April 2004

Angel Through A Glass Darkly by Elynross. All about the complicated, needy relationship Angel and Lindsey have. Characterful, with sex. Spoilers for Angel 5x17, Underneath.

November 2003

Angel Summer Lovin' by Deepa D. This is set somewhat speculatively at the end of season four, during the summer, in fact. A beautiful look at the potential for a relationship between Connor and Angel. Nifty use of canon undercurrents, and a wonderful exploration of a relationship from "Connor's" point of view. I love outsider POVs, I really like Connor, and I deeply pity Angel in this one.

BtVS Jigsaw by Perri Smith. This is a story about Dawn, not my favourite character, but Perri gave me some insight into her character and what makes her tick throughout the seventh season. Why does Dawn become research-girl?

BtVS Living Danerously by Andraste. Spoilers for the seventh season. This story is set sometime between Storyteller and Dirty Girls. Andrew makes muffins and contemplates his new life. The Andrew perspective on living with a bunch of girls is brilliant. Very telling, and very Andrew.

BtVS Untitled by Anna S. A snippet, but fab Spike voice, and nice reactions from the rest of the crew. They've all been sucked through a portal, and Spike is the one about to pay the price. Funny, hot, twisted and sad.

October 2003

BtVS Loserville by Shrift. Season four-ish Xander/Spike, complete with oldschool!Willow and blunttrauma!Anya and mildly self-centred Buffy but most importantly, Xander, and Spike and the lighter side of bitterness. Lots and lots of beautiful moments and killer lines and fantastic Xander POV.

BtVS/Angel Lydia Chalmers' Thesis on William The Bloody by Taramisu & Klytaimnestra (et al.). You remember that female watcher who said she'd written her thesis on William the Bloody? Well this is it, complete with abstract, appendices, an annotated bibliography and a chapter headed 'An Alternate Theory of Vampirism'. This is so much fun, and so cleverly done.

Angel/due South Untitled by Anna S.. I shouldn't even be reccing this, since it's not a story, but it's such a great (and detailed) idea for a story that I couldn't resist. This is Fraser, vamped, in LA, but the Fraser we know and love. And there's Spike. And it is good.

Angel (Silliness) by Shiela. A snippety thing in which Wesley wakes up as a woman. Hilarious Gunn POV as they sit around and try to figure stuff out. Now, take a deep breath and imagine Angel as a woman.

Angel Bus Stop Boxer by Wiseacress. A (AU) post-BtVS romp with Xander, in which he's become a streetfighter and Angel, Spike et al. are fighting evil in Cleveland. A slightly skewy premise, in which much is left unsaid, but it doesn't matter in the least because, apart from anything else, the Spike POV is yummy. A story you could build a universe around.

Angel Another Life by Inamorata. Angel/Cordelia is not normally my thing, but this is a delicious what-if AU in which Cordelia took a different path in L.A, and Angel took the visions. Two damaged people try to make it. Gentle drama.

September 2003

BtVS The Promise by HonorH. Gen, spoilery for the finale, very, very touching. An AU that looks at a continuing relationship between Spike and Dawn. Sad, sweet and believable.

Angel These Reasonable Taboos by Glossolalia. A delicious Connor/Wesley story from the point of view of a boy brought up in a hell-dimension to believe absolutely in the Bible. Glossolalia also gives great Wesley - manipulative, strong and desperate.

July 2003

BtVS The Tragedy Of Buffy, Slayer of Sunnydale by KdS. This is just genius. Like 'Once More With Feeling' in verse, not verses. The Scoobies find themselves in a Shakespearean tragedy, can they get out of it? Wonderfully in character and also wonderfully revealing, in that way Whedon has. Very, very funny.

BtVS Simpatia é Quase Amor by Gloss. A sultry encounter between Oz and Riley in Brazil. Seething sense of place and atmosphere. Worth it just for the image of what Oz is wearing. Hot, hot, hot.

BtVS Macrame by Anna S.. A shiversome Spike/Xander story with deliciously creepy Willow. Spoilers for the finale and a pretty scary idea for a future fic.

