entirely ruined her disposition with books

Hey, y'all! Have some recs!

+ Tangled: Freudian.
*AU* Flynn Rider's terms of parole include going to therapy, and they don't expressly forbid hanging around with that one awkward graffiti girl.
OMG Y'ALL READ THIS. A contemporary AU of the best kind, it makes me flaily and happy and it's just deliriously wonderful. I cannot even. It's a WIP, but it was recently updated, so I think it's safe to start it.

+ Vampire Diaries: Talk You Down.
Use your heart, not your head.
Grayson and Miranda Gilbert have an important discussion. I wouldn't have thought I'd enjoy a fic about Elena and Jeremy's parents but this is a great little look at life in Mystic Falls.

+ The Book Thief: pro patria mori
It is good and sweet to die for one's country—because if you say a lie long enough, loud enough, and often enough, people are going to believe it—ten people who didn't.
OH MY HEART. Read this if you've read the book and let your heart bleed.

+ Wizards of Waverly Place: call that a comeback
Alex destroys the world. But really, its all Justin's fault. Written for apocabigbang at LJ. Post 'Wizards vs. Werewolves.'
ALEX RUSSO CAUSES THE APOCALYPSE. I know it's a stupid kids' show on the Disney Channel, but I love Alex and Justin so much. And ever_neutral, if you don't know Alex Russo, you should change that. YOU WOULD LOVE HER.

+ Nu!Trek: World as We Know It
Leonard McCoy doesn't hate Jim ALL the time. Just, you know. Mostly. // You couldn’t subdue Jim Kirk if you put a muzzle on him. And anyway, McCoy’s looked it up, and they don’t make them for humans. Jim/Bones friendship.
Kirk/Bones is my favorite bromance. THESE BOYS.

+ Doctor Who: the woman named to-morrow
Of course she misses it.
A little slice of Martha/Mickey, that appreciates them both. Why is there not more of this in the world?

+ Life with Derek: move in circles around you
disasters are kind of their specialty.
I don't understand why there is so much quality Derek/Casey fic in the world, but I am so glad there is. Here's the latest.

+ Sherlock: Sustain (or Concerto for the Famished in D Minor)
"So now you're behaving like a six year old 'cause he didn't take you along on his honeymoon?" Lestrade said. "Grow the hell up."
Um, so this is a Molly/Sherlock fic. A long Molly/Sherlock fic. A believable Molly/Sherlock fic. So, um, you should probably read it.

+ Hunger Games: The Unrecorded Hours
Katniss and Peeta in the weeks and months after the war.
Oh, hey! It's a long, satisfying fic about the Katniss/Peeta stuff I really wanted to see which is: when they actually fall in love (because I'm not convinced it happens in the books. I have very mixed feelings about this pairing and its potential vs. its execution. Anyway). This is kind of moody and quiet and it makes loads of sense. It fits perfectly in before the epilogue and it's become canon to me.

+ Hunger Games: Scylla and Charybdis
Finnick decides that, come hell or high water, he is bringing his tribute home from the seventieth Hunger Games. That tribute is Annie Cresta. But Finnick never thought that he would have to choose between bringing her home and keeping her safe, and he wants both. How Annie Cresta crept up on Finnick Odair.
I SHIP IT SO HAAAAARD. I want ALL the Finnick/Annie fic. Gah, I love living in Finnick's head. Best boy.

+ Hunger Games: and our dreams will break the boundaries of our fears
Johanna and Finnick flirt with rebellion, and learn that the Capitol has teeth.
This fic hurts my heart, but in the best way. Gah.

Hey, y'all! Have some recs!

+ Tangled: Freudian.
*AU* Flynn Rider's terms of parole include going to therapy, and they don't expressly forbid hanging around with that one awkward graffiti girl.
OMG Y'ALL READ THIS. A contemporary AU of the best kind, it makes me flaily and happy and it's just deliriously wonderful. I cannot even. It's a WIP, but it was recently updated, so I think it's safe to start it.

+ Vampire Diaries: Talk You Down.
Use your heart, not your head.
Grayson and Miranda Gilbert have an important discussion. I wouldn't have thought I'd enjoy a fic about Elena and Jeremy's parents but this is a great little look at life in Mystic Falls.

+ The Book Thief: pro patria mori
It is good and sweet to die for one's country—because if you say a lie long enough, loud enough, and often enough, people are going to believe it—ten people who didn't.
OH MY HEART. Read this if you've read the book and let your heart bleed.

