221b_recs | Entries tagged with character: "anthea"

Title: A Christmas Carol
Author: Mottlemoth
Pairing: Mycroft/Lestrade, Sherlock/John
Length: 40,385 words
Rating: Teen
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC/A Christmas Carol

Author's summary: "All lives end... all hearts are broken."

Mycroft Holmes never needed a reason to loathe Christmas - but getting dumped by the love of his life certainly did the trick. It's been a year since Mycroft lost the man he adored, and with Christmas Eve fast approaching, he's counting down the hours until all this festive lunacy is over.

Sadly for Mycroft, fate has other plans.

It's going to take three ghosts to show him the error of his ways. But can he make amends in time? Or will he prove to himself, once and for all, that caring is not an advantage?

Reccer's comments: It's a Mystrade Christmas Carol! Yes, maybe you think the premise is tired and unoriginal but I urge you to think again. The author puts their own unique twists on the tale, and I promise that you won't be bored. You might suffer from emotional whiplash, though, because this fic is in turns funny, heartbreaking, heartwarming, exasperating, tearjerking... and last but not least, joyful and life-affirming. Just like the Dickens tale.

And never fear, Johnlock fans. This story may center around the Mycroft/Lestrade relationship, but even though Sherlock/John is background, their presence is keenly felt throughout. I especially liked Sherlock's relationship with Greg in this, as well as his interactions with his brother. A more human Sherlock you'll never meet!

Grab your hot cocoa, a comfy blanket, and settle in for a whopper of a ghost story.

( sneak peek )

pipmer1.livejournal.com

Title:Ford
Author: theshopislocal
Pairing: Sherlock/John, John/OMC, John/Mary
Length: 31,750 words
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Canon-typical violence
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: He turns back round then and looks down at me, eyes curious. “Your name, W.S.S. Holmes.” That’s not my name. “Is it Walter? Or Wilbur? Maybe something really awful like, er,” he smiles wryly, “Willoughby? Winchester?”

I feel my face go blank as my body numbs over. “Scott,” I say, voice devoid of emotion. “My name is Scott.”

Reccer's comments: Wow does this story pack a punch. It has a unique writing style that I haven't run across before that is very effective and emotionally harrowing. Filled with clever twists, it'll keep you guessing as to what is what (and who is who) until the very last chapter. Out of all of the outstanding fics to come out of the most recent round of Holmestice, this is one of the most memorable for me.

It's a bit difficult giving a rec for this without giving too much away, but I will do my best. The story takes place post-Reichenbach, and is not series 3 compliant. It has all of the angst one comes to expect from such a fic, along with offering its own unique twist to it. Someone is kidnapped off the streets of London - someone who the kidnapper thinks is the 'deceased' Sherlock Holmes. The story is told in first person, mostly from the kidnapped person's perspective. The narrative is non-linear, so we also see scenes from Mycroft's POV as he and Sherlock plot to bring down Sebastian Moran. Mary also has a role here, albeit offscreen.

The scenes between the kidnapped person and the kidnapper are at the crux of the story, emotionally intense and done in such a clever way that I was not completely convinced of the identify of either one of them until the grand reveal. The emotion coupled with heartstopping action left me on the edge of my seat the entire time. This is the type of story that I live for, and that will remain with me for a long time.

A possible trigger warning: there is a death of an unborn child, although it does take place offscreen.

Here is an excerpt from the very beginning of the story to give you a taste of the experience you are in for:

( Sneak Peek )

dioscureantwins.livejournal.com

Title: Toplock Talent Search
Author:

anarfea
Pairing: Sherlock/John, Sherlock/Irene, Sherlock/Jim/Molly
Length: approx. 25,000 words
Rating: explicit
Warnings: top!Sherlock (the reason the fic exists)
Verse: BBC Sherlock
Author's summary: “It’s frankly alarming,” said the Sherlock in the fishnet top, “watching you simper and fawn and make puppy eyes over John like a … sad, gay baby.”
Sherlock’s mouth fell open. “I am not a sad gay baby!”
“Yes, you are,” said Irene.
“Well, what is he, then?” sputtered Sherlock. “Splaying his legs open so everyone can see his cock through those trousers. Sitting there leering at the rest of us like some sort of superior … Dark fuck prince.”

