Column 5

a fic you want bound and on your shelf

Heirs of Durin by @dragonquill​ / @linane-art​, E

FíKí

i feel as though i’ve recommended this before but, hey, it’s just that good. this universe is so dynamic and full and fleshy. there’s so much more than what you think there is when you start your journey through this ‘verse. and all of it is incredible. never mind the fantastic art by Linane plus the efforts made by both treasures for the accompanying articles and just, frens, for real though, if you’ve been waiting to read this just do it. 

a fic that should be a movie

Twilight of The Innocents by @halehathnofury​, E

Britchell

there are not enough words or sounds or gestures in existence for me to use to express how supremely entertaining and wildly exciting this story is. seriously. i can’t explain it with anything more than: ALKJDHFKJDSGFJKSDJKDS!!! it’s fabulous. it’s engaging. it’s like a television show that has you biting your nails and at the edge of your seat. also it has Gemma. and smutty yums yums. now, 95 chapters looks daunting but i swear to you, it goes by so damn quick because WTF IS HAPPENING OMG YAAASSSS—

a fic longer than 10k

Fifty by FuryNZ, E

FíKí

k, this fic made me emotional on a lot of levels. like, all of them. *releases long, slow, harsh breath from cheeks* this was an experience. truly. it’s Omegaverse, it’s dystopian, it’s filled with challenge and heartbreak and hope. i haven’t read it in 4 years but, guys, i can still picture EVERY SCENE perfectly in my head. oh God, and the bits that made me tear up 😭 it’s a journey, one i do not regret taking 😭😭😭 

a fic that made you cry

Devils of Truth by @saucywenchwritingblog​, E

FíKí

i reread my old review for this (left before i even had an account on AO3) and, yeah, as i said in that review: i never cry. but i cried. hard and often. this was done so perfectly that, at times, i didn’t even realize i was crying. this story is more than angst, though, and i highly, HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who hasn’t read it!!

the smexy fic you read in public

Comatose by @shinigami714​, M

FíKí

Column 2

a fic with a favorite trope

Spectrum by foxxcub, E

FíKí

i have a thing for the “oh my, but i don’t know how to do this so you should teach me and then they fall into bed together” trope. i’m not even going to pretend there’s a lot of profound, knuckle-biting plot here. it’s what it says on the tin: “Kili asks Fili for a lesson in kissing. Things don’t go quite as either one of them planned.” boom. you’re welcome. 

a fic that made you lol

Helios and Morpheus by @legolaslovely​, G

FíKí

i’m still remembering moments from this that make me chuckle out loud in public! pretty much anything this gem writes is weaved with good humor and a buoyant spirit so ... go through that archive, fam!

a fic with that perfect sentence

Honey, there is no right way by @rillils​, M 

Britchell

i can’t ... pick just one. sentence, i mean. in fact, it was pretty damn difficult to pic just one fic by this treasure so i’m giving myself a break and throwing this at you and you can see for yourselves why i’m having trouble narrowing it down.

a fic you’d write/read fanfic for

Folie a Deux by @halehathnofury​, E

DarkHawk

this is more than a “fic” rec. this is a “series” rec. which i have unabashedly written “fanfic” (self-insert reactions) for and drawn fanart for and have reveled in. basically, this honeyboo’s entire DarkHawk repertoire became my playground, so do with that what you will, but Folie is where i found out i’m actually a sick fuck found my heart and soul.  

a fic that broke your heart

Those Who Wonder by Vera (Vera_DragonMuse), E

FíKí

Column 3

a fic at war

Seasons in the North Hills by dandelionpower, T - E

Britchell

look, i’m not big on war fic. in fact, i run away from that ish screaming in a fashion not dissimilar to Shaggy and Scooby from the monster of the week. i’m just not able to comfortably enjoy certain themes. maybe it’s just 20th century war that makes me squick? i dunno. but this? i could do this fic. it’s more that Mitchell goes off to war but i say it counts. another i would add under this Bingo Tag is Isca Silurum by @linane-art​ for the same reason: Romans do the Roman thing, there’re war themes (if only because Kee is a soldier), but it’s not about bloody and gruesome warfare in every paragraph.  

a fic with art

Your Heart Pounding by @dragonquill​ / @linane-art​, E

FíKí

ok, it’s been awhile since i’ve read this. in fact, this is another that lured me into the fandom before i had my AO3 account 😃 it’s intense, it’s written like a fluffing masterpiece (duh) and it gets you in all the right places. and it doesn’t stop getting you. it just keeps going with the getting. 

