pensnest | Entries tagged with yuletide

I did just squeak in before the reveal with yesterday's recs, happily. Not that it matters, because there are so many authors around for Yuletide, and I maybe recognise a handful of names—I doubt I'd go looking for Writer X's Stuff. Anyway, I hope you all had a chance to read through whatever may have caught your eye.

My story was With What Intense Desire, a Mansfield Park fic which changes the end of the story so that Fanny goes home earlier from Portsmouth, and gets to listen to Edmund whingeing about Mary in person instead of reading his letters.

My recipient wanted Fanny to be happy, and my conclusion from re-reading was that Fanny's truest source of happiness is being at Mansfield, at Home, in fact, so that is what I gave her. I may not have been quite heavy-handed enough, as nobody in the comments said they were glad to see her becoming the mistress of Mansfield Park, but there it is. It was fun to do, mostly because I was able to adjust Fanny a wee bit so that she gets more impatient with Edmund, which I do myself.

The title is from a quote in Chapter 45, "With what intense desire she wants her home," from Cowper.

So, that's Yuletide done for another year!

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Snowflake Challenge 2026, challenge no. 1: The Icebreaker Challenge: Introduce yourself. Tell us why you're doing the challenge, and what you hope to gain from it.

I seem to have introduced myself many, many times, as I've been doing an online journal since I joined LiveJournal in 2005, and have (I think) done at least some of the Snowflake Challenge every year since it began.

So rather than reiterate how I came to be a fanfic-fandom person, I'm going to send anyone who's interested to the Snowflake 2022 post I made, in which I introduce myself via some posts. A selection of my posts, rather than a(nother) post About Me. The first is a love letter to fandom; the second mourns the death of a creative idol of mine (Stephen Sondheim) and also mourns the country I wish I lived in. The third is about death, though possibly a bit less miserable than that sounds. And there's a bonus fourth, to cheer you up a bit—a really unhelpful phonetic alphabet. As a collection, I think they give quite a good idea of Me, though I'm not usually quite so death-focused.

What do I want from Snowflake this year? I'm not sure. Some entertainment, maybe the discovery of a couple of new people to interact with? As much as anything, I have the feeling that this is a little burgeoning of posts, and I would like to be part of that.

What do I want from DreamWidth this year? Hmm. I'd like to put in a bit of the energy that I've been frivolling away on Reddit lately—although on Reddit I am somewhat more astringent and wit-focused, I think, than I am in this my own space. I hope there will be more discussion of Stuff I'm Interested In, whether that may be barbershop or fandom in general and the changes it has undergone of late, or the pleasure-pain of writing, or what to wear to dance at my daughter's wedding, and more. We shall see.

My last selection of reviews for Yuletide. I think the author reveal happens today, though it isn't likely to make any difference!

Perspectives - Heyer, The Nonesuch
It's been a long while since I read this book, but the story brought it back wonderfully. Tiffany (beautiful, slappable) is perfectly characterised, and there are so many carefully-concealed hints in the dialogue. A delight.

a woman with a ripe and smiling lip Sense &Sensibility
A delightful little postscript to the book, Elinor being happy and enjoying the moments she thought would never come. I found myself smiling as I read.

Nice collection of Wimsey fics, all worth reading, but my preferred three being these:

a certain group of women
This is a thing I did not know I wanted to see—the Dowager Duchess of Denver arguing with a bunch of academic women in the SCR. What a delight! I do so enjoy stories that explore the relationships between Harriet and the various women in her life, and it makes so much sense that the Duchess would enjoy the visit to Shrewsbury.

Happiness In Time of Joy
Peter and Harriet's wedding. Voices are spot-on.

The Day After
A post-Busman's Honeymoon fic dealing with the day after. Which is rather more chaotic than anticipated. Nicely in character and well written.

Rotational Freedom For All Mankind
Ahhh. GOOD story. Molly was so stubborn, this is Molly. This is what she was thinking when she did it.

A couple of Pern stories. I haven't read the most recent of the Pern books, so some of the canon references in other stories escape me. These, I liked particularly.

The day the riders came Pern
A chilling look at things. Really, it's not surprising that the non-dragon people look at dragons with so much fear. Great twist on the canon.

find the true Pern
F'lar is entirely F'lar, and Mirrim is absolutely as she should be. She gets frustrated in her, hmm, day job, dragonriders being what they are, and she is without regular friends since the Weyrs are still very hidebound.. Finding Mirrim a job that needs to be done well sounds like a brilliant solution.

We Were Meant For Us Singing in the Rain
Hollywood gave Don his big break, but Cosmo always pieced him back. How and why the trio became a threesome.

Snake Logistics for Spring Defenses
The canon is FAQ: The "Snake Fight" Portion of Your Thesis Defense—Luke Burns
This is worthy of it. Disconcertingly, some of the emails sound as though they were written by my son.