Angel Housewarming by Glossolalia. Spoilers for season three. Wes/Connor drabble, and I have a thing. So, yeah. Dark and erotic.

June 2003

Angel/The Matrix Past Lives by Kate Bolin. A drabble which packs a punch. Good to think with.

Angel On the Care and Education of a Young Man by Yahtzee. Set post season three, this is a very thorough exploration of Connor's character - what he knows, what he's ignorant of, what he's learning. It reads almost like a Bible for a larger story, but skillfully woven around a demon hunt. Lovingly researched and thoughtful, this sheds so much light on Connor's reactions to the people around him.

May 2003

Angel Wishing To Be Snow by Jennifer-Oksana. 'Cordelia wants a happy ending'. An early fourth season wishful thinking story in which Cordelia sits in a cafe, tries to justify her behaviour towards Wes and slags off Fred. Perfect mature-but-still-Cordy voice and great Wesley, Angel, Connor etc. to boot. A brilliant effort to tie up some dangling ends.

BtVS Jimmy Olsen by s.a. Xander has a strong and lasting relationship with donuts. Sort of inevitably repetitive, but I 'specially liked number four.

BtVS Expert Care by Te. Spoilers up to mid season seven. Beware season spoilers in this rec as well. I can't believe the writers put Spike and Xander back together again and went nowhere with it. Te rectifies that. Includes one particularly shivery-nasty line (in light of 'Dirty Girls'). Lots of snark and nutso Spike and strange friendship.

BtVS One of those pastimes by Anna S.. 'Spike, Riley, Football'. Riley comes back into town and ends up patrolling with Spike. Mostly PWP.

BtVS Tomb of the Unknowns by Sophia Prester. A very moving story in which Xander remembers the dead. Gentle and quiet with beautiful insight into Xander's life.

BtVS Subtleties by Anna S. Subtle isn't the half of it. A ridiculously enjoyable Spike/Xander futurefic. An emotional whirlygig, but still quiet and contemplative, with some of the most beautiful phrases and sentences, hell, even paragraphs, that I've come across in a long time. Thinking-woman's S/X - schmoop on wry.

BtVS Untitled by Witchwillow. Spoilers through the 7th season episode 'Dirty Girls', a very telling and subtle Spike POV of the ending of that ep. I really liked his view of Buffy and Faith in this, and his own struggles with his nature. But the Xander. Oooh, the Xander.

BtVS Touchstone by Ladycat. Post 'Dirty Girls' (7th season). A story focusing on Xander's powers. Great characterisation and some snarky Rona to boot.

April 2003

BtVS Half a League Onward by Mikelesq. An unusual and original story featuring Halfrek and Xander, with some nifty characterisation, particularly of Halfrek, an underused character, and lots of humour. The Frenchman is a new favourite.

BtVS/Angel Two Steps Back by Meredith. The first of a to-be four-parter, but this can be read on its own. Veers off from Buffy and Angel seasons seven and four, Wesley comes back to work at Sunnydale High. Great Wesley voice and insight into the differences the slayer and the ex-watcher would see in each other.

Angel Balance by Don't Make Eye Contact. Third and fourth season Angel spoilers. A truly intriguing story focusing on Angel's past and the powers Cordelia has as a higher power. Gave me a whole different way of looking at things. Better, I think, than the canon explanation.

Angel Champions by Sarah T.. Set just after the second season ep 'Redefinitions', this is a lovely behind-the-scenes story of how Gunn, Wesley and Cordelia decide to open their own agency - after spending quality time in hospital. Funny Gunn POV, with a touch of Wes/Gunn.

Angel Top Gunn Tune by dr philthy. 'Charles Gunn, Badass'. An original mix MP3 using Gunn quotes from Angel. Pretty damn cool.

Angel Ang-Nuo by Corinna. An original take on Angel's background (spoilers through 'Darla'). One answer to the question, what did Angel do after he left with the baby in China?

