Read it Later story count: 98 (+2)
Words read this week: 34,047
A fairly relaxed week of reading for me this time around, with only one story more than 10,000 words in length. That one is a sequel to a fic I really enjoyed, and the first is one I've heard tell of from time to time. The others were all completely new to me – in one case because it's less than a month old! Here we go:
A Most Irregular Tea Party by PresentPerfect
Queen of the Everfree by Bandy
Rotting Apples by Thunder Song
Rarity's No Good, Horrible, Very Bad Day by darkcyan
The Two Unicorns by Lets Do This
★: 1 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 2 | ★★★★: 2 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.
A Most Irregular Tea Party by PresentPerfect
Twilight and Celestia
G4; Romance/Comedy/Random; 4k words; May 2016; Teen (Sex)
Celestia invites Twilight over for tea and chess. Things don't quite go as planned.
One of these days I'll review a serious PresentPerfect story, I swear. This one? Well, successive notes go "the pun, it burns", "what the actual" and "um". This is, after all, a story in which the chess set has had all the pieces replaced by a couple of knives, with which Twi and Tia proceed to fight a duel. (There is a reason. Not necessarily a good reason, but a reason nevertheless.) Lampooning TwiLestia stories in a very, very strange but actually pretty funny way, this got under my skin in a way some of these random fics don't. There are several sequels... ★★★
Queen of the Everfree by Bandy
Twilight [sort of], Applejack [sort of] and OC
G4; Adventure; 9k words; Nov 2022; Everyone
In a past life, Twilight Sparkle and Applejack journey to return a strange artifact to its rightful owner, weaving through an unknown land and a culture coming to grips with a decades-old tragedy.
This was written for a species-swap contest. Just 40 years after Luna's rebellion and banishment, two deer – this fic's Twi and AJ – find a crown. They cautiously venture out of the forest and discover the crown has remarkable effects on the ponies they encounter. Pony lands are not comfortable places for deer, and despite their ability to communicate telepathically (something executed really well by Bandy) they're always on their guard. I find this fic rather delightful. The world-building is great, the different but still recognisable takes on Twilight and Applejack interesting, and the confrontation that occurs late in the story (with an untagged character) both intriguing and moving. Very nice. ★★★★
Rotting Apples by Thunder Song
CMCs
G4; Sad; 1k words; Dec 2015; Teen
Applebloom's last moments are shared with her friends...
When a 1,000-word story has five chapters, you wonder what's going on. We start off with AB dying as Sweetie and Scootaloo hold vigil. The first two mini-chapters are about this and reasonably written, if extremely predictable if you've ever read a fic before. Suddenly, though, we're pitched into "all a dream" territory and then a world where family members don't necessarily know each other. Some potentially interesting ideas here, but they're rushed through and really don't add up to a coherent story. ★
Rarity's No Good, Horrible, Very Bad Day by darkcyan
Rarity and Diamond Dogs
G4; Adventure/Slice of Life; 3k words; Mar 2023; Everyone
Getting kidnapped had not been in Rarity's plans for today, but sometimes a lady must make do.
As you may have guessed, this is "A Dog and Pony Show" but from Rarity's perspective. This could have been a tired rehash of the episode, but in the event the change of focus and a good grasp on Rarity's character make this able to hold my attention, at least for a short fic like this. There are few surprises of course, but Rarity's inner thoughts are generally quite interesting. An amusing ending as well, which nudges this up to the three-star band. This is darkcyan's debut on Fimfiction, and I hope it won't be their only story. ★★★
The Two Unicorns by Lets Do This
Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity and Spike
G4/G5 AU; Comedy/Drama; 18k words; Apr 2022; Everyone
Earth-pony Twilight Sparkle and her friend Rainbow Dash visit a realm of forest and magic. And find that all is not quite right, in the place where the unicorns dwell...If the start of that shortdesc confuses you, then you should read the prequel When Ponies Fly (PR 416). Actually, you should read that anyway, because it's great. You should also read this, because this is great as well. We're in a world where unicorns are everywhere, but the two princesses – Rarity and Fluttershy – seem strangely distant from each other, and not just in space. Besides, there's a worryingly Grand Vizier-ish pony in Rarity's court, while a little dragon seems awfully familiar. Lets Do This also drops in a very few show lines, enough to raise a smile without getting in the way. Plenty of world-building, and the other-worldly setting allows space to roam. It feels a bit like the early days of FiM in the way you feel a whole new world is waiting to be explored. A little LUS here and there, but otherwise this is a very entertaining read and recommended. ★★★★
It's now time for my traditional Easter break. So I'll be back in a fortnight's time with a Spotlight review! And here's what I'll be reading for that:
Synchronicity by Sev
"One of these days I'll review a serious PresentPerfect story, I swear."
ReplyDeleteAn S.P.P.S.?
I don't believe they exist. :V Pleased to have gotten under your skin.
You've published 99. There is the odd one without a [Random] tag. ;)
Deletelies and slander! D:
DeleteI really need to get back to writing sometime, once I hit that nice, round number, then I can fuck off and do something else :B
Oh, Queen of the Everfree! That was one of the Species Swap contest entries that caught my eye – or, more accurately, was in the feature box for a couple of days – so seeing you rate it strongly is encouraging.
ReplyDeleteI can't say I'm too surprised to see The Two Unicorns clung on to a ★★★★ for you, while it dipped to the equivalent of a ★★★ for me; the things I found less strong in it are common quirks with Lets Do This' writing style and approach to fics that were largely absent from When Ponies Fly on account of it being the equivalent of a teaser trailer. Quirks most readers don't seem to notice or find problematic in their writing, but I do fele they are objectively present. Otherwise, I found the story's ending constricted the worldbuilding intrigue (especially going forward), wrapped up rather too conveniently, and had more than a few ill-chosen lore references and plot choices (the not to something that originated in G1 but existed in G4 towards the end was… painful).
All nitpicks in the grand scheme of things, and it does earn its Pretty Good/★★★. Sadly, the next entry continues the quality dip, and more than I expected, though at least in ways that suggest the 4th entry (not yet written) should bounce back somewhat, even if the highs of the first story are evidently beyond reach.
The G1 thing amused me more than it annoyed me, so that wasn't an issue with the rating. It lost a little freshness compared with the first instalment, but not enough to drag it down to the threes. I expect I will read the third fic, but after your comments I'll go in with adjusted expectations.
DeleteI adore A Most Irregular Tea Party and its sequels. I mostly don't appreciate the Random tag, but boy does PP make it work in this one!
ReplyDeleteI also hold The Two Unicorns in high regard, and given how things have played out, I sincerely wish Let's Do This had written G5.
That brings me to Queen of the Everfree, and my major complaint about this one is that nobody has ever brought it to my attention before now! Sounds like I might really like it, so onto the list it goes!
a gentleman and a scholar, this one :)
Delete