Give me your MCU fanfic recs!
October 28, 2014 8:50 PM Subscribe
I am excited about the new announced expansions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Please shower me with your best fanfic recommendations for the MCU's Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy!
I will read any romantic pairing (het, slash, or poly) if it's written well. I will read ANYTHING if it's written well. I tend to favor character interaction, affectionate character study, and humor over Hardcore Darkfic; I just enjoy these characters I love hanging out with each other, in situations mundane or dire. But I'm happy to have my heart broken with angst if it's written well.
I'm particularly in the mood for some long, plotty team-building fic set post-Winter Soldier and/or post-GOTG. Either gen fic or epic romaaaaance, sexually explicit or not both equally welcome. I tend to wander most often through Archive of Our Own / AO3, so I know there are depths of Tumblr and such I haven't trawled. Help!
I will read any romantic pairing (het, slash, or poly) if it's written well. I will read ANYTHING if it's written well. I tend to favor character interaction, affectionate character study, and humor over Hardcore Darkfic; I just enjoy these characters I love hanging out with each other, in situations mundane or dire. But I'm happy to have my heart broken with angst if it's written well.
I'm particularly in the mood for some long, plotty team-building fic set post-Winter Soldier and/or post-GOTG. Either gen fic or epic romaaaaance, sexually explicit or not both equally welcome. I tend to wander most often through Archive of Our Own / AO3, so I know there are depths of Tumblr and such I haven't trawled. Help!
Best answer: Middletown: A Study Of Suburban Life.
The man on the bridge.
I'll have more when I find the damn things again. I read a lot of AU.
posted by NoraReed at 9:10 PM on October 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
The man on the bridge.
I'll have more when I find the damn things again. I read a lot of AU.
posted by NoraReed at 9:10 PM on October 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
If you can handle lots and lots of Steve Rogers angst: Not About Superheroes (A Private Little War)
posted by Jacqueline at 9:14 PM on October 28, 2014
posted by Jacqueline at 9:14 PM on October 28, 2014
Response by poster: I adore Steve angst as long as there is someone or a team of someones by the end to make it better for him, because otherwise Steve is a sad golden retriever puppy frozen in ice forever and that is NOT OKAY.
posted by nicebookrack at 9:18 PM on October 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by nicebookrack at 9:18 PM on October 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: And I assume that you've already read everything that scifigrl47 has ever written? Because if not, you should get on that ASAP -- that's at least a million words of fluffy romance.
posted by Jacqueline at 9:22 PM on October 28, 2014
posted by Jacqueline at 9:22 PM on October 28, 2014
OK well if you like Steve angst you'll like Homefront.
posted by Jacqueline at 9:23 PM on October 28, 2014
posted by Jacqueline at 9:23 PM on October 28, 2014
Best answer: Can I interest you in a 36k genfic from copperbadge in which JARVIS gets temporarily turned into a human and the Avengers help him cope? Awesome, here's The Son of Man.
posted by dorque at 9:37 PM on October 28, 2014 [4 favorites]
posted by dorque at 9:37 PM on October 28, 2014 [4 favorites]
Best answer: I will read ANYTHING if it's written well.
You'd probably get a lot of value out of subscribing to particular authors on AO3, then.
Here are some of the authors I follow:
arysteia
breakthecitysky
copperbadge
DevilDoll
hollimichele
olga_theodora
quigonejinn
rageprufrock
romanoff
scifigrl47
The_Whelk
venusm
zauberer_sirin
posted by Jacqueline at 9:43 PM on October 28, 2014
You'd probably get a lot of value out of subscribing to particular authors on AO3, then.
Here are some of the authors I follow:
arysteia
breakthecitysky
copperbadge
DevilDoll
hollimichele
olga_theodora
quigonejinn
rageprufrock
romanoff
scifigrl47
The_Whelk
venusm
zauberer_sirin
posted by Jacqueline at 9:43 PM on October 28, 2014
Response by poster: For reference, here are my AO3 bookmarks, sorted by "date updated." I really need to organize all the MCU stuff under one tag...
posted by nicebookrack at 9:59 PM on October 28, 2014
posted by nicebookrack at 9:59 PM on October 28, 2014
Best answer: So I have totally spent the past six months since Cap 2 came out reading endless reams of fan fiction, I am eminently qualified to answer this question! Stuff I liked well enough to bookmark is here and here. Mostly variations on Steve/Bucky/Sam/Natasha. I have a serious Bucky Barnes Problem, so my recs are a little weighted in that direction.
