Christmas Reading Room December 21st

[cloudless-9193.livejournal.com]

Title: Of Christmas Present
Author: Rebelcat
Link to story: The Circuit Archive
Pairing: Bodie/Doyle


Review by roven75

It’s Christmas, a day in the life, when an op almost takes a turn for the very worst. Things tumble into chaos and there isn’t much Doyle can do but hold on and fight with his usual spit and vinegar attitude...

Second-person narration can be a difficult style to manage, but Rebelcat takes it in her stride. The reader is being swept along by the plot just like Doyle, the up close and personal narrator who is playing what if in his head again, relating what has happened by what hasn’t in the beginning of the story. It’s immediate, and intense, like being there with Doyle, like being Doyle.

The only constant in all the chaos is Bodie.
Doyle is the viewpoint character, but his focus is Bodie. Impressions and emotions are collected throughout the haze of the day and stored away.
In the dark, once chaos has bowed out, Doyle takes his collection of snapshots and inspects them more closely. And discovers the present may not only hold secrets worth exploring further but should be valued for itself, as well.

Of Christmas Present possesses all the good ingredients to make it a story very worthwhile reading: suspense, hurt, protectiveness and caring, dawning realizations... and most of all, brilliant writing. Perfect for reading at Christmas time, and beyond!

Comments

[jgraeme2007.livejournal.com]

I remember this one! I've read it many times and it enjoy it very much.

You can really feel Doyle's chilled exhaustion and she does a very good job of showing us exactly what's going on with Bodie.

Great rec.

[cloudless-9193.livejournal.com]

So nice to know you enjoyed it. She's one of my favourite Pros authors. :-)

[shooting2kill.livejournal.com]

I can't believe this is yet *another* wonderful piece of writing which I've missed (despite looking at the Circuit Archive pretty frequently...). I really liked this. Loved the use of the present tense, the harsh, gritty realism and the way that it manages to be a very subtle Christmas story i.e. it seems that Christmas is almost an afterthought.

An excellent choice, thank you!

[cloudless-9193.livejournal.com]

Now it was my turn to point you to something you haven't read before. ;-)

[potztausend.livejournal.com]

I remember it - yes, it's a good story. It's realistic, so much emotion, but nothing sappy, and she just draws me into it. A good choice!

[cloudless-9193.livejournal.com]

So nice to know you like it. :-)

[ci5mates.livejournal.com]

I loved this story, I loved the point of view and I loved the h/c. It has so many special moments that I might just have to read it again. No hardship at all :-) Thanks for the reccie cloudless and the review Roven.

[cloudless-9193.livejournal.com]

Thank you for reading. I'm glad you enjoyed it too. :-)

[cornishcat.livejournal.com]

Not seen this one before but I really enjoyed it.

Yep, they're certainly going to have a very happy Christmas ... together.

Thanks for the great rec.

[cloudless-9193.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you enjoyed it. :-)

[siskiou.livejournal.com]

A little late, but I just got to this one and thanks for rec'ing it!
Very difficult style to get right! Very well done, and there is a lot packed into a short story. Loved the intensity, and poor Doyle trying to figure out what he is missing and finally getting there.

[cloudless-9193.livejournal.com]

Thank you for feedback. Yes, it's an unusual style, but she managed it well. So good to know you like it too. :-)