July 2025 Fanfic Recs
Aug. 1st, 2025 08:13 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
forestsofpineI'm still on my Agatha Christie kick. This month it was Murder in Mesopotamia, which is set on an archaeological dig in Iraq. I'm pretty sure it's one I never read before, nor have I seen the David Suchet episode. Christie was interested in archaeology and participated in digs, so it had some interesting details about the work and day-to-day life of archaeologists in that era. It featured a different narrator than most Poirot books: a woman hired as nurse to the eventual victim about a week before her death. The nurse was both opinionated and unreliable, which was a fun combo in some regards since you could see how her prejudices for or against certain characters were affecting her judgement and blinding her to some of the realities of the case, but unpleasant when her opinions involved racism against the local Arab workers at the dig, which they frequently did.
As for the mystery itself, perhaps the easiest explanation of my feelings is that I enjoyed the setup, but not the solution. One hopes for a satisfying answer to all three of the questions of Who, Why, and How, and the ending was so improbable on one of those counts that it destroyed my suspension of disbelief. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the classic Christie twists and turns and it's a light, fast read, so I wouldn't describe it as wasted time.
And here are some of the fics I enjoyed in July!
MDZS/The Untamed Fic Recs
A fun modern AU epistolary fic!
AITA for telling two of my PTA parents to grow up?, gen, 2k, general audiences
Beyond Evil Fic Recs
Unexpected but very sweet rare pair:
Green in the Wood, Kwon Hyuk/Oh Jihoon, 9k, teen
K-pop RPF Fic Recs
And finally a fun Minkey:
Crashing the Boards, Choi Minho/Kim Kibum, 23k, explicit
Happy reading!
As for the mystery itself, perhaps the easiest explanation of my feelings is that I enjoyed the setup, but not the solution. One hopes for a satisfying answer to all three of the questions of Who, Why, and How, and the ending was so improbable on one of those counts that it destroyed my suspension of disbelief. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the classic Christie twists and turns and it's a light, fast read, so I wouldn't describe it as wasted time.
And here are some of the fics I enjoyed in July!
MDZS/The Untamed Fic Recs
A fun modern AU epistolary fic!
AITA for telling two of my PTA parents to grow up?, gen, 2k, general audiences
throwawaymom108 has reached the end of her rope.
Beyond Evil Fic Recs
Unexpected but very sweet rare pair:
Green in the Wood, Kwon Hyuk/Oh Jihoon, 9k, teen
After Hyeok comes out of a car accident with a nasty concussion, he needs somewhere to recuperate. Luckily, Juwon and Dongsik have a guest bedroom.
Which leaves Hyeok in Manyang, recovering slower than any of them want and at loose ends for the first time in his adult life.
Or: Hyeok finds friendship, and a new interest, and a grinning boy in a run-down garden.
Which leaves Hyeok in Manyang, recovering slower than any of them want and at loose ends for the first time in his adult life.
Or: Hyeok finds friendship, and a new interest, and a grinning boy in a run-down garden.
K-pop RPF Fic Recs
And finally a fun Minkey:
Crashing the Boards, Choi Minho/Kim Kibum, 23k, explicit
Choi Minho thinks he's straight because Kim Kibum tells him he is. The fact that they've become each other's go-to rebound hookup over the years has nothing to do with that. It's not like they're in love, or anything...
Happy reading!
