Favorite Stories of 2020

[amalthia]

Star Wars

Title/Author: glimmerglanger - A Slow Fall Towards Grace
Author Summary:
Obi-Wan never gave much thought at all to being an omega. It hadn’t mattered in the crèche. It should never have mattered at all. Going to the healers the first time he started feeling uncomfortable under his skin hadn’t been a big deal.

That had been before the allergic reaction.

OR, Obi-Wan grows up, gets his heart broken, fights until he can't anymore, and eventually falls in love. Maybe the galaxy gets saved along the way.
Pairing: Cody/Obi-Wan, Anakin Skywalker/Padme
Word Count: 116,873
Review:
I loved the pacing, concept, and seeing how Obi-Wan handled his heats every year and the relationships in his life. I almost cried a few times and I couldn't stop reading once I started. Wonderful storytelling, hot sex, and at this point you should stop reading my comments and go read the story!

Title/Author: Ariel_Sojourner - Skywalker Family Values
Author Summary:
Camp Chippewa is proud to be the Empire’s foremost camp resort for privileged young adults. Located on the picturesque forest moon of Endor, your child will have the opportunity to participate in wholesome outdoor activities and socialize appropriately with their peers. We invite your offspring to join us for the experience of a lifetime and a bright future in service of the greater glory of the Empire.

On opposite sides of the galaxy, on opposite sides of a civil war, Darth Vader and Padme Amidala unwittingly send Luke and Leia to the same camp during school break. Chaos naturally ensues.
Pairing: General
Word Count: 55,765
Review:
I laughed out loud a few times, couldn't stop reading once I started, and overall had a great time reading. :)

Title/Author: planningconquest - Inherited Royalty
Author Summary:
Prince Luke Palpatine flees into the dark of the night when Lord Vader mounts an assault on the Imperial Palace. Lord Vader searches endlessly for the missing prince.
Pairing: General
Word Count: 42,138
Review:
I loved the found family feels, the character voice, the concept and seeing how Luke adjusted after he escaped the palace. I've re-read the story two times already and parts of it still bring me to tears.

Title/Author: glimmerglanger - Like Real People Do
Author Summary:
The man grinned again, offering out a hand. “I’m JC-B3N. You can call me Ben, all my brothers do. I’m your Type 2 clone.” Anakin stared at him, the man’s – Ben’s – hand hanging between them in the air. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, General Skywalker.”

OR, the one where the arrival of new clones disrupts the lives of Jedi Generals throughout the fleet. Anakin and Qui-Gon are hit harder than most. But these soldiers, wearing the face of a dead man, might have a larger role to play in the fate of the galaxy as a whole.
Pairing: Anakin Skywalker/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Word Count: 140,841
Review:
I loved the concept, plot, character voices, I was on the edge of my seat more than once. I loved the mystery, romance, action, and I couldn't stop reading once I started.

Title/Author: glimmerglanger - A Treatise on Breaking and Repairs
Author Summary:
Obi-Wan Kenobi survives for three years on Tatooine before Vader finds him and takes him back to Mustafar, where Vader has already gathered members of the 212th. Things... don't go well for anyone.

Pairing: Cody/Obi-Wan
Word Count: 52,335
Review:
This story hit all my hurt/comfort buttons. I loved the character voices, the plot, pacing and it was emotionally intense. This is one of the few partner betrayal stories I've run across, partners in that Anakin and Obi-Wan were a team during the Clone wars, not a couple!

Title/Author: wanderlove - if i only knew - Star Wars
Author Summary:
Newly knighted Obi-Wan Kenobi and his padawan, Anakin Skywalker, have been sent to Ryloth on a simple diplomatic envoy. While there, an unsettling incident causes Obi-Wan to look at Anakin in a new light and re-evaluate...everything.

The Galaxy will never be the same.

aka: "come for the obikin, stay for the tzai and deep emotional discussions that dismantle every single misunderstanding in the prequels."
Pairing: Anakin Skywalker/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Word Count: 119,152
Review:
I loved the pacing, character voices, seeing how things changed based on the fork in the road premise. I couldn't stop reading once I started.