Currently a WIP. Last updated July 2015. There should be one more chapter according to the author. However, as chapter three to five are pretty much stand alone's you can really go ahead and read!

Reccer's comments: This fic is proof of the human mind’s remarkable talent to turn something vile into something hilarious. Written in response to the vagaries imposed upon last year’s 221B con by a this fic has the show’s characters discuss fanfic, gender politics, sexual roles, ship wars, and fandom, as they search for the perfect incarnation of Toplock.

The author masterfully plays with tropes and head!canons as exploited in the series by Moffat and Gatiss, by fanfic writers (the author included) and readers and shows that the pen, especially when wielded with a humour that manages to cast everyone in a satirical light, truly is the strongest weapon ever invented.

The fic heads off with lots of clever banter flying around the living room. Anthea presides and has a hard time keeping the various characters in their respective incarnations in check. We get to meet DarkFuckPrince!Sherlock, GayBaby!Sherlock, JustTransport!Sherlock, Angry!John (well, he doesn’t get laid, obviously), Saint!John and BAMF!John, Virgin!Sherlock and all these incarnations, traipsing around 221B’s living room together, are totally IC. As are Irene, Mycroft, Anthea, Mrs Hudson, Jim and Molly and even Sebastian Moran. Because no fic featuring Jim is complete without a truly creepy Moran in the background. Fie Moftiss.

Once Anthea has waved her magic wand and decided upon the various pairings we follow those to the rooms allotted them for yet more talk, debate, argument, conference, exchange, review, conversation,consideration, dialogue, consultation, seminar, discourse, deliberation,symposium, colloquy, confabulation not to mention examination, investigation, analysis, scrutiny and dissection that will have you screaming with laughter and chuckling over so much cleverness. Then in each chapter the whole delicious concoction gets topped off with some scorchingly-hot sex, with Sherlock topping of course. Yes, even GayBaby!Virgin!Sherlock gets to do the topping.

What really blew me away in this fic however is the encounter in chapter four, between JustTranpost!Sherlock and a beautifully brave and tender Irene. Even if you don’t read the rest of the fic, read this chapter at least for the wonderful insight into their relationship. You won’t regret it.

rachelindeed.livejournal.com

Title: That's not my name! - women of bbc sherlock
Music Title & Artist: "That's Not My Name" by The Ting Tings
Vidder: justacrosshair
Pairing or Character: gen; Irene Adler, Kate, Kitty Riley, Beryl Stapleton, Soo Lin Yao, Sally Donovan, General Chan, Sarah Sawyer, Jeanette, "Anthea," Molly Hooper, Mrs. Hudson, Ella Thompson
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Link: Note: I was not able to find the vidder on LJ, tumblr, or DW, so this link is to YouTube: That's not my name vid

Reccer's Comments: This vid offers a fun, punchy, sharp and somewhat angry commentary on the limited character development and screen time provided for the women of BBC Sherlock (note that this was made before S3, so it does not feature Mary or Janine). Entertaining, catchy, cleverly edited, and a fierce piece of meta to boot. It gave me fresh appreciation for the investment so many fine actresses have brought to the show and the ways that they used what opportunities they had to create moments in which their characters could live and breathe.

rachelindeed.livejournal.com

Title: Coins on my Eyes
Author: indybaggins
Pairing: Sherlock/John, Sherlock & Mycroft
Length: 35,000
Rating: M
Warnings: Graphic depictions of violence
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: 'Sherlock spent nights lying awake, listening to the rustling of John’s hands on the bedcovers. The dull thumps of John’s head against the headboard. The rhythmic grinding of his teeth. The soft, hungry sounds of his mouth and throat.'

There is an unknown infection rapidly spreading through London, fear, unspoken love, dead who cannot die... and a way for them to come back. Post-zombie AU!

Reccer's comments:

This fic was one of the highlights of my summer. The writing is stellar, the characterizations nuanced, the relationships breath-taking, the moral conundrums complex, and the setting horrifying. The story shifts perspective between its main characters as it follows the devastating progress of an incurable disease. Mycroft's perspective is insightfully rendered as he adopts ruthless measures to stem the spread of the plague while at the same time reluctantly supporting Sherlock's attempts to cure John after he seems long lost to infection.

