Oh, yeah...another reason I am late in posting the next chapter of The Cocky and The Cougar? Almost every waking moment has been spent reading the folllowing fics. You've probably at least heard of them, if not already read them, because I am tragically un-hip and late to every party. But just in case...
1) The Caged Bird by Kristen Nicole
SUMMARY: Shy Bella Swan lives with her religiously zealous mother, Renée. When she has a chance meeting with town hellion Edward, Bella begins to realize that perhaps the sheltered life she’s been leading isn’t so much a comfort as it a cage.
This is a completed fic, with only the epilogue left to post. So, the good news is that you don't have to wait for updates, once you get hooked (as you inevitably will). The bad news is that you will stay up far past your bed time in order to keep reading this story and then, once it's finished...it's finished. I have felt an emptiness inside for days since I finished reading this story.
Kristen Nicole has created a fascinating Bella, full of humor and spunk as well as the assumed innocence and naievete. Her dialogue, peppered with "golly-gees" and "son of a biscuit makers" is priceless and her journey as she decides to come out of her shell and become her own person is heart-wrenching and inspiring.
And oh yeah...this story is hot. Not-really-so-bad-boy Edward is a sexy dream and I will never look at a library cart the same way again. This is mostly Bella's story and there is honestly not near as much to Edward's character, except as he is seen through her eyes. But seeing him through her eyes is enough to make me dream about this Edward for weeks to come, I have little doubt.
Kristen Nicole has another story in the works and I love it as well, Bella Swan: Zombie Killer. As you might imagine, this fic features a kick-ass Bella (and her trusty shovel, Rosalie). If you like George Romero movies, you will love this fic as it is really sort of an ode to his zombie flicks. It's funny, it's gory, it's exciting and a little scary; but it also has a lot of heart and has already pulled at the strings of mine more than once.
2) With Teeth by TalulaBlue
SUMMARY: Edward is a 27-year-old alcoholic/addict struggling with his recovery. Bella is a 23-year-old who's moved back home after college. This fic chronicles how they meet, fall in love, and struggle with the complexities of their relationship.
TalulaBlue may well be the best writer I have read in fan fiction. Granted, I have not read them all, but this chick can seriously write.
The first chapter ripped my guts out. Seriously. Ripped. Them. Out. Talula gives us a peak into Edward's life as a drug dealer and user and it is not pretty. In fact, it's brutally disgusting, and the Edward she introduces to us is not the Edward we usually want to cuddle up with while gazing longingly in to his eyes. And yet, even while he is being such a soul-less, ugly person who can't see the humanity in others enough to give a shit about them, I ached for him. I don't know how she did it, but she still made him a sympathetic character and by the end of the chapter you are cheering him on and rooting for him as he decides to make a change.
The next few chapters introduce us to Bella and to Edward's life post-rehab. His boring job, monotonous days, the comfort in his routine are all detailed brilliantly by Talula. Hours tick by like a laundry list, each action checked off. The present-tense writing suits the tone of the story perfectly, especially in the sections written from Edward's point of view, as he truly lives his life with immediacy, from second-to-second, not seeing much beyond that.
I just started this fic two days ago and am only on chapter 7 right now (there are 11 chapters posted and it is a work in progress). Bella and Edward have met at a book store - she works there, he is a regular customer. She just found out he is a recovering addict and they are just dancing around the barely-discovered but quite evident sexual tension between them. I can't wait to finish this blog post and get back to reading.
Comments