Age of Sail fans

And so we begin with week 1's recs! Just a reminder that isis and melannen are also down to do recs this week. Here's the list, and signups are still open if you'd like to join in. If you're wondering what's required in a recs set, I'd define it as at least 3 things you like, with links, and an explanation of why you think they're good. Easy, right?

Anyway, I said I'd do recs for history nerds, so here they are. Six fics and a vid. Master and Commander, Hornblower, POTC, and Temeraire.

Five Things: The World Turned Upside Down
Author: astolat
Fandom: Master and Commander
Pairing: Jack/Stephen (explicit)

This was my gateway fic, the one that got me into fandom, and it largely did so through its historical detail and period writing style. On first glance it's pretty crack-like: a sex change virus sweeps through Europe, affecting one in three adults of reproductive age. For many authors, this would be a straightforward genderfuck fic, but when astolat writes it we're taken through the social implications of it as well: will one in three Members of Parliament, now female, be allowed to keep their positions? Will military officers retain their rank? And what are the implications, for a country at war, if they do not? And if you enjoy this, you might also enjoy Five Things: Invasion, which even comes with extensive historical notes at the end. (The only reason I'm not reccing it separately is because Ithought one rec per author was enough, but I couldn't let it slip by without even a mention.)

Wages of Vice (backup non-geocities link)
Author: jat_sapphire
Fandom: These Old Shades by Georgette Heyer
Pairing: Avon/Davenant (explicit)

If you're interested in slash and the 18th century, you've probably heard of Rictor Norton's Mother Clap's Molly House, and you probably also know that it's pretty hard to come by. Well, never fear! Jat_sapphire's "Wages of Vice" is set in that world, and draws heavily on the background provided in that book about London's gay subculture in the Georgian era. Its failing, if anything, is that it tends a little bit towards "my research, let me show you it", but as long as you don't read it right after Norton, you probably won't be bothered by it. Quite apart from that, it's a lovely, sexy, emotionally fulfilling story about Avon and Davenant, how they met, and how they stayed together.

A Witness to Courage
Author: fubsycate
Fandom: Hornblower
Gen

The 95th regiment shows up rather inexplicably in episode 4 of the Hornblower TV series, "The Frogs and the Lobsters". Inexplicably, because that regiment hadn't yet been formed, and Forester actually specified a different regiment for the expedition to Muzillac. It's interesting, though, because the 95th were probably the most famous English regiment of the Napoleonic Wars. They mostly fought in the Peninsula (Spain and Portugal), as anyone who knows Sharpe will be aware. However, they got off to a slow start there, and before they started their long string of victories, pushing Marshal Soult back over the Pyrenees into France, they got their arses kicked at Corunna. They had been forced to retreat, in inclement weather, and many men died along the way of illness and privation. "A Witness to Courage" is set at the end of this retreat, when Horatio Hornblower, captaining one of the ships sent to pick up the 95th, arrives and finds Edrington on the shore. This story is, quite frankly, heartbreaking.

Here's a visual aid:



American Revolution series
Author: artaxastra
Fandom: Pirates of the Caribbean
Pairing: Jack/Will/Elizabeth

The American Revolution is not a period about which I'm very well informed, but after reading this fic -- and with a little help from Wikipedia -- I now know a whole lot more. This is a multi-part story, beautifully written, and really compelling. There's a real sense of place and time here, and the historical and atmospheric details seem spot on, at least to my ignorant eye. Best of all, it's a well-written poly fic, showing mature non-monogamous relationships over time and from various points of view, and weaving them around a non-relationship-centred plot.

Between Wind and Water
Author: rexluscus
Fandom: Pirates of the Caribbean
Pairing: Jack/Norrington (explicit in some chapters)

If there's any war I know less about than the American Revolution, it would have to be the War of Jenkins' Ear. I mean, really, who names these things? Luckily rexluscus provides ample historical notes and Wikipedia links, and I'm now up to speed: we're talking about a war between Spain and England ca. 1739-1741, largely played out around Central America, the Caribbean, Florida, and thereabouts. This fic is a fun Sparrington romp, very much in character for both of them, but also peppered with historical people and incidents and more detail than you could shake a stick at. I particularly liked the emphasis on Spain's presence in the Caribbean, which was historically very important, but pretty much ignored in the movies. This is a really professional, readable story, and well worth your time.

Warrior's Work
Author: melina
Fandom: Temeraire
Gen

You know how the Battle of the Nile ended, right? Big boom? Well, what could go better with dragons? melina's fic takes one of Nelson's great victories as its starting point, and looks at how it would have been with air support. The story's told from Jane Roland's point of view and, of course, takes place pre-canon, before Temeraire was ever hatched.

Rejoice (13MB zipped AVI download)
Vidder: black_hound
Fandom: Hornblower, ish.
Gen (warning for disturbing content)

And finally, a vid. Created as a companion piece to commodorified's For the Sake of a Wavering Light (Archie/Edrington, somewhat explicit), black_hound pulls together clips from a number of 18th century military sources to create this vid about war and its effects on the people who fight in them. Some excellent battlefield footage here, though after watching it you'll probably feel a bit uncomfortable about using adjectives like "excellent". I know I do.