This story portrays the deeply generous love between Sherlock and John, and Sherlock and Mycroft, without ever slipping into sentimentality. Its central characters move and breathe with extraordinary detail and emotional integrity. The intense crises they each face bring out the core qualities of their personalities. I think it's an amazing piece of work.

(Possible warnings: this fic deals with end of life issues and caregiving for debilitated loved ones; it portrays suicidal ideation and mentions suicide and euthanasia; it also contains some imagery that is reminiscent of the Holocaust.)

verdant_fire

Title: Arcana
Author: rosa_acicularis
Pairing: Sherlock/John, Sherlock/fem!John
Length: 46159 words
Rating: Mature
Verse: BBC
Author's summary: Sometimes, her grandmother has said, in the simplest, strongest of magics that’s all that’s required – a sacrifice and an intent. Her blood, and his words: I want to forget.

In which Joanna Watson is a witch, Sherlock Holmes is himself, and every spell has its price.

Reccer's comments: I really have never read another fic like this one. The descriptions of magic and the feel of it in this fic are truly astonishing; it's one of the best magical stories I've read anywhere, published or not. The language is frequently so beautiful that it stole my breath (as did the UST!), the razored loveliness of the emotions and relationships cuts like mirror-glass, and the worldbuilding is indelible. It makes my mouth fall open in wonder every time. It's a stunningly beautiful piece of storytelling, and I remain a bit gratefully in awe of it.

Warning: this is a WIP and hasn't been updated since June 2013.

rosa_acicularis hasn't forgotten about it, but please don't let its status put you off; the current chapters stop at a natural pausing point, and while there's no true resolution yet, there's no cliffhanger either.

pipmer1.livejournal.com

Title: Spectacularly Ignorant in a Nice Way
Author: fleetwood_mouse
Pairing: Sherlock/John
Length: 5754 words
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Drug Use
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: In which Sherlock Holmes soils expensive shoes, smokes 243 brands of cigarettes, cooks for a former drug runner, experiments with cosmetics, plans a wedding, and earns himself a very happy retirement.

Reccer's comments: 5+1 ficcery at its finest. This little gem is sweet and funny, with just the teeniest bit of angst - but just a tiny bit. It follows Sherlock through five phases of scientific experimentation during five different phases of his life, and concludes with Sherlock and John being happily retired in Sussex where they continue to experiment together. My favourite part was the first section, in which Mycroft's reaction to Sherlock's antics is priceless and will resonate with older siblings everywhere. Enjoy!

chapbook.livejournal.com

Title: Chanson Triste
Author:

fengirl88 On Ao3
Pairing: Ella/Anthea
Length: 603
Rating: G
Warnings: none
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: Anthea's love of French is one of the things Ella can't share.

Reccer's comments: I admire Ella and Anthea's relationship in the series Sleeping Beauty, but have highlighted this particular ficlet because of the musical references. Clearly fengirl88 is quite knowledgeable about classical music, including the vocal repertoire! She's selected a chanson [French art song] that fits one aspect of Ella and Anthea's relationship: both women work long hours in highly stressful, important jobs. To have a someone in whom, according to that chanson, "moonlight lies dormant,/A gentle moonlight of summer", someone full of "brightness" who can soothe and support their lover through sorrow and pain is priceless. There's also a little meditation on perfection vs. "good enough" in life and work that illuminates the nature of their love.

I heartily recommend listening to the recording linked at the bottom of the page. If you do not speak French, I'd also use the lyrics and their translation listed here.

rachelindeed.livejournal.com

Title: The Ties That Bleed
Author:

luchia13
Pairing: Sherlock/John
Length: 11,700 words
Rating: R
Warnings: I think the "R" rating is for the difficult themes, including suicidal thoughts and mental illness; there's also some description of violence though not graphic, and dub-con soul-bondings
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: John Watson has been bonded by blood to Sherlock Holmes. Until the day Sherlock dies, they will be tied together. Until the day Sherlock dies, John can't.

Reccer's comments: This is a soul-bonded Reichenbach AU. I adore well-done magical realism, and in this story I find the world-building both economical and compelling, surpassed only by the incisive characterizations. John, especially, is a beautiful trainwreck. The story delves into his intensely fluctuating mental and emotional states without ever losing touch with that part of John Watson that disdains his own drama. The story combines deep angst and conflicted romance with sharp and satisfying humor.