Some particular favorites:
All Along the Watchtower: In which the Winter Soldier tries to incept himself into being Bucky Barnes, Steve/Bucky. A beautiful take on Bucky's recovery that uses dreamsharing a la the movie Inception to great effect.
When the Season Comes Around: A gentler than usual take on Bucky's recovery, but one that I found deeply moving and beautifully written. Also Steve/Bucky.
All The Angels and The Saints: Epic look at Steve, Bucky, and their relationship from childhood to post-Cap 2.
The Deep End: Awesome Steve/Bucky/Natasha with some laugh out loud lines.
lonely houses off the road: Bucky meets the Avengers, and eventually makes his way back to Steve.
The Undertaker's Children: I TOLD YOU I HAVE A BUCKY BARNES PROBLEM. Sorry not sorry. This one is gen background on Bucky and his family, with a beautiful sense of who Steve and Bucky were to their family and community.
all things to all people all of the time: Possibly my favorite gen Natasha fic.
Parallel Constructions: In which both Steve and Bucky are pretty messed up, and Sam and Natasha try to help how they can.
Out of the Dead Land: From the summary: "Someone is building machines that look and act like people. Meanwhile, the Winter Soldier tries to be Bucky Barnes." Awesome, long, action-packed.
posted by yasaman at 10:10 PM on October 28, 2014
Some particular favorites:
All Along the Watchtower: In which the Winter Soldier tries to incept himself into being Bucky Barnes, Steve/Bucky. A beautiful take on Bucky's recovery that uses dreamsharing a la the movie Inception to great effect.
When the Season Comes Around: A gentler than usual take on Bucky's recovery, but one that I found deeply moving and beautifully written. Also Steve/Bucky.
All The Angels and The Saints: Epic look at Steve, Bucky, and their relationship from childhood to post-Cap 2.
The Deep End: Awesome Steve/Bucky/Natasha with some laugh out loud lines.
lonely houses off the road: Bucky meets the Avengers, and eventually makes his way back to Steve.
The Undertaker's Children: I TOLD YOU I HAVE A BUCKY BARNES PROBLEM. Sorry not sorry. This one is gen background on Bucky and his family, with a beautiful sense of who Steve and Bucky were to their family and community.
all things to all people all of the time: Possibly my favorite gen Natasha fic.
Parallel Constructions: In which both Steve and Bucky are pretty messed up, and Sam and Natasha try to help how they can.
Out of the Dead Land: From the summary: "Someone is building machines that look and act like people. Meanwhile, the Winter Soldier tries to be Bucky Barnes." Awesome, long, action-packed.
posted by yasaman at 10:10 PM on October 28, 2014
Best answer: Politics and Animals-- featuring BDSM and therapy dogs. (There are warnings in the tags, but skip this one if you have any BDSM triggers, I think.)
One Day We Won’t Have to Be Scared-- in which vintage sex photos of Steve and Bucky get found and they have to deal, it isn't labeled for dubcon but with the nature of the sex work, it kind of is, so, warning
posted by NoraReed at 10:11 PM on October 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
One Day We Won’t Have to Be Scared-- in which vintage sex photos of Steve and Bucky get found and they have to deal, it isn't labeled for dubcon but with the nature of the sex work, it kind of is, so, warning
posted by NoraReed at 10:11 PM on October 28, 2014 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Oh man, where do I even start. (As an aside, you actually gave me my invite to Ao3 way back when, nicebookrack!)
I'm seconding the list of author recommendations above and would also add these people:
- goddamnhella
- astolat
- lazulisong
I won't add all the summaries or descriptions for these, else the post would be ludicrously long. But I think all of them are a good read, even if you aren't particularly into a particular pairing.
Loki/Tony:
- Off The Record [The mother of all Tony/Loki fics, along with Tricks of the Trade, below. If you read nothing else of this pairing, read these two.]
- Tricks of the Trade series.
- Halo
- In Another Country (People Die)
- Like A Prayer
- Who We Are & Why We Are Here
- Blinding
Bucky/Steve
- the body adrift
- The Man On The Bridge
- Soft Spot For The Hell Raisin' Boy
- Memories Are Made Of This
- Lonely houses off the road
Darcy! Various Darcy-related fics and pairings.
- Talking Trash & Wasting Time [Darcy/Clint]
- With Pie [Darcy/Loki]
- The Best of Life Is But Intoxication
- Groundwater [Darcy/Steve]
- A Dose of Reality [Darcy/Loki, I guess. But it's more plotty than shippy, on the whole.]
