Fic recs, February 16th: Lotus Moon edition, part 3! · 2:42pm Feb 16th, 2023
Midnight29 has done a reading of SPark's Another Battle in the Long War Between Light and Darkness!
So yeah, part 3. :B Goddamn. And I'm still not done with her channel, but at this point, I have to accept that I will now never catch up on audiobooks. And this is partially Lotus's fault and partially VisualPony's (they both upload like a video a day! that is INSANE), and at least partially because I don't have the same daily habits now that I'm living alone. Just not enough moments in the day where listening to something is an easy task, really.
My audiobook playlist is "down" to "only" 180 now. I plan to mix together everything that's been uploading while I've done through Lotus Moon's channel with her stuff, and we'll see you again in 90 stories or so. :B
H: 1 R: 11 C: 14 V: 3 N: 3
Bunnypocalypse by TimbukTurnip
Reading
Genre: Songfic
One Easter morning, Fluttershy wakes up early.
So when I say "songfic", I mean it in the sense that I've used it in my own works: You take a song, use its title for the story's title, then build a story out of all the lyrics, in any order, taking care never to quote them directly, for multiple reasons. This story actually accomplishes that, and even justifies the inclusion of one song lyric due to its context. That being said, the original song, which I checked out before reading the fic, tells such a distinct story on its own that this is basically just a ponification thereof. If you know the song, there are no surprises, and if you don't, it's likely completely nonsensical. Granted, it does interpret some of the lyrics in quite a novel manner, and there's a solid cameo, but it also just sort of stops when it hits the end of the song, which is a real head-scratcher. Definitely not the kind of scene worth ending on, regardless. My thoughts on this are so conflicted, but I think in the end, it's safer to say it doesn't quite work out as a story despite succeeding at its core conceit.
Vaguely Recommended
Through the Thin and the Thick by ShadowBlazeCR
Reading with The Wingman and CourtJester42
Genre: Romance/Comedy
Mondays should be banned.
I still don't like SoarinDash as a ship, but I gotta say, this is one of the best I've ever read. The romantic parts, showing the two of them as a team living in domestic bliss, really hit the spot. That said, this does spend a lot of time repeating itself, usually dialogue going over what's already been narrated (with narrative being the weaker of the two). And the slice of life parts are very… whitebread. Middle America. Cishet, normie, Sunday funnies, you name it, it's there. Soarin literally says, "Happy wife, happy life," for god's sake. That and the Garfield-esque "they both hate Mondays" theme will tell you what you're dealing with here. Though the punchline is actually really good, I hope tagging this as Comedy doesn't spoil that.
Recommended for Shippers
Mother's Day in Ponyville by TheOnly
Reading
Genre: Sad
It's a day for families.
When I saw who had written this one, I went, "Aw, yeah!" For those who don't know, TheOnly is famous for writing emotional stories with troll-filled twist endings. See… literally any story other than this one. <.< While it maybe tugs on the old heartstrings (it is pretty maudlin) and manages to predict a couple of character beats that wouldn't be canon for years, and the ending does actually have a twist, I did not feel distinctly trolled. As in, I'm not even sure if that twist exists. If so, it's really subtle, and I can't be sure it's suggesting what it is. And if it is… well, it's not a super effective troll. It might actually be a twist of the, dare I say it, normal variety, and sadly drive home the maudlinity of the overall story. So I have to say this is one piece by TheOnly that just doesn't work for me.
Not Recommended
Begin Again by Ice Star
Reading
Genre: Sad Romance
So Celestia keeps outliving her paramours throughout time and eternity, yadda yadda, whatever, I am here for the poetry. Because this one almost breaks through a lot of my standard complaints about rhymed poems that don't quite work, and does so well enough that I really can't criticize it too heavily. With one exception, each stanza is broken into two halves of two lines: the first two don't rhyme, or perhaps have a near-rhyme, while the last two do rhyme. And each of those rhymed couplets is a solid rhyme, though there are one or two that stretch to get there. The reason why this works is — and, admittedly, I had not spent a lot of time analyzing this — it seems to me that the first half of the stanza sets up something sad, while the last half proposes something hopeful or at least turns the emotional dial up toward 'happier'. Or maybe it's like, talking about the past, then talking about the present, I'm not sure, I just definitely felt that was the case. The weird part of this piece is the meter, or lack thereof, which, y'know, is perfectly fine, it quickly becomes apparent this is not meant to be a metric poem. But this does lead to a lot of variation in line length. Again, they mostly seem to come in pairs of shortish or longish, and it's only within and between stanzas that the disparity becomes obvious. But then there's that one exception I mentioned earlier, the one stanza that descends to a fifth line, and likely had to simply because of screen size restrictions. Some of those could have been cut down a bit, is my point. But on the whole, this does work as poetry, and it's nice to see someone not actively trying to follow a form while still following some sort of rule. Not to mention it's a nice sad story all on its own.