Essentially, this is the story of a haunting, and the way that Sherlock's shade within John's shared soul creates temptations, doubts, beliefs, and ultimately revelations during a truly agonizing hiatus.

Beautifully written and richly imagined, this story is a favorite of mine, although I should say in advance that it ends abruptly and does not really resolve the complex emotional tangle that it has built up. The author has said, though, that their goal was to tell the story of John's mental journey rather than to resolve his relationship with Sherlock, and in that the story succeeds brilliantly. Where he and Sherlock go from there is up to us.

verdant_fire

Title: Names for the Galaxy
Author: evadne
Pairings: John/Sherlock, background Anthea/Mycroft
Length: 191102 words
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: N/A
Verse: BBC
Author's summary: Sci-fi AU. Sherlock Holmes is a recent arrival to 22nd century earth, and determined to find out who he is and where he comes from. John Watson has the unenviable task of teaching him how to be a normal human being.

Reccer's comments: I haven't read anything else quite like this story, fic or otherwise. The worldbuilding is phenomenal, and the treatment of the characters is so empathetic that I really felt what they were feeling as I read this. It also has some of the best plotting I've seen. The foreshadowing was very skillful; I went back and read through again after I got to the big reveal, and details that I didn't make much of at the time suddenly stood out in retrospect. I adore this version of Mary, and Mycroft and Anthea are quietly badass together. And of course, the Johnlock is excellent, both very hot and very moving. I don't understand why this fic isn't better known in fandom, but it certainly ought to be. (One reading note: one of the characters starts off the story mixing up their gendered pronouns, but it's not a typo; there's an in-universe reason for it and it only lasts a few chapters.)

seren-ccd.livejournal.com

Title: Pain is a poison
Author: stormweaver
Pairing: Mostly gen, with John Watson/Mary Morstan and very slight Sherlock Holmes/Molly Hooper and Greg Lestrade/OFC
Length: 25,594
Rating: M
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: Story starts immediately as HLV ends, Sherlock returns to England as all is not well. Neither he or Mycroft is prepared for Moriarty's first move and someone vital to London's Consulting Detective is in the crosshairs.

Reccer's comments: This is the first story in a series, but can be read on its own. It is a wonderful way of tying up the reappearance of Moriarty and gives us a fun, AU look at the Holmes family and their history. Everyone, including the secondary characters, just shine in this. If you like Lestrade, you’ll love him in this. If you like Molly Hooper, she’s wonderfully competent and professional. Anthea turns up and she’s perfect!

The mystery is tightly woven and it is extremely well-written. There is an OC, and I won’t give away their identity, but trust me - it works.

On a minor note, (um, pun wasn't intended) the author includes her music choices for each of the chapters in the author's notes and they're very well-suited to the story.

solrosan.livejournal.com

Title: Ingénue
Author:

ebonlock
Pairing: Anthea/Irene Adler, Anthea/Original Female Character, Anthea/Harry Watson
Length: 95909 words.
Rating: Mature.
Warnings: No warnings apply.
Verse: Sherlock BBC, pre-series 3.

Author's summary: Her safe word is 'enough', because as soon as she meets Irene she knows she's never going to need it again.

Reccer's comments: This is the fic I want everyone to read but that I can’t talk about or describe, because nothing I can say will make it justice. I read it on my commute to work last fall (90 min on bus and train) and there were days I missed connections on purpose just to get to read for a little bit longer.

This started as a fix-it fic for A Scandal in Belgravia, but it’s a fantastic character study of Anthea (and Mycroft, in a way). I love the characterisations in this fic, especially Anthea and Mycroft, but also Irene, John and Sherlock. Not to mention that the depth that ebonlock brings to Harry Watson is amazing. This is one of my all-time favourite Anthea fics because she has so many human flaws. That actually goes for the entire cast, but Anthea and Mycroft tend to always be portrayed as some kind of super humans who have the stamina and skillset of mythological gods. It’s refreshing to read about them as believable people and ebonlock does it so well. My favourite detail is the high heels, Anthea’s and Irene’s. It sounds silly, but it is one of those things that just stuck with me and when you read you’ll understand.

