Nattering Nonsense

Tell me your 9/11 stories

2011-09-11T08:42:03Z

Each year I re-post the memories which many of you have shared with me of your experiences on 9/11 and I ask the rest of you to please tell me your stories, too.

Ten years after that awful day, I still grieve, as do many of you. And I'm still interested in hearing about where you were that day and your experiences were, whether you were oblivious to it all or you've lost friends or acquaintences (as is the case for angelicus, mockingbird39, nephele and harmony_bites), or perhaps, like me, you simply echo John Donne's sentiment, "Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind."

So, please tell me your stories. I’m not looking for your opinion of 9/11 now; I’m interested in what that moment in time was like for you then. What were you thinking? What were you doing? How did it impact you personally? How significant is that date to you now, a decade later?

And here are two links to the same document containing stories from angelicus, cookie2697, janajoh, mockingbird39, muffinkath7, nephele, tasyfa, jandjsalmon, laurenc21, martinigrl, rhetoretician, lapaglia44, harmony_bites and me. All stories are used with permission. However, if you'd like your story to be removed from this list, or if you'd like to tell me your story now, but don't want it archived for future use, please let me know. I'm interested in hearing your story whether or not you're comfortable with me sharing it with others in the future.

Thank you!

9/11 memories: Link #1 and Link #2
(Skip to page 3 to get past my personal notes and into the stories.)

ETA: There's a fantastic archive here of September 11, 2001 TV broadcasts, including a link to 3000 hours of television from 20 channels over the 7 days following the attacks. Click Here for this amazing, significant archive.

Academy Awards

2011-02-13T01:57:31Z

My hubby, the Resident Film Snob, has up his video editorial on What the Academy Got Right and Wrong. Watch. Enjoy his artsy-fartsy genius. ;o)

Happy Birthday!

2011-01-22T05:05:19Z

Happy Birthday, mockingbird39! It's midnight in Boston now, and judging by your earlier texts (you do remember those, right?) you'll be pretty hungover by morning. So I'm posting now. In honor of your current state of being (and since I couldn't deliver Captain Jack to you. I tried, but he's still in some off-planet bar, hitting on some sailor), I bring you:

Also, I wrote a review of Innocent, and I only insulted you once, since it's your birthday. Whore.

Happy Birthday!

2011-01-21T14:41:36Z

Happy Birthday, humantales!

More film reviews

2011-01-08T19:25:16Z

My hubby has some more film reviews up, for those of you who are movie buffs.

Black Swan - Darren Aronofsky
All Good Things - Andrew Jarecki
Animal Kingdom - David Michôd
Rabbit Hole - John Cameron Mitchell

Random Doctor-Who-Vs.-Reality Warning

2011-01-07T07:13:34Z

Oh my gawd - the Abzorbaloff is real! And on Earth!!

Lucky for us, it only craves a fishy mate.

But still! Ewwww!

Happy Birthday!

2010-12-27T10:01:12Z

Happy birthday to wonderfulwrites, jlrpuck, and serianna, who all share this significant day with me; Madame de Pompadour; my homeland: the great State of Texas; Ireland; the Second Great Fire of London; a whole lot of famous musicians, actors and other artsy folks; and my dorm's Spiritual Representative, whom I cursed out while we were at Bible college. Whoops. Aside from that situation, we are all obviously meant for greatness.

(Sorry, Roswell fandom. I'm afraid Jason Behr missed this momentous date by one day. This is unsurprising, as I've heard from a few reliable sources on my f-list that he's a bit slow. Bless his heart.)

I bring you three wonderful writers - er, no pun intended - a birthday greeting fit for a queen. (It was made for the Queen Mum's 100th bday.)

Why Spike is not a role-model for children

2010-12-23T00:57:00Z

Pookie is in here watching the Buffy musical, "Once More With Feeling," which the hubby and I thought would be okay for her at this point. She loves musicals, there's nothing too graphic or scary in this episode, and not any adult content for us to be concerned about.

And yet.

Now I find myself in an argument with her about why she can't mimic Spike's expressions. I caught her saying, "Bugger this!" She thinks it's funny-sounding gibberish (though she also thinks that about most Brit-speak, lol!) and refuses to believe it's a vulgar figure of speech.

Hopefully she'll obey on this one. Otherwise, I'll be hearing from her school soon, asking me why my daughter is swearing in Brit.

Grammar Happiness

2010-12-22T00:19:45Z

The Grammar Goddess (aka emluv) should have had this resource available to her back in her days of instructing certain ones of us.

SUPER awesome comics about irritating misspellings: Click Here.

Other fantabulous comics, including many more about punctuation, grammar, spelling, annoying people and CATS: Click Here

Christmas Commercials Poll

2010-12-20T06:21:42Z

I'm a sucker for old commercials, particularly those that get me bawling (which is not really a hard thing to accomplish, truthfully). So here are some links and a poll for you.

View Poll: Favorite Christmas Commercial

Christmas Video: Charlie Brown (And a toast to my internet friends)

2010-12-19T10:12:46Z

Each year I try to remember to post this video at least once before Christmas. If I can get my act together, I'll be posting other videos, too (I've got some awesome Muppets clips!), which have special significance to me at this time of year.

One of the things I love most of all about my varying-levels of friendships with every one of you wonderful people is the way that the internet has allowed me to know so many different people with such widely different beliefs, worldviews and backgrounds. I had a conversation recently with a Mexican immigrant who was working on my roof. We talked about how living outside one's home country (as he and I have both done) can give an individual the ability to have a broader view of the world; to understand (or at least attempt to understand) other cultures. What I didn't say to him, but I was thinking, was "That's NOTHING compared to all that the internet can expose you to!"

So here's what Christmas is all about to me. And I'd love to hear from y'all if anyone has a good memory to share or story to tell about what this time of year means to you.

Movie Reviews and AWESOME Dalek t-shirt

2010-12-13T07:26:19Z

My hubby has up some new movie reviews over on his blog, for those who are interested:

The Warrior's Way
Nowhere Boy

He was in here today watching some unbelievably depressing movie with Nicole Kidman, so I'm sure he'll have another review up in a few days. ;-)

And speaking of my hubby, I've been searching for a good Doctor Who t-shirt to get him for Christmas. I found one today on Ebay that had me shrieking with laughter. So since he never hits LJ these days, I bring you a sneak peek:

The shirt's description is also awesome. I love it when I encounter people with a great sense of humor:

Daleks are a powerful race utterly without pity, compassion or remorse. They have had every emotion removed except hate, leaving them with a desire to purge the Universe of all non-Dalek life.

The Westboro Dalek Church (WDC) is an independent church known for its extreme stance against Time Lords, humankind in general and its protest activities, which include picketing human funerals and desecrating the British flag. The church is widely described as a hate group and is monitored as such by the Anti-Defamation League and Intergalactic Poverty Law Center.

Doctor Who / Harry Potter fic rec

2010-12-06T01:50:07Z

Alright, Who-vians, I've got a rec to pimp that is not likely to get the kind of DW love it deserves, as it's not posted at Teaspoon. There aren't many like this out there, so I've been eager to rec this fic since it first appeared in the hgcrossovers exchange recently. The big reveal was today, so I was able to get my rec posted over at KIA.

The author of Only The Beginning, scifichick774, is one of my favorite authors. I'll read anything she writes, as she is well aware of, thanks to my stalking. ;-) Actually, I think she may be the only HP author I regularly follow anymore, due to my drifting from the fandom.

Truthfully, this isn't JUST a DW/HP crossover. There are several fandoms in the story. (harmony_bites, did you note the presence of Star Trek?) But when you reach the end, I think you'll understand why it stands out to me the most as a DW/HP crossover. And I have to say this is one of the most creative, BRILLIANT crossovers I've ever seen.

Here's my rec at Know-It-Alls. Go check it out!

David Yates interviews

2010-11-22T06:56:30Z

Over on his blog, Resident Film Snob, my hubby has posted links to two interviews with David Yates. Those of you who enjoy hearing details about the film making process, particularly that one incredible animation sequence, may enjoy this. I haven't watched these clips all the way through yet, so I'm not sure if there are spoilers are not.

Interview #1 (Re: Animation scene)
Interview #2 (Re: Harry/Hermione dance scene)

Btw, when we were watching the film last week, my hubby flipped out when that dance sequence began. "It's NICK CAVE!!" he hissed at me in the theater. I swear he's in love with Nick Cave. He has a poster of him, which he claims proves Nick Cave's awesome manhood. I say the singer just looks like a reject 70s pimp with his weird-ass mustache.

Hubby's professional (film critic) review of Deathly Hallows

2010-11-18T19:58:59Z

My hubby the film critic has posted his review of Deathly Hallows on his blog. The review also aired on his station this morning. Hope y'all enjoy it!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows review (Spoilers ONLY behind the cuts)

2010-11-16T06:47:54Z

ABOUT SPOILERS: This post starts out with a general, spoiler-free review. I have tried very hard to put anything that might be considered a spoiler underneath an LJ-cut (click here if you don't see the cuts). I've even used fake LJ-cuts below so I don't give away where the film ends. However, if you consider discussions of the film sets, shooting locations, character growth and other artistic evaluations to be spoilers, please don't read even the un-cut portion of this review! I'm sharing my thoughts because I think many will enjoy the advance details, but I'll be honest and say I'm nervous that someone is going to get upset about spoilers. Also, please be aware that spoiler-y discussions may be in the comments. If you’ve got a specific question for me and don’t want to risk getting majorly spoiled, please feel free to PM me. I'd be happy to discuss as little or as much of the film as you wish.

Tonight my family and I got to see an early screening of Deathly Hallows, thanks to my husband’s job as a film critic. (I’ll post a link to his review in a day or two after he writes it and edits the video package.) I had the chance to see a lot of advance promo clips from the film's electronic press kit, and my expectations weren't that high as a result, because I didn't realize how much those advance clips have been edited up, with the best parts saved for the movie. So if you've been watching any of those clips on youtube, don't make any negative assumptions about the movie based solely on what you see there.

Because - Wow! Was this ever amazing! I have griped about David Yates in the past, but I’m definitely eating crow. I never would’ve thought Yates would be capable of surpassing Alfonso Cuarón’s artistry in the third movie. And the acting – again: Wow. I was blown away by Emma Watson in particular. But the acting experience that all three kids have gained over the last few years was really evident in the phenomenal jobs they did.

One thing that really stood out to me about this movie is that it’s the first film of the series which cannot be watched without having watched the previous movies. In the past, it seemed as if a concerted effort was made to make each film "noob"-friendly. That is, one could watch any one of the films in the series without having seen the previous ones or read any of the books and yet still be able to follow along and enjoy the movie (though I hear that's debated re: the 5th and 6th movies). That is not the case here. The pacing is so fast, and yet so richly detailed, that it will be completely impossible for one to keep up with the plot without having watched the previous movies. In fact, I really think that one would have a difficult time understanding this movie if they have not read all the books. There are certain elements (such as the shard of glass from Sirius’ mirror) included in this movie which carry over from the books and which did not appear in the previous films. My 8-year-old daughter, who has only ever watched the movies, required a constant stream of explanations in order to keep up with this movie. Fast-paced editing and a huge information dump (just as in the book) exacerbates that dependency on the previous films or books in order to understand this film. Personally, I loved how heavily dependent this film is upon the books. I think it is extremely true to canon and subsequently in keeping with the way that Book 7 really couldn’t be appreciated without having read the previous books. But some may not like that.

Visually, my only complaint was that I really am not a fan of using a hand-held camera, and that technique was over-used in my opinion on several occasions, particularly in moments of high stress or action. But given how gorgeous the cinematography was as a whole, that’s a pretty minor quibble.

Chris Columbus was very dependent upon the special effects and beautiful Hogwarts set during the first 2 films. Alfonso Cuarón was my favorite director partly because of how great a job he did in making the look of the films be about more than just the cool-looking castle (as well as how great he directed the kids). I enjoyed but haven’t been overly impressed with the looks of the subsequent films, and really didn’t have high expectations for the aesthetics in this film. In addition, consider the fact that Deathly Hallows is set in a despondent, desolate time period. The world is cast in darkness, the Trio is despairing, and they’re living a pretty miserable existence. For the filmmakers to accurately portray all of that and yet really knock us out of the park with the look of this film was quite impressive.

The locations were gorgeous, with wide shots that made the Trio look very small in comparison to this huge world outside of Hogwarts. I was reminded of what Bill Nighy said in the Doctor Who episode “Vincent and the Doctor,” “Pain is easy to portray, but to use your passion and pain to portray the ecstasy and joy and magnificence of our world…” Not a great comparison, I know (neither David Yates nor even cinematographer Eduardo Serra could be considered the cinema's answer to Van Gough), but it truly was awe-inspiring to see this time of pain portrayed accurately and yet with so much beauty.

And finally, keep your eyes peeled for a jaw-dropping example of animation genius. This particular sequence had better win some awards, or I'm going to seriously consider writing a letter to someone to complain. :)

As I said above, the film was extremely true to canon, far more so than any of the others since perhaps the first movie. (Although I actually have critiques about the methods Columbus used in being true to canon back then.) As with any film adaptation, there are elements that are missing or modified in order to transition to a different story-telling medium, But because this book is being presented with what I predict will end up being about 5 hours of screen time by the time DH: Part II is released, Steve Kloves had the luxury of taking his time and include everything that was important. So while there are a few minor elements or scenes missing, I had nothing to complain about in that regard. In addition, there were several spots where Kloves' script attempts to fix the problems caused by leaving out elements in previous films by putting in extra scenes or elements in this script (E.g., Dobby is given more time in this movie than in the book in order to help us bond with him, since the last four movies ignored him.). Again, nothing that a canon purist would be upset about.

That’s about all I can say without spoilers. If you want a spoiler-y explanation of a particular scene or element, click on the chapter title below. In order to avoid spoiling y'all, I'm using all of the book's chapter titles as my LJ-cuts, so you can't tell where the film ends or what is or isn't included in the movie without clicking. Or, feel free to message me your questions, so long as you tell me what the limits are to what you want to know, so I don't accidentally spoil you.

How The Film Opens: The film opens with a study in contrasts as the trio are at their separate homes, preparing for battle. Harry is packing up his life and saying goodbye to the hell-hole he called home. Ron is gazing out onto the horizon, the Burrow at his back. But what tore me up was the scene where Hermione curses her own parents into forgetting her. I bawled my eyes out, and we were barely 2-minutes into the film. Emma Watson did an absolutely amazing job on that scene. Even now a I write about it, it brings tears to my eyes.

The Dark Lord Ascending: The scene with Snape (minus Yaxley) striding into Malfoy manner is included, along with Charity Burbage’s murder. It is far better than the preview clip I saw last week led me to believe, as it left out a lot. Tom Felton does a great job here. Helena Bonham Carter actually struck me as a bit over-the-top, even for Bellatrix, but it’s a brief moment. Mostly I was struck by the great job Jason Isaacs, Tom Felton and Alan Rickman did here, along with Carolyn Pickles as the suffering, soon-to-die Muggle Studies professor.

In Memoriam through The Dursleys Departing: The incidents of "In Memoriam" are covered above under "How the Film Opens." The Dursley’s departure was barely touched upon. We didn’t see their goodbye with Harry – just a brief, outside shot of them packing their car. To be honest, I didn’t even notice Dudley or Petunia – just Vernon.