- #TeamJanet [Darcy/Janet Van Dyne]
- An Old Solution [Steve/Darcy]
Everything else:
- Rom-Commed By Fate (Or JARVIS) [Steve/Tony. I can't begin to tell you what a weakness I have for fics where JARVIS plays matchmaker, or otherwise fucks with the Avengers for his own amusement.]
- I Stole The Keys To This Guy [Steve/Tony]
- Better To Reign In Hell [Loki-centric]
- AKA the Greater New York PTSD Support Group [Steve/Bucky/Sam post-WinterSoldier recovery fic]
- I trust you like a shot in the dark [Tony & Clint]
- You don't have to stay forever
- J'entre dans la légende [This is so good. Long and plotty and involved.]
- Hashtag Finally
- Flying Monkeys, or Five Times Thor Engaged in Cultural Exchange [This may as well be subtitled 'THOR YOU ENORMOUS ADORABLE DORK <3'.]
- The Only Guy Steve Knows Who Lives in Brooklyn [Bucky/Steve, but mostly this is Clint-&-Bucky-are-bros focused.]
- What A Guy!
- many names in history, none of them are ours
- In The Realm Of Ungrateful Cockroaches [Loki/Steve. Long, plotty, Groundhog Day-meets-Avengers goodness.]
Guardians of the Galaxy:
- Rootsong [MY HEART.]
- It Takes Two Thieves, a Maniac, and an Assassin...
- For the ones left behind [Sob.]
- I Know A Place (I'll Take You There)
posted by pseudonymph at 2:40 AM on October 29, 2014 [3 favorites]
I'm seconding the list of author recommendations above and would also add these people:
- goddamnhella
- astolat
- lazulisong
I won't add all the summaries or descriptions for these, else the post would be ludicrously long. But I think all of them are a good read, even if you aren't particularly into a particular pairing.
Loki/Tony:
- Off The Record [The mother of all Tony/Loki fics, along with Tricks of the Trade, below. If you read nothing else of this pairing, read these two.]
- Tricks of the Trade series.
- Halo
- In Another Country (People Die)
- Like A Prayer
- Who We Are & Why We Are Here
- Blinding
Bucky/Steve
- the body adrift
- The Man On The Bridge
- Soft Spot For The Hell Raisin' Boy
- Memories Are Made Of This
- Lonely houses off the road
Darcy! Various Darcy-related fics and pairings.
- Talking Trash & Wasting Time [Darcy/Clint]
- With Pie [Darcy/Loki]
- The Best of Life Is But Intoxication
- Groundwater [Darcy/Steve]
- A Dose of Reality [Darcy/Loki, I guess. But it's more plotty than shippy, on the whole.]
- #TeamJanet [Darcy/Janet Van Dyne]
- An Old Solution [Steve/Darcy]
Everything else:
- Rom-Commed By Fate (Or JARVIS) [Steve/Tony. I can't begin to tell you what a weakness I have for fics where JARVIS plays matchmaker, or otherwise fucks with the Avengers for his own amusement.]
- I Stole The Keys To This Guy [Steve/Tony]
- Better To Reign In Hell [Loki-centric]
- AKA the Greater New York PTSD Support Group [Steve/Bucky/Sam post-WinterSoldier recovery fic]
- I trust you like a shot in the dark [Tony & Clint]
- You don't have to stay forever
- J'entre dans la légende [This is so good. Long and plotty and involved.]
- Hashtag Finally
- Flying Monkeys, or Five Times Thor Engaged in Cultural Exchange [This may as well be subtitled 'THOR YOU ENORMOUS ADORABLE DORK <3'.]
- The Only Guy Steve Knows Who Lives in Brooklyn [Bucky/Steve, but mostly this is Clint-&-Bucky-are-bros focused.]
- What A Guy!
- many names in history, none of them are ours
- In The Realm Of Ungrateful Cockroaches [Loki/Steve. Long, plotty, Groundhog Day-meets-Avengers goodness.]
Guardians of the Galaxy:
- Rootsong [MY HEART.]
- It Takes Two Thieves, a Maniac, and an Assassin...
- For the ones left behind [Sob.]
