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[personal profile] pipmer1
Title: Restoration
Author: Chryse
Pairing: Sherlock/John, Sherlock/OMCs
Length: 50,000 words
Rating: Explicit
Verse: Sherlock BBC

Author's summary: “It won’t ever be the same as it was.”
“Of course it won’t be the same. But it might be even better.”

Reccer's comments: This is a fantastic Series 4 fix-it. Anyone who is familiar with Chryse knows to expect quality storytelling and emotional resonance. This is no exception.

The story picks up right after the events of Sherrinford, but before the ending montage. Sherlock, of course, has just lost his home and has learned that his childhood memories are false. On top of struggling to deal with all of his recent (and decades-long) losses, Sherlock also finds himself adrift and unmoored from his sense of self. He no longer knows what is true or false, or what he can trust to be real. So he embarks on a journey of self-discovery. After going through painful therapy to recover lost memories, he then begins the process of letting go of the past and finding a way forward. And he does this by going on a global walkabout.

He doesn't stay away for long, but he makes good use of his time. Discovering who he is, what he likes, and what he wants, including an awareness and exploration of his nascent sexuality. A delightful OC is introduced who helps him on this quest, and who asks for help of a different nature in return.

And never fear. John is a stalwart and supportive presence throughout. He isn't always physically present (he doesn't accompany Sherlock on his walkabout), but he's always on the edge of Sherlock's awareness, and ours. This is the John that comes through for Sherlock in the end, because he never really left. So be aware that, even though the pairing tag includes Sherlock with several OC's, it's only in the service of letting Sherlock find his way - and that way is back to John.
[identity profile] 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.
[identity profile] chapbook.livejournal.com
Title: Chanson Triste
Author: [livejournal.com profile] 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.
[identity profile] archea2.livejournal.com
Title: The Sleeping Beauty series
Author: [livejournal.com profile] 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 )
[identity profile] 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.
[identity profile] 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 [livejournal.com profile] fengirl88, which is every bit as worth a read as marysutherland's lovely re-imagining of it.
[identity profile] unovis.livejournal.com
Hi!
Just a few words on our tags and tagging your recs.

Tags are useful search tools for grouping the recs by categories: by pairing, genre, content, and sources for the stories or other fanworks.

We ask that reccers attach tags that are relevant to the works they rec. You don't have to add everything that applies-- for example, not a character tag for everyone who might appear in the story, or every theme or content. But if Molly has a significant cameo, say, that you think people searching for her might appreciate, then by all means list her in a tag. Likewise if you think this is the addiction story people should read, then use the content: addiction tag.

The required aspects to tag are pairing (if it applies), relationship genre (i.e., gen, slash, or het*), and verse (the source: ACD books, Sherlock BBC, Granada, etc.).

The easiest place to see all of the tags available is in this list of tags.

Tagging is enabled only for the author of the post and the mods. Only the mods can add new tags. We have a beginning list up now, anticipating likely categories and characters. We'll add more as recs are made, if characters and pairings, for example, aren't covered already. You can request a new tag to be added by commenting here or by contacting one of the mods. Keep in mind, again, that we'll be adding character tags as additional characters appear in recs.

Sherlock Holmes and John Watson have been abbreviated as SH and JW in pairings and some other places (e.g., content: sick jw). Since this recs comm is open to all versions of Sherlock Holmes, it seemed the simplest way to identify the characters. Lestrade, Gregson, and Dimmock are listed as "inspector" following ACD book canon, and Moriarty is listed only once by his (their) surname alone. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is abbreviated throughout as ACD.

*We won't add a category for "slash-if-you-squint" or similar invitations for the reader to see subtext in a story. If the author hasn't labeled her work as slash, then it's genre: gen or genre: friendship.

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