Recommended
Autumn Fluff by Parker
Reading with CourtJester42 and Xavier the Phoenix
Genre: Shipping
Sandbar and Gallus enjoy laying in bed together.
Oh boy, Gallbar, there's a ship I… definitely do not care about one bit. And you can tell, because I normally get a bug up my butt about explaining why a canon relationship has been dissolved in favor of something else, and here, I just do not care in the slightest. But, if I ignore who the characters are, I have to admit this is good fluff. It's cute, it's written well, and, yes, it's amusing that it's a fluff piece about fluff, there, I said it. But y'all know I'm always on the lookout for good M/M romance. If you're looking for just something that's cute and gay (or, dare I say it, you actually like these characters!), this is it.
Recommended for Shippers
Her Loving Night by Lotus Moon
Reading with Spirit
Genre: Romance
Midnight Affection was the last pony anyone expected to fall for a Night Guard.
I've gotta ask: What sort of question is, "Are you somepony suspicious?" You are not going to get any useful answers out of anyone through asking something like that! Though, reading the story, I had to assume Mystic Knight just… is kind of weird. Maybe it's because batponies are dumb and smelly, idk, but he apparently also doesn't know the word "bedroom"? One has to wonder if they don't keep him in the Guard out of pity. Anyway, this is kinda cute, though I'd hoped for more story than just "how they met" plus Midnight narrating her own backstory to herself. A "how they got together" seemed the much more interesting way to go, given the setup. I mean, Midnight is pretty pathetic, let's be honest. You gotta wonder what anyone would see in her. But I guess that's not what we're here for, just a meet-up flashback followed by a nice date. It's cute, if nothing else, but I'm not sure I could consider myself intrigued to follow the further adventures of these characters.
Recommended for Romance Fans Only
A Letter to Father by Silvermyr
Reading with CourtJester42 and Sparrow9642
Genre: Comedy
Cozy Glow writes home.
I don't know why this isn't tagged Comedy. Cozy's letter is pretty dang funny! Not to mention the reveal of her father, which, well, it's not much of a reveal, he's right there in the character tags. And you can look over at the sidebar to find out who her mother is, too! Regardless, I highly approve of this choice of character, it's brilliant. :D I don't think I have much else that needs said!
Recommended
Effect and Cause: A Case Study of Three Fillies and Their Various Attempts to Acquire Their Cutie Marks by Closer-To-The-Sun
Reading
Genre: Comedy
As penned by Princess Twilight Sparkle.
I want to start by warning you off this particular reading. Not only is she difficult to hear over the poorly mixed music and pen-scratching noise, she decided to deal with the blacked-out dates in probably the worst possible way. It made me think the author had made a terrible decision vis-a-vis characterization, and by the end, I was so aggravated, my annoyance bled over into my enjoyment of the story. So is this story great? No, but it's not bad. It's about what you'd expect from a CMC-based comedy, by virtue of being all of them smooshed together. There aren't a lot of strong laughs given its lengthy runtime, however, and it ends on a highly unnecessary summary of Crusaders of the Last Mark. Like, I don't know why that even happened, just say they finally got them so we can place this temporally and end the darn story already! But I'm going to round up, just so I'm not taking this bad audiobook out unfairly on the fic.
Recommended for CMC Fans
A Death in Two Acts by Seer
Reading
Genre: Sad Romance/Drama
Twilight moves in with Rarity.