- I Know A Place (I'll Take You There)
posted by pseudonymph at 2:40 AM on October 29, 2014 [3 favorites]
devildoll's love among the hydrothermal vents is my favourite
cacchiressa does a lot of seriously fantastic clint/darcy (i think she is musesfool on ao3 though, it should be linked on her tumblr)
posted by poffin boffin at 8:40 AM on October 29, 2014
cacchiressa does a lot of seriously fantastic clint/darcy (i think she is musesfool on ao3 though, it should be linked on her tumblr)
posted by poffin boffin at 8:40 AM on October 29, 2014
A few of my favorite Bucky-centric fanfics (because he's been my obsession of late):
Choice Is Not A Word A Bullet Knows - this is probably my most favorite series right now. The Winter Soldier says "Fuck you" to Hydra, Steve and Sam hunt for Bucky, and Natasha is awesome, as usual. Part 2 is still WIP
lillies with full hands - what feels like a realistic exploration of the kind of PTSD Bucky might have to recover from (plus therapy dogs)
Out of the Dead Land - The Winter Soldier isn't Bucky, but he can pretend to be
Ice and Fire - Tony'sDaughter!Darcy and Steve are an item, but then Bucky comes back (still WIP).
Memory - The Winter Soldier isn't Bucky Barnes but he's still learning to be a person again. Then Loki/his scepter happens. This one kicked me right in the feels in a very unexpected way.
posted by ashirys at 2:26 PM on October 29, 2014 [1 favorite]
Choice Is Not A Word A Bullet Knows - this is probably my most favorite series right now. The Winter Soldier says "Fuck you" to Hydra, Steve and Sam hunt for Bucky, and Natasha is awesome, as usual. Part 2 is still WIP
lillies with full hands - what feels like a realistic exploration of the kind of PTSD Bucky might have to recover from (plus therapy dogs)
Out of the Dead Land - The Winter Soldier isn't Bucky, but he can pretend to be
Ice and Fire - Tony'sDaughter!Darcy and Steve are an item, but then Bucky comes back (still WIP).
Memory - The Winter Soldier isn't Bucky Barnes but he's still learning to be a person again. Then Loki/his scepter happens. This one kicked me right in the feels in a very unexpected way.
posted by ashirys at 2:26 PM on October 29, 2014 [1 favorite]
Labish.tumblr does a lot of really nice Avengers fanart/comics, tho nothing since February. :( Drown is their Bruce/Tony science bros comic, and not a particularly long one at that, and I don't know if it's still available, but it's so pretty and sweet if'n you're at all into science bros fanfic.
(Zie is the genius behind that Avengers/Bad Romance mashup that was everywhere after the first Avengers movie.)
posted by mon-ma-tron at 2:27 PM on October 29, 2014
(Zie is the genius behind that Avengers/Bad Romance mashup that was everywhere after the first Avengers movie.)
posted by mon-ma-tron at 2:27 PM on October 29, 2014
I highly recommend Dira Sudis's stuff. I haven't read some of the kink-heavier/non-con ones, but the rest are great, especially Adoring, with its perfect pun, and her series. Everyone always mentions cesperanza's recent Angels and Saints, but for my money, Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square is much more fantastic and I love it to bits and pieces, and frankly I love her other Steve/Bucky stories more. One of my favorite stories ever is Fluff, which is adorable and funny and team-y and one of the best Bucky-recovery stories all rolled into one. Sholio has written many of my favorite stories, and she tends to concentrate on friendship stuff. Wingthieves is still one of my favorites.
A lot of what else I'd rec is in here (and I second using musesfool's recs pages, they have been a lifesaver for me), so I'll be gauche enough to throw in my own stuff, which is here under my MCU tags (along with vids, but it's mostly fic).
posted by emcat8 at 7:00 PM on October 29, 2014
A lot of what else I'd rec is in here (and I second using musesfool's recs pages, they have been a lifesaver for me), so I'll be gauche enough to throw in my own stuff, which is here under my MCU tags (along with vids, but it's mostly fic).
posted by emcat8 at 7:00 PM on October 29, 2014
I don't know if you're still looking for recs, but if you want to read Steve/Tony I have a massive recs post of stories in all universes, with word counts, summaries, and hopefully-useful commentary.
posted by sineala at 3:46 PM on November 1, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by sineala at 3:46 PM on November 1, 2014 [1 favorite]
New find: the series "sam deserves better than these assholes" is hilarious.
posted by Jacqueline at 4:52 PM on November 5, 2014
posted by Jacqueline at 4:52 PM on November 5, 2014
Oh, I just remembered this one: The Only John Wayne Left in This Town (Clint/Darcy and Clint is also a country music star)
posted by Jacqueline at 10:08 PM on November 6, 2014
posted by Jacqueline at 10:08 PM on November 6, 2014
Omg, this thread (and the previously) make me sooooooooo happy!! Happy happy reader here.