The Seven Potters: The Seven Potters was a great scene. Nice mixture of humor and fear there. The twins were in their element here, as was Mad-Eye Moody.

The departure was a bit different, but not dramatically so. I was very happy with it overall. Hedwig wasn’t in the cage – Harry released her to fly to the Burrow (Not the Tonks home) before they departed, something I always wished Harry would’ve done in Book 7, as he had done before in previous books. However, she still doesn’t survive, as she sacrifices her life for Harry, taking an Avada Kedavra to save him, and alerting the DE’s to the real Harry’s identity. The scene with Harry’s wand acting on its own was included and was very nicely done. Hagrid does not fall off the bike, though, nor do we see Stan Shunpike. Harry does shoot stunners at the Death Eaters, but it is not as obvious that it would be a fatal shot, since they are lower to the ground, albeit in the middle of highway traffic and multiple car accidents when Harry hits them.

Fallen Warrior: The arrival at the Burrow was very, very well done and is an emotionally powerful scene. Molly’s bravery is clearly evident here. We get to see the Order members challenge each other with their secret questions, just as in the book, clearly driving home the fear of betrayal that is already seeping into the members of the Order. I found it particularly striking to see Lupin dealing with the realization that they have already been betrayed again. Another moment that choked me up was when George is laying on the couch, the side of his head bloodied from his missing ear. The scene plays out much the way it does in the book, with a mountain of fear and distress in the room dissipating as George cracks his “saint-like” joke.

The Ghoul in Pajamas and The Will of Albus Dumbledore: The kissing scene between Harry and Ginny is nicely done, with the sexual tension actually ratcheted up a notch when she approaches him to ask that he zip up her dress for the wedding. There’s an innocence there that keeps the scene from being so overtly sexual that it bothered me for my 8-year-old daughter to see it, but any adult or teenager would’ve felt it. I liked that, because it kept this film child-friendly, while still conveying the passion between Harry and Ginny that’s present in the book when she kisses him. The way they are interrupted in this scene is much funnier than in the book, but I won’t spoil you on that. Shortly thereafter, Scrimgeour shows up, portrayed with un-surprising artistic genius and skill by Bill Nighy. The bequest scene is cut down a bit more than I'd like, but all the important information is eventually conveyed elsewhere in the film.

The Wedding: The wedding is shot very closely to how it’s depicted in the book, including all the important elements, as well as a delightful moment with Luna and her father. Viktor Krum is not in the film, which was a disappointment to me, but not too shocking, as he really wasn’t essential here.

A Place To Hide: When the Trio escape the wedding and the Death Eater’s find them, the scene plays out much as it does in the book, including most of the essential elements. I didn't even catch them saying Voldemort’s name in the cafe scene (my husband caught it), but one thing that is not made clear in this film, though, is that Voldemort’s name is jinxed (though it’ll be obvious later in the film to those who have read the book).

Kreacher's Tale and The Bribe: The Grimmauld Place scenes are cut, but everything essential is included, along with a few additions that delighted me. The scene between Lupin and Harry in which Harry calls him a coward is left out, which disappointed me, but I can understand it isn’t essential here. Harry doesn’t find the picture and letter from Lily to Sirius which Snape had left behind, but we do get to see the dusty Dumbledore ghost-thing that Mad-Eye left, so that was cool. It was very effectively done. Kreacher is AWESOME. I love the actor (Simon McBurney) who does his voice. Unfortunately, we don’t get to see Kreacher learning to like Harry, and we don’t hear the whole story of Regulus and the inferi from Kreacher, but the essentials are conveyed. There is also a surprise inclusion when Kreacher delivers Mundungus, which I LOVED.

Magic Is Might and The Muggle-born Registration Commission: The scene at the Ministry is very, very well done. I won’t say a lot here because I don’t want to completely ruin the action and suspense. But it’s paced very well. I liked the fact that the statue at the ministry was discussed, not merely left in the background, in order to drive home the impact of its ugly message. And ever since we left the movie theater this evening, my 16-year-old son has not quit quoting one particular line that is directed at Umbridge with a humorous, Take-THAT!-you-toad kind of impact.

Camping Scenes: The Thief and The Goblin's Revenge: The camping scenes are everything you would want, with one possible exception. Phineus Nigelus’ portrait is not included in this film at all. But from the scary moment when they get there through the powerful, heart-wrenching scene of Ron’s angry departure, you’ll see some fantastic examples of how these three kids have grown as actors. Again, I think Emma Watson is brilliant here, but I was also really struck by how Rupert Grint has learned not to simply “mug it up,” as my husband said (in reference to Grint’s typically dramatic facial expressions). Grint’s timing, his poise, and his depiction of Ron’s inner torment are very, very well done in these scenes.

Godric's Hollow: The Christmas scene at Godric’s Hollow is heart-breaking. We don’t see the war memorial statue, unfortunately, but the mood is conveyed nonetheless. I like the line Harry gives about why he is not using polyjuice potion to visit his home. I was a bit disappointed by the lack of encouraging messages left for Harry at the ruins of his home, but I can understand why Yates didn’t want to interrupt the pacing of that scene by including it.

Bathilda's Secret: Bathilda Bagshot’s scene is very well done. I was afraid of how scary it might be for my daughter, knowing the potential for it to be rather grotesque, but they managed to convey all the horror without being gratuitously freaky. Voldemort did NOT appear in this scene. However, Harry still saw the importance of Grindelwald’s picture thanks to a series of visions he gets throughout the movie, as Voldemort obsesses over the Elder Wand.

The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore: I want to go re-watch this movie for several reasons, but a big one is that we whip through Dumbledore's background so fast, that I don't think it was explained in great detail, but I'm not positive. Perhaps the next film will get into this more, but the fact that Dumbledore and Grindelwald were childhood friends is only alluded to by the inclusion of a photo of Albus and Gellert together as boys. Ariana’s death is left out. The article that Elphias Doge writes is glimpsed and then alluded to again when Harry meets Doge at the wedding, but neither the details from that article nor the information from Rita Skeeter’s interview or book are included. If you’ve read the book, you’ll understand what’s being referenced, but Dumbledore’s past is really not discussed. In fact, the visions Harry gets from Voldemort are the main source of information and another example of elements which I think will be very confusing to those who have not read Book 7. The way they were included worked fine for me, but due to the rapid cuts and confusing, dream-like way they are shot and edited, I’d suggest you explain in advance the entire Grindlewald/Dumbledore connection to any of your friends who are going to watch this movie without having ever read the book.

The Silver Doe: The scene with the doe patronus, the Sword of Griffindor, and Ron’s return was fantastic. It was scary, it was exciting, and it was very emotional when we see Ron again. Even knowing how it would play out, I was still on the edge of my seat. But the scene with Ron destroying the Horcrux – WOW. It’s another great example of how visually stunning this movie is. The visions which torment Ron are heart-wrenching. All his jealousy, all his vulnerabilities, are laid bare here in away that is deeply moving, and which explain Ron’s character extremely well. Voldemort’s gift for really understanding people is made obvious here.

On a side note, in 2007, I believe, just before the Order of the Phoenix film was released, the three main actors did an interview in which Rupert Grint hilariously expressed his hope that either he or Emma Watson might die before they have to film any kissing scenes together, due to the anticipated weirdness. Here’s the interview. Skip to about 08:30 min in:

Now, keep that interview in mind when you watch this movie, particularly the above-mentioned, under-the-cut scene. Just do it, then come back and report your impressions to me after you watch the movie. ;-)

Xenophilius Lovegood and The Tale of the Three Brothers: The most surprising and stunning scene in the film for me was the animation sequence used when Hermione narrates The Tale of the Three Brothers while they are visiting Xenophilius Lovegood. I had wondered in advance how this would be portrayed, as neither a live-action re-enactment of the three brothers meeting Death, nor a simple scene of Hermione or Xenophilius reading the book, seemed to me to be a good way of maintaining the tension in that scene, keeping us inside the narrative, and yet conveying all the necessary details. The novel approach of depicting this scene through absolutely GORGEOUS animation, while Hermione narrates the tale, worked splendidly. The sepia-toned animation had a Tim Burton-esque feel to me (though my know-it-all hubby says he’s reminded of animators Jiri Barta or Jacque Drouin), with a gauze-like texture to Death’s robes, marionette-like movements from the characters, and a splendid, scary, strikingly beautiful look to the entire sequence. I was mesmerized. This film deserves a boat-load of awards for that one sequence alone.

The Deathly Hallows: The scene with the snatchers was set-up differently than it was in the book, but was no less frightening. And while I was very disappointed that the scene didn’t open with Pottercast (Pottercast was entirely omitted!), I can’t complain about the pure chaos and terror of their capture. Hermione’s hex is portrayed as the last possible spell she can cast before she is caught, seemingly sacrificing herself in order to save Harry.

Not particularly-spoiler-y observations about Hermione's characterization: Which brings up another point here. Hermione is shown repeatedly in this film as being particularly powerful as well as brilliant. Much as I love Hermione, I must admit that I think that was over-played a tad. Hermione was smart, and in Book 7 she really does come in to her own and is not as prone to panicked, flustered behavior as she was at times when younger. But JKR repeatedly emphasized that Harry was a more powerful wizard than Hermione was a witch. Yet time and again in this film we see Hermione as the one who is the best fighter. Ron even says to her, “You’re the best at casting spells” at one point. I’ll need to re-read the book again (I think it’s been about a year since my last read-through), but based on my recollection, I think Hermione’s strengths were over-emphasized at the expense of making Ron and Harry look like they are no-where near as skilled of fighters as she is.

Malfoy Manor: I’ve only two complaints about the scenes at Malfoy Manor. First, while Hermione’s torture at the hands of Bellatrix is a very powerful, frightening moment which made me cry yet again, it didn’t include Ron nearly mad with desperation as he screams for her and tries to reach her. In fact, while Ron is shown as screaming for her, the overall mood in the dungeon did not at all convey that frantic, struggle to reach Hermione which was depicted in the book both through Ron's frenzy and Harry's pained, driven actions. My second complaint is that Pettigrew doesn’t choke himself to death. In both cases, I wonder if concerns about keeping this film kid-friendly came into play in those decisions, though my resident film snob hubby doesn't think so.

Otherwise, everything at Malfoy Manor was very well done. But my favorite element here is Tom Felton’s acting. In the book we see that he doesn’t want to nark on the Trio, but it’s conveyed a bit differently. Here, Draco is more visibly torn between his family and between what he knows to be right, and it’s all shown in his eyes. There’s a long moment when he is nose-to-nose with Harry, and the two of them are speaking very eloquently with only their eyes.

Dobby’s heroic rescue and subsequent death are included with such poignant emotion that my 16-year-old son admitted to crying.

The Wandmaker: (no comments about this chapter)

Shell Cottage: (no comments about this chapter)

Gringotts: (no comments about this chapter)

The Final Hiding Place: (no comments about this chapter)

The Missing Mirror: (no comments about this chapter)

The Lost Diadem: (no comments about this chapter)

Seriously? You think the first of the two movies will go this far into canon?? (no comments about this chapter)

Okay, now you're just deluding yourself. (no comments about this chapter)

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Deathly Hallows: Part I ends with two scenes. Harry sits at Dobby’s grave, crying, while Voldemort breaks into Dumbledore’s tomb and steals the Elder Wand. Cutting this film off at that moment works well, I think, because the rest of the story is going to flow so fast. From the time they break into Gringotts until the end of the film, everything is going to go so fast that there would not have been a good time to cut. And this moment, when Voldemort seems to be more powerful than ever and Harry has just lost a dear friend and ally has an Empire Strikes Back sort of feeling to it.

Again, I loved it. Come back here when y’all watch it and let me know your thoughts!

Deathly Hallows Clip

2010-11-13T01:36:54Z

One of the fun things about my hubby's job with the media is that I sometimes get to see movies before they are released when he goes to press screenings. We're taking the kids and going to see Deathly Hallows: Part 1 on Monday. In preparation for the review he'll be writing, my hubby was showing me clips from the movie that are available online for the media. The scenes aren't linkable, or I'd be happy to share some with y'all. Once my hubby writes and edits his video review, though, I'll post it here.

In the meantime, as a Hermione fan, I got a kick out of one scene that was online. In it, Harry is leaving the Burrow before the wedding when Ron stops him. Harry says he is leaving early because he doesn't want anyone else to die for him, and he is anxious to go find the horcruxes - not sit around and wait for the wedding.

Harry says to Ron, "Come with me."
Ron replies, "And leave Hermione? Are you MAD?! We wouldn’t last two days without her!"
He pauses, then adds, "…Don’t tell her I said that.”

*snicker*

There's a lot of flashy action sequences, but the little scenes like that are, I suspect, what I'm going to enjoy the most. Rupert Grint does a great job in that scene.

And now I'm going back to my attempt at reading Deathly Hallows again before Monday. *crosses fingers*

[Easy] Help Request

2010-09-24T17:55:37Z

Okay, I swear I actually do have a life aside from fundraisers, fandom and (occasionally) fics. :) But please forgive me if I pester y'all again by asking you to vote for one of my school's fundraisers! :)

Could you please help me raise money for my daughter's school by clicking a link below to vote for one of these three teachers each day till Sept. 30? You don't have to pay anything and you won't get spammed. Just pick a teacher from below, follow the link below to the write-up of their project, and then click "Vote for this project" at the bottom of the page. You can vote once a day per email address. Your help would be greatly appreciated as it directly impacts my 8-year-old daughter's learning experience!

Pookie's school recently went through some major budget cuts, resulting in several lay-offs, substantial increases in class sizes (from ~20 to 30 students per teacher!) and a lack of funding for classroom materials or special programs. However, one of the teachers discovered this wonderful fundraiser through Sonic which has already helped us enormously. Four of our teachers have signed up for Sonic's "Limeades for Learning" program and one of them has already been granted funding by Sonic for her students.

HELP SONIC® HELP TEACHERS.

Help me give our students a more fulfilling school

year. Vote daily for our projects from Aug. 30 – Sept. 30.

Mrs. Sisney, first grade teacher: "The TAG reading system is an incredible way to incorporate technology into our reading program. By having these Tag Readers available during our Literacy work stations the students will be able to work independently or with partners to improve their reading fluency and reading comprehension skills. "

Mrs. Anderson, kindergarten teacher, is raising funds for portable CD players and books on CD. This project helps any child learn to read, and is especially effective with children who have learning difficulties, such as dyslexia.

Ms. Warson, Speech-Language Pathologist: "In our language groups we take lots of pictures during an activity and then turn those pictures into books!! The books can then be used to reinforce vocabulary and allow the students to review the activity. It is so fun to watch them go from just looking at the pictures to actually reading the books. We are building our own little personal library."

And if any of you are public school teachers, it's not too late to sign up for this for your own school! Our speech therapist, Mrs. Ford, raised over $500 for materials her students needed!

"The Darkness is Coming" DW theorizing

2010-09-16T23:16:35Z

I mentioned in a previous post that I was startled to hear the phrase "The Darkness is coming" in a Doctor Who season 3 episode. Tonight my daughter was watching "Sound of the Drums" and I heard it again in a way that convinces me that this is a reference to the season 4 story arc.