Boy, there's a lot to like about this. From the title, tags, etc., it's clear that, by the end of this story, Twilight and Rarity are not going to be in a relationship anymore. That's the what; it's the why that makes up the meat of this story. Better yet, not only do we get to see what starts to end the relationship — I'd call it conflicting styles of OCD — we get to see what starts it as well. And it's told non-linearly, which was really the only way to do it, and just told so well, darnit! This is the kind of thing I'm always looking for in shipfics, really. It also makes the point that, while communication is important in relationships, something I'm constantly harping on, actually knowing how to communicate is something entirely else. It kinda helps to be good at it if you want it to actually be effective. So yeah, a very good piece.
Highly Recommended
Chryssy Please! by AlphaRidley
Reading
Genre: Shipping/Drama
Celestia begs, Chrysalis denies.
This was unexpectedly cool. It's very well paced, with a great twist reveal in the middle that explains why Celestia is acting the way she is. And while it's not marked a Comedy, the reason why Twilight is there I found genuinely hilarious. That said, I have two caveats. First, this needs a Self-Harm tag (so, this is your warning), and the scene which necessitates that stood out to me as odd. I guess I couldn't see Chrysalis doing that for that reason. Second, the narration is just kind of strange? It's definitely got that problem of sounding more like writing than someone's inner voice; it might also have something to do with the reading, where the vocoder effect was confusingly used for both narration and dialogue. Not that it was necessarily a bad decision, I've just never seen it before. But on the whole, that twist really makes it for me, and I'm overall inclined to say this was a rewarding reading experience.
Recommended for Shippers
Forever Loved by Script Singer
Reading with a bunch of people
Genre: Comfort Fic
Pinkie Pie knows a lot of things about her friends.
I'd really like to know who first came up with the idea that harming yourself is a good thing to do while depressed. >.> And how they keep spreading it to people. I swear no one did this shit when I was a kid, before the internet, but the reality probably is that it was yet another thing No One Talked About, and the people who did it were really good at hiding it. Anyway, this is a really good reason to write a self-insert story. Even if the author weren't up front about the impetus, it's clear the emotions in the piece are genuine. It also has the bonus of only being focused on Pinkie Pie out of the main characters; like, if you and your friends' OCs are all living in Ponyville, it makes all the sense for Pinkie to know them, and dodges a common self-insert trope. Plus, the idea to tell the story twice, once first-person and once from Pinkie Pie's POV, was pretty interesting. Really, the only ding against it is that I don't feel it fits the world, but clearly that isn't the point.
Recommended If You Need More Positivity in Your Life
Discord's Truthful Revelation by Zanem-Ji
Reading with CourtJester42 and Sparrow9642
Genre: Dark
I was once known as the Beast. And I never want to go back there.
I've always been staunchly in the "Discord never actually hurt ponies and sure as hell never killed them" camp when it comes to his characterization. But I can't deny, saying he was like that before he was first turned to stone does actually work? Like, if nothing else, it gives you a track to look back on and say, wow, how far he's come. Anyway, while this is pretty grimdark, it also trends toward edginess here and there. Could've been dialed back just a tad. Also, it weirdly uses both first-person and third-person narration. Like, if not for the fact that Lotus Moon shows up to interject a single line in the audiobook, I'm not sure I'd have even noticed had I been reading the text. I just have to wonder what it means. Regardless, though, the end takeaway is that this is a good, if dark, "Discord fighting internally with himself" piece.
Recommended for Fans of Darkfic
The Tartarus Journal by Bearycool
Reading with TsukiSama87
Genre: Horror/World-Building
A record of the time Twilight and her friends went to hell.
I have to confess, I've had this bad habit lately of listening to an audiobook, following it up with a random Youtube video, and then completely forgetting that I need to write a review later. Most of the time, I can remember what I needed to say. In this case, not only did I forget, I then moved house and came out as trans. Which is to say I've been through a lot since I read this story, but I still remember it was quite good. It's probably on the dark side for people who aren't super into horror, but if you don't have that hangup, it's a surprising piece of early MLP horror with some very interesting things to surmise about the pony hell we'd only ever heard the name of by that point.
Recommended
Raining Down by Glen Gorewood
Reading with Mako ~ chii
Genre: Horror
Everything was fine until the rain came.
