Ok, so obviously "rec of the week" is going to be a better fit for me than merely "Tuesday". Today, I'm giving you a nice, long read to carry US readers through the long weekend.
The Strength of Love by Shanti. Snape/Lupin, NC17, About 42,000 words.Summary: Post DH Angst and H/C: Remus and Severus have survived the final battle, but Severus is a physical mess, taken in by the Malfoys and barely living. Draco hired Remus to take care of Severus.
Thoughts: You know, hurt/comfort is a genre of which I rarely take note. I think a lot of scenes in fiction are hurt/comfort, maybe because I like to read plenty of action/adventure fiction. But even Austen had her moments where a fainting heroine needed to be doted upon by not only her estranged family, but her erstwhile suitor as well, leading to a deeper understanding and need of one another all the way around.
So, to me, H/C happens and I am usually properly moved by it without really realising that I'm reading the genre. Fandom's need to specifically write it or note it has always seemed odd to me.
The Strength of Love, however, might be one of the few times I've not only recognized H/C, but prized it as an element. If I had to pick out one H/C fic to recommend to people, this would be it. Oh, wait...ta da!
The reasons I like Strength so much are that the "hurt" of the H/C isn't too dire, and the "comfort" of the H/C is present long after the physical "hurt" is through.
I've noticed that the hurting in some specifically H/C fics tends to be too much for me. If I am spending all my reading time worried and upset for a character, I can't appreciate the romance that might be building as a way of comfort. Then again, if the hurt is glossed over in order to get to lots of sex by way of comfort, I have a hard time recognizing a fic as H/C; it seems more like a PWP to me.
The Strength of Love doesn't get weighted down by the hurt or the comfort, but, rather, balances them both in a way that is utterly satisfying to me. The first half of the story deals with Severus' physical recovery and the second half, Severus and Remus' journey toward becoming something more. It's hot, smexy, tender, loving, tense, interesting and charming, and not to be missed by any Snape/Lupin fan with a romantic heart.
( Excerpt )If you get through all 42,000 words, please do spare a couple of your own for the author by leaving her a comment. Nothing would give someone's 4th of July more bang than a comment on an older fic!
love, lore