As I said: I can’t really talk about it or make it justice.

archea2.livejournal.com

Title: The Sleeping Beauty series
Author:

fengirl88
Pairing: Ella/Anthea
Length: 6.500 words
Rating: mature on AO3, possibly PG-13?
Warnings: none
Verse: Sherlock BBC
Author's summary: In which John's therapist meets Mycroft's assistant.
Reccer's comments: This series has been mentioned before, in relation to another Ella/Anthea fic, but I've always thought that it deserved a rec of its own.

A series of meetings, short and long, between Ella and Anthea. Fengirl88's prose is in turn thoughtful, humorous, wistful, hopeful as the two women's acquaintance develop into an adult romance during which they learn to know each other and negotiate the potential pitfalls in their moments together (ah, that BlackBerry!). I began to read this series because I've always been attracted to Fengirl's delicate prose and and deep insights, and I've continued to read it when the romance engaged my attention and the girls warmed my reader's heart.

(Also, there's a night at the opera.)

( Excerpt under the cut )

frozen_delight

Title: The trouble it took to find you (also on AO3)
Author:

solrosan
Pairing: None
Length: 1,100 words
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: It was nine weeks since Sherlock last contacted his brother and it is time to start tracking him down.

Reccer's comments: This is a gorgeous missing scene set before the events of The Empty Hearse which explains in a very sweet and sassy way how Mycroft ended up saving Sherlock in Serbia. It also answers the question as to why the main plot of the episode has been written and acted out so anticlimactically in a most satisfying manner. The explanation involves Mycroft and Anthea plotting together like two criminal masterminds - and since I love nothing so much as the thought of Mycroft and Anthea scheming and ruling the country together, I absolutely adore this fic.

solrosan always writes the best Anthea and that's true for this story, too. Anthea is shown to be a competent, independent, witty woman who can think for herself and who's very fond of both Holmes brothers, which makes it seem very natural that she's constantly helping them - and that she's now also playing such a vital part in Sherlock's rescue. The way Mycroft is characterised, clearly worried about his brother, but voicing that worry in his typical understated, distanced manner and trying to retain his composure as though nothing had happened, is also a true joy to read.

In short: This is a sweet, diverting and surprisingly insightful read, full of beautiful little additions to the new canon.

pipmer1.livejournal.com

Title: The Fisher King
Author: pandoras_chaos
Pairing: Sherlock/John
Length: 25680 words
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: A series of firsts, as measured by time and understanding.

Reccer's comments: This is another story with simply exquisite writing. One chapter contains descriptions of drug use/overdose, and implications of possible off-screen non-con. The story was written pre-series 3, so it goes AU after Reichenbach. There is minor character death.

Each chapter is dedicated to a 'first' in a certain character's life. The first two chapters deal with John and Sherlock in childhood, and their respective ways of dealing with the loss of a father. The story continues on chronologically up through Reichenbach and beyond, through John's marriage to Mary, until Sherlock and John are finally connected in the most complete way possible. The firsts that the author chooses are major milestones in our beloved characters' lives, and shape their way going forward. Beautiful, heartrending emotion that all ends up in the best possible place. Not to mention a smokin' hot sex scene in the final chapter!

chapbook.livejournal.com

Title: The Madness of Angels
Author: ayalesca
Pairing: Sherlock/John
Length: 87,457
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Canonical and Minor Character Deaths
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: Urban fantasy AU. In which John Watson is a war sorcerer recently invalided home from Afghanistan. In London he meets Sherlock Holmes, the world’s most irritating urban sorcerer and only consulting detective. There, John finds himself and Sherlock suddenly under attack by a mysterious and malevolent power—and drawn into a mystery that may tear London apart. A fusion with the Matthew Swift series by Kate Griffin, but no prior knowledge is needed.

Reccer's comments: No S3 Spoilers

This impressive work is one of my favorite BBC series fics.

The bare facts: it is a fusion (with crossover elements consisting of cameos from two urban magic series) that requires no knowledge of the originals to steal your breath, squeeze your heart, and cause you to pound the nearest surface in amazed delight. The vivid, sharply realized settings and the stunning way in which John, Sherlock, Mycroft, and Irene just fit as their IC selves into the dangerous and fantastic landscapes of the City of London is truly remarkable. Let me not leave out the brilliant dialogue, the skillfully re-imagined S1 and S2 cases, and the plot twists so gorgeously done that my sole desire (aside from thanking the author) was to find the other enraptured commenters and hold a joyously raucous re-reading party.