The Toclafane are talking to the Master and they say, "We have to escape, because it's coming, sir. The darkness, the never ending darkness. The terribly terrible cold. We have to run and run and run."

Gah!

The darkness refers to a dead universe without stars. We see that twice in canon:
1) The type of universe that existed on Malcassairo in Utopia (which was a stable, fixed point in time, in the year 100 trillion); and
2) The type of universe which Rose was warning about when Davros was destroying the stars (which was a rapidly progressing situation, reaching out through all the universes).

So if the Toclafane are saying that the darkness is coming, and they have to run away from it, they aren't talking about the stable, fixed darkness from Malcassairo. They're talking about an oncoming darkness - the one from Journey's End. HA! So the quotes in S3 about "The darkness is coming" ARE referring to season 4 and Rose's message!

I am amused. :)

ETA: My hubby reminded me today that the S5 finale also featured a cold universe without stars, but that was a different type of scenario in my mind, for reasons too long-winded to get into here. Still, I absolutely concede the similarity.

9/11 - Tell me your stories (Part 2)

2010-09-11T07:38:11Z

CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS POST..

nephele's story:
Mine are pretty much all here. [Gioia's note - Nephele's blog about her life as a resident of NYC that day is definitely worth reading!] Did I mention I knew people there? I did. Everyone I knew personally or well got out, but a few people I knew by association, or in the past, did not: a co-worker's father-in-law, a former co-worker's husband, a guy I went to middle school and high school with... Probably many more that I'm not aware of simply because we weren't in touch.

tasyfa's story:
It's not something I like to talk about; it makes my words stutter and stumble over themselves, and more frequently than even broken words it brings tears. Yes, still, and yes, even though I didn't personally know anyone involved. I will say that I was working downtown Toronto, and I was at a new employee orientation seminar that day - I'd started that job less than two months prior - and my building was just outside the evacuation radius around the CN Tower. And I took the subway home, and wrote this poem, and almost missed my stop for my head being elsewhere.

September 11
My life became a film today
Of blood and death and fear
Of steel ripping through steel
And wing-shorn glass

Any second now
Arnie’s gonna say, “I’ll be back”
And we’ll all laugh hysterically

Knowing that it couldn’t really be happening
Not here; not to us

And yet…

jandjsalmon's story:
Interesting. Every June 6th is very special to me - keep in mind that I'm a Historian and my minor focused quite a bit on WWII. I get upset when people around me don't show their appreciation on D-Day and am moved to tears every year.

Perhaps it's because I'm Canadian (though that sounds trite) and maybe it's because I was not as affected but now today was just another day to me. I remember being shocked when it happened. We woke up to the radio saying that one tower had fallen and we ran to CNN to see what was going on. It was shocking and scary and I wondered what kind of world I was bringing my first child into (he was born Oct 1st 2001) - but I'm not as affected now. But--- I am sending you lots of huggles to help you feel better tonight! *huggles*

laurenc21's story:
At the time, I was a Junior in college and my morning routine was dropping Jason off at his boss' house and then driving to school for my 8:30am class. I had just dropped Jason off when my mom called and told me that something crashed into the World Trade Center and I basically needed to see it NOW.

I turned around and drove back to Jason's boss' house, went inside to watch. I was there when the first tower fell, which was horrifying. I had to then go to school, where I was driving and flipping between radio stations, listening to the coverage.

I watched the rest of events in the small cafe at Cal State Fullerton before my class. I remember it was packed and people were just watching in silence. When I had to get to my class, we were in session for most of the class and at about 10 minutes before 10am a man walked into our classroom. Our professor gave him a "hang on a sec hand" and he waited for about 5 seconds before interrupting with, "I'm sorry but we're closing down campus and everyone needs to leave NOW."

Scary.

I left and went home... I had to go to work that night at the bakery because apparently, people wanted cake? I'll never get that.

martinigrl's story:
I was a senior in high school. I hadn’t wanted to go that day, much like the rest, but I had to drive my sister and somehow I got roped into showing up. I was beyond ready for college by this point.

I just remember it being the end of third period when it happened, right after I'd woken up from a typical 3rd period nap during film class (I was more than ready to graduate by then) -- there was some announcement that these towers had collapsed by our less than exciting principal and I don't really remember that much else except a sort of surreal excitement that we might just get out of school early.

That didn't happen.

Instead we spent the rest of the day acting like nothing had happened -- they didn't want us watching the news and some of our more empathetic teachers tried to talk about it -- we spent weeks talking about it, not doing work. There were other teachers who tried to make us work, ignore what was happening 75 miles or so away.

I think I blamed Bush, even at the time (and definitely found myself rolling my eyes at his press conference), saying that he had to have known something and if Gore had just won than there was a better shot this wouldn’t have happened. I know that a lot of people said that Colin Powell’s place in the cabinet made them feel safer -- too bad he was pushed aside.

I remember a lot of people resenting those teachers for that and I joined the chorus, mostly because given the option, emoting was better than being forced to do work that I found incredibly dull. Now, though, I know that if I were a teacher I probably would have done the same. Funny how that works out.

There was a girl who ran out of my fourth period class, one of the classes where all we did was discuss it and ignore the paper that I had sort of not done but was due that day (something, I’ll add, I was very relieved about -- as were my two friends who had both also failed to do it the night before). She was crying and freaking out, having just learned the flight numbers -- her parents were supposed to be one one of the ones out of Logan to LA -- somehow they’d switched at the last minute, missed their flight due to some unknown circumstance. I think that was probably the most striking moment of the day.

After that we left, went home and I found myself sitting on the couch watching CNN, like I did a lot, and it struck me that this was like the time I watched the constant coverage of Columbine and of Elian Gonzales -- three distinctly different stories that had nothing to do with one another, really and yet they all felt incredibly surreal.

As for what it feels like now -- it really is just another day for me. I wrote a little about it in my LJ.

rhetoretician's story:
11 September 2001 was the day before my son's second birthday. My in-laws had just paid to have a swingset put in our backyard, and I was fretting about how safe it was while my 7-year-old went bonkers over it.

I'd just gotten a new job within the University (a wonderful job that I was allowed to keep for less than three years) that required me to walk a bit from the parking lot to my office. It was a gorgeous day and I was thinking about how lucky I was to be in that new position. As I rounded the corner near the Episcopal Church, a man (I remember him as the proprietor of a news stand, but there isn't a news stand on that corner) asked me whether I'd heard that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. I whistled and muttered something about letting idiots get pilots' licenses; I was thinking about the small plane that hit the Empire State Building during the 1930s.

I got to my office, booted up the computer, and got onto one of the news sites. Everett, my boss and my friend, was already there and he looked more worried than I felt. Not too long after that, my mother phoned to tell me that a second plane had hit the other tower.

That was the moment I realized what was going on. I walked into Everett's office and told him. Now I've never had a day of military training or experience in my life, but Everett worked his way up from Private to Captain in the Infantry, and when I say he looked "grim" I don't think it conveys the sight. He immediately switched gears and began thinking about the students' safety; a few minutes later he started talking about their need for reassurance and comfort. He told me to notify the faculty that there were likely to be a lot of kids needing absences today, and not to hassle them.

The rest of the day is a blur. We listened to the news, we waited to see what would happen next. I do have a distinct memory of hearing that there were crowds of Palestinians in the West Bank cheering about the attacks, and getting very angry. I have another memory of suddenly recalling that my friend John worked in the World Trade Center, and that he'd been out of the office when it was attacked the first time. (It took him a few days to contact us, but it turned out that he'd retired -- at forty -- a few months previously and no longer worked in the WTC.)

I have two other clear memories from the next few days. One is of playing with the kids on the new swingset and noticing how very quiet it was without the planes (we live on one of the major approach routes to the airport). The other is of watching my daughter build a tower out of Legos, hit it with a toy airplane, and then scold the toy, "Bad airplane!"

lapaglia44's story:
I was at home that day. I can't remember if I had worked the night before or was just being lazy and sleeping in. but my roommate at the time was up getting ready to leave for work. I think her mom had called and told her what was going on. Well, probably not really what was happening but that a plane had hit the towers. She yelled up to me about it in case I wanted to see what was going on. I was like, "yeah, ok" and I’m pretty sure I rolled over and went back to sleep for a bit. When I finally got up and turned on the tv I think the second tower had already been hit and they were pretty sure by then that it was a terrorist attack. After that I was pretty glued to the tv. So I saw the towers coming down. I don't think I realized that people were trapped in the tower until after the reports came in about how many ended up dying.

I went to my church that evening and sat in on a prayer service. I don't know if I prayed because I don't think I knew what to say. I guess I was there mostly because I didn't really know what to do and yet I had to do something.

Later on in the week the city held a rally where they honored ems workers. Well, the fire department anyway. I remember being kinda angry about that. No not kinda, I was really angry. (Oh I suppose I should mention that I’m a paramedic.) I was angry because the city never saw fit to honor ems workers before then. And they haven't since. at the time I was thinking something along the lines of, "I’m just doing my job. I don't need a frick'n parade."

But today, I didn't realize it was September 11th until I heard Alan Jackson’s song about that day on the radio. I was just parking my car at home when it came on. I sat in my car to listen to the song. And I almost started to cry. After the song was over I went inside and had my quiet time. I read psalm 1. It speaks about how God is watching over us and how the wicked will parish. It brought me comfort to know that God is watching over us even when bad things happen. Do I understand why the happen? no, but I know that ultimately He is working things for our good. it also made me feel good to know that, one day those, bastards who have still eluded justice will face the ultimate justice.

So I hate to say it but, unless something comes up to remind me I probably will not recall the events of that day. Even though it has forever changed this world. I mean you say the words "September 11th" or "9-1-1" or "9-11" and people automatically know what you mean. I know it's sad, but it's true. So I suppose I’ve moved on. Well pretty much. Like I said I came close to crying about it today.

9/11 - Tell me your stories (Part 1)

2010-09-11T07:29:33Z

A few months ago, my sister, who lives on an Army base with her family, asked another Army wife, “What were you doing on 9/11?” The 20-year-old looked perplexed for a minute, and then asked, “When was 9/11?”

That kind of ignorance or indifference to this date still has me stunned, months after hearing that story. I noticed that the History Channel has 9/11 documentaries running all day today, but each year the attention given to this date seems to noticeably decrease. And so, every year I have a personal tradition of posting the stories people have shared with me of their recollections of September 11th.

I’m not looking for your opinion of 9/11 now; I’m interested in what that moment in time was like for you then. What were you thinking? What were you doing? How did it impact you personally? How significant is that date to you now, nearly a decade later?

Remember the flags that everyone seemed to have out? Remember the mini-flag poles you could buy to attach a flag to your car window? Remember when everyone would applaud their cops, police, firefighters and soldiers upon each random encounter? Remember how angry and afraid we all were? Remember how the news was pre-empting every show for days, with those scrolling tickers at the bottom listing HUGE estimates of the death toll?

At least, that’s some of what I remember. I’d like to know what others remember feeling and thinking and doing on that day and those that followed.

In each case, those who have shared their stories gave me permission to include them in my annual re-post. However, if I’ve neglected to get your permission or if you would rather not have your story included in this, please let me know and I will delete yours immediately.

And if you haven’t yet shared your story – or if you have, but you’ve got a new perspective on things now, years after originally replying to me – please share your story here, too. If you don’t want me to include your recollections in next year’s recap, please let me know when you post.

To jog your memory of how you felt back then, there’s a great archive of 9/11 photography, and within that I found this flash show. Turn down the music if you're not one to like having emotional chains yanked (especially since the songs have nothing to do with this tragedy), but the pictures are good. What really stood out to me, though, were the figures. Remember when we expected 10,000 to be dead? Or 20,000? One of the things I find most amazing about that horrible day is how much worse off it could have been. Thank God for that.

Here is the first set of September 11th memories:

gioiamia's story:
I was pregnant with my daughter at that time and not sleeping well. I was still in bed when my mother called and woke me up, telling me to get to the TV fast. I turned on the TV just after the 2nd tower was hit. I remember the look on my husband's face as we watched the towers fall; he looked just as shell-shocked as I felt.

I reluctantly got ready for work and drove out to my office in the suburbs of Chicago. By this time, downtown Chicago was evacuating. The traffic was wretched as everyone fled in obvious panic. When I got to work I remember the phone ringing all day from entertainers, politicians and VIPs who were stranded and expected me to be able to find them a way home. When I called my local Enterprise office for one such VIP, the agent said immediately, "Joia, don't even ask - there's not a car left in the city." It wasn't even noon at that point.

I didn't know anyone in NY or D.C., but I had just flown my staff back from an event in New York the day before. They were originally scheduled to spend Sept. 11th in meetings with our client in Manhattan, but decided to come back early on Sept. 10th. Had I not been pregnant, I would've been with them. As it was, I didn't make it back to NY till the next year, around August 2002. I got to see Ground Zero and the memorials that were still on the fences. My son (then age 7-1/2) was with me and has talked ever since about what an amazing thing that makeshift memorial was.

angelicus' story:
I don't know how to explain the surrealness of mourning someone you loved when an entire nation is mourning right there with you. I can't really tell you what I remember about that day. It's all a blur. But one thing's for sure. I'll never be allowed to forget it. I'll never be able to turn on a TV this time of year without seeing it over and over and over again. Like a never-ending, yearly nightmare that I know is coming. Every time they show the debris that we all know isn't really debris, every time I see those buildings fall, I have to see her die all over again. It makes my stomach turn to know that every year for the rest of my life, I will have a public home movie by which to remember Sarah's death. It took me 5 years to realize this. And it kinda sucks.

cookie2697's story:
It's weird today because I've been acutely aware of the anniversary all day today, yet it hasn't been in my face too much. Maybe perhaps because I was out of town this weekend and haven't been watching much TV or reading the newspapers? I don't know. It's very strange how quiet this year has felt to me.

But regardless

Very few people I know on the west coast actually saw the events of 9/11 happen live. Mostly because it was still early on the East Coast...I recall that it was around 6am in California when the first plane hit the tower.

I was still going to DVC at the time, as I have been a lot over the past 7 years of my life, and that semester happened to be one in which I had an 8am class. I think it might have been the ONLY 8am class that I had the entire time I went to that school. But regardless, I was up at 6am that day.

I've always been a routine oriented person, and 9/11 was right in the heart of Roswell obsession time for me. I think I was still admining at Fanatics at the time, and I checked the site about 100 times a day at that point in time. So my morning routine included computer time. I remember that morning, my alarm went off at 6amish, and I immediately stumbled downstairs to boot up the computer. My dad works nights, and comes home around that time, usually having breakfast and watching morning news, and I remember when I stumbled downstairs, I was aware that there was a big news story on, but I didn't process it. Just flipped on the computer to boot, and stumbled back upstairs to shower and get dressed.

I came back down around 6:30 and I never made it back to the computer. After showering, I was coherent, and this time I realized what I saw on the TV - the twin towers smoking. I sat down with my dad and I couldn't pull my eyes away from the TV.