Free Space

Famous Last Words by @halehathnofury​, E

FíKí

i—this fic ticks so many of these bingo boxes for me that i had no idea where to put it. fluffing Pink Velociraptors has stuck with me for FOUR YEARS. or is it five now? doesn’t matter. i know 98 chapters looks like a challenge but, frens, it’s not. it’s so—GYUH. it’s fucking amazing. it’s groundbreaking. it’s wild. it’s hilarious. it’s emotional. it’s sun-surface hot and delicious and everything between. there’re alpacas. ALPACAS. and Dís. and Frerin. and DO THE THING. READ IT. ENJOY IT. EXPERIENCE IT. it stands as my #1, it is the fic that found me DarkHawk because i needed more from this baby girl. i go back to it time and again. it’s like that movie you can watch 1000x, yanno? i will never run out of energetically positive things to say about this story!!! 

a “watching the ponies” fic

Muffled by WordsinTheFrost, M

FíKí

dudes, it’s hawt, it’s funny, it’s lighthearted, it’s a cool 1660+ words; what’s not to love? i have a feeling it was one of the first fics i ever read in this fandom 🤔 and enjoyed so much i actually have it in my mobile bookmarks! so, if you’re looking for an easy, light spirited read: This. read this.  

a human au

Make Me See The Stars Again (Unfinished) by goldenlionprince, liddie, M

FíKí

Column 4

Erebor fic

Buttons by @fikidurin​, T

FíKí

i never knew how much meaning a button could have until i read this. in seriousness, though, this might be a compact tale but it holds a punch! it has everything from fix-it to tinges of angst to poetic emotion to (thank Christ) soft, tender resolution. there isn’t a dang thing in here i would change; it’s brilliant! 

a fic you’d recommend to a newbie

Who Needs Love (When There’s Southern Comfort) by A_Taupe_Fox, E

DarkHawk

i love this story so much. i’d lost it for awhile, unable to remember who wrote it (and also if it even WAS DarkHawk and not a different AiDean ‘ship - guys, my brain, it’s not a cake walk), and then i found it again (i think because of a different Fic Rec event?) and now i can rest happy because it’s safe and there and ready for me to curl up with. i adore this story with gusto and i hope you guys do/will too!!

a fic you followed as a WIP

Parallel by dothraki_shieldmaiden, E

FíKí

ho~oly shit, this one. this one i read *glances at calendar* ... s’been awhile. but i loved it so much. i even saved it in my mobile bookmarks as: OMG YPTY ❣️ which is awesome, trust me folks. i have weird abbreviations for things *sheepish grin*. but i remember this fic and now that i’ve found it again, i’m going to be rereading it. the “brothers separated at birth” trope is a guilty pleasure, what can i say?

a fic you’ve read more than once

Equal Exchange by KiliDurin, M

FíKí

another that i’m really pleased i have saved because i can’t even with this one. it’s an adventure, one that i took at LEAST three or four times. it got to a point where, if i needed a hit, i would reread parts of chapters. s’good, fam, s’really really good. i smack it down in front of anyone who wants some Mer!Kee getting himself into trouble and some Fisherman!Fee and a shipload of angst (but there’s a happy ending)!

fic with the sweetest kiss

To Drown In You by @flow-it-show-it​, T

Dante Gabriel Rossetti/Siren 

Column 1

your comfort fic

Wish for Freedom by @patchworkideas​, G

FíKí

i cannot deny how absolutely spectacular the concept of the story is. when i read it, i was immediately excited/happy/satisfied/warm-and-cozy. patches takes care of our lads so tenderly and this fic is no exception; it’s unique and beautiful and i often visit it when i need the warm blanket of its words to hide me away from the world 😊

Fix-It fic

with you by my side by sospes, M

FíKí 

i should probably state that in my world, fix-its don’t need to include a happy/healthy Thorin Oakenshield ... 🤷‍♀️ there’s a little angst, a little tension and then a sigh of resolution; it piques the emotions but, i promise, lays you sweetly down at the end with a smile. 

a fic you stayed up too late reading

How We Live Now by @i-am-still-bb​, M

FíKí

although i am, admittedly, still catching up to the more recent updates, i want to include this because it. is. awesome. blue friggin’ kills it with the descriptions and imagery; yanks you right into the story within the first handful of words and doesn’t let you go. i’m lobbing this at everyone like ripe fruit because it deserves to be noticed, it deserves to be appreciated, it deserves to be experienced. GO AND DO THE THING please 😘

a beautiful or poetic fic

Event Horizon by killaidanturner, M

Britchell

*falls to the altar and worships* i’m not even exaggerating, folks. this author is so fluffing skilled at weaving together lyrical images, i can’t even. i CANNOT even. i’ve read everything under the AiDean categories they’ve written and i’ve always wanted to weep because, damn, they know how to move a human soul. 

a fic less than 1200 words

The Russian Pianist by jynx, G

FíKí 

better late than never!

bingo - column 2, fic recs under the cut!

i know that i am several days late for this event, let me just say from the bottom of my heart: my bad

fics under the cut!