Never Could Get the Hang of Thursdays Slow Horses
As the title hints, rather a delightful crack!fic. River and Jackson have a problem. Catherine... copes.
Wonderfully written, feels exactly like them all.

Happy New Year, everyone.

The children came round yesterday for Lasagne and a long post-prandial natter, which was very nice. Meanwhile, I have been reading more Yuletide fics, so here are some more recs.

The Truth that Once Was Spoken - Les Miserables/Chalion (Lois Bujold)
I love the Five Gods—it's the most appealing fictional religion I have ever read—but I would never have expected to find that world paired so perfectly with Les Miserables. It works remarkably well, and I was absolutely absorbed as I read. I am familiar with both canons (less so with Les Mis, but I suspect you would understand it if you know only one, or even neither. One of my favourites this year.

Hoar and Hound Brother Cadfael—Ellis Peters
Not a major mystery, rather a minor rescue mission, but Cadfael's voice is caught so perfectly, and the descriptions are wonderful.

The Parthenos in All Her Glory Saga of the Exiles - Julian May
It has been many years since I read the Saga of the Exiles, and I have forgotten a lot of the details, but this was written in a style that felt exactly right. Main character Felice is somewhat more likeable and somewhat less batshit than she becomes in canon, but it all plays out in a very believable way.

It would never have occurred to me that there might be a six-word canon, but there is: For Sale: Baby Shoes, Never Worn. And it is possible to write rather good fic for it, because there are in fact three such fics. This one is my favourite:
Never Worn
But the others are also well worth your time.

By Special Licence Georgette Heyer's Cotillion
This is one of my favourite Heyer stories. I adore Freddy, and I'm charmed to see Lord Legerwood faced with the evidence that his son is now a capable adult. Legerwood is also one of my favourites, and this fic captures him perfectly.

And this is the story that was written for me!
Defending Honour
Arthur Dent... is not very good at Girls. Ford, on the other hand, has a gift. But there's something a bit...off about Ford, when Arthur really pays attention. Deftly done, and it made me grin.

Magnificent Christmas Dinner prepared by my Bun and her man, possibly with additional assistance from her out-laws. We had roast pork, full sized pigs in blankets, stuffing balls, individual Yorkshire puds, roast potatoes, roast parsnips, roast carrots, cauliflower and broccoli cheese, cabbage cooked with pancetta, apple sauce, and gravy. Deeeelicious. And followed by a pannettoni bread and butter pudding with cream.

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I have been perusing Yuletide stories today, and rejoicing once again in the quality of the writing! I tend to old-fashioned fandoms, so perhaps that helps—do the Young People These Days even read, say, Swallows and Amazons?—but it is certainly satisfying.

Some recs, in no particular order.

The Princess Murdered Princess Bride/Colombo

Even though I haven't seen Colombo in *years* and have held no particular affection for the show, I started smiling in the paragraph that introduces Colombo, which is completely perfect. Absolutely delightful. And Humperdinck is also spot-on in his entirely selfish machinations and general contempt for the rest of the world. Only problem with this one is, I want more!

A Gentlewoman's Debt A Civil Contract, Heyer
A charming story! Jenny Lynton is one of my favourite heroines, and this one gives a glimpse of her married life and a new friend she makes by chance.

The Cruelty of Man"- Sweeney Todd
Ooh. Poor Lucy. This is an entirely believable characterisation. She's a gentle soul. I can almost imagine the song she might have sung, quietly, on her own with the baby. And the Judge is sooooooo sinister. Very well done. Mrs Lovett also perfectly pragmatic.

I Will Be True Austen
Whenever I read Sense and Sensibility I find myself hoping that this time, Elinor will get to marry Colonel Brandon. Somehow, it never happens. And in this story, she comes to her senses, deliberately does not encourage Edward, and learns to love Brandon instead, while he at the same time recognises that his feelings for Marianne were based on a false starting point. It's a delightful read.

Dick and Dorothea's Week in London World of Swallows and Amazons
This is lovely! I am so charmed! The D's, sharing the bad raincoat. Susan, turning into a woman and learning more about cooking. And the image of the D's yelling "Titty!" in a crowded railway station is somewhat hilarious. This is very much like a little slice of the life the children led in between adventures.

A Succession of Remarkable Changes The Princess Bride
Inigo needs training if he is to become a proper Dread Pirate Roberts. This left me chuckling with glee. Dread, but with panache! It is entirely correct and wonderful, and I hope Inigo enjoys himself enormously as Dread Pirate Roberts. Just delightful!

Once, Long Ago - a Persuasion fic,
A very good alternate timeline, although it left me quite teary. So much regret for years of happiness missed! It's very well characterised, from the main couple down to the little appearances of Sir Walter, Mary, and Lady Russell. If you need a bit of melancholy after the joys of Christmas, read this one.