The more Olympics I watch, the more I feel like a lazy bum spending hours on my couch while these amazing athletes light it up across the world, haha. But I can't resist. :)
I was able to watch the ice dance live today, and wow -- lots of really fantastic programs! I cried over several of them. I was rooting for Davis and White, and have generally thought them to be the best team based on the other programs I've watched, but did anyone else think they weren't
quite up to their usual level of perfection in this final dance? Virtue and Moir were light and exquisite and emotional, while I thought Davis and White looked tight -- technically very good, but I wasn't moved as I have been watching their other programs. Obviously no one could blame them given the pressure they've been under, but I wasn't fully convinced by their landslide victory. :-/
I actually sort of felt similarly about the Russian pair skaters that won the gold. I thought their short program was
amazing, but I wasn't as sold on their free skate. Maybe it's because my expectations were too high, or maybe it's because I love the Jesus Christ Superstar music and didn't think their choreography quite lived up to it. They deserved to win for sure, but I wasn't as blown away as I wanted to be.
The men's free skate the other night was a total bummer. There wasn't one program that really transported me. Hoping from better from the ladies later this week!
I'm not Canadian, but I'm totally rooting for the Canadian men's hockey team (see icon for the reason why *g*). I don't like their chances at gold, to be honest -- my initial pick was Sweden, but given all their injuries they haven't looked all that strong to me either. And apparently no team in the NHL era has gone undefeated in the entire tournament to win gold (past winners apparently all lost at some point in the round robin). So who does that leave -- Finland? Russia? Switzerland? Hmm. *strokes chin thoughtfully* Wouldn't mind seeing Russia win in their home country, except I can't root for Varlamov. >:-( So we'll just have to see...
Hoping I can stay unspoiled for some of these elimination games coming up. I've been spoiled for pretty much every figure skating result that I didn't watch live. *claws face*
I've been gathering hockey fic for months now, so I finally decided to put a few recs together. I still have about a dozen that I haven't written up yet, but I think this is enough to be going on with. /o\
Take me to the edge so I can fall apart by linaerys (Kane/Toews, NC-17, pain kink)
This starts at Chicago's lowest moment of the 2013 playoffs, carries through the summer after, and is a really fascinating look into Jonny's head from Patrick's perspective. I found the characterizations extremely convincing, especially Jonny's difficulty communicating what he feels to Patrick, and I thought the pain play aspect was handled in a unique way to what I've seen before -- not so much a sexual kink as an emotional/psychological one. I was on the edge of my seat.
Switch by montrose (Kane/Toews, NC-17, BDSM AU)
As soon as I finished reading this 35,000-word fic, I should have gone to bed -- but instead of leaving a comment and powering off my laptop, I scrolled up and started reading again. This was that good. It's set in a world in which everyone is supposedly either a top or a sub; Patrick is a sub, one of very few in the NHL, while Jonathan is a top who's struggling with occasional urges to submit (mostly to Patrick). I enjoyed the political aspects of the fic and watching these two try to figure out a way to fit their desires together.
a light-handed approach to regulation by hazel (Kane/Toews, NC-17, alpha/beta/omega dynamics)
I'm not typically fond of the alpha/beta/omega thing in fic, to be honest, but I really loved the approach the author took in this story. I have a hard time describing it, which is why I haven't posted this rec in the months since I actually read the fic, but it's a really rich universe -- the alpha/omega politics call a lot on gender politics in our world, as well as other things, and I love the use of scent to convey the characters' emotions. Tazer as the omega who's trying to get respect as the captain of his team is particularly fierce and wonderful.
