Fic Rec: A Just Sense of Proportion

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

Title: A Just Sense of Proportion
Author: plumedy
Pairing: Gen. Sherlock Holmes, John Watson
Length: 5,400 words
Rating: G
Warnings: none
Verse: ACD canon
Author's summary: Some facts should be suppressed, or at least, a just sense of proportion should be observed in treating them. In a world where illusions are an accepted part of culture and social etiquette, Sherlock Holmes is the great unmasker. And John Watson is, as ever, a hopeless romantic.

Reccer's comments: Hello, friends -- I am going to share a small collection of Halloween recommendations here in the last few hours of the day :) My fellow recc'ers have shared wonderfully unsettling and warm-hearted holiday stories respectively, and this one falls somewhere in between. It is a magical realism Victorian AU set in a world in which ordinary people shape the reality around them by creating visual illusions of varying complexities. This is all well and good until a terrifyingly elaborate false image takes over a London neighborhood and lives are suddenly at stake. I admire the imaginative world-building that went into this tale, and I appreciate many of the moments within that highlight Watson's fundamental decency and Holmes's willingness to forget his own pride when it comes to securing his friend's safety. Although a short story, it took several turns that I, for one, didn't expect. It's an unusual and gently romantic glimpse at two men who manage to be extraordinary even in a world of magic.

Fic Rec: The Serpent's Gift

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

Title: The Serpent's Gift
Author: snarryfool / ancientreader
Pairing: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson
Length: 5,300 words
Rating: T
Warnings: none
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: A wounded soldier dreams of the Wild Hunt. Written for the 2016 Spook Me! ficathon, for the creature prompt "beast."

Reccer's comments: Ancientreader writes such beautiful, polished prose that her works are always stunning compositions. This most recent fairy tale taps into old European legends to weave a series of lyrical, dream-like encounters that hold onto their atmosphere of mystery even while gradually escalating toward emotional clarity. John, wounded and feverish, finds himself at the border of an unknown road in a foreign reality, watching a demon hunt of hellhounds and dark riders as they pursue both beast and man. Being John, he instinctively and fearlessly intercedes. But what will it really take to save Sherlock from the hunt? A spell-binding Halloween fable.

Fic Rec: Look west from London

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

Title: Look west from London
Author: fahye
Pairing: Molly Hooper, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson
Length: 4500 words
Rating: Teen
Warnings: none
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: There are almost no lies in the way that Molly presents herself, only omissions.

Reccer's comments: *deep breath* Okay. This is the most quietly horrifying and heartbreaking story in this fandom that I have ever managed to read and admire. I am generally a wimp, but this story is so perfectly crafted that I was willing to let it haunt me. A supernatural variation on the Reichenbach Fall in which Molly remains the key to arranging Sherlock's resurrection, though at a terrible price. Written with complexity, clarity, and stark emotion, this fic hits hard. The ending hurts, but the whole is darkly beautiful.

Art Rec: City on the Head of a Pin

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

Title: City on the Head of a Pin art on DeviantArt (large version), or on tumblr (can click to enlarge)
Artist: alicexz
Pairing: Gen portrait, Sherlock Holmes
Rating: not rated, I would say G
Warnings: none
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Reccer's comments: I'd like to end with this gorgeous portrait of Sherlock raising raven wings through the shadows. Inspired by a long-time favorite fic, Mad_Maudlin's A City on the Head of a Pin (previously recc'd on this comm back in 2011 here), this painting plays beautifully with light and a dramatic palette of blues and blacks. It's a striking image.