Fic Review - The Seventh Sunday of the Year

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Title: The Seventh Sunday of the Year
Author: Search via title under Index page of ProsLib CD
Link to story: Not online - ProsLib CD
Zine: Not in a zine - ProsLib CD

As far as I know this story is ProsLib only, but I reckon it's worth looking up if you can! The lads go home to Doyle's family for the weekend, and to start with I adore the way that Bodie goes too - it's so naturally done it's beautiful.

Through the weekend we find out more about both lads, but especially Doyle - his background, how he became and copes with who he is, or doesn't, and we find out exactly how Bodie fits in to it all, and... It's great. Even though it's dealing with fairly dramatic things, I think it's done with a lovely light touch, and I could feel what it's like in the Doyle household, and in the Bodie-Doyle household, and the streets where Doyle grew up. There's both a darkness and a cosiness to it that I really like - that must be what their work is like, having to cope with the two extremes of life...

I'm not convinced it's written by a Brit - there's soccer games, and a joke about Bodie calling Doyle "pumpkin" cos his head's full of mush, and a "Shit,Bodie..." which I always think is a very American way of phrasing things - but it's worth rolling your eyes and carrying on... *g*

Comments

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

Thanks for this rec - I'm printing it to read at lunchtime tomorrow. Sounds interesting!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Ooh, you'll have to let us know what you think! *g*

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

Thanks to constant interruptions it took a few days to read... but here goes.
The author does a credible job of explaining why Ray is the way he is, using religious guilt as an explanation. Within CI5 he can get his high legally, even though the methodology is still cause for grief. There's a lot of delicious backstory as well, giving us glimpses of the Ray who was "a right tearaway". But what I'm left wondering about is his "defection" to art school; it's never satisfactorily explained how he's gone from being the worst kind of street tough whose reaction to another boy's eye loss was to laugh, to an art school student. There's a whole 'nother story there waiting to be written.

There's both a darkness and a cosiness to it that I really like - that must be what their work is like, having to cope with the two extremes of life..
Yes. And not really fitting in to the "real" world any more. I like Ray's description of having to basically re-invent his life when he moved away from the church, and how going home means he needs to find himself again. I really felt sympathy for his mum, too. Poor Bodie, he often ends up comforting the ladies but he does it so well.
Thanks for reccing this, it was definitely a worthwhile read.