+ Wizards of Waverly Place: call that a comeback
Alex destroys the world. But really, its all Justin's fault. Written for apocabigbang at LJ. Post 'Wizards vs. Werewolves.'
ALEX RUSSO CAUSES THE APOCALYPSE. I know it's a stupid kids' show on the Disney Channel, but I love Alex and Justin so much. And ever_neutral, if you don't know Alex Russo, you should change that. YOU WOULD LOVE HER.

+ Nu!Trek: World as We Know It
Leonard McCoy doesn't hate Jim ALL the time. Just, you know. Mostly. // You couldn’t subdue Jim Kirk if you put a muzzle on him. And anyway, McCoy’s looked it up, and they don’t make them for humans. Jim/Bones friendship.
Kirk/Bones is my favorite bromance. THESE BOYS.

+ Doctor Who: the woman named to-morrow
Of course she misses it.
A little slice of Martha/Mickey, that appreciates them both. Why is there not more of this in the world?

+ Life with Derek: move in circles around you
disasters are kind of their specialty.
I don't understand why there is so much quality Derek/Casey fic in the world, but I am so glad there is. Here's the latest.

+ Sherlock: Sustain (or Concerto for the Famished in D Minor)
"So now you're behaving like a six year old 'cause he didn't take you along on his honeymoon?" Lestrade said. "Grow the hell up."
Um, so this is a Molly/Sherlock fic. A long Molly/Sherlock fic. A believable Molly/Sherlock fic. So, um, you should probably read it.

+ Hunger Games: The Unrecorded Hours
Katniss and Peeta in the weeks and months after the war.
Oh, hey! It's a long, satisfying fic about the Katniss/Peeta stuff I really wanted to see which is: when they actually fall in love (because I'm not convinced it happens in the books. I have very mixed feelings about this pairing and its potential vs. its execution. Anyway). This is kind of moody and quiet and it makes loads of sense. It fits perfectly in before the epilogue and it's become canon to me.

+ Hunger Games: Scylla and Charybdis
Finnick decides that, come hell or high water, he is bringing his tribute home from the seventieth Hunger Games. That tribute is Annie Cresta. But Finnick never thought that he would have to choose between bringing her home and keeping her safe, and he wants both. How Annie Cresta crept up on Finnick Odair.
I SHIP IT SO HAAAAARD. I want ALL the Finnick/Annie fic. Gah, I love living in Finnick's head. Best boy.

+ Hunger Games: and our dreams will break the boundaries of our fears
Johanna and Finnick flirt with rebellion, and learn that the Capitol has teeth.
This fic hurts my heart, but in the best way. Gah.

Good morning! I have some random thoughts to share with you because this is my journal.

+ One of the things I love about City Hunter (besides its general EXCELLENCE) is that people actually figure things out. So many plots rest on people being stupid and not seeing what’s right in front of their faces, and I like that this show lets people be smart and put things together LONG before most shows would let them. Then it develops NEW ways to generate suspense instead of just dragging out the old ones forever to the point of disbelief. Good job, show!

+ Lee Yoon Sung has a sense of humor, and I like that about him. Yeah, he’s typically angsty, but he also is a goof. I imagine if he’d been raised by his mother, he would just be a goof all of the time. Favorite lines include: “I care a lot about my hairstyle” and “You wrinkled my clothes.” There was also something he said the first time he took a shower at Na Na’s house that was HILARIOUS but I cannot now remember what it was. Alas.

+ Kim Na Na is one of the most excellent heroines EVER. She’s brave and capable and kick-ass, but she’s also really emotionally open, and I love that. I am forever in love with [Unknown site tag]when she tells Yoon Sung that her feelings are hers, and she’s not going to force them on him but that he needs to cut it out with the being a jerk in attempts to push her away. Best thing EVER.

+ I am seriously considering shelling out $70 so I can own Mawang on DVD. We’ll see if I actually do it.

+ I am getting really giddy-excited in anticipation for The Borgias. LUCREZIA AND CESARE MY LOOOOOOVES. And Juan’s stupid face!

+ Also getting excited about Hunger Games! I have so many mixed feelings about the books, but I did love the first one straight-up, and the BFF and I are going for her birthday, so I am pleased. Also, Katniss remains awesome, even if her books don’t quite measure up to her.

+ My novel writing continues to go wonderfully. I shall not say more for fear of talking myself into a bad place. But I really do actually think I could get this one published, y’all. After a TON of cleaning it up, obviously.

+ On the other hand, I have written NO FIC in what feels like forever, so y'all should encourage me to do that.


And now for some FMM-related thoughts:

+ The Happy Endings poll makes me happiest of all the polls because the love is spread so evenly amongst the characters (except for Dave. Sorry, Dave). A show where everyone is that loved? Very rare, and it makes me happy.

+ Robin is just baaaarely beating Barney. I am going to cry if he beats her. I really am.

+ I don’t understand why Chris wins the Skins spot EVERY YEAR. I love Chris, but he’s that beloved? I just don’t know. I voted for Grace because of REASONS. But I also could have gone with Michelle or Tony.

+ I wish all the Damon voters would switch their votes to Elena as Damon CLEARLY would want them to do. I love Caroline like mad, and I will campaign for her against loads of people, but I just wish Elena could win this year. *wistful*

+ I wish I could come up with a fandom institution as awesome as the Fandom March Madness or Yuletide because the idea of bringing that much joy to fandom just makes me happy.

I've been meaning for a while to talk about what I've been reading. Because it's something that's not fic or meta or articles on feminist websites! After I graduated from college, it took me a long time to be able to read again because I'd spent so much time analyzing texts over those four years that I just got burned out. But I am back to being able to read again, and it feels good.

So what have I been reading? Some really good stuff.

* Kindred by Octavia Butler. This book is perfect. One day, I want to be able to write something as perfect as this book. I was actually halfway through Fathom (see below) when I picked this one up. Whenever I pick up a new book, I like to read the "beginnings," as I call them: the introductions, acknowledgments, author's notes, and the first few lines. So I read the first few lines. And I was really engrossed. And I thought, "I'll just read the prologue. It's like two pages long." AND I NEVER STOPPED. Seriously, the book is compulsively readable. But at the same time, it's deeply profound. Perfect characterization: I could spend the rest of my life analyzing the relationship between Dana and Rufus, for instance, and I would never get to the bottom of it. Add in Kevin and Alice and the others? Gah. I can't even talk about it.

And this book is about the kyriarchy. It's the best book about the kyriarchy I've ever read. The whole thing is an exercise in examining the hierarchies of power and the ways they're tangled up in race and gender and class and even health. But it isn't preachy, and it's just so entertaining, too: if you didn't know or care about the kyriarchy, you could still love it and enjoy it. It sucks you in and doesn't let you up and you're completely captivated by these characters, but it's just so easy to read! I adore that.

I also really loved how it fit in seamlessly with the slave narratives I read in Southern Lit in college. I've never been so glad for being an English major: having had that prior experience with slave narratives, I felt that this book was so much richer.

I cannot rave about it enough. I'm going to read it once a year till I die, I think. Oh, and I read it in a day, so yeah. Very readable.

[eta] What it's actually about: a modern (written in the 70s) black woman who keeps getting pulled back in time to the nineteenth century to save her white ancestor, who is the son of a slave owner. Time travel. Slave narrative. YES.

* Fathom by Cherie Priest. This woman has a fantastic imagination. I can honestly say that you have never read a book like this. I adore the plot and the worldbuilding more than I can say. But I felt there was something lacking. I didn't really feel emotionally invested. I don't know if it's because I didn't feel like I got to know the characters well enough or if their motivations weren't nuanced enough or if it just wasn't long enough, but there was something missing for me. At the same time, I'm interested in seeing what else Priest has written because she has the most awesome imagination ever.

* Shards of Honor and Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold. Solid, character-driven sci-fi. Great characters--especially Cordelia and Aral and Kou and Drou and Bothari. Interesting relationships I cared about. Good worldbuilding. A strong female protagonist who was very competent but didn't physically kick ass. Good pacing and plotting. Basically just goodness, all the way around. If I could find more "sci-fi" (as opposed to fantasy) like this, I would read a ton more of it. This was my first Bujold experience, and I was impressed. Very.

Anyone have any advice as to how to proceed from here? I know she wrote the rest of the books all out of order, so I'd like to know which order to read them in. Chronologically? Or is it more like the Narnia books, where you need to read them as they were written? Help please!

And now for what some of you have been waiting for...

* The Hunger Games (all of them!) by Suzanne Collins. What did I spend Friday through Sunday doing? Reading all of the Hunger Games books, of course. Because I am like that. And yes, becoming pretty addicted and loving Katniss/Peeta forever and falling for a lot of the supporting characters. Read the books, people!

I will now proceed to spoil you horribly. DON’T READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THEM!

( spoilers for the first two books )

( spoilers for Mockingjay )

And one last thing, because I am predictable:

( a final, MJ-spoiler-free note on shipping )


People, is there any good fic out there? I want good fic, and I don’t know where to look!



And now I have a thousand comments to reply to! I should get on that!