I Got a Love (That Keeps Me Waiting) by svmadelyn (Kane/Toews, NC-17, mpreg)
Mpreg is usually enough to make me run screaming, but this author's stuff is always fantastic, and this is no exception. It's epic in length (160,000+ words) and in emotion, particularly in terms of Jonny's feelings for Patrick. The plot is unashamedly right out of a soap opera -- Kaner gets pregnant after a one-night stand at the Olympics that he was too drunk to remember, although the reader can easily figure out whom he must have slept with -- but it all just works. I was absorbed for hours, clawing my eyes out over all my Jonny feels. :)
From Russia, With Love by salvamisandwich (Malkin/Kadar, PG)
I've read this several times and loved it again and again. Mike Kadar is the trainer that worked with Geno to help him recover from his knee injury, and the story starts with them being mutually respectful friends. Then Geno discovers a secret about Mike that changes how Geno views both Mike and himself. The author does a nice job of capturing Geno's confused feelings, and Mike is a lovely, lovely character.
if you can hold on by cherryvanilla (Toews/Kristen Stewart, NC-17, BDSM, orgasm delay/denial, pain play, AU)
If you like stories about sexual exploration, give this a try. Here Jonny is trying to figure out what he wants sexually, so he hires Kristen as a dominatrix and, naturally, falls for her. The author does a really nice job with Johnny's issues in the beginning -- he's so tense it's almost painful to read, but I loved it; it felt real. And then things get hot pretty much the rest of the way through. :)
Still After All These Years by hapakitsune (Eberle/Hall, NC-17)
I absolutely loved this future fic, set after Jordan gets divorced from his wife and discovers that maybe he was missing someone else who's had feelings for him for a very long time. If pining is a trope you enjoy, don't miss this one. I also liked Jordan's relationship with his kids, and the sense of what these characters might be like after they're a little older and more mature.
Together in this Place by joyfulseeker (Kane/Toews, NC-17)
This is one of many in the post-lockout genre, but it's an excellent one. There's sort of a deliberate, almost dreamy pace to it, with slow-building UST that makes the eventual coming together even hotter.
texas heat by rest (Benn/Seguin, NC-17, AU)
This is an AU in which Tyler is still a hockey player but Jamie is his dog walker. It's delightful -- I love Jamie's shyness and how he appeals to Tyler in part because he
doesn't have the chiseled body of a pro athlete. Also love the endearingly imperfect sex.
I Don't Think You're Ready by siegeofangels (always!a!girl!Crosby, PG, AU)
This is a fantastic, thoughtful look at what it might be like for an incredibly talented Sydney Crosby to be the first woman in the NHL. I thought the author did a great job imagining the pressure, the sometimes insidiously subtle sexism, and Sydney's relationship with her body, with her teammates, with the PR team, etc. Compelling stuff.
make lots of noise by maleyka (Eberle/always!a!girl!Hall, PG-13, AU)
Hall/Eberle can be tricky pairing for me sometimes because they're such good friends/bros that it doesn't make for much narrative tension, but this author does a really effective job of writing both the friendship and enough UST/awkwardness to make things interesting. The fact that Taylor is a woman in a primarily men's league makes the story more compelling (love her interplay with other female NHLers).
got that super bass by listedheart (Kane/Toews, NC-17, rimming, mention of felching)
Because sometimes you just need some rimming porn. (And because I never need an excuse to link to this picture,
this is the ass in question.)
where all ecstasy should happen, kneeling will be my last pleasure by stepquietly (Jones/Weber/Josi, NC-17, mild D/S, rimming, spanking)
You don't need to know these players to enjoy this threesome porn. (I don't, and I did.) It's got a few of my favorite things -- spanking, rimming, and the bottom enjoying himself to the point of incoherence. ;)
kept me on your long line by oflights (Crosby/Malkin, NC-17, D/S)
Filthy delicious D/S blow job porn. Pretty much all there is to say.
If you enjoyed any of those, consider leaving some love for the author!
ladysisyphus (hard R). The narrator, Isaac, falls somewhere on the autism spectrum, and I loved seeing the world -- and Rick, the man he loves -- through his eyes. There were several passages that got me a little choked up. I liked the accompanying art too.
