merwan

I'm using this Dreamwidth account as a sort of reading-journal, both for the original/published stories and fanfictions that I'm reading. I read slash/gay fiction almost exclusively, so the content of this journal will reflect that. This will be an exercise in discipline and writing for me, because I tend to struggle with putting my thoughts into words and often don't post anything on my blogs.

This is not a "review-blog". I do this for myself and I include spoilers, though I do put them under a cut. So, browse carefully.

Vale!

Blurb: Zach Mitchell is stuck in a rut. His college boyfriend left him ten years ago, but Zach still lives in the same apartment, drives the same car, and feeds his ex-boyfriend’s ungrateful cat. His Denver business, A to Z Video Rental, is struggling. He has annoying customers, eccentric neighbors, and an unfulfilling romance with his landlord, Tom.

A combat boot-wearing punk with an attitude, Angelo Green was raised in foster homes and has been on his own since he was sixteen; he has never learned to trust or to love. He doesn’t do relationships, so when Angelo takes a job at A to Z Video, he decides Zach is strictly off-limits.

Despite their differences, Zach and Angelo quickly become friends, and when Zach’s break-up with Tom puts his business on the line, it’s Angelo who comes up with a solution. Together with Jared and Matt, their friends from Coda, Colorado, Zach and Angelo will find a way to save A to Z, but will they be able to save each other too?

Like with Promises, it took me a while to get into this story. Somehow, the first couple of chapters don't grab me. But as I read along, I got sucked into the story alright. That said, while it was still a good read, A to Z did not have the magic of Promises. The characters weren't as memorable, nor their relationship as engrossing and moving.

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Summary: Being An Originally Intermittent Account of the Political (Mis)Adventures of the Viscount Northallerton, Lord Malfoy of Wimbledon; and the Rt. Honourable Harry J. Potter, Member of Parliament for North Southwark and Bermondsey (Liberal Democrat).

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Summary: When this season’s purple courgettes are woefully thin, Draco Malfoy thinks it amounts to small beans. Next thing he knows, the Department of Standards is over-run with leeks, Brussels sprouts all sorts of legislative difficulties, and somebody appears to have put a roquette under Harry Potter. Can Draco seize a marrow victory? Or will his plans for peas be squashed?

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Blurb:
As a young gay man—and a werepanther—all Jin Rayne yearns for is a normal life. Having fled his past, he wants nothing more than to start over, but Jin’s old life doesn’t want to let him go. When his travels bring him to a new city, he crosses paths with the leader of the local were-tribe. Logan Church is a shock and an enigma, and Jin fears that Logan is both the mate he fears and the love of his life. Jin doesn\'t want to go back to the old ways, and mating would irrevocably tie him to them. But Jin is the mate Logan needs at his side to help him lead his tribe, and he won\'t give Jin up so easily. It will take time and trust for Jin to discover the joy in belonging to Logan and how to love without restraint.

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Free short-story available at her website.

Set in the 50s it features the Assistant of the Chief of Staff of a US Senator who's gay and ends up with the son of said Senator. It took a while for me to really get into it (unlike The Devil and Cowboy Will for example), but I absolutely loved the second half. Parhelion's story and her style are unique and I really really enjoy reading her.

University AU where Arthur and Merlin are roommates. Merlin is a computer geek and a slop and Arthur is a psychology major and a clean-freak.

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It was very hard to get my hands on this fic as it's been pulled out of the internet. It's been recced and talked about pretty much everywhere and I read somewhere that it pretty much defined fandom!Draco and as I was reading it I could see how that was true. It's very much about Draco as it's told from a close 3rd-person Harry pov. Draco is this story is rather campy. Very conscious of his image, obsessed with his hair, his clothes. The Slytherins are very sexual, Blaise is gay and in lust/love with Draco. It's very long and not very plotty. The bulk of it is about Harry and Draco's budding friendship/relationship.

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I loved Sins of the Father by the same author, but this one I felt a bit lacking. It was still superbly written, but the characterization wasn't as consistent and extensive as it could have been, partially because of the length of the story. It needed to be longer for the interaction between the characters and their backstories to have been fully fledged-out, but the plot of the story, as it were, couldn't sustain a longer story.
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This is the sequel to Reparations, which I absolutely loved. This one is pretty much about Draco and Harry's relationship and how others react to it. Like the first one, it was solidly written, and the sex scenes were hot, but the story did drag a bit. It was very long, and there wasn't much content or drama to keep things going, and that ruined my enjoyment of it. Otherwise, it was very nice, it was hot and fluffy and romantic. It had none of the things I don't like, so in theory it should have been a "Best-Of", but because of the pacing and the unnecessary length, I'll have to bring the rating down a bit.