Stop me if you've heard this one before: A mysterious rainstorm shows up out of nowhere, and the ponies quickly find out if you get caught in it, you die in an agonizing manner. Twilight spends the next three years trying to keep Ponyville safe while watching ponies she cares about die, either out of carelessness or because they lost hope and walked outside. And if you have heard that before, maybe that's why this didn't do a whole lot for me. I mean, it's just… rain. What kills you. Not exactly original. Yet nothing about this is inherently bad, there just wasn't anything else present to make it stand out. For sure, I have no interest in the sequel, for all that I can't say this is bad. I just… eh.
Vaguely Recommended
I Wander by Silent Whisper
Reading with Archer and Script Singer
Genre: Dark/World-Building
Down here in the City, it's dark, and you can lose yourself.
I found this fascinating. Not once is anything explained, yet by the end, I had a fairly solid idea of what was going on. I get the sense this is one of those stories that can be interpreted a number of ways, that that's the point, and that even though I have an explanation for it, there are still a lot of things I have to wonder about, and that's also the point. That's pretty awesome!
Recommended
Hoof Steps in the Dark by FuzzyFurvert
Reading (part 1) with Asher Rivers and Mako ~ chii
Genre: Horror/Dark Action
Something is following Twilight home.
Here's a story steeped in post-S4 angst. A castle has just happened to Twilight, we have no idea what this means, and that just adds to the sense of wrongness that pervades the piece. I will say the bulk of the action felt a tad circular at times; I had some difficulty keeping track of what was going on, and not much progresses, chapter to chapter. But it's all worth it for the last few chapters. All those little ones have such a herky-jerky structure, it really drives home what's happening to Twilight. And the final chapter has a really cool visual image, as well as a twist ending!
Recommended
A Coffee Story by Viper Pit
Reading with AJ Pony and Bovine Apple
Genre: Comedy
Gee, it's been quite a while since I saw a fic open with a full character description. It does a good job setting expectations, unfortunately. The narrative is more interested in telling us details about the characters than letting us see who they are. (And what we do see suggests a rather unpleasant familial relationship.) And, weirdly, I thought this was going to be a story about a dog trying to snitch someone's coffee. That's what the description says. But it's actually a story about someone telling someone a story about a dog snitching someone's coffee, while their dog is trying to snitch their coffee. If that sounds confusing, it is! I will give the story points for reminding me that random ponies can have pets, too, but as is it, it just doesn't go anywhere.
Not Recommended
The L Word by Ice Star
Reading
Genre: Comedy
Cadence comes to Luna with a problem.
I was afraid this was going to be Cadence/Luna shipping at first. Funnily enough, despite the fact that it isn't at all, the story nevertheless went out of its way to assuage some of my fears toward the presumed "having feelings for the sister of someone you call 'Auntie'" issue. No, this is a piece that just looks into their personal relationship, spinning a good dynamic for them, and giving Cadence something to ask Luna that definitely needs advice. And the actual joke at the heart of the story was quite funny!
Recommended
Twilight Takes a Breath by Strawberry Sunrise
Reading
Genre: Meta Comedy
You know, I could see a new fan finding this story right around the time it was posted in 2020, reading it and thinking, wow, that's super boring! It's about breathing, and it sounds like a science textbook for the most part! And you know what? I think that would be valid. Not because I found the story boring or dry, but because it's not this theoretical fan's fault that they came to Fimfiction way too late to appreciate a send-up of "Pony Does X" stories like this one. :) Really, this is just taking the sub-genre to its logical extreme: the ponies have done everything else, but are we sure they're still breathing? I was amused.
Recommended If You Get the Reference
GingerBread by Opium4TmassS
Reading
Genre: Horror
A stallion gets his wife a Hearth's Warming gift.
I would like to start by making a direct comparison between the opening of this story and that of A Coffee Story. Like that fic, this one starts off with a significant info dump about our protagonist and various aspects of his life. But it works for a number of reasons, besides setting up payoff for the end. It's not formatted as "X was a Y pony, ABC colors, D cutie mark", for one. For two, the things we're told about Dusty Bin are insane. Like, his daughter ran off with a cultist??? This dude is having a time, and so it's hard not to root for him, even when… Well, I'll let you find out. As for the story itself, while thankfully not a remake of The Gingerdead Man, this is still such a B-horror movie, and I mean that with all due love and respect. :D It's the kind of dark fic that gets me laughing, not because the things depicted within are too horrifying to deal with otherwise, but because it's just so over-the-top and zany. It's seriously completely out there, and I loved every second. I cannot remember the last time I was so on the edge of my seat waiting for the final shoe to drop at the end of a story. This won't appeal to everyone, but goddamn, did I enjoy it. Highly Recommended If You Enjoy OTT Horror
Recommended
Twilight's Gift to a Retired Princess by Yoshikage Kira
Reading
Genre: Post-Canon
Twilight brings Celestia a Hearth's Warming gift.
