways, especially in the supportive relationships between Kate, Cecelia, and Thomas.
Flanked by the Almost Unfamiliar, A Memory Called Empire. Sweet fluff, literally and metaphorically: Mahit and Three Seagrass share pastries on a date, with lots of sensual food descriptions. It’s wonderful to see these two being happy!
Ephemera, Red White and Royal Blue. A collection of artifacts and documents from Henry and Alex’s life in the years after the book. Sweet, funny, full of thoughtful attention to detail, and genuinely moving.
Cherry Stone, Tillerman Saga. Maybeth’s POV, lyrical and poignant. It’s a beautiful rendering of her struggles, musicality, and instinctive kindness. I always wanted to see good things happen to her, and now I have.
Ars cantus mensurabilis, This Is How You Lose The Time War More letters through the years and across the time stream, each with allusions to a song embedded within it. AMAZING rendering of the original style, including the subtle differences in the lyricism of Red and Blue’s voices, while creating an intricate puzzle within a puzzle. I am SO IMPRESSED.
TV and Movies
The Brave Princess Bride, Brave. Merida is sick, and Elinor reads her a bedtime story. An absolutely DELIGHTFUL crossover, with appearances by the whole family, hilarious Merida reactions, and some lovely insights by Elinor about different modes of bravery.
The Three People, One Dog, and One Non-Human Non-Robot Not-a-Girl You Meet in Heaven, The Good Place. Vignettes from Jason’s time in the Good Place, and how he grew. It had me laughing through tears, just like the best episodes of the show did.
Lend a Better Hand than the One We’ve Been Dealt, Jane the Virgin. Outsider POV that fits seamlessly into the tone of the canon: charming and sincere, and with a lovely glimpse of Jane learning new ways that she can help others as she grows in her own career.
Star of Bliss, Lion in Winter. Five Christmases for Eleanor and Henry over the years. The language is AMAZING: perfectly-chosen turns of phrase and viciously sharp banter. Eleanor’s POV vividly shows how her intimacy with Henry can produce such intense love and hate alike.
The Wander and Wonder Place, Northern Exposure. Joel finds a reminder of New York. To say more would spoil the beautiful discovery that is this story: it’s an absolutely gorgeous rendering of a very specific moment along a very specific emotional journey. If you’ve ever missed New York, go read this <3
This Week on The Repair Shop: A Time Turner, a Victorian Portrait, and an Antique Wardrobe. The Repair Shop crew takes on some _very_ special items, with all of their exceptional skill, kindness, and sincerity. The wardrobe is the one from Narnia, of course, and that section is particularly lovely, especially its sensitive post-canon discussion of Susan.
By the Pricking of my Thumbs, Something Hammy This Way Comes. Slings and Arrows. Oliver starts haunting Darren; hilarity ensues. The Darren POV is perfect; the Darren-Geoffrey banter is even better; the little glimpse of Ellen is best of all.