The thing I remember the most clearly was watching live as the first tower collapsed. I think it was literally one of the most terrifying and disturbing things I've ever seen in my life. I think we had CNN on - I'm not sure. We might have been flipping between channels. But whatever channel was on, the camera was live on a female reporter on the street below the towers. All of a sudden smoke filled the screen, and the woman disappeared. And all we could hear was her screaming - loud, terrifying, REAL, bloodcurdling screams. Live. On the news. That moment has always stayed with me, and I've always noticed that as they replayed news footage from that morning over the course of the next week, no one EVER replayed that moment. And I'm thankful for that, because it's not something I'd want to relive.

It didn't even occur to me NOT to go to school. I've had people later be surprised that I went, but I dunno...it just didn't occur to me. I got in my car, flipped on the news on the radio, and I honestly believe it's the only time in my life that I ever listened to the news on my way to school. I was just terrified and I wanted to have all the information.

It was right when I pulled into the parking lot at school that the 2nd tower collapsed.

I walked into class that morning - I was taking HTML - and it was oddly quiet as people came in and sat down. The teacher took roll, and immediately afterwards, a girl in my class raised her hand and asked the teacher if we could talk about what was going on. The teacher looked at her, rolled his eyes, and said in the horrible, nasally, snotty voice, "Oh, we're not going to waste time talking about THAT." At least 5 people in the classroom sat up straighter and asked what she was talking about. There were people in the room that didn't even know what was happening yet, and my teacher wouldn't let us speak another word about it. I lost all respect for that teacher that day. And I'm pretty sure I ended up dropping the class in the end.

After that things are rather a blur. I remember hearing rumors left and right that there were still runaway planes in the sky. I remember going to the computer lab, checking Fanatics, and talking to people about what they'd heard. I also remember that I felt like I was getting no real information from the news websites. I don't remember going to another class that day. Maybe I skipped it to stay in the computer lab? I'm not sure. But I remember coming home and watching the news with my Mom all afternoon.

Early evening hit, and I couldn't take it all anymore. There was no new information coming out. Everything on the news was repetitive. So I decided to go out. I drove out to Fremont to meet up with a couple of camp friends who I was spending a lot of time with that month. I remember that we wanted to be outside, so we went to this park in Fremont, and climbed to the top of the play structure, where we lay back and stared at the stars. They smoked, and I just kept staring at the stars. I remember seeing a plane go over, and it chilled me to the bone, because I knew that all planes had been grounded. Later I realized it was probably a military plane watching the bridges.

And that was my 9/11. I remember more than anything being so happy that I didn't have to work that day. I can't imagine what it would have been like to be stuck behind a counter in a drug store while all of that was going down. *shudder*

janajoh's story:
In August 2001, my brother died. It was a horribly tragic and completely unexpected death. He was 20. I grieve for him still, even more so than any other death I have experienced since I turned 16.

I was still involved with the UT Band. We would be traveling to Gainesville for the UT vs. Florida game. The last time I went out of town, my brother died (Hubby and I had traveled to Memphis to visit my m-i-l); I was scared out of my mind that if I went to Florida, Hubby or someone else would die. I should also mention I was having dreams about my brother so I hadn't been sleeping well.

Anyway, Hubby called me at work when the first plane hit. He kept asking if we had a television in the office because we really needed to watch it. One of the ladies I worked with had her radio tuned to the local country station; she said there had been an air traffic accident. When the second plane hit, Hubby called once again, saying it was intentional. We listened by the radio for the next couple of hours.

When I got home that night, I was glued to CNN. To see the planes, to watch the towers fall, it was too fresh for my already-debilitating grief. All those families left behind. I could completely relate.

On Thursday afternoon, I loaded a bus to drive to Jacksonville. The UT Band never stayed in Gainesville (where the U of F campus is) -- but as soon as I stepped onto the bus, I knew I didn't want to go. Someone successfully talked the SEC commission into postponing all of the weekend's games. I headed back to my car and headed home. I think I cried all the way there.

Not to minimize anything any of those directly involved with 9/11, but it opened the floodgates for me and my own personal grief. I could begin to function as a normal human again instead of going through the motions of my life. I didn't understand why (still don't) but I began to accept I couldn't wave my magic wand and bring my brother back.

mockingbird39's story:
I was in Boston when the planes hit the towers, working downtown at a big firm that has offices on the 38th floor of a State Street building. I was already at work when it happened, sitting in my office with the door shut because I had a huge overseas conference call coming up and my assistant used to like to come in and complain to me about his boyfriend first thing in the morning. I was NOT in the mood to deal with it that day. A month earlier I had been in New York to visit a client who had an office in one of the Towers, and had also gotten to see a very close friend of mine from college who worked in the same building. I remember thinking she had the most amazing view and wondering if the client I had visited needed any new staff.

A little before nine, my assistant came in while I was on the phone with my boss. He waved through the window and sat down at his desk. A few minutes later, I saw him run down the hallway toward the conference room. Not thirty seconds later, my boss said, "Oh my god. Are you sure?" He told me to go to the conference room, so I did and got there to find the big TV tuned to CNN, which was showing live feed of the second tower with a big, smoking hole in it. The image was so surreal that at first I didn't realize it had hit midway up the structure. Smoke obscured a lot of the top, so it was hard to tell how bad it was. I also didn't realize that both towers had been hit by then, and that you couldn't see the first tower because of the angle of the camera and also because of the smoke.

Someone said, "A plane just crashed into the World Trade Center in New York." I remembered hearing about a small plane crash like that years ago, and my first thought was that I wondered how you could accidentally fly your plane right into the center of the Tower like that. I could understand sort of clipping it with a wing, but the center? It didn't occur to me that it wasn't an accident. Someone else said, "Don't we have clients in that building?" and I realized that I had been right there in that building, not a month before, and now it was smoking and crumbling like something out of a disaster movie. It was a second or two before I realized that I also had a friend in that building, and that another friend's brother worked there, too. But my brain didn't really process that information until later.

Instead, I remembered that I had a conference call that afternoon and still didn't have my budget spread sheets, and I spent a couple of minutes annoyed that my assistant was standing there in front of the TV and not printing my spread sheets. It was so stupid, and yet I fixated on it right up until they started showing footage of the people on the ground running from the scene.

Since the planes had come from Boston and because we were in a big bank building right next to City Hall, the evacuation announcements came pretty quickly. One minute it was, "Leave if you want to," and the next minute it was, "Everyone out -- now." I remember going down to the Red Line train and no one was saying anything except the T officials, who were repeating, "Come on through, come on through," in a monotone. The woman in front of me kept trying to give them her token, not understanding that they had thrown open the turnstiles and gates to get everyone out as quickly as possible. I felt relatively safe on the train, right up until we went above ground to cross the bridge over the Charles. We stopped at that stop to let more people on, and all of a sudden I felt so utterly exposed and vulnerable.

When I got to Harvard Square, I looked up at the sky and it was such a perfect, clear, crisp blue that I thought there had to be a mistake. I thought for sure that we had all overreacted and that I'd find out later everyone had gone back to work and I was behind. It was just too peaceful for something of that magnitude to have happened. At home my roommates and I sat around watching TV with our cell phones in our hands. Later that night, one of my roommates and I walked up the hill to the Catholic church. I don't remember actually making the decision; we just went. We couldn't think of anywhere else to go.

The next couple of days are kind of vague in my mind, except that I remember talking on the phone a lot. Everyone started calling to check in and find out who else we'd all been in touch with. It was actually kind of pleasant. I talked to people that I didn't hear from a lot, and caught up on a lot of things I'd missed. That first night -- and into the next couple of days -- I convinced myself that my friend in the Towers had gotten out, or that she hadn't been in there at all. When they gave the official times of the crashes, I was certain. Katie was never early for work. She wouldn't have gotten there before nine. No way. I waited for her to call me, I tried calling her, and I asked all our friends if they'd heard from her. I figured she was just in shock, or that the phones were really down. But after a couple of days when no one had heard from her and her voice mail box was still full it didn't look right. I didn't really want to talk to any of our mutual friends then because I didn't want to hear any of them say it. I avoided pretty much everyone who knew her until late the next week when I got a message that she'd sent an e-mail from her work account to her sister-in-law at 8:30 that morning.

It's been five years and there are days that I still can't process what happened that morning. Every month on the 11th, I sit and silently calculate how many months it's been since it happened. When the movies about Flight 93 and the Towers started to come out, I was angry that Hollywood thought they had to retell that story so quickly. I don't need anyone to remind me of what happened. I think about it every time I pass a firehouse, or when the clock hits 9:11 or when I plan a party or reunion or even a mass e-mail that doesn't include my friend Katie. Part of me is afraid that when people see it on the big screen it will become less real to them, that they'll start picturing the actors who play the characters instead of the people who lived the stories. At the same time, I know that there are some people who have a hard time connecting to what happened. If seeing the Hollywood version gives it a face they can remember and relate to, I guess it's a good thing. All I know is, it's too soon for me. I know that it's been five years, but yesterday it felt like a few weeks or even a few days. Today I have some space again, and that's probably why I was able to write all this down.

For all my interest in WWII and my history geek-ness, December 7 is just another day. I wonder if I'll ever feel that way about September 11.

muffinkath7's story:
I didn't find out until I got to work at 8:25ish my time. I was listening to a CD in the car, so didn't hear it on the radio. I think both planes had gone into the building at that point. A teaching assistant (one I hated, which I strangely still remember now) came out of the office and told me. I just sort of shrugged it off, thinking that he was a moron - that it had obviously been some kind of accident. Then I heard it from a few other people, and it began to sink in what was happening.

Our school is right on the flight path for the airport. We heard planes landing in Winnipeg all morning. Our librarian set up a TV in the library. My kids happened to be in there on a library orientation, so the librarian and I just ended up talking to them about what was happening. We didn't show them the TV, because we still didn't know exactly what was going on.

We had quite a few kids whose parents were in the army. Their moms and dads came to pick them up during the morning in case their parents' were mobilized.

We had a staff meeting at lunchtime and were given information to share with our kids after lunch, when we had emergency homeroom meetings. I remember thinking that I barely knew these kids (school had only be in for two weeks) and feeling inadequate to know how to make them feel less scared.

That night I went to my favorite restaurant with some friends and we watched Bush's address there (I remember feeling very uncertain about him after that address, because we still didn't know him very well then either...I really wished Clinton was still president at the time, because he always seemed so calm in a crisis. I don't blame Bush now for seeming scared, but I felt more scared after watching his speech...nothing to do with disliking him...just being nervous... I felt better about him later).

What I most remember was the silence of the day. How people seemed to speak in whispers. I also remember a lot of the Churches in the area had their doors flung open all day - which is very strange for around here.

Meant to add..I saw both buildings fall on the TV set in the library. It was just surreal and horrifying. Like a movie had come to life. It just didn't seem real.

CONTINUED IN NEXT POST...

Rose in Human Nature?

2010-09-11T00:05:43Z

We're sitting in here watching "Human Nature" and I caught something odd which I'd previously missed.

Right after Martha says, "You had to go and fall in love with a human...and it wasn't me," there is a scene with Timothy sitting on a bench (see screencap), listening to the fob watch. The first voice from the watch whispers in a woman's voice, "The darkness is coming."

Um... was this a pre-season 4 reference to the message that Rose was trying to send the Doctor throughout Season 4? Evidence, perhaps, of how many different eras and locations she tried to reach during her search?

I've never seen any discussions about this since Season 4 aired, though I did see theorizing about the meaning of those words in Season 3. The conclusion at that time seemed to be that the words were referencing either the Season 3 finale or, more immediately, the threat of the Family of Blood to that community, or even a reference to WWI. Anyway, I'm curious what others have thought about this. Anyone think this is evidence of Rose trying to get through to the Doctor, but failing because he was in human form, with his Time Lord consciousness locked away?

Pride & Prejudice fanfic rec list (1 of 3)

2010-08-07T04:24:08Z

Meant to post this ages ago. Here's my list of COMPLETED P&P fanfics which I rec:

What you won’t find on this list: There are very few stories on this list which feature a lot of angst. There are also very few short stories because I prefer novel or novella length fics. And as I’ve only read a handful of modern-era fics (I prefer Regency fics), there are only a handful of those fic res at the bottom of this list.

Most of the story names below are links to the story’s listing on jaffindex.com. However, for the links to work you must first sign in to the website (The username is SASReader and password is Edinburgh), then manually copy and paste the link into a new window. For some reason those links won’t work for me if I simply click on them. The benefit to going to the jaffindex listing for a story is that there are more details there than I’m bothering to include on this list, such as the various categories a story falls under or links to sequels.