March 2003

BtVS Naming The Demons by Lara Dean Brierly. My enemy's enemy is my friend? From the History Lesson archive, this is the tale of Mija, Korean slayer. A story of duty and temptation.

BtVS Winners by Ins. Ooooh, there's one line of this story where I finally got it. Chilling and thought provoking.

BtVS Our House by Puca Dentata. 'I fucking reflect, therefore I fucking am.' This is what the end of the world is like. A Devon POV apocalypse that made me feel sick.

BtVS Rosencrantz & Guildenstern in Mazatlan by Christina Kamnikar. Andrew and Jonathon in Mexico. A tidy exploration of some of Jonathan's fears and how they're making ends meet. Thoughtful Jonathan POV.

BtVS Thousand Yard Stare by Sophia Jirafe. A seventh season story (through Get It Done) that gets inside the head of one of the potentials; a potential who believes she has slightly less potential than the others. An interesting outsider's POV.

BtVS Tell The End by Te. Seventh season Xander goes on a trip to LA. A Xander/Angel story that made me feel like a train(crash)spotter.

Angel Odi et Amo by Corinna. The way things could have resolved themselves after the end of the third season. A Wes-centric story with Connor and Lilah goodness and actually, 'resolved' is probably the wrong word. Edifying.

Angel Deliverance by Debchan Another post-third-season Wesley and Connor story, this one is a gem of macabre humour that acknowledges the gaps Connor would have in his knowledge.

Angel Downward Spiral by Ins. A glimpse at Cordelia's feelings about her visions and the one who catches her.

Angel Waiting For The Rain by Pablo. Set after the second season ep, Dead End, this is a night in the life of Lindsey after LA and he's not a happy bunny. Black and sensual.

Angel Love by Te. A short but powerful Wes POV Wes/Gunn story that captures both their voices to within a millimetre. Beautiful.

Angel Instant Hibernation by Samantha. What If it was Wesley, not Darla, that Angel was dreaming about? Doesn't take the idea as far as it could go, but I liked Angel's view of Wesley in this one.

December 2002

BtVS Here Comes A Candle by Wiseacress. A Xander POV story dripping with scooby dialogue and creepy atmosphere. Warning: irritatingly small and pale text on a white background.

BtVS/Angel Return by Roseveare. ''She can't believe they're the last ones left.' Faith and Wesley, ten years on.' Redemption, forgiveness, memory and change. Illuminating.

November 2002

BtVS Filler by Lar. Season 5 spoilers. Friendship, addiction, compassion and neediness. A warm look at both Xander and Riley and how they might just fit together.

BtVS Bitter Nectar by Lar. Riley sweats it out in the jungle and remembers more than just fruit. An atmospheric day in the life that shows Mr. Special Forces as plenty good at what he does. Salute.

BtVS/Angel Rainmakers by Lar. The countryboys come together. Lindsey and Riley, both escape something and wind up finding something. Thick and sweet and dripping in summer atmosphere. Real lemonade.

October 2002

BtVS Expedite by Anne Sewell-Jennings. Set seventh season, post Same Time, Same Place, Buffy and Spike both learn that it can't always be fixed. Revealing.

BtVS/Angel The Twelfth Sister by Rowan. Alternate Faith story (complete with cover art) set post Five by Five/Sanctuary that takes a neglected snippet of BtVS canon and twists. Then, in the sequel, it does it again. Chilling.

September 2002

Angel Crave by Rheanna. A clever episode-like story set in the immediate post-Doyle days that concentrates on vampires' need for blood. A wonderfully characterised exploration of the ties between Angel, Cordelia and Wesley.

Angel The Quality Of Mercy by Yahtzee. A story which focuses on redemption and forgiveness from the alternate points of view of Angel, Wesley, Cordelia, Gunn and Riley and doesn't attempt to wrap everything up in a neat bow. Moving and hopeful.

August 2002

BtVS Sidelines by Anna S. A Spike/Xander rewrite of seasons four and five that takes a good long look at Xander's place within the Scooby Gang and Spike's chipped angst. Lemon with mush on the side.