#lockedinjohnlock

Cuz Radio Active Trees in a Red Forest might be killing me.

I just finished listening to/reading chapter 4 .

And oh my goodness, this is not an easy fic. IT IS SO SO GOOD, though. And @lockedinjohnlock-podfics is just SLAYING this performance.

It's one of those fics where you can 100% see the actors and scenes in your head... and it's painful and wonderful.

Lockedinjohnlock has created a podfic of my WWII/Secret Garden AU Rosethorne.  She’s done such a fabulous job of bringing the story to life and I’m so excited to share it with everyone. 

Day Twenty-Four: Points, by lifeonmars, read by Lockedinjohnlock (@marsdaydream and @lockedinjohnlock-podfics)

Fandom: BBC Sherlock; Pairing:Sherlock/John; Rating: Explicit; Words: 54k; Time: 7 hrs "'The little things are infinitely the most important.' -- A Case of Identity, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. What if His Last Vow never happened? This fic picks up a few months after John and Mary's wedding, in an alternate universe where Magnussen doesn't exist, but Mary is still pregnant. Life continues -- just in a different direction. And slowly, Sherlock and John find their way to each other."

Picture it: yours truly, driving alone and terrified through darkness, rain, and heavy traffic...and yet unwilling to turn off this podfic. THAT'S how deep lifeonmars and Lockedinjohnlock took me into this fic, this world, these characters.

I admit that I was initially reluctant to read this one, because I was under the impression that it was about angst and boxing. Those things definitely play a part, as does an eventful Christmas & New Year’s, the impending birth of baby Watson, and an intriguing case subplot; but this is character-driven story at heart. And by the end, I was FULLY INVESTED in these versions of the characters, and how they were shaping their lives together. I mean, their first kiss is pretty much the ideal Johnlock kiss, imho: (slight spoiler alert)

"John’s been married, picked the perfect cake, had the house and the furniture and the dishes from Marks and Spencer, and never in his life has he felt the way he feels now, half-drugged, kissing his best friend in a tattoo shop with an unconscious serial killer at their feet."

There's also some sly humor (Mary: "But -- I like you. I like Sherlock. It’s not like I’m going to haul off and shoot him, or anything"), and some small-but-important acknowledgments of being visibly queer ("...John realises he may be coming out of the closet in a Church of England. Which is odd, considering he was never in the closet in the first place"). Overall, it's a brilliant bridge from canon to a MUCH MORE PLAUSIBLE conclusion. And Lockedinjohnlock's assured, moving podfic performance makes it feel that much more intimate and real. So real that you won't want to stop listening for anything as petty as dangerous road conditions :)

Chapters: 6/6 Fandom: Sherlock (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson Characters: Eurus Holmes, Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, Rosamund Mary "Rosie" Watson, and all of Eurus' disguises as well Additional Tags: Eurus POV, Sherlock Series 4 Spoilers, Sherlock Season/Series 04 Fix-it, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Synesthesia, sort of, Completely ignoring the events of The Final Problem, Picks up at end of The Lying Detective but before Eurus reveals herself, Friends to Lovers, Meddling, Emotional Manipulation, This fic assumes John and Mary had some marital strife, Angst, Reconciliation, Grief/Mourning, Jane Eyre references, Creepy, Eventual Happy Ending, Bisexual John Watson, Mutual Pining, Kissing, First Kiss, Attraction, Siblings, Protective Siblings, redbeard is a dog Summary:

Coaxing Sherlock Holmes and John Watson to get out of their own way is just the sort of task she savors. With vials, bottles, and boxes, she stoppers up their grief, siphons their yearning, captures their devotion to add to her collection. (Canon-compliant through the majority of TLD; ignores TFP completely).

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It is seriously taking every last ounce of my self-control not to read ahead in To The Sticking Place by @blueink3​. I’m a theater nerd, but I put off reading it, hesitant to explore AUs (and yet “our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt,” Measure for Measure, I.iv).

Now, however, I get to enjoy this fucking stellar story for the first time by listening to the podfic by @lockedinjohnlock-podfics each day. It’s hitting all of my pleasure centers (Johnlock! Shakespeare! The thrill of the rehearsal process!), although the cliff-hangers at the end of each chapter are KILLING me.

Anyway, I highly recommend it. The writing is excellent, the characterizations are spot-on (as are the Shakespeare quotations at the beginning of each chapter -- I knew blueink3 was good, but this is, like, next-level), plus I’ve already gushed at length about how much I adore lockedinjohnlock’s voice. As if all that weren’t enough, the cover art by @septemberlight13​ is gorgeous.