Story: Affinity and Affection
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=2102
Word count: 137,500
Rating: Mature
Author: sadriani
Summary: What if Mr. Darcy did not simply ride away in anger when he met with Mr. Wickham that day in Meryton? What if he had actually warned Elizabeth Bennet of that gentleman's despicable character?
Gioia’s Rec: I’ve read this story more than once. It’s notorious for having premarital sex in it and some rather smutty scenes.
My only critique: I’m going to be upfront and admit that the entire story is completely OOC, but if I tell myself it’s a romance novel inspired by P&P, I really enjoy it. This is a published P&P story.
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Story: All That This Entails
http://austen.com/derby/noells1.htm
Word count: 134,900
Rating: All
Author: Noell S.
Summary: The Bennets fortunes change when an entail of a different kind is instituted. The change in their connections will affect every aspect of their lives.
Gioia’s Rec: A well-written version of the premise in which the Bennets are suddenly wealthy and titled. This sort of crack!fic entertains me, and I liked that even though there is a longer road till things are resolved, it’s a completely fluffy, angst-free journey.
My only critique: This is one of several fics in this sub-genre of P&P fanfic, so I’ll address my critique of these types of fics here rather than in each individual fic review. As any casual reader of P&P could discern, the idea of the Bennets actually having riches, titles, or significant connections rather ruins P&P’s entire purpose. Although I get a kick out of this genre, many of you will not enjoy such a radical divergence from canon, as I must acknowledge that it diminishes the depth of P&P.
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Story: Amour Propre
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2929901/1/Amour_Propre
Word count: 70,500
Rating: All
Author: Qwara
Summary: In a P&P altered reality, Mrs. Bennet is deceased, and Elizabeth & Darcy find themselves drawn to each other by a series of eerie premonitions...but a conspiracy lurks in the shadows.
Gioia’s Rec: Generally well-written (just a few minor typos). The fic is completely AU, with Mrs. Bennet dead and a new Mrs. Bennet (with wealth and business sense) causing the Bennet girls to grow up on a more prosperous estate outside of Hertfordshire, where they meet the Darcys just after Ramsgate. The story is very much a gothic romance/mystery. Its style reminded me of an early Louisa May Alcott novel, whose title I’ve forgotten. Elizabeth was a bit OOC due to her changed circumstances, but was still recognizable, and I like the way well-written AU fics like this allow us to examine how a change in circumstances affects canon characterizations.
My only critique: The story is very rec-able, but not exactly to my tastes simply because I’m not a fan of this type of tale. Even so, it was worth reading.
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Story: An Alternate Ending for P&P 2005
http://www.penandink.thehiddentower.net/stories/s_alternateending.html
Word count: 2,400
Rating: All
Author: Splatt
Summary: A scene that I wish had been in the film: Lizzy and Darcy meet up after they have both spoken with Mr Bennet in his library.
Gioia’s Rec: I was thrilled when I discovered that one of my favorite authors from the HP fandom writes P&P fic! I was even more excited to find that she enjoyed the 2005 movie, as I do. This extremely well-written short is a missing moment from the 2005 movie. There is a sequel: Here.
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Story: An Arranged Marriage
http://austen.com/derby/old_2004/janh2.htm
Word count: 91,400
Rating: All
Author: Jan H
Summary: For reasons of economy, Elizabeth is forced to marry a man she thinks she does not love.
Gioia’s Rec: This fic is much more angsty than a lot of those I love, but it’s well worth it. The story begins with Elizabeth’s marriage to Mr. Darcy due to her father’s death shortly after Darcy’s failed Easter proposal. The story does a great job of depicting their marriage, particularly the first few months. Darcy is very much himself in this story.
My only critique: I have issues with the non-con/reluctance nature of the arranged marriage sub-genre, but this author handles the subject well.
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Story: Beloved
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=1332
Word count: 79,900
Rating: Adult
Author: Pat M.
Summary: Elizabeth Bennet is taken as a newborn to Staffordshire, and is raised as the true daughter of a very wealthy family. She knew the Darcy family all her life, and had a crush on Darcy as a child. Darcy was always fascinated with Elizabeth, even when she was is a baby (no folks, he is not a pedophile!). This is their love story and there is no angst between them (other characters, yes, but not them). There is lots of HMS. These two just wanted to do the deed all the time, and who am I to stop them?
Gioia’s Rec: I’ve read this twice and enjoyed it. There is a lot of action and its so completely AU that its interesting to see how Elizabeth’s canon-characterization can be worked into such a radically different setting. The nature vs. nurture debate is illustrated well here.
My only critique: It’s very fanficish in its entire plot and writing style, so be forewarned. Mrs. Bennet is very OOC, but that’s deliberate, and in this fandom characterizing Mrs. Bennet as “truly ghastly” is considered an actual sub-genre.
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Story: A Better Man
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=1357
Word count: 106,200
Rating: All
Author: Lea B
Summary: After returning from Kent, Elizabeth continues to reflect on Mr. Darcy's letter and her reflections lead to changes in her life at Longbourn.
Gioia’s Rec: When Elizabeth reflects upon Darcy’s letter at Hunsford she realizes that her father’s way of managing the family is destroying his children’s lives. She is so disillusioned with him that she decides to go stay with the Gardiners before their summer trip to Derbyshire.
My only critique: I think the extent of the rift between Elizabeth and Mr. Bennet is rather OOC for both characters, but the entire point of the story is to examine how that change would have impacted things, so I don’t actually object to this.
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Story: Chance Encounters
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=1537
Word count: 245,800
Rating: Adult
Author: Linda (booknut)
Summary: After Ramsgate, Darcy is unwilling to leave Georgiana. Bingley decides that he will wait for Darcy to join him before moving into Netherfield. Darcy and Elizabeth first encounter each other in February, when she visits her aunt and uncle.
Gioia’s Rec: I’ve read this fic twice. But let’s be honest: there’s a lot of OOC behavior in it. It’s a fun idea and the writing is technically very good. However it is based on the premise that Ramsgate was much more traumatic to Darcy. So by the time he meets Elizabeth, he’s already much humbler and does not at all behave like he did in canon upon their first introduction. I liked it regardless, but be prepared for a much more sappy romance in this fic. This is a published P&P story.
My only critique: OOC behavior, particularly in Darcy.
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Story: Church Announcements
http://meryton.com/mrr/allegretto7/ChurchAnnouncements.html
Word count: 13,700
Rating: Adult
Author: Allegretto
Summary: n/a
Gioia’s Rec: After Elizabeth and Darcy inadvertently play voyeur to one another’s skinny dipping, the Hunsford proposal goes much differently. This fic is essentially an excuse for a lot of very well-written smut.
My only critique: OOC behavior in both Elizabeth and Darcy, particularly given the historic time period.
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Story: Colonel Fitzwilliam Interferes
http://austen.com/derby/old_2002/lissa5.htm
http://webspace.webring.com/people/ns/superl99/CFI1.html
Word count: 41,000
Rating: Adult / All
Author: Lissa
Summary: Unaware of his cousin's feelings for Elizabeth, Colonel Fitzwilliam decides to follow his heart instead of his purse and ask Elizabeth to marry him. She happily accepts him. Darcy is shocked when he hears.
Gioia’s Rec: I was surprised to find I really enjoyed this fic. I'm not sure it's precisely in-character in all points, but it's a very interesting story. Elizabeth's relationships with Darcy and Col. Fitzwilliam is handled with far more decorum than some authors would've managed. It’s not anywhere near as angsty as one might imagine.
My only critique: There’s a scene at Pemberley between Elizabeth and Darcy that bothered me a bit.
Note: The PG version is on Austen.com, the Adult version is on webspace.webring.com
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Story: Coming Home
http://www.austen.com/derby/old_2007/lindak1.htm
Word count: 15,100
Author: Linda K
Summary: Married six months, the Darcys are returning to Pemberley for the summer. They run into trouble along the way and Darcy is left to wonder if he will ever see his beloved Elizabeth again.
Gioia’s Rec: The story is listed as mild angst because the ending is a foregone conclusion. But that didn’t stop me from crying while I read this beautiful story.
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Story: The Companion of His Future Life
http://austen.com/derby/old_2007/jackc3.htm
Word count: 81,600
Author: Jack Caldwell
Summary: What if Mr Collins didn't marry Charlotte? How would that change things?
Gioia’s Rec: This explores the question of what would’ve happened if Mr. Collins married Mary instead of Charlotte, and specifically how that would’ve impacted Jane and Elizabeth’s romances.
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Story: Connections Redux
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=5612
Word count: 116,800
Rating: All
Author: Harvey S.
Summary: Mr. Bennet is shaken by the untimely deaths of his siblings, and later his first wife. His response to these tragedies, his much happier second marriage, and the family connections resulting from it, drastically alter the trajectories of his daughters' lives.
Gioia’s Rec: JA FF writer Sharni wrote an abandoned, novel-length story called “Connections.” With her permission, Harvey S. rewrote and completed the story. He made some changes, but left in some of my favorite elements, such as Elizabeth’s reference about having “plain, honest parents” who weren’t nobility. The premise in this story is that the Bennets not only have better connections than supposed as a result of his second marriage, but also Mr. Bennet, Elizabeth and Mr. Gardner put their minds to such use as to build a huge fortune. The story is crack!fic, honestly, but it’s great fun.
My only critique: See my comments on “All That This Entails” about this sub genre, however this is the best fic I’ve encountered in this category.
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Story: Curiosity & Correspondence
http://www.austeninterlude.org/maria/civ/Letterstitle.html
Word count: 22,000
Rating: All
Author: Mariafaith
Summary: After receiving Darcy’s letter at Hunsford, Elizabeth writes a letter to him in return.
Gioia’s Rec: This sweet story captures a lot of the doubts, uncertainties and hope that existed between Darcy and Elizabeth after his first proposal.
My only critique: The idea of Elizabeth writing to Darcy post-Hunsford requires willing suspension of disbelief, but then so do most AU fics.
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Story: Depths of Attachment
http://ali972.cbellamy.net/stories/depths-of-attachment
Word count: 21,900
Rating: Adult
Author: Ali (Ali972)
Summary: This short story picks up at the very end of P&P, after Darcy proposes for the second time. It deals with the progression of Elizabeth and Darcy's engagement and early marriage, from two single people who know each other in essentials only to the intimacy and the happiness Jane Austen indicates they achieve in marriage.
Gioia’s Rec: Very sweet, very canon-centric peek at what it might’ve like for Elizabeth and Darcy just before and after their wedding. Definitely recommended.
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Story: A Delay in the Post
http://www.austen.com/derby/oldf/collex4b.htm
Word count: 15,400
Rating: All
Author: Anna P & Lauren D
Summary: After having been surprised by Darcy's presence at Pemberley, Elizabeth remains oblivious of the problems with Lydia, because Jane's letters have gone astray.
Gioia’s Rec: This is a lovely story that explores how things would’ve progressed if Elizabeth & Darcy had more time together at Pemberley before Jane’s letters arrived. Not pure fluff, and it’s interesting seeing what doesn’t change, but the story ends well.
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Story: A Double Wedding
http://janh3.mrsdarcy.com/page6.html
Word count: 53,300
Rating: All
Author: Jan H
Summary: Elizabeth and Darcy have finally declared their love. But will she and Jane be able to have their double wedding in spite of numerous obstacles and the obstructions of a obstropolous father?
Gioia’s Rec: The story picks up from the moment after Elizabeth accepts Darcy’s proposal and then fills in the missing moments before the wedding. Darcy and Elizabeth come to a better understanding of each other, the community is scandalized, and Mr. Bennet struggles with letting his favorite daughter go.
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Story: An Earlier Impression
http://austen.com/derby/old_2003/kathyt4.htm
Word count: 4,100
Rating: All
Author: Kathy Taylor
Summary: An accident on the way to Netherfield introduces Darcy to a brave and witty young lady.
Gioia’s Rec: I thoroughly enjoyed this light, fluffy fic in which Elizabeth and Darcy meet just a bit sooner than they did in the book. I liked the little things which served to demonstrate each individual’s character in the story.
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Story: The Evening Before
http://austen.com/derby/old_2005/danilh10.htm
Word count: 32,900
Rating: All
Author: Daniella H
Summary: Mr Bennet happens to walk into the hallway of Mr Gardiner's house, just in time to see Mr Darcy request to call on him, an event which changes everything.
Gioia’s Rec: This story is well written and does a good job of showing the post-Lambton events from the perspectives of Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bennet. I recommend it for the purpose of seeing their POVs.
My only critique: Tthe fic’s premise really isn’t followed through very well. Very little diverges from canon, and it certainly isn’t “an event which changes everything.” In actuality, it changes nothing. Events proceed exactly as in canon, except that Mr. Bennet knows of Darcy’s involvement.
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Story: Failing and Fainting
http://www.austeninterlude.org/elsa/F&F.html
Word count: 36,200
Rating: Adult
Author: Elsa
Summary: Darcy accompanies Bingley when he returns to Hertfordshire. One day before they visit the Bennet family, a storm breaks out and alters a bit the course of events.
Gioia’s Rec: A sweet, romantic tale.
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Story: Fair Stands the Wind
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5262224/1/Fair_Stands_the_Wind
Word count: 49,200
Rating: All
Author: MaxineB (Maisedoat)
Summary: This is a Pride and Prejudice E&D AU, and that's all the info you're gonna get :D ALL comments gratefully received, especially if you think I could do better.
Gioia’s Rec: Truly great story. Darcy is the second son in this tale, and so when Elizabeth meets him at the Meryton assembly, he is Capt. Darcy. Mr. Bennet is ill at the time and Mr. Collins looms threateningly in the background. There is very slight angst in this story, though it’s largely resolved quickly. Mostly, it’s a really, really good drama. Great characterizations.
My only critique: This fic has an intentionally extremely AU premise. Darcy is a naval captain, not the master of Pemberley. I liked this a lot, but it may not be to everyone’s taste.
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Story: Fate and Consequences
http://austenunderground.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=128
Word count: 270,100
Rating: Adult
Author: Linda (booknut)
Summary: Darcy arrives at Ramsgate just hours after Georgiana leaves with Wickham. He immediately gives chase to stop the marriage, but can not stop the ruin of their reputations.
Gioia’s Rec: As with this author’s story, Chance Encounters, this is another tale in which Darcy is much more humble at the time he meets Elizabeth, prior to the Merryton assembly. I liked this story better than Chance Encounters, though, as I felt that there was better groundwork laid for the changes in Darcy’s character. The storyline was very interesting, too. This is a published P&P story.
My only critique: This author’s version of Darcy is a bit OOC (purposefully so), as is Mr. Bennet.
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Story: The Final Indignity
http://austen.com/derby/old_2003/lucy1.htm
Word count: 7,900
Rating: All
Author: Lucy
Summary: Caroline Bingley slowly comes to terms with the fact of the Darcy marriage and with her mortification at its success.
Gioia’s Rec: This is a delightful, humorous post-canon story told from Caroline’s POV. She is first embarrassed at the opera in London when she sees Elizabeth Darcy received with all the acclaim which Caroline so desired. Later, Caroline’s hopes of finding the Darcy’s unhappily situated at Pemberley are all for naught, too. Her indignation is quite funny!
My only critique: There are a few punctuation errors in this story.
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Story: The Final Reason
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=332
Word count: 29,800
Rating: Mature
Author: Ola (ardnaskela)
Summary: Elizabeth is already promised to another when she meets Darcy.
Gioia’s Rec: This is an interesting one. Lizzy is engaged to someone else and Darcy very aggressively pursues her, against her will. But even while he is rather forceful and even domineering at times, there is a gentleness, a patience and concern for her, which drives his actions. His character definitely has some grey shades here, but it makes him all the more interesting. (There is no unfaithfulness that occurs.)
My only critique: The way in which Darcy & Elizabeth’s happy ending is secured struck me as OOC for Darcy and several of Elizabeth’s relatives.
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Story: Five Minutes Later
http://austen.com/derby/old_2002/lissa3.htm
Word count: 3,300
Rating: All
Author: LissaMU
Summary: Darcy arrives at the Lambton inn in time to invite the Gardiners and Elizabeth to ride around the grounds of Pemberley. Later that day, he proposes again to Elizabeth. Then, the letter concerning Lydia arrives.
Gioia’s Rec: This is such an awesome example of fluff. I love how the author takes only a little bit of liberty with canon in order to resolve things much quicker, and with far less anxiety than Jane Austen’s last act bestowed. I love this story and this author.
My only critique: I’m struggling to come up with something to criticize. I’m not sure that Elizabeth was ready to accept a proposal (or that Darcy was ready to offer one) at that moment in canon, but I think that’s quibbling as I’m really not certain about that.
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Story: For the Sake Of A Child
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=5336
Word Count: novel-length
Rating: Mature
Author: Sidney
Summary: Raised in America, Beth Gardiner travels back to England with her father to start a new life. Will their wealth be able to shelter them from the past?
Gioia's Rec: I liked the way that this fic honestly addressed the issues of what problems can arise when one person in the relationship has had previous sexual experience and the other hasn't. However, that wasn’t the focus of this generally fluffy fic. There was a lot of fun historical info about early 19th century America included in the story. And while there were some crack-ish elements, overall this is a very fun, well-written story, and best of all, there was very little angst.
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Story: A Fortuitous Meeting
http://austen.com/derby/old_2005/aliciam13.htm
Word count: 93,800
Rating: All
Author: Alicia M
Summary: After Jane calls on the Bingley sisters in London, their efforts to prevent her meeting their brother come to nothing. Bingley is as enamored as ever.
Gioia’s Rec: I liked the way this fic didn’t overly romanticize Elizabeth & Darcy’s journey just because they met in London after Bingley left Netherfield. Spending more time around each other isn’t automatically the remedy to their misunderstandings – they still have to come to understand their own individual failings first. Very nicely written with solid characterizations.
My only critique: Much like the final line in the movie “While You Were Sleeping,” the author uses the fic’s title in the closing conversation of the fic in a way which had me rolling my eyes.
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Story: A Fortunate Mishap
http://aaran-st-vines.nsns.fanficauthors.net/A_Fortunate_Mishap_by_Pamela_St_Vines/index/
Word count: 35,000
Rating: All
Author: Pamela St Vines
Summary: A Fortunate Mishap begins the day after Fitzwilliam Darcy's first proposal to Elizabeth Bennet. In the original novel, Darcy hands her a letter that morning and their paths do not cross again for some months. In this story an accident allows the pair to resolve their differences before leaving Kent.
Gioia’s Rec: Abandoned. The day that Darcy gives his letter to Lizzy at Hunsford, she is injured and doesn’t return from her walk. When he finds her, they reconcile their differences. In this fic, Anne de Bourgh is suffering from a laudanum addiction that may have been purposefully inflicted.
My only critique: Sadly, the fic is MIA, but it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger.
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Story: A Glimpse
http://www.bennetgirls.com/Alicia/AG.html
Word count: 13,000
Rating: All
Author: Alicia M
Summary: Dreams bring Darcy and Elizabeth closer together, but their actual meetings do not.
Gioia’s Rec: It was a rare combination of mystical elements combined with P&P. I thought it was very romantic. As usual, this author does a good job of imitating JA’s writing-style.
My only critique: I enjoyed it so much I wish it had been longer!
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Story: A Good Vintage Whine
http://www.thehiddentower.net/penandink/stories/t_whine.htm
Word count: 7,800
Rating: All
Author: Tess (Teg)
Summary: Darcy has just returned to Netherfield Park following Bingley's engagement to Jane, when the two friends are afforded a rare opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings prior to their next meeting with the Bennet family.
Gioia’s Rec: This is a fluffy fic, essentially a “missing moment,” depicting a humorous conversation between Bingley and Darcy after Aunt Catherine confronts Elizabeth and before Darcy proposes a second time.
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Story: A Highly Unusual Circumstance
http://austen.com/derby/old_2006/kara7.htm
Word count: 18,200
Author: kara
Summary: Life for the Darcy's takes an unexpected turn when Elizabeth discovers she is expecting their fifth child at the age of 41. Their only daughter, Eleanor, is being presented to society and the only certainty in life is that nothing seems to be certain - but it will be adventurous!
Gioia’s Rec: This focuses mostly on the romance of Elizabeth & Darcy’s daughter. The background story is Elizabeth’s pregnancy.
My only critique: This is a nice look at life for the middle-aged Darcy’s, but I wish there had been more about the pregnancy and the public’s reaction to it.
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Story: Happily Ever After
http://aaran-st-vines.fanficauthors.net/Happily_Ever_After_by_Pamela_St_Vines/index.php
Word count: 55,300
Rating: All
Author: Pamela St Vines
Summary: Happily Ever After begins six to eight weeks after the first proposal when Elizabeth Bennet receives an unusual request from Georgiana Darcy.
Gioia’s Rec: This is a lovely, romantic, fluff piece. I enjoyed it very much and grinned much of the way through it. The author’s stated intent is to eliminate much of the angst and conflict that separated Elizabeth & Darcy post-Hunsford, but compared to others I’ve seen with a similar goal, she does a far, far better job in achieving that aim without making the story vapid and silly. Elizabeth is summoned to Darcy’s deathbed to reassure him that she doesn’t hate him. Instead, he recovers and they fall in love while he courts her in London. There’s at least one other version of this premise out there, but this is much better. I felt the author did an admirable job in keeping her protagonists in-character.
My only critique: As with any fic in which an avoidance of angst is the author’s stated purpose, this may be too fluffy or sweet for some.
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Story: Hunsford Awakenings
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=4040
Word count: 146,800
Rating: Adult
Author: Rachel P
Summary: To help her get over Bingley, Lizzy takes Jane with her to visit Charlotte. Here Jane meets Col. Fitzwilliam who falls head over heels for her.
Gioia’s Rec: The relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth feels a bit sudden here, but the fact that they still have to resolve some issues is well addressed. The story plays out nicely as a sweet romance between Darcy & Elizabeth and Col. Fitzwilliam and Jane.
My only critique: Elizabeth falls in love FAST.
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Continued:
P&P Recs - Page 2 of 3
P&P Recs - Page 3 of 3

