Fiction:
Encore in Death by J. D. Robb/Nora Roberts is fifty-sixth in this massive series, which I continue reading not only because it’s a comfort read for its familiar characters and justice prevailing, but because I enjoy seeing, from a craft perspective, how the author walks a fine line between the formula that keeps readers returning and her own desire to mix it up; also, it has to reward new readers at the same time. This particular installment features famous actors and had a couple of good plot twists that kept it from being stale. I realized, partway through, that Roberts seems to have dropped Peabody’s humorous obsession with her weight, replacing that trait with obsessing about decorating her new house, which makes me very happy; at one point, Peabody gets eggs and bacon sandwiches for her and Dallas with zero comment. Long may that continue.
Fanfiction:
Faster, Higher, Stronger by everwitch is an Olympics AU of Red White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston in which figure skaters Henry Fox and Alex Claremont-Diaz are both determined to win gold at the Olympics. I found it pretty gripping, and loved how easily elements of their characters from the canonical material transferred to a new arena (see what I did there?).
Hot Ice by SlantedKnitting is a Merlin Olympics AU in which Arthur is a short-track speedskater, his sister Morgana is a snowboarder, and Merlin is a figure skater. Arthur is dealing with the fact that his disparaging father is a terrible coach for him, and what that means for his career. Then Morgana drags him to see Merlin compete and he gains a new perspective.
Advertise what makes you crazy (The Olympic Figure Skating AU) by Khashana is a Check Please! AU in which Kent Parson is a trans figure skater who doesn’t meet Jack Zimmermann until after Jack’s breakdown, and their relationship works out better. Kent’s mother is a thinly-veiled version of Tanya Harding. Eric Bittle adds an extra element to that relationship in the sequel. The Olympics are more of a starting point for the story, which then moves on to their college experiences at Samwell.
The Consultants by thebratqueen is an Avengers/White Collar crossover in which Tony Stark and Bruce Banner are a couple who call in the FBI and their art theft expert about a stolen painting. I loved this and would read another hundred thousand words or so of it.
The Making of Monsters by shuofthewind is a massive Daredevil AU series which adds Darcy Lewis, The Little Black Dress of Fandom, into Columbia Law School with Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson, and adds in a familial relationship with another major Marvel character as well. The story was written soon after the first season of the Daredevil Netflix series, so other Marvel characters who appear have characterizations distinct from what eventually happened in various Disney Plus series. There is an eventual Matt/Darcy romance and a lot of discussion of vigilantism and justice, as you might expect. Warning for canon-typical violence.
Of Twin Stars and Other Eccentric Satellites by winterhill is a much more lowkey Reboot movies version of the ST: TOS episode “Amok Time” in which T’Pring ends up with a much better role and a much superior future.