Slightly disturbing that that's almost the same description I used for the last story. c_c I knew this one was gonna be good the moment Celestia and Twilight greeted each other. This fic gets by on good characterization, notably a Celestia filled with regrets, some earned, some imagined, just the way I like her. No real stakes to speak of, but as slice of life, it delivers nevertheless.
Recommended
Bits of Love by Pink Rocket
Reading
Genre: Comedic Shipping
Applejack decides to seduce Fluttershy out of her newly-won money.
I'm very glad this is tagged Comedy, because as a romance, it's bad. Very bad, in fact, on multiple levels. But once you hit Fluttershy lazing on a pile of bits, wondering what to do with them, it's clear just how tongue-in-cheek this is meant to be. Dare I say, it might even be a parody of bad romance fics. I definitely had a few laughs, and of course I like the ship, so worth it, in my estimation. :)
Recommended for Laughs
Two for the Price of One by Jhoira
Reading with SharpUnforgiven
Genre: Rom-Com
Sweetie Belle takes umbrage with the love letter Applejack wrote to Rarity.
So at first, it seemed like what was going on was really obvious, and the joke was that Sweetie Belle is dumb. Which, I would be into that, but it's pretty one-note. What's actually going on is a bit more creative, though in total, I'm not sure it leads to any deeper a story. But I still got a laugh out of it, if nothing else.
Recommended for Shippers
Drunk Love by Dark Nightshade
Reading with SharpUnforgiven
Genre: Shipping/Comedy
Rarity helps a drunk Fluttershy get home.
So this is a pretty standard shipfic, all things considered. They both just so happen to like each other, there's a lot of Fluttershy getting handsy, heck, it even starts out with Rarity being asked who she likes but being unable to answer. And there's some cute, funny stuff drawn out of Fluttershy's drunken stupor. But, like.. A) Fluttershy can't consent to anything they end up doing. B) She fucking throws up in Rarity's mouth, I'm just gonna say it. :| And that last bit just really ruined the whole thing for me.
Not Recommended
Kismesis by Str8aura
Reading
Reading by VisualPony
Genre: Shipping Comedy
Twilight's latest battle with Queen Chrysalis does not quite go as planned.
You know, if this is considered an "old shame", as per the author's note in the description, they're probably doing A-OK these days. :) Though the denouement meanders a bit, this was snappy and funny and totally weird. Good comedy!
Recommended for Shippers
Home Sweet Home by axxuy
Reading
Genre: Romance
After a long day, there's no place like home.
This is such a simple, effective romance, almost nothing more need be said about it. :) It fully captures both the fanon and canon of LyraBon, and winds them into a very comfortable story about home. Also, I got such a thrill remembering that the cover image is actually from the show. :D
Recommended
Musings on Love by wishcometrue
Reading
Genre: Shipping
Coco Pommel is quite the lucky pony.
I love it when an author understands my needs. :) Coming into this, I was a bit skeptical, because what would a shy pony like Coco Pommel see in a loud, obnoxious windbag like Sassy Saddles? This is addressed in the story! Not just what she sees in her, but how they don't get along at first. And I like that quite a bit, because all the polyamory stories I've seen so far have everyone just flat getting along from the outset, when I can't imagine it's that easy. This really fits a lot into a small package.
Recommended
Self-Insert by Silent Whisper
Reading
Genre: Shipping
Fluttershy is the luckiest mare in the world.
About the time I was starting to think that Musings on Love was a better "intro to polyamory" style fic, Fluttershy dropped a line that absolutely blew my mind. Given that she never comes back to it, I have a feeling I took it out of context, but like… Why phrase that concept in that manner? Anyway, not to make a mountain out of a molehill, this is sappy as all get-out, and you can't argue with me on that point, because Flutters apologizes for it at least twice. I was willing to give a Twilestia a shot because it added a third pony, but while that's unique, I ultimately didn't find it all that interesting. If you want more poly rep in your ponyfic, stick with the previous story.
