Game of the Month-November

Yes unfortunately it has come to this. I must reduce the content of this blog to monthly installments of featured games. This is mainly due to the fact that I have been unable to find writings that deserve to be measured up with past postings. This only compliments the previous featured authors so please do me a favor and read their works. Finally my search for something worth reading has come to a end. Georgia Weasley has proven more than qualified with the magnificently crafted "Unspoken." This one-shot is the penultimate example of Weasley's style. She frequently writes a tale that (as I wrote in a review of Georgia's "Frozen Dinners") has twists and turns but somehow manages to stay on track. The result of these gut-wrenching displays is absolutely stunning. Enjoy!

Game of the Week- Oct. 5

In my search for a game of the week, I came across quite an incredible story from a very unlikely source. Alopex is mostly known for her reviews ( she won the 2009 Dobby for Best Reviewer) and I didn't expect much to be honest. I was pleasantly surprised and more then a little disappointed that so few reviews had been left for someone who had written hundreds of reviews for others. The story that I stumbled on was a one-shot titled "The Dragonslayer's Story." Again I was suspicious as I thought that I was looking at another Viggo Mortenson as Aragorn as Sirius Black banner. Getting past the banner I found the tale to be marvelous and writing that would put most to shame. Never will you find a story that is so realistic and riveting. So stop reading this crap blog and Enjoy!

Game of the Week- Sept. 28

With the recent release of the 2009 Dobby Awards, the story that has brought game this week won a Dobby for Best Quote. The story is, of course, "Hardboiled" by RonsGirlFriday. Digging into a often cheesy genre is hard enough. Combine that with a behind closed doors subject and usually you get a recipe for disaster. This isn't so with RonsGirