Ponyfic Roundup 340

Read it Later story count: 142 (-1) 

Remember I said last week that spring was having a go at springing? Well, it seems it's got fed up with it and decided not to bother. All of a sudden it feels like March again: chilly, grey and damp. So what better activity than sitting indoors in the warm reading ponyfic and drinking cider? Yes, I know that's two activities, but they go together so well! Anyway, today's three fics are:

Equestria's Second Best Cellist by Perfect Prime
A– by Miller Minus
Apple Planting by joolzanfire

★: 1 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 0 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I find average scores two stars.

Equestria's Second Best Cellist by Perfect Prime
Octavia
Sad/Slice of Life; 17k words; Jul 2012; Teen

Second place will only ever be a posh way of saying: "You lost."

Octavia tells the story of her often unhappy childhood and how it eventually led to both her friendship (just that in this fic) with Vinyl and her musical career. I liked the way her constant second-place finishes got to her, and her brief career as (of all things) a fillyhood Rubik's cube genius is something I've never seen before. It's nice to see her relate to Vinyl simply as a friend for a change, too. Unfortunately the fic is a real slog to read as the author's way of making Octavia sound like a posh, refined pony is to make her speak in extremely long-winded prose, much of it frankly boring. ("That day was a Friday, so the day after naturally fell on a Saturday.") Her "Englishness" is also played up to such an extent that she sits GCSEs in Ponyville, which really doesn't fit the setting. I'm not sure I really buy the odd way her relationship with her mother is described, either. For dedicated Octavia fans only, I fear. ★★

A– by Miller Minus
Sunset Shimmer
Sad/Slice of Life; 1k words; Feb 2019; Everyone

A young Sunset Shimmer receives a grade she can't afford.

It's right there in the title. This means that Sunset (the pony version) isn't going to go to Celestia's School. This in turn means... well, spoilers, but you find out a surprising amount about Sunset's background considering the brevity of the fic. Foreshadowing? I'd say so. It's a cleverer (and sadder) fic than it might seem at first read, and it's right at the top of the three-star band. Might even shade a four if you're really into pony Sunset stories. If you only read one of this week's three fics, make it this one. ★★★

Apple Planting by joolzanfire
Applejack and Apple Bloom
Dark; 1k words; May 2013; Teen

Planting apples has never been more satisfying.

This story isn't at all bad technically, especially for a debut fic. Unfortunately, things go downhill from there. Applejack is dragging a very heavy bag labelled "Apple Seeds" around, and for some reason she's irritated when her sister asks to help. Actually the reason for AJ's annoyance isn't that hard to guess by the end, but that reason is completely out of character. At least, without some very extensive in-story justification, something which is entirely absent. There's also a weird stylistic decision to call AJ "the mare" and AB "the filly" throughout; neither name is used at all. I'd guess this is intended to add a sheen of creepiness, but it's just irritating. The story itself is confusing at first and nasty once realisation dawns. Sadly I can't recommend this one. ★

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Next time, stories reviewed should include Blueshift's Lyra v Smooze non-comedy Home Is Where The Harp Is.