I'll be honest: This fic reminds me exactly why I fell deeply, madly in love with the BBC series in 2011.

Excerpt:

“What are you exactly, John?”

“Washed-up RAMC,” John says lightly.

“Oh, no, I think there’s rather more to you than that,” Sherlock breathes.

He grabs John by the elbow and yanks him to a stop; John nearly stumbles. He gets his footing back and has his mouth open to swear at Sherlock when the iron-like grip loosens, shifts, and then Sherlock takes John’s hand in his own with surprising gentleness. Their eyes meet, dark blue to an ice blue so intense that John has to remind himself to breathe. Then John feels a softly glowing warmth in his hand, and in the next instant all of London thrills through John’s body and his heart suddenly jumps, resets its rhythm, palpitates, and then pounds in the rhythm of cars stopping and starting at thousands of traffic lights. His head fills with the laughter and sorrow of eight million souls; his lungs fill with the air they inhale and exhale. John closes his eyes and allows himself to exist within every footstep on every cobblestone, every raindrop falling on every roof, every spark of electricity burning through every streetlamp in London.

Sherlock pulls away and his gaze is challenging, his lips mocking.

Silently John reaches into his pocket and takes out the shell casing belonging to the bullet that is currently lodged in a dead serial killer’s heart. Sherlock’s face opens in a grin and John is absurdly pleased by Sherlock’s smile.

He reaches out for Sherlock’s hand.

The shell casing firmly fixed in his mind, John clears the London fog from their eyes and shows them both the clear starry night skies above a starkly beautiful desert. He fills both their lungs with the rush and roar of air during a parachute jump. He makes their hearts step in time with the inexorable march of conquering soldiers down through thousands of years of history. Then he presses the shell casing between his and Sherlock’s hand. He feels the sharp, desperate struggle between life and death imbued into the metal; he can feel the tiny thing pulsating as if it were the heart that it had stopped so recently.

And he sends a thrill of power into Sherlock’s body, filling him with the hot roar and spray of blood that the bullet remembers and will always remember.

“You’re a war sorcerer,” Sherlock says the words like a spell that is new to him: feeling the words for their hidden powers, tasting and feeling them for secrets and nuances. His eyes are scanning over John, studying every molecule of him, sniffing out every tendril of magic that is awakening deep inside John’s blood. “How can you be this powerful in London?”

“Because you are a battlefield,” John whispers, and with that realization his world blurs, reels, and then snaps into razor-sharp focus again.

holyfant.livejournal.com

Title: Six Hours, Forty-Six Minutes
Author: marysutherland
Pairing: Ella/Anthea
Length: 2222
Rating: Mature
Warnings: none; no spoilers for S3
Verse: BBC

Author's summary: Anthea's had a bad day, so it's good to go home to Ella.

Reccer's comments: I love marysutherlands's stories - they focus on minor characters (often women) and give them a tangible, believable depth in the space of just a few words. In this insightful, weary piece we get Ella ruminating a bit on her relationship with Anthea, a very subtle and realistic kind of relationship negotiation, and two insanely busy professional women struggling to make time for each other. Intensely lovely.

Also, it is worth it to note that this story was directly inspired by Sleeping Beauty by fengirl88, which is every bit as worth a read as marysutherland's lovely re-imagining of it.

chapbook.livejournal.com

Title: Behavioural Modification LJ
Author:

bendingsignpost
Pairing: John/Sherlock
Length: 23,726
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: Whatever it took, he was going to make this work.

Reccer's comments: “You do realize you’re prostituting yourself for tea, don’t you?”
This sounded humorous, an excellent, funny opening line, until I read on. The sentence echoed repeatedly in my head, as each new appearance of or reference to tea added to its weight and sharpness (a double-edged blade). From comedy to near-tragedy.

Homoromantic asexual Sherlock is my personal headcanon and best of all he is treated as a complex human being here, rather than a fetish object. John is not a one-dimensional savior, which does him justice as well. Their sex is sometimes sad, sometimes beautiful, but always represented with a refreshing air of reality.

bendingsignpost has nailed Sherlock, a brilliantly-voiced (unreliable) narrator, whose romantic and sexual past has twisted his notions of the proper way to conduct a relationship. Add to this a fantastic characterization of Molly, outstanding dialogue, a glorious passage of violin playing, and an ending that feels so well earned.