Pride & Prejudice fanfic rec list (2 of 3)

2010-08-07T03:52:17Z

Continued from previous post...

Story: Hunsford, Interrupted
http://austen.com/derby/mege3.htm
Word count: 5,000
Rating: All
Author: Meg Epperly
Summary: A bit too much medicinal claret and a more-blunt-than-usual Elizabeth cause Mr. Darcy's Hunsford proposal to go awry. Sometimes, however, the best-laid plans ought to go astray.
Gioia’s Rec: This short story was very funny!
My only critique: OOC behavior and rapid resolution, but it’s meant to be a humorous piece.
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Story: I Am Weary, Let Me Rest
http://austen.com/derby/old_2004/elke16.htm
Word count: 19,900
Rating: All
Author: Elke
Summary: Anne de Bourgh invites Elizabeth for tea, but then must retire to rest. She leaves Elizabeth to fend for herself in Rosings' library. Soon, Elizabeth discovers that she is not entirely alone.
Gioia’s Rec: This sweet story is mostly fluff. While at Rosings, Elizabeth and Darcy come to understand one another sooner. There are still problems along the way, but we end up with a quicker resolution.
My only critique: For some reason the title annoys me, even though I understand its application to more than one character and know the song from which it is derived.
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Story: I Shall Not Go Away
http://austen.com/derby/sandyl.htm
Word count: 21,000
Rating: All
Author: SBL
Summary: When Lady Catherine descends upon Longbourn to try to persuade Elizabeth Bennet to refuse Mr. Darcy's offer of marriage, she makes a number of idle threats which fail to convince the young lady. But what if she actually carried one of them out? We join our story in progress, where Lady Catherine has already stated much of her case, and found Elizabeth unaccommodating to her wishes...
Gioia’s Rec: What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object? When one is Lady Catherine and the other is Elizabeth, the answer is quite entertaining. This is a humorous fic which explores what would’ve happened if Lady Catherine had refused to leave until Elizabeth agreed never to marry Darcy.
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Story: In Essentials (Much As It Ever Was)
http://austen.com/derby/old_2007/vangie.htm
Word count: 58,700
Author: Vangie
Summary: When Darcy and Elizabeth meet at Meryton, they have each passed quite different summers than those that preceded the events of the novel. Elizabeth and the Gardiners have recently returned from their tour of the Peak District, and Miss Georgiana Darcy, having been ill for much of the summer, failed to make her trip to Ramsgate.
Gioia’s Rec: Elizabeth is less prejudiced upon first meeting Darcy, but he is more so. As they get to know each other she assumes the best of him and he assumes the worst of her. By the time we reach Hunsford, things are quite different.
My only critique: In case you haven’t caught on by now, I’m angst-phobic. So I struggle to be objective about stories which introduce new forms of angst for the couple.
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Story: In Loving Memory
http://austen.com/derby/heathf1.htm
Word count: 261,400
Author: Heather F
Summary: During her walk in the park with Colonel Fitzwilliam, Elizabeth Bennet hears of Mr. Darcy's efforts to separate her sister from Mr. Bingley. Naturally, she is furious at his interference, and her agitation causes a headache. Instead of staying at the parsonage, she decides to go for another walk to think about the consequences of his actions, and her sister's resulting misery. When she does not return to the parsonage, Mrs Collins becomes concerned …
Gioia’s Rec: This is a well-written amnesia fic. After a head injury, Elizabeth forgets that Mr. Darcy proposes. The story covers the post-Hunsford time period and explores how that would’ve impacted the progression of their relationship. There is also an OC introduced as a long-lost relative, bringing the Bennets into contact with several other OCs.
My only critique: It probably would’ve worked better as two separate what-if tales rather than combining the plots, as the story feels a bit long as a result (261,400 words).
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Story: In Sickness and in Health
http://austen.com/derby/betsyr5.htm
Word count: 32,500
Author: Betsy R
Summary: n/a
Gioia’s Rec: When a deadly fever strikes the Meryton area after Christmas, the Bennets are seriously impacted. I bawled my way through much of this fic but absolutely love the beautiful ending.
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Story: Intermezzo
http://www.austeninterlude.org/abigail/int/int2.html
Word count: 13,400
Author: Abigail R
Summary: n/a
Gioia’s Rec: Mr. Bingley returns in May instead of going to Pemberley with Darcy, so Elizabeth doesn’t encounter Darcy there when she visits with her relatives. This story tells of a slightly longer road to reconciliation between Darcy and Elizabeth. Very sweet.
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Story: It Hardly Signifies
http://www.austen.com/derby/old_2008/kent1.htm
Word count: 18,200
Author: Kent (ballpoint202)
Summary: n/a
Gioia’s Rec: Lizzy is called home before Mr. Darcy can propose at Hunsford, but he learns of her opinion of him anyway, forcing him to take a better look at himself. This is a different, less angsty path to resolution which I quite enjoyed. I like everything of his that I’ve read.
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Story: Janet and Elisabeth
http://austen.com/derby/old_2002/tamsin10.htm
Word count: 111,300
Author: Tamsin
Summary: Janet and Elisabeth Fitzwilliam, daughters of the Earl and Countess of Matlock, were kidnapped as young children. Twenty years after the crime took place, it is revealed that they were taken and raised by a family named Bennet from Hertfordshire.
Gioia’s Rec: I don’t know why I read this type of crack fic. Something about the Elizabeth-is-actually-an-heiress-(possibly-a-Fitzwilliam!) scenario cracks me up, maybe partly because it defeats the entire premise of P&P. (Entirely illogical of me, I know.) This particularly fic includes some poorly written scenes and characterizations, and yet it still entertains me. I offer no excuse for having read it twice. It’s FUN!
My only critique: See my comments about this sub-genre on the entry for “All That This Entails.” Be aware that this is the most crack-ish version of this premise that I’ve rec’ed and there are some definite stylistic issues I have with the writing.
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Story: In the Shadow of her Sister
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=5130
Word count: 30,700
Author: Donna L
Summary: Affected by her parents' control and the constant comparisons of herself to Jane, Lizzy becomes withdrawn.
Gioia’s Rec: This story’s premise has Lizzy in a Cinderella-ish setting of degradation and despair in which she is unwanted and abused by Mr. & Mrs. Bennet, particularly compared to their beloved Jane. She is deliberately OOC here, behaving not unlike canon-Georgiana. We periodically get glimpses of canon-Elizabeth which spark Darcy’s interest. In spite of the OOC behavior it’s easy to see why Darcy is interested in her, as her suffering earns his compassion and her hidden wit and intelligence fuel his growing love. There are typos in this fic and some stylistic concerns, but I enjoyed the story. I liked the way Darcy’s character growth is brought about in a different way and the way that Elizabeth is still clearly the same person despite her trauma and resulting timidity.
My only critique: Typos.
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Story: The Journey
http://austen.com/derby/old_2005/janh3.htm
Word count: 100,500
Author: Jan H
Summary: Elizabeth finds herself in a carriage with Darcy, Caroline, and Mrs. Hurst. When they are attacked by robbers, Darcy quickly comes to her defense.
Gioia’s Rec: One of my favorite JA fics. I particularly like how angry this fic can make me, as it neatly avoids fluff or unnecessary angst and delves right into the complicated relationship between Elizabeth & Darcy. The same issues exist here as are in P&P – the protagonists merely deal with them in a different setting, under more dramatic circumstances. This is one of the few P&P fics with a real action/drama plot.
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Story: Kitty
http://austen.com/derby/old_2002/abby2.htm
Word count: 141,500
Author: Abby
Summary: Before heading off to a visit to Pemberley, Kitty Bennet decides she doesn't want to get married just yet, but wants to find a man she can love and respect.
Gioia’s Rec: This is one of the first P&P fics I read, and one of the few I’ve read, to date, in which the protagonist is a P&P side character. I was delighted by the character development and the interesting plot. There is a WIP sequel.
My only critique: I find it hard to imagine such a man actually being interested in Kitty, to say nothing of how popular she suddenly is with the ton.
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Story: Lasting Impressions
http://aaran-st-vines.nsns.fanficauthors.net/Lasting_Impressions_by_Pamela_St_Vines/index/
Word count: 61,000
Author: Pamela St Vines
Summary:
Gioia’s Rec: Abandoned Story. I’m rec’ing both of this author’s MIA stories, because they’re just too good to ignore and they don’t end on cliffhangers. Her stories are all based on the attempt to maintain character growth and integrity while eliminating months of uncertainty and angst. In this one I think Darcy is a bit more sentimental than I would expect from the canon character, but I can’t help loving the fic anyway. This is the story in which Lizzy is closely involved with Longbourn’s tenants, even providing rudimentary nursing assistance.
My only critique: Abandoned. Elizabeth is SO perfect that she borders on being a Mary Sue.
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Story: le course de francais
http://austen.com/derby/old_2007/betsyr2.htm
Word count: 9,600
Author: Betsy R (birdwoman)
Summary: French and fluffiness ensues when Mrs Jenkinson, er, is removed from the plot.
Gioia’s Rec: Sweet, fluffy fic!
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Story: The Lesser of Two Evils
http://austen.com/derby/old_2006/sandy4.htm
Word count: 5,000
Author: Sandy W
Summary: Mr. Collins over-imbibes on Mr. Bingley's wine and Elizabeth must flee to protect her reputation.
Gioia’s Rec: Another good example of a speedy, fluffy resolution! During the Netherfield ball, Elizabeth is fleeing from Mr. Collins advances when Darcy comes to the rescue.
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Story: Listening at Hedges
http://austen.com/derby/old_2006/sofie15.htm
Word count: 7,500
Author: Sofie
Summary: Chapters of angst are avoided when Elizabeth eavesdrops on a very important conversation.
Gioia’s Rec: I liked the creative way in which Lizzy discovers the truth about Wickham in this fic. By the end of this fic I had more respect for Bingley and Darcy than most fics (and even canon, in Bingley’s case) allow.
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Story: A Little More Practice
http://austen.com/derby/sandyw2a.htm
Word count: 57,600
Author: Sandy W
Summary: The day after Lady Catherine critiques her musical performance, Elizabeth Bennet follows her Ladyship's advice and commences practice on the piano in Mrs. Jenkinson's room.
Gioia’s Rec: This is a sweet, novel-length fic which starts at Rosings before Darcy’s proposal. He and Lizzy get to know each other, and know what each thinks of the other, sooner than in P&P. Events progress a bit quicker as a result.
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Story: London Outskirts
http://www.austen.com/derby/old_2008/kent2.htm
Word count: 33,400
Author: Kent (ballpoint202)
Summary: Lizzy encounters Darcy two days before traveling to Kent, and an eventful curricle ride ensues. Think of the 1995 BBC miniseries. And yes, I have a thing for that cross.
Gioia’s Rec: Cute, fluffy and well written! I’ve yet to read a story by Kent which I don’t love.
My only critique: The innuendo is amusing, but rather OOC for the characters and the time period. It makes me giggle, though.

