Must Reads - Time Loops Triology

Review for my expanding Recomendation List

Time Loops Trilogy by Eakin

Installments:

Hard Reset
A Stitch in Time
You Can Fight Fate

Tags: Pretty much every one at some point, except for Human, Random and Tragedy

Timeframe: Somewhere after S2

Summary and Review:
The first thing you have to realize about the trilogy is that all three stories are extremely different from each other. Because of this my normal approach of just quoting the description won't suffice. Instead I will write a bit of text on what each story is like and why you should read it.

The first story of the trilogy Hard Reset is the most known of the three and even was 1st place most popular story on FIMFiction for some time.
In the story we spend a day with Twilight (from her pov in first person) as Canterlot gets invaded by Changelings (again.) This time they are much better prepared and Canterlot quickly evolves into total chaos. Luckily Twilight had a magical accident with a spell earlier that resets her to the point of casting whenever she dies.
Yeah, the concept of the story is probably not that original. This doesn't mean that it doesn't have it's unique twists though.
However, what really carries this story is Twilght's character development as she experiences the invasion and inevitable (and sometimes horrifying) death over and over again.
It is also refreshingly down to earth. Though concepts like the magic of friendship and the elements are important for the story, it is not a case where you can clearly see that a rainbow will conveniently solve things at the right time once the important lesson is learned. Instead the odds and stakes are made clear from the beginning, and getting the elements in a position they can be used is a primary goal Twilight pursues in many loops.

The second story, A Stitch in Time is very different from that. I admit that at first I was a bit afraid to even start it. Twilight's psyche is a bit stained after after the first part, and while calling her broken would go too far, she is also no pinnacle of stability anymore.
I was not sure whether I wanted to read another story where she would get pushed to her limits again, further deepening her wounds. That was not the case. Instead, A Stitch in Time chooses a much different path, and is a heart-warming slice of life about Twilight overcoming her trauma with the help of her friends.
Well, some of it at least.
The time-loop spell from Hard Reset has destabilized time and the aether is now in danger decoupling itself from the underlying quantum framework of the universe. Or something like that. In order to stop the impeding disaster, Twilight seeks the help of the universe's pending expert on time spells, who also happens to be from more than a millennium in the past, Twilight's idol, and also sort of an asshole.
Apart from that there is also an engaging romantic sideplot (It's not Twilight-Starswirl, if you are expecting that) and a really awesome chapter in guest-narrative from Pinkie Pie.

You can Fight Fate takes a different path once again. After Twilight send Starswirl back in to his time, she gets a message from the past containing a desperate call for help.
In order to stop the universe from being obliterated by an omnipresent, timeless and almost all powerful consciousness, Twilight and Starswirl have to adventure all across time and space, jumping back and forth in time and even to alternate timelines.

You can Fight Fate is extremely fast paced, with is lots of unforeseen twists and turns, but thankfully manages to stay clear from becoming confusing or overwhelming. Saying anything more would probably end in spoilers. Oh, and also some of Pinkie's guest-narrative again.

If you asked for my personal favourite of the three, I would probably pick A Stitch in Time, but all of them are definitely worth your time.