I see that you've bookmarked this particular fic already on ao3 but I was so affected by this fic that I'd like to highlight it in this thread.
"Not Easily Conquered" by dropdeaddream and WhatAreFears.
It's Steve/Peggy and also Steve/Bucky, if a bit more lengthy about the latter than the former. I want to emphasize that both pairs are very, very present. As I read through the winters of the various years I came to wish that I lived in such a reality where, for real, both Bucky's letters and Captain America existed and his words and their story become a particle in the ether that is pop culture. There were some parts that absolutely had me weeping. (Even if the authors left out historical stuff I was sad wasn't addressed cuz I felt Cap woulda had ~opinions.) It's marked as unfinished with one part remaining and even with that I feel so happy of what the authors have posted so far and are excellent reads. READ ITTTTTTTTTTT
wait wait there's more!
"Shoeless Joe and the Sunshine Kid" (heed the warnings!!)
"Four Dollar Memory" both by nimmieamee
Everything by this author is worth reading, at least the Cap/Marvel'verse fic. (I haven't read them all quite yet and I am confident in this assertion.) "Four Dollar Memory" is one of my favorites of their fic. Along with "The Dud," those two are drily humorous in their own way. pre-serum Steve is so interesting and in this person's fics he comes across to me in the most cutting and wonderful way I've yet to find in fic. That said, AHEM, "Shoeless Joe and the Sunshine Kid" is the most hellish and downright depressing thing I've read in fandom, jfc. Like I said, if triggers are something you need to know about PLEASE HEED THE WARNINGS.
OK last but not least! I'd like to give a vote to "4 Minute Window" as my favorite Speranza fic. Steve/Bucky. If Natasha isn't on your side, you're fucking screwed.
posted by one teak forest at 2:09 PM on March 17, 2015 [1 favorite]
I see that you've bookmarked this particular fic already on ao3 but I was so affected by this fic that I'd like to highlight it in this thread.
"Not Easily Conquered" by dropdeaddream and WhatAreFears.
It's Steve/Peggy and also Steve/Bucky, if a bit more lengthy about the latter than the former. I want to emphasize that both pairs are very, very present. As I read through the winters of the various years I came to wish that I lived in such a reality where, for real, both Bucky's letters and Captain America existed and his words and their story become a particle in the ether that is pop culture. There were some parts that absolutely had me weeping. (Even if the authors left out historical stuff I was sad wasn't addressed cuz I felt Cap woulda had ~opinions.) It's marked as unfinished with one part remaining and even with that I feel so happy of what the authors have posted so far and are excellent reads. READ ITTTTTTTTTTT
wait wait there's more!
"Shoeless Joe and the Sunshine Kid" (heed the warnings!!)
"Four Dollar Memory" both by nimmieamee
Everything by this author is worth reading, at least the Cap/Marvel'verse fic. (I haven't read them all quite yet and I am confident in this assertion.) "Four Dollar Memory" is one of my favorites of their fic. Along with "The Dud," those two are drily humorous in their own way. pre-serum Steve is so interesting and in this person's fics he comes across to me in the most cutting and wonderful way I've yet to find in fic. That said, AHEM, "Shoeless Joe and the Sunshine Kid" is the most hellish and downright depressing thing I've read in fandom, jfc. Like I said, if triggers are something you need to know about PLEASE HEED THE WARNINGS.
OK last but not least! I'd like to give a vote to "4 Minute Window" as my favorite Speranza fic. Steve/Bucky. If Natasha isn't on your side, you're fucking screwed.
posted by one teak forest at 2:09 PM on March 17, 2015 [1 favorite]
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These days, I'm totally addicted to these WIPs:
Blue Lips, Blue Veins (Fills in the blanks in Tony Stark's life and is now up to post-CA:TWS. Tony/Everyone with eventual Tony/Steve coming soon.)
In the Garden (AU during/after season 1 AoS and CA:TWS. Coulson/Simmons)
Born from the Earth (I don't normally go for Omegaverse stuff but this one is good)
Sins of Omission (Comics-based Stony. Possibly too Hardcore Darkfic for you.)
posted by Jacqueline at 9:06 PM on October 28, 2014