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Story: Moonlighting
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=4092
Word count: 89,900
Author: Ola (ardnaskela)
Summary: Darcy as a werewolf.
Gioia’s Rec: Let me be honest and say that this Is crackfic. But it’s GOOD crackfic! Rather angsty at times, but with some interesting moral dilemmas for the characters, especially Darcy, who is very deceptive in his dealings with Elizabeth in order to protect his secret. Elizabeth’s concerns weren’t wholly answered, but the story has a happy ending ultimately.
My only critique: Darcy is a werewolf. Yes, seriously.
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Story: A Most Beloved Sister, Volume 1
http://www.austenunderground.com/PDF%27s.php
Word count: 77,500
Author: Casey
Summary: When Elizabeth rejects Darcy's second proposal, he is devastated. However, before he goes, she gifts him with a letter of her own. She loves him, but because of his interference with Jane and Bingley (whom Jane could not forgive), she claims she cannot accept him. Although he is devastated, he meets her again a year or so later and decides that he cannot let her go. But after a tragedy strikes her family, will he be able to convince Elizabeth to accept his love and be his wife once and for all?
Gioia’s Rec: This is a very angsty fic initially. Darcy’s second proposal from P&P is rejected, even though she admittedly loves him by then. However because Jane refused Bingley when he proposed (feeling that he was inconstant), Elizabeth fears that accepting Darcy would hurt Jane too much. What follows is an initially sob-filled story about what it takes to bring the couple together. The story is very well-written, though I think the OCs were a bit under-developed. Although I’m not generally an angst fan, I do think this was a great fic.
My only critique: Angst makes me cry.
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Story: A Most Civil Proposal
Rated PG: http://austen.com/derby/old_2005/colin1.htm
Rated M: http://meryton.com/ellenspdf/A%20Most%20Civil%20Proposal.pdf
Author: Colin
Summary: A central point of Pride and Prejudice is the incredible arrogance of Darcy's proposal in Kent and the despair and mortification that Darcy and, to a lesser degree, Elizabeth undergo as a result of that event and its aftermath. That resulting shock was crucial in inspiring Darcy to examine his own motivations and behavior and to resolve to amend his interactions with others. Similarly, it shook Elizabeth's similar but lesser prejudice, based on her wrong assumptions regarding Darcy's character and her own pride in her insight, leading her to regret what she had rejected with so little thought. This story is a look at what might have happened if Darcy's proposal had been a more considered, thoughtful, and civil proposal. Without that catastrophic evening at the Parsonage to drive change in both characters, the story considers whether Darcy can reject his pride and arrogance and if Elizabeth will ever correct the mistake in her estimation of Darcy's character.
Gioia’s Rec:
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Story: A Musical Interlude
http://austen.com/derby/old_2007/betsyr4.htm
Word count: 7,800
Author: Betsy R
Summary: In this particular ditty, there is no Wickham rearing his ugly head. Darcy is not so morose, probably because there is no Wickham rearing his ugly head.
Gioia’s Rec: Pure fluff, but very lovely. I liked this a lot.
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Story: My Love for You
http://www.austeninterlude.org/belen/mlfy/mlfy.html
Word count: 21,300
Author: Belén
Summary: Darcy comes to Hertfordshire to reunite Bingley and Jane, and also to see if he has a new chance with Elizabeth. When he doesn't find the answer he wants, he decides to return to London, but an unfortunate accident keeps him in Longbourn.
Gioia’s Rec: This was a sweet, well-written fic. 99% fluff.
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Story: A New Beginning
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4661917/1/A_New_Beginning
Word count: 62,600
Author: Maisedoat
Summary: What if Darcy and Elizabeth met under entirely different circumstance? Naturally, "The course of love does not run smooth" but I hope it runs interestingly.
Gioia’s Rec: An extremely good story which features a different set of circumstances but similar journeys of self-discovery as compared to P&P. It begins with Elizabeth meeting Darcy on his way to Netherfield when a gravel cart overturns. The story is unique enough in its plot to hold my interest, but the characterizations are so similar that I still am drawn to the protagonists. It is told largely from Darcy’s POV, and his loneliness really touches the heart.
My only critique: There’s no sequel!
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Story: No Finer County
http://www.faulkes.co.uk/heather/nfc/pg1.html
Word count: 13,900
Author: Heather F
Summary: Charles Bingley did not lease a house in the country and Fitzwilliam Darcy was unable to visit Lady Catherine the following Easter. Therefore, when the Master of Pemberley arrives home to find a young woman visiting with her Aunt and Uncle, he knows that they have never met before, yet she leaves an indelible impression upon him.
Gioia’s Rec: This fic is a beautifully paced and not too overly-optimistic depiction of what might have happened had Darcy and Elizabeth not met till she toured Pemberley. I liked the ending, in particular, because the author didn’t try to resolve the entire story. It’s merely an example of how the story as a whole might’ve had a different prologue. Very nicely written.
My only critique: It’s somewhat implausible to me that Darcy would be so nice to strangers on his property without the Hunsford heads-up. But then, most AU fics require willing suspension of disbelief.
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Story: No More Tears
http://www.desertmusings.net/les/?page_id=2
Word count: 118,000
Author: Linnea Eileen
Summary: Darcy's past hardships alters his views of love & marriage so much that he makes choices none who knew him would have anticipated.
Gioia’s Rec: I have mixed feelings about this fic. To be honest, the pacing is rather slow and there is not much action in this story. In addition, it’s rather angsty (and I hate angst). On the other hand, it is one of the best depictions of unconditional love I’ve ever encountered. I wish the story had been a bit more concise, but it was ultimately a very meaningful tale and stayed with me for some time thereafter.
My only critique: Slow pacing, not very concise. Contrary to the title, it’s very angsty.
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Story: November 27th
http://austen.com/derby/old_2002/judyly13.htm
Word count: 9,200
Author: Judy-Lynne
Summary: Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet find a chance to avert disaster when each overhears important information which calls into doubt all of their preconceptions.
Gioia’s Rec: For all the character development which occurs in this story, it is surprisingly short.
My only critique: I question the plausibility of Lizzy’s confidant, but the discussion itself and Darcy’s reaction to overhearing it are very nicely written. The rest of the story, too, is extremely well-written and captivating. I wish there were more!
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Story: Of Dreams and Memories
http://austen.com/derby/old_2003/aliciam10.htm
Word count: 30,600
Author: Alicia M
Summary: Darcy injures his head after proposing to Elizabeth at Hunsford, leading to some misunderstandings between them.
Gioia’s Rec: The author of this story does a far better job of duplicating J.A.’s reflective writing style than most of the other fic authors I’ve encountered. The blend of canon text with original text is nearly seamless in many places.
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Story: Of Scoundrels and Suitors
http://aaran-st-vines.nsns.fanficauthors.net/Of_Scoundrels_and_Suitors_by_Pamela_St_Vines/A_Pride_and_Prejudice_Story/
Word count: 20,580
Author: Pamela St Vines
Summary: This is another "happy what if" story. In this instance, what if Darcy had talked to Elizabeth instead of just staring at her. The story begins at Netherfield during Jane's illness and ends shortly after the Bennet sisters return to Longbourn.
Gioia’s Rec: This author is one of my absolute favorites in the JA fandom, though she appears to be relatively unknown. I know of her husband as a popular HP author. Her characterizations are fantastic, the plots are interesting, and the stories themselves are always very well written. This fic is no exception.
My only critique: I want more!
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Story: On the Nature of Love
http://austen.com/derby/old_2003/lucy4.htm
Word count: 5,600
Rating: All
Author: Lucy
Summary: Though their acceptance of Darcy's marriage was slow in coming, five years after their marriage, Darcy and Elizabeth can enjoy having his family for the holidays.
Gioia’s Rec: There’s a lot of emotional punch in this one. Elizabeth and Darcy are vindicated a bit when the Earl admits before all that he was mistaken in not accepting their marriage initially. But it’s the conversation between Bingley and Darcy about the way love changes over the years that is particularly powerful. Great writing!
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Story: The Other Bingley
http://www.trueproficient.com/fictionold/lissa/tob1.html
Word count: 43,600
Rating: Mature?
Author: Lissa
Summary: Additional or fewer Bingley siblings
I’ve encountered multiple P&P fics in which an OC is added to Gioia’s Rec: the mix in order to resolve things more quickly. This is one of the few which I think has a plot well-developed and unique enough in its own right to merit the creation of the OC as a means of diverging from canon. (Too many times the OCs are so Mary-Sue-ish that they are laughable, or their inclusion doesn’t change much anyway.) I like the way Darcy and Elizabeth’s problems aren’t instantly resolved in this fic – they just find other hurdles and other means to overcome them. However, the fic is generally angst-free, which is exactly as I prefer.
My only critique: There are some minor typos, and I must reluctantly admit that the OC is a tad bit Mary Sue-ish, though I maintain that she is far better than one would expect.
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Story: Rainy Days
http://www.austeninterlude.org/loryl/rainy.html
Word count: 201,500
Author: Lory L
Summary: Two days before the Netherfield Ball, Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy were caught in a storm and forced to shelter from the rain in a cottage. This event changed their opinion about each other and the whole story took a different course.
Gioia’s Rec: There are some stylistic concerns I have with this story, particularly in the beginning. But when I moved past those I found the story to be an interesting what-if scenario that leads to a speedier resolution of the P&P plot. I’ve read this multiple times.
My only critique: There is some OOC behavior.
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Story: Reconcilable Differences
http://austen.com/derby/old_2004/kathyt17.htm
Word count: 7,700
Author: Kathy Taylor
Summary: Darcy eavesdrops on Elizabeth's and Charlotte's discussion of the Netherfield Ball and hears Elizabeth's opinion of him. He takes the opportunity to explain himself.
Gioia’s Rec: What appeals to me most about this story is the spectacularly passion Darcy exhibits by the end of it. There is some damn hot kissing in this tale.
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Story: Relations Such as These
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=2362
Word count: 142,700
Author: Sara (Sadieo)
Summary: We all know what Fitzwilliam Darcy's perception of the Bennet family is, but what of Elizabeth Bennet's perception of that gentleman's family? This story explores another side of our beloved P & P tale, in which our hero and his lovely lady are forced to maneuver through innumerable obstacles before they are rewarded with their 'happily ever after' ending.
Gioia’s Rec: I had reservations about this fic based on the OOC behavior of Col. Fitzwilliam, a few canon mistakes, and some other issues. However I ended up enjoying the story far more than I anticipated due to a plot filled with intrigue and, er, smut. This is probably another one of those stories about which you should determine ahead of time that it’s simply a romance based on P&P. Don’t expect it to be true to canon any more than Bridget Jones was.
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Story: Relative Indiscretions
http://austen.com/derby/old_2005/genet18.htm
Word count: 26,200
Author: Genette
Summary: After Elizabeth has refused Darcy, they are thrown together and torn apart by the passionate indiscretions of some of their female relatives.
Gioia’s Rec: This story involves Darcy and Elizabeth coming to a very similar resolution as seen in the book, but several months earlier. I liked the courtship that they undergo. This version doesn't feel like it sacrifices character development and lessons learned for a speedy, fluffy ending, as some fics do.
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Story: Remembrance of the Past
http://meryton.com/mrr/loryl/ROTP/ROTPIndex.html
Word count: 265,900
Author: Lory L
Summary: Elizabeth and the Gardiners intended to start their tour in June, as planned, but Mr Gardiner's urgent business forced them to return to London and remain there for more than a fortnight. During this time, Elizabeth's paths will cross with Mr Darcy's again. However, Mr Darcy is not alone in London... The return of an old and dear friend will greatly influence him – and the entire story.
Later post-Hunsford altered events
Gioia’s Rec: This story is very well written and the opening chapter alone makes me emotional. And while lots of interesting subplots justify the excessive length, if it is professionally published it ought to be edited down somewhat. Regardless, I can’t say I mind the length in a fanfic. The OC, Lady Cassandra, actually serves a valid purpose here and isn’t too Mary Sue-ish in fixing things early on.
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Continued:
P&P Recs - Page 1 of 3
P&P Recs - Page 3 of 3

Pride & Prejudice fanfic rec list (3 of 3)

2010-08-07T03:20:59Z

Regency-Era stories, continued:

Story: Resolution and Reaction

http://austen.com/derby/old_2006/sandy3.htm
Word count: 22,800
Author: Sandy W
Summary: After leaving Hertfordshire and after his confrontation with his sisters, Bingley takes some time for reflection and makes some observations of his own.
Gioia’s Rec: When Bingley shows a bit more backbone and insist on returning to Hertfordshire after the ball, Darcy quickly learns how wrong he was and goes with Bingley to make amends. This is a lovely, fluffy ficlet, albeit with a rather rushed resolution. Still, It’s a great feel-good story; romantic, sweet, and very well-written.
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Story: Rumour Has It
http://austen.com/derby/old_2007/annl.htm
Word count: 10,400
Author: Ann L
Summary: What if Mrs. Philips had gotten it wrong? What if the rumour of Darcy's worth had been seriously underestimated?
Gioia’s Rec: This amusing story has long stayed with me, not just for its wit, but for the way it realistically addressed the consequences of such a mix-up. My Only Critique: It is only 10,000 words! It entertained me so well, I wish it had been much longer. But I will concede that it is perfectly concise, with a well-defined beginning, middle and end. So my wishes would probably ruin it.
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Story: The Second Sister
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=184
Word count: 80,500
Rating: Mature
Author: Lucrezia
Summary: In 1794, two little girls disappear in the midst of a horrific event. The re-emergence of one of the girls some eighteen years later brings happiness to many but will drive a few to acts of desperation.
The young woman raised as Elizabeth Bennet for eighteen years is not whom she believes herself to be. A story of murder, betrayal and reconciliation.
Gioia’s Rec: This is another of my guilty-pleasure fics in which Elizabeth Bennet is actually a kidnapped heiress related to Darcy. The story bears almost no relation to P&P, but it’s entertaining nonetheless. It’s not as well written as “Connections,” mostly because it drags in spots, not because of any major technical problems. But overall it contains a far more mysterious and dramatic plot than any of the other fics in this sub-genre. I can’t figure out why there’s a mature Rating, though, as nothing “steamy” occurred.
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Story: Seeds of Doubt
http://austen.com/derby/old_2001/sharni5.htm
Word count: 35,000
Author: Sharni
Summary: Elizabeth begins to question her easy acceptance of Wickham's representation of the Darcys, when Georgiana accompanies her brother on the Easter visit to Rosings and proves rather different to expectations.
Gioia’s Rec: I’ve read this multiple times. It’s fluffy, light, perceptive, and features a much more rapid resolution without sacrificing the character-development that came from the failed proposal in canon.
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Story: Shyness and Sincerity
http://austen.com/derby/old_2002/sofie.htm
Word count: 68,000
Author: Sofie
Summary: Elizabeth overhears Mr. Darcy's comments to Mr. Bingley at the Meryton Assembly, but is determined not to make a hasty judgment of the man. By the time the night is done, she comes to believe that he is not haughty, but is shy.
Gioia’s Rec: I’ve read this 2 or 3 times. It’s not that memorable, though it is well-written. It’s rather angsty by my standards, since Elizabeth and Darcy fall in love with each other early on but neither suspects the other’s feelings, so the story takes just as long to finish as in canon as a result. Happy ending, though.
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Story: Silk and Ivory
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=5307
Word count: 22,800
Author: janez2218
Summary: Unexpected rain forces the Gardiner party to stay overnight at Pemberley, which brings Elizabeth and Darcy's unresolved emotions to the forefront.
Gioia’s Rec: So very good! I liked the drama, fluff, and tiny bit of dramatic-angst. It was a completely AU scenario, but so fun and exciting to watch it unfold. Ultimately, a very sweet tale.
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Story: Sins of the Fathers
http://austen.com/derby/janh4.htm
Word count: 103,000
Author: Jan H
Summary: Elizabeth learns the shocking news that if she engages herself to Mr. Darcy, it would be a sin against heaven itself.
Gioia’s Rec: You angst nuts will LOVE this story. It’s definitely one of the best JA stories I’ve encountered. Absolutely gripping and heart-wrenching. I loved it.
My Only Critique: Lots of angst.
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Story: Sirius' Intentions
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=1164
Word count: 81,600
Author: Debra Anne
Summary: Darcy and Elizabeth are helped along by her dog and perhaps another non-canon character or two.
Gioia’s Rec: This was a fun what-if scenario in which the plot of P&P is resolved much quicker when Darcy and Elizabeth discover their mutual love of dogs. The story is fairly well written, though it contains some fanon (vs. canon) details, and the basic plot was quite fun.
My Only Critique: OOC behavior in spots.
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Story: Speak Not Against the Sun
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=5996
Word count: 76,200
Rating: All
Author: 4GiveMeJane
Summary: Not being able to breath the air at Longbourn after Collins’ long-winded and presumptuous proposal, Elizabeth heads for the woods where she runs as fast and as far as she can. Not being able to watch his friend Bingley mope while tying up loose ends at Netherfield, Darcy goes for a last ride before the entire party departs for London. Their individual escapes collide, and neither Elizabeth nor Darcy can escape the consequences.
Gioia’s Rec: Wow, was this ever good. It wasn’t the rapid acceleration of events that I initially expected, but neither was it the vapid rehashing of fanon I anticipated. This story had real depth and fantastic characterizations. It was interesting how the author took the characters on such a vastly different journey from such a firmly entrenched kick-off point in canon and yet managed to achieve fantastic character growth in spite of skipping Jane Austen’s intended journey.
My Only Critique: : This isn’t fluff. It’s a very character-driven piece with a vastly different plot and as a result there is definite angst here. However, it’s not as gut-wrenching as it would’ve been in the hands of a less talented author. There’s a purpose to everything here and the angst isn’t drawn own.
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Story: Summer at Pemberley
http://austen.com/derby/old_2005/lucy6.htm
Word count: 85,000
Rating: All
Author: Lucy
Summary: An influx of house guests disturbs Darcy's wish to be alone with his wife, and one guest appears disturbingly interested in Georgiana. Elizabeth convinces him to attempt reconciliation with Lady Catherine.
Gioia’s Rec: I very much enjoyed this fic depicting the first year of marriage for Darcy and Elizabeth. The matters only referenced briefly in the book’s last chapter, such as the reconciliation with Lady Catherine, are explored more fully here. The story is very well-written.
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Story: Three Dances and an Engagement
http://austen.com/derby/old_2002/marks9.htm
Word count: 13,300
Author: Marks
Summary: Mr. Darcy tries to convince Elizabeth that there are times when his interference in the matrimonial affairs of others is well justified and for the best.
Gioia’s Rec: This was funny and very entertaining. Rather AU, but very enjoyable nonetheless.
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Story: To Be Mistress of Pemberley Might Be Something
http://www.austen.com/derby/old_2008/brenna.htm
Word count: 1,300
Rating: All
Author: Brenna
Summary: After seeing Mrs. Darcy hard at work, Caroline Bingley decides she's better off single.
Gioia’s Rec: I like how much is crammed into this tiny story. The Bennet family snow games are awesome, particularly Georgiana’s participation in them. This story gives us an excellent glimpse at why Elizabeth loves her family so much. Caroline’s set down is just the icing on top of this already marvelous tale.
My Only Critique: I’m stretching here for anything I could possibly critique. Possibly Elizabeth’s use of the word “career” in relation to her role is a bit too modern of a term?
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Story: Twelve Days In August
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=3845
Word count: 166,000
Rating: Mature
Author: dominiquesdh
Summary: We read the year 1801. August the 1st, French troops came ashore in Brighton. Nobody could stop them and five days later the news are reaching Pemberley while Geoffroy d'Arcy, French commander in chief, meets Jane in Rosings. Not without consequences.
Sequel centered on Jane (free variation based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. This fanfic takes its liberty with P&P at book III chapter II).
Gioia’s Rec: This was an iffy rec for me. The French author’s patriotic perspective on that era is an amusing contrast to the very British mindset of P&P and the JA Fandom. The story features Jane as the protagonist and goes AU about the time Elizabeth is visiting in Lambton. Overall, I thought the story was good fun, if only vaguely related to canon.
My Only Critique: This is the English translation of a French fic based on the French translation of Austen’s 200-year-old English book, so there are understandably some very obvious technical faults in the writing which seem to be a result of the translation process. I’ll admit that it isn’t easy to ignore all the mistakes, such as the awkward sentence structure, inclusion of modern slang or references to carriages as “chariots.” There are also some clear examples of OOC behavior here, particularly in Jane who is written as if she’s channeling Lizzy. In the end, though, I found the fic amusing enough that I could excuse those issues. I tend to judge crack!fic very lightly due to its tongue-in-cheek nature, and I found the story to be extremely entertaining crack!fic which excused a lot. I also have enough experience with translations to forgive quite a bit there, too. This is a great example of a story that would benefit from a professional translator and editor, though.
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Story: An Unknown Quantity of A Girl
http://austen.com/derby/old_2003/lucy5.htm
Word count: 26,200
Rating: All
Author: Lucy
Summary: Darcy marries Elizabeth against his family's wishes, but Colonel Fitzwilliam is determined to support his cousin, while Darcy is confident that Elizabeth will, with time, win their esteem.
Gioia’s Rec: This post-canon story presents an extremely in-character view of how Elizabeth might have been received by Darcy’s relatives and London society. It’s told from Col. Fitzwilliam’s POV and is very perceptive and detailed in his insights as he observes Elizabeth, Darcy and those around them. I genuinely adore this story and consider it a benchmark when it comes to writing for the JA fandom.
My Only Critique: I wish there were more!
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Story: Wait Until...
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=966
Word count: 48,000
Author: Lynne R
Summary: When Darcy finds Lizzy crying over the thought of her sister being lost because of her elopement, he decides to offer his help.
Gioia’s Rec: Another story I would describe as sweet and largely fluffy. This is also another in which there is a prior relationship between the Bennet and Fitzwilliam families which Darcy and Elizabeth are unaware of.
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Story: When Least Expected
http://austen.com/derby/old_2003/lucy2.htm
Word count: 9,500
Rating: All
Author: Lucy
Summary: Though he gave his consent to Mr. Darcy, Mr. Bennet still has reservations about his new son-in-law. With a desire to understand the man better, Mr. Bennet heads towards Pemberley.
Gioia’s Rec: I really liked this story. It’s one of my favorites. Five months after the wedding, Mr. Bennet learns to better understand Mr. Darcy by visiting Pemberly. His reflections and observations make this a very happy story. I love all of this author’s stories.
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Story: White Lies and Other Half Truths
http://scotch-and-sirens.waw.pl/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=478
Word count: 87,000
Author: Barbara A
Summary: A light, fun look at the consequences of a little white lie. There are also many white lies and half-truths told by the rest of the characters in the story and you will learn about what happens as a result of each. It is low angst, high on humour and yes, HMS!! It is a classic Darcy and Elizabeth pairing, but it is not a typical canon story!!!
Gioia’s Rec: This is one of the smuttiest P&P fics I’ve encountered. Be prepared to giggle quite a bit as you read. The premise of the story – that they get together following the Netherfield ball – has little to do with the title and even less to do with the story in the end. Mostly, the story is a big excuse for lots and lots of well-written smut. There is notable OOC behavior and changed background to the canon tale, most specifically in creating a relationship between the Darcy & Bennet families of which Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth were unaware. This is a published P&P story.
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Modern-Era or Non-Regency Stories

Story: Flight of Fancy
http://www.austen.com/derby/oldf/sharni3.htm
Word count: 17,800
Rating: All
Author: Sharni
Summary: William Darcy believes that the airlines intentionally seat him next to annoying people, until he is seated next to a lovely young lady.
Gioia’s Rec: I liked this! I was looking for well-written fluff with snappy characters and I definitely found it in this fic. Caroline Bingley is nicely done, too!
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Story: Perfect Fit
http://meryton.com/aha/index.php?showtopic=3814
Word count: 185,400
Rating: Mature
Author: Linda (booknut)
Summary: Darcy stumbles upon Elizabeth at his cousin Anne's wedding, ruining her shoe but charming her heart.
Gioia’s Rec: The first “modern” adaptation I’ve read. I stepped outside my comfort zone with this one because I liked the author’s regency fics, and the description on this sounded relatively angst-free. I liked how the author applied a modern adaptation. The culture-shock issues that Elizabeth faced were nicely chosen modern alternatives to what is seen in regency fics.
My Only Critique: Some of the other character pairings were a bit hard for me to swallow, not because they didn’t work for her characters, but because it was hard for me to picture the canon characters (albeit modernized versions of them) in those situations. I had a hard time liking Anne after the scene at the beach house, too. I hated that scene.
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Story: Silver Dust
http://ellen3.mrsdarcy.com/
Word count: 77,700
Rating: Mature
Author: Ellen G
Summary: The milieu of this story will be familiar to anyone who has ever seen the old American TV show "Bonanza." Gold Hill was the lesser sister to Virginia City, Nevada, where much of the show's "in-town" action took place. A saloon in that show was named the Silver Dollar. Pemberley is meant to be roughly the size of Ben Cartwright's Ponderosa ranch, described on Wikipedia.org as being 1,000 sq. miles - over six hundred thousand acres, or over 2,000 sq. kilometers. So think of Darcy as Ben Cartwright...only younger and much, much better looking. I am indebted to the fascinating book Saloons of the Old West by Richard Erdoes for many of the particulars that will appear in this story.
Gioia’s Rec: This was an interesting, well-written story. It’s not Regency era; it’s set in the 1870s in Nevada with most of the canon characters in similar roles. Elizabeth is absolutely great in this story. I love her Levi’s-wearing, gun-toting characterization. The adaptation of the Regency-era characters to the culture of the Old West was well done, too.
My Only Critique: The aggressive sexuality displayed by Darcy (and, occasionally, Elizabeth) is a real issue for me. In addition, the extent of his forgiveness of one of the minor characters after the Lydia/Wickham debacle is not only OOC for Darcy, it’s absurdly stupid. Finally, while I can’t comment much about the accuracy of Nevada culture in that era, I can say without a doubt that the easy welcome of lascivious behavior would not have been acceptable for a young lady in Texas during that time period.
I’ll admit that these critiques made this an iffy rec for me, but in the end I’m listing it among my recs because it really is fairly well written and I had fun reading it.
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Story: Up From the Ashes
http://austen.com/derby/old_2005/sofie9.htm
Word count: 81,400
Rating: All
Author: Sofie
Summary: Elana Barnes needs to rebuild a greenhouse business that has fallen into disrepair so that she can start a new life for herself and her young son. Darien Stewart, owner of the neighbouring equestrian centre, is less than welcoming. He has wanted to buy her property for years, if only to rid the neighbourhood of the blight it is to the landscape. He is very insulting upon their first meeting but later finds himself irresistibly attracted, against his better judgement.
Gioia’s Rec: Great writing, interesting characters, and a believable story. I stayed up absurdly late (or early) reading this one night/morning.
My Only Critique: I felt that the way in which the Wickham character was reintroduced brought an unnecessary amount of angst to the story, but I think that is due to my being angst phobic. Also, I was frustrated that the Darcy character never apologized directly for certain things he said to Elana in the Hunsford-ish scene. But I suppose Darcy never apologized any more directly to Elizabeth.
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Links to Jane Austen Fanfic sites
(In no particular order)

Link: Jane Austen FanFiction Index
http://www.jaffindex.com
Description: This is an indexed site listing all the JA fanfic as well as an extensive “links” list. The username is SASReader and password is Edinburgh (Case sensitive)
Gioia’s Comments: This is probably the best JA site I know of because it sorts through existing fanfic and categorizes it so thoroughly that it’s very easy to search for specific fics or types of fics. Whoever updates this does an incredible job.
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Link: Other Links
http://www.jaffindex.com/ff_links.php
Description: A very complete list of JA fanfic boards, both public and author-specific.
Gioia’s Comments: You will need to login in to see this. The username is SASReader and password is Edinburgh (Case sensitive).
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Link: 50 Miles of Good Road
http://scotch-and-sirens.waw.pl/index.php
Description: Php posting/message board containing hundreds of stories (about 730 novel-length), all Ratings and lengths.
Gioia’s Comments: Seems to have more fics than AHA, but gets fewer hits.
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Link: A Happy Assembly
http://meryton.com/aha/
Description: Php posting/message board containing hundreds of stories (300-500 novel length), all Ratings and lengths.
Gioia’s Comments: Similar to 50 Miles from what I can tell, but stories on this board get 10 times the traffic.
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Link: Derbyshire Writers' Guild
http://austen.com/board/index.cgi
Description: Archival board hosting hundreds of completed stories. No Adult-rated stories allowed.
Gioia’s Comments: I gather this is one of the best known JA fic sites. This board seems to have the oldest archives, dating back to the 90s.
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Link: Austen Underground
http://www.austenunderground.com/forum/
Description: Php posting/message board
Gioia’s Comments: I only saw about 50 stories on here, but I noticed that the moderators are among their fandoms BNFs.
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Link: A Quick Succession of Very Busy Nothings
http://www.faulkes.co.uk/heather/regency.html
Description: Regency Fanfiction inspired by Jane Austen
Gioia’s Comments: I haven’t searched through this yet, but some of the stories that are linked are ones I already know I liked.
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Link: Happily Ever After
http://lifeandstuff.com/happilyeverafter/index.cfm
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Link: Longbourn Loungers
http://www.longbournloungers.yuku.com/

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Link: PPPemberley FanClub
http://pppemberley.webs.com/
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Link: A Novel Idea
http://austen.com/novel/nindex.cgi
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Link: Bits of Ivory
Gioia’s Comments: This site seemed to have mostly short stories, and all those I looked at were consistent with the complete canon. I.e., they were either post P&P sequels or missing moments within the book.
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Link: The Hyacinth Gardens
http://thegardens64400.yuku.com/
http://www.hyacinthgardens.streekgids.nl/index.php
http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.hyacinthgardens.com
Description: THE board to go to for mature-rated fics
Gioia’s Comments: This was the main JAFF board to host NC-17 stories. Unfortunately, the board went down (in 2008, I believe) and it was announced in the fall of 2009 that they are never going to be able to get the board up again due to corrupted data. The backup site to this board is inactive.
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Continued...
P&P Recs page 1 of 3
P&P Recs page 2 of 3