Title/Author: blackkat - hunting toward heartstill
Author Summary:
Plo has an idea. Mace agrees, and everything snowballs right into hell from there.

(Or: Mace and Cody get married in order to give the clones citizen status. Before they can focus on that, though, they're going to have to deal with ancient Sith artifacts, evil prophets, plots to overthrow the Supreme Chancellor, lost planets, monsters warped by Sith alchemy, inconvenient feelings, and Darth Sidious turning his eye on a potential new apprentice. Just...not in that order.)
Pairing: Cody/Mace Windu
Word Count: 207,217
Review:
I had a blast reading. Loved the plot, character voices, the action kept me on the edge of my seat and I couldn't stop reading once I started.

Title/Author: Jackdaw_Kraai - How To Reinvent The Stormtrooper Armor To Make Your Surrogate Father Proud And Shut The Naysayers Up For Fun And Profit
Author Summary:
This is an AU of loosingletters' The Background Noise Of Defiance verse

Instead of Luke inadvertently revealing to his anonymous holonet friend that his last name is Skywalker, thus revealing himself as the son of said holonet friend (yes, Darth Vader has a Space Twitter), he keeps mum and instead takes on Vader's job offer, becoming the new Head Engineer aboard the Executor, alias, the Lady. While he's thrilled to be there, thriving on getting to improve the lackluster hardware that gets shunted onto the rank-and-file of the Empire and building up a rapport with the mysterious Sith Lord who is fast becoming the father figure he never had, not everyone aboard is as happy about the young engineer shaking up the previously well-cemented hierarchy of the Lady.

But ask Luke and Vader if they care. All Piett knows is that this is gonna be one hell of a headache and way above his paygrade. At least he gets to see his boss be put in his place by a teenage engineer and Lord Vader himself.
Pairing: General
Word Count: 20,654
Review:
I loved the concept, seeing tech genius Luke in action, and the outsider pov's were great.

Title/Author: Tassos - In Want of a Hyperdrive
Author Summary:
In an AU where as a boy Obi-Wan never met Qui-Gon Jinn and was instead abducted by slavers, the events of The Phantom Menace take a different turn when Queen Amidala's ship lands on Tatooine in want of a hyperdrive.

Qui-Gon and Padmé meet two Force-sensitives, find a way to raise money for the hyperdrive that doesn't involve a podrace, and get caught between the powerful forces of Tatooine's slave-owners and the Dark Side pursuing them.
Pairing: General
Word Count: 81,577
Review:
I loved the character voices, the plot, and I couldn't stop reading once I started. I was on the edge of my seat more than once. I couldn't stop thinking about the story for weeks after reading.


Harry Potter

Title/Author: geoffaree - A Very Slytherin Harry
Author Summary:
A lonely eight year old Harry Potter learns he can talk to snakes, shaping future events in a way not many would have expected.
Pairing: Severus Snape/Remus Lupin
Word Count: 580,294
Review:
I loved the pacing, characters, and seeing how things changed once Harry befriended a snake. I loved that the adults in this story were willing to help Harry when he needed help. I liked this Harry and the original characters introduced. I couldn't stop reading once I started.

Title/Author: Vichan - Evitative - Harry Potter
Author Summary:
In the summer before his fifth year at Hogwarts, Harry is drawn to a room in Grimmauld Place. Like the Gryffindor he is, he enters the room without fear. The room is a library, and Harry is surprised to find that he’s eager to learn.

Then he gets the bad news: he’s been accidentally expelled from Hogwarts, and he needs to be sorted again. Everyone is confident that he’ll go straight back to Gryffindor, but with what he's been learning, Harry’s not so sure.

Pairing: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Word Count: 222,452
Review:
I loved the character voices, the plot, I couldn't stop reading once I started and I liked the different take on magic.