Vaguely Recommended
Snowfall by Omegathyst
Reading
Genre: Sad Shipping
Smolder misses those she cares about.
I guess Lotus Moon got on a poly kick? c.c This one's not bad, and if I felt any disdain towards it, it's entirely because I still don't give two damns about these characters. I mean, you can tell I don't, because Yona's dating Sandbar in canon and I just do not care one way or the other if she gets shipped with another one of these kids. I already said this in another review moving on. Regardless, this accomplishes what it sets out to, though if you want more than just 'how they got together' and soppy goodbyes, you won't find it here.
Recommended If You Like These Characters
How to Preen Your Princess by PonyThunder
Reading
Genre: Manual
A guide for professionals.
I gotta say, this is an excellent piece of in-universe writing, which consequently means it's rather dry for a comedy. Though I really liked the section about what to do if the princess starts coming on to you. XD
Recommended If You Enjoy Pure World-Building
Clop Clop! by ThatOneWriter
Reading with SharpUnforgiven
Genre: Not What It Seems
Pinkie Pie is just clopping too much!
Hey, guys, remember back in the old days of the fandom, when we decided that "clopping" was the sound of a pony masturbating, and so we called sex stories "clopfics"? Remember how it was funny that "clop" could have two meanings? That's this story in a nutshell.
Recommended If You Still Think That's Funny
A Thousand Words by Silver Mint
Reading
100th Review of 2023!
Genre: Sad Romance
To my Dearest Tea Leaf…
The first half of the story is a series of love letters, some of which are honestly pretty good. And just around the time I was lamenting the lack of 'actual story', it suddenly kicked in. Good timing, that. Also, it's cute that their names are Tea and Biscuit. :) This is maybe a tad shmaltzy, but not bad in the least. Definitely worth it if you like reading about romantic gestures.
Recommended for Romance Fans
Thank you for reviewing I Wander and Self-Insert! I agree with you on both reviews, and am delighted you enjoyed I Wander, as I'm still quite proud of it. As for the other... I wrote it in 2017 and like to think I've grown as a writer and as a person since then, so I'm not upset at all. Wish's Musings was leagues better than mine, I agree, and it deserves more recognition! (And seeing all the great fics on this list makes me honored that mine are on it at all!)
Thanks for the review of Home Sweet Home. It was a very nice thing to wake up to this morning.
Thanks for the review!
Thank you for the review. I am overjoyed you took a look at it.
5714010
I'm glad I could at least give you a solidly positive review! :)
5714044
at this point, your stories are always a treat :D
Looks like I've got at least one fic to check out! :D
Really appreciate the review! Can't disagree with anything you said, I would say the plain slice of life parts were really there to drive the single idea. A problem I probably have with most of my one-shots, where the one idea that could probably be summarized in one paragraph need to be a whole story; a good example would be Whatcha Got There Cozy Glow. I haven't written here in awhile, more on fanfiction nowadays, but it's great to see my stories are still being seen. Thanks again, and I will always appreciate the advice on improvement that your review gave.
Thank you so much for the review! A Thousand Words has a special place in my heart because it was sort of a challenge to myself, and it was inspired by one of my favourite songs. Funnily enough, I wanted the first half with the letters to be a little longer, I had more letters but I ended scrapping them! Seems it was for the best.
Again, thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoyed it enough to review it and host it here.
Thank you for the review! I'm very glad you enjoyed Musings, because it's always been mildly disappointing to me it hasn't gotten as much attention as other stories I've written which I find much worse. Like, Amazing Flanks somehow has 22 more likes despite being straight up bad in retrospect (seriously why did I publish it on it's own, it should've been shoved into my anthology at best).
Also, thanks for the positive review of No Passion a few months ago as well, which surprised me and made me very happy as well. I meant to write a comment at the time, and in fact had written a paragraph or two's worth of agreement with your critique, but decided that what I'd written was poor quality and needed to be rewritten before posting, which of course never happened. Whoops!
5716515
sounds like somepony might just be a good author or something! ;)