Note: If you love this, I enthusiastically recommend Ben's recent posting of the "AU of [his] AUs", AKA No Fixed Point. "Behavioural Modification" is one of the fics given the AU treatment. I'll say no more and leave it to the lucky recc'er who gets to do a formal rec of NFP...

pipmer1.livejournal.com

Title: The Bang and the Clatter
Author:

earlgreytea68
Pairing: Sherlock/John
Length: 137048 words
Rating: Mature
Warnings: None
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: Sherlock Holmes is a pitcher and John Watson is a catcher. No, no, no, it's a baseball AU.

Reccer's comments: Right off the bat (pun not intended) I want to point out that you don't need to know anything about baseball, or even have an interest in it, for you to be swept away by this fic. The story, at its heart and soul, is all about the progression of the relationship between Sherlock and John, which is done at a very satisfying and realistic pace. Having said that, if you are a baseball fan like me, you will find that aspect of the story satisfying as well.

The first chapter (prologue, really) is an introduction to the rules and terms of the sport, but you can easily skip past that to the story proper without missing anything of importance. This is one of my favourite authors, and I was waiting patiently (?) for it to be completed before I started it. When I did, I devoured it within a very short span of time. I would easily put it within my top 10 Sherlock fics.

Family dynamics play a major role in this story as well, for both Sherlock and John. The author even gives Harry and Clara a family of their own, and she does a beautiful job of portraying their relationship in a way that doesn't place all the blame for their problems on just one person. Even the unsympathetic portrayal of Sherlock's family isn't done just for the sake of adding unnecessary conflict, but serves the purpose of explaining why Sherlock acts the way he does in his interactions with other people.

Almost everyone from canon appears in this, and the author does a fantastic job of putting them exactly where they would fit the best in this universe. Greg Lestrade is the team's manager, Mrs Hudson is the team's owner (and also, incidently, the owner of the house that contains Sherlock's apartment), Molly is the team doctor... even Donovan and Anderson make appearances. Moriarty is also here, of course... who is ultimately revealed to be a much more sinister figure than just a rival pitcher who is the bane of Sherlock's existence.

Set aside a few hours for this epic romance.... I guarantee it will be well worth your time.

( excerpt )

hajimebassaidai.livejournal.com

Title: Without Borders
Author: scuttlesworth
Pairing: John Watson/Mary Morstan
Length: 4,310 words approx.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Character death, Reccer would add death of someone who is pregnant (not graphic)
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: Medicine Sans Frontiers always needs doctors willing to travel to difficult places. Without Sherlock, John needs a place to get away from London to and someone to need him. So he goes to the Sudan, and he minute he gets there he gets his ass chewed out by Nurse Morstan.
Author's Notes: This idea, of John joining Medicine Sans Frontiers because he can't bear London anymore - of John seeing Nurse Morstan for the first time and she's this vibrant and amazing woman, and she completely chews him out in front of everyone and they're all nervous because she's only a nurse and he's the Doctor from England - and he falls for her, completely - this has been in my head for ages.
I hope you like it. :) This might be the last time we can do a fix like this, where Mary Morstan isn't canon yet.

Reccer's comments: First of all I'm making sure I rec this now before this magnificent possibility for Mary Morstan finds herself well and truly jossed!

Second: don't judge! Just stay right there! I've read a few John Watson/Mary Morstan fics where Mary felt like a wet blanket. That is far from the case here. I can truly believe that John would love this Mary, and want to spend the rest of his life with her.

This is a story where John has gone to find himself that purpose he needs so badly. What the author gives the reader is an incredibly vivid world (you can practically feel the heat when you're reading it) complete with a brilliantly vibrant and alive Mary Morstan who John is attracted to from the off. As she yells rude things at him!
John builds himself a new purpose, a new place, a new life in the sands of the Sudan with Mary working alongside him. I can't say anymore without spoilers but this is a story that totally swept me away and on re-reads, even though I know where it's going, it never fails to move me.

I always think a mark of really great fanfic writing is that, when it comes down to it, that apart from a bit of assumed background, it could be detached from its fandom and still be an incredible story. This is one of those.

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A Sherlock Holmes Recs Community

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