Fic Spotlight

Title: No Name Woman
Author: bk11
Length: 20,303
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: profanity, sexual content
Summary: It’s a strange new world in which Hermione runs from the law and Draco is the one to bring her back.

Editor’s Thoughts: Wrenching, evocative, philosophical -- each word in this too-brief, too-lovely story batters against you, at times with the force of hailstones and at others, with the feather-touch of a drizzle. Told mostly from Draco's perspective, it's a time-disjointed tale of how Hermione Granger became one of Wizarding England's most wanted fugitives. The beginning of this story is also the beginning of its end.

Draco is an Auror in an AU-HBP-compliant world where extremists run a militant British government and fugitives are hunted down by hit squads. He finds Hermione in Casablanca and brings her back to be locked up in St. Mungo's until her trial. As flawed as Hermione is, and we're privy to much introspection on her part, we get to live and experience the turbulent times in tension-fraught flashes from Draco's eyes. He is/was a racist, he believes/doesn't believe in genocide, and he's no hero, barely a decent man, full of self-justifications, but just vulnerable enough to let another person in, and when he does and she does, it all comes together in a kaleidoscope of graphic, unusual prose that'll leave you with a thoughtful feeling for hours afterwards.

No Name Woman is not merely romantic; it's human.

Fic Spotlight

Title: Of Daisies and Stars
Author: elektra30
Length: 2.5K
Rating: G
Warnings: EWE?
Summary: Sometimes, this boy reminded him too much of too many people.

silvia_elisa's Thoughts: If there is one thing that I think it's difficult to portray in fanfiction, realistically portray, is children. It takes a skilful writer and a good story, Of Daisies and Stars has both; the way it unassumingly starts in medias res, without trivial preambles, is the perfect kick-off for a terrific fic.

The point of view stays so close to Draco that I felt a connection with the child myself, and as his thoughts pass you by, you'll find yourself breathing in the diary of scents, sights and sounds – as the author puts it. The strong emotions that Draco is experiencing are cleverly juxtaposed with his son's babbling and Hermione, almost imperceptibly, is with them both the whole time.

I wish I could quote just a couple of lines, but I'd end up quoting the fic in its entirety. The vocabulary used is so interwoven with the narration and so rich in detail that you'll get the scope of their lives together, instead of being hindered by the fact that it is a one-shot story. And the final part, well, the final part will take your breath away.

Fic Spotlight

Title: All I Want
Author: blue movies
Length: 1,600 words
Rating: K+
Warnings: Character death
Summary: Please excuse the lack of summary - I strongly suggest to read this one before knowing anything about the plot.

dianoram's Thoughts: I have read this one some time ago, and for some reason, out of the sea of oneshots that are consumed in one breath, this one stayed with me.

The entire story is told from Narcissa Malfoy's point of view while she tries to understand what is possibly troubling her young son. It is short and angsty, it is filled with raw emotions and it offers us a rare glimpse into the Malfoy family life on the brink of a new life ahead of them. Whatever else can be said about them, whatever the past mistakes and prejudice that came from their upbringing - they have always loved their son.

In case you are wondering, I am being deliberately vague here. The final revelation and the cause for the story came out of the blue for me - and it could be the reason why I simply couldn't forget this one. I do hope you'll like it.

Fic Spotlight

Title: The Secret Ingredient
Author: corianderpie
Length: 2,078 words
Rating: MT
Warnings: Strong Profanity, Fluff
Summary: Draco goes the extra mile for love.

elektra30's Thoughts: Usually, I am a sucker for action-packed, emotion-laden stories that delve into character nuances. However, there are times when I just want to indulge in something simple and light, something that makes me go ‘ahh...’ in a very contented way.

This fic whips up the perfect recipe for that: a lighthearted story about Draco and the lengths he will go to for his dear wife, even if it means being stuck in a French kitchen flipping burnt crepes just because of her pregnancy cravings. I especially love the minor original characters who contribute to the merry and heartwarming mood of the story. Not to mention the ending cracks me up, but you’ll have to read it for yourself to know!

If you want a fluffy--but satisfying--treat for tea, why not make this your selection for the day?

Fic Spotlight

Title: Fear, Frustration and Fascination
Author: kataclysmic
Length: 7,839
Rating: 15+/R
Warnings: Explicit Sexual Situations
Summary: When Draco is thrust into the Muggle world, he turns to the one witch who understands the best of both worlds.

elektra30's Thoughts: After a long day in RL, it'll be nice to come home to some lighthearted humour. And there’s nothing more hilarious than Draco being befuddled by Muggle contraptions, equipment and habits. Oh wait, there is. Hermione trying to teach Draco how to use a condom – with a fruit. Draco is believably spoilt and snarky, while Hermione just can't rid herself of her Nightingale complex. Witty repartee, unresolved sexual tension and alcohol abound, this is a short, sweet and light read that will make you grin from start to end!

Fic Spotlight

Title: Friday Night Secrets
Author: yesterday4
Length: cca 21,000
Rating: R
Warnings: EWE or as the author says “my way out of the epilogue, so it does include Draco/Astoria and past Ron/Hermione, although it all ends up the way it should. Ahem”. Couldn't agree more. Without “ahem”. I'm dead serious.
Summary: After the war, Hermione and Draco meet at a Muggle pub, and it’s the start of something unexpected for both. Then, what good are expectations anyway?

dianoram's Thoughts: Details. It's all in the details with this one. This story has won me over from the start and I return to it every few months to read at least a portion of it. It's one of those stories that are warm, wonderful and make your heart swell. Well, mine was quite filled in the end.

Hermione and Draco start talking in a Muggle pub and it's awkward, beautiful and strange. And filled with humour. What starts as an anomaly becomes a pattern; thus the most unlikely friendship develops. The secrets they both share during those Friday nights aren't huge, but they are life-altering. And what is most striking of all – their secrets fit together. It is the slow development of their friendship that captures the attention. Both are real – Hermione is not perfectly proportioned and Draco is still pointy, though his attraction is undeniable, on more levels than one. Read it a leisurely pace and enjoy every small revelation they share with each other.

Now, I'm certain every reader will find details of his/her own that they will appreciate. Mine are countless but I'll mention just a few: first and foremost, Hermione's self-ironic voice that leads you through the story, relaxed Harry, shrewd and supportive Ginny, lovely Astoria, trading barbs across the pub table, finding a guy for Granger, inter-house unity, letter from Malfoy, Braveheart references that made me almost cry and then grin the goofiest smile in the history of mankind... Freedom, indeed.

Fic Spotlight

Title: Monochrome Kids
Author: derryere
Length: 29,267
Rating: R
Warnings: language and oddness and poetry
Summary: Hermione’s writing letters to her future boyfriend.

Editor’s Thoughts: There's something incredibly awkward and sweet and real about this story. Hermione has a stutter and Draco is utterly ordinary (no sex god, he), but together, they're something more. These two could be kids you went to school with or neighbors enacting a floundering romance or two people reconnecting at a reunion, that's how realistically derryere portrays them.

Add to that an incredibly creative format (it's all composed as letters to an imaginary, future boyfriend "Hank") and images, it's a wonderful read. It's achingly reminiscent of first love, sweet but not fluff, funny but in a way someone you know is funny instead of sizzling one-liners, and romantic without being world-endingangstylove.

It's not the stuff of Hollywood blockbusters or heart-wrenching soaps. It's something better.