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frozen_delight2013-11-21 04:21 pm
Fic Rec: Gravitational Resonance
Title: Gravitational Resonance (or on AO3)
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ivywatcher
Pairing: None
Length: ~ 3000 words
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: Mycroft Holmes recognizes that he possesses great power and complexity only because he is, at heart, very simple. He has accumulated a great many titles and positions, most of which will never be disclosed to the general public. But he has only ever truly been three things: a brother, a patriot, and a lover of poetry. There has never been time for anything else.
Reccer's comments: Posted after Season 1, this beautiful story presents an alternative ending to the pool scene from Mycroft's concerned, intensely shaken perspective. It is one of the most brilliant character studies that I've ever read because it experiments with the idea "Is it possible to reduce a complex character to just three basic principles without simplifying him to an inexcusable degree?" - and after reading this, the answer to the question must be a definite yes. What is particularly remarkable is that despite the fact that Mycroft is shown to care so deeply about his younger brother and to be an avid lover of poetry, he doesn't seem like a soppy shadow of the powerful politician we know him to be.
Not just Mycroft, but all the characters, even those making fleeting appearances like Lestrade, are portrayed with gentle sympathy and keen insight. In addition, the complicated relationship between the Holmes brothers, which dominates the fic, is rendered with rare, precious details. It becomes obvious how much Sherlock and Mycroft struggle against each other and how much they care nonetheless.
Finally, there is such a profound poetic quality to the prose that the fragments of Henley's poems which swirl through Mycroft's mind in the course of the story integrate themselves seamlessly into the narration. Naturally, this adds further to the reading pleasure and makes this a truly masterful piece of fiction.
Author:
ivywatcherPairing: None
Length: ~ 3000 words
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: Mycroft Holmes recognizes that he possesses great power and complexity only because he is, at heart, very simple. He has accumulated a great many titles and positions, most of which will never be disclosed to the general public. But he has only ever truly been three things: a brother, a patriot, and a lover of poetry. There has never been time for anything else.
Reccer's comments: Posted after Season 1, this beautiful story presents an alternative ending to the pool scene from Mycroft's concerned, intensely shaken perspective. It is one of the most brilliant character studies that I've ever read because it experiments with the idea "Is it possible to reduce a complex character to just three basic principles without simplifying him to an inexcusable degree?" - and after reading this, the answer to the question must be a definite yes. What is particularly remarkable is that despite the fact that Mycroft is shown to care so deeply about his younger brother and to be an avid lover of poetry, he doesn't seem like a soppy shadow of the powerful politician we know him to be.
Not just Mycroft, but all the characters, even those making fleeting appearances like Lestrade, are portrayed with gentle sympathy and keen insight. In addition, the complicated relationship between the Holmes brothers, which dominates the fic, is rendered with rare, precious details. It becomes obvious how much Sherlock and Mycroft struggle against each other and how much they care nonetheless.
Finally, there is such a profound poetic quality to the prose that the fragments of Henley's poems which swirl through Mycroft's mind in the course of the story integrate themselves seamlessly into the narration. Naturally, this adds further to the reading pleasure and makes this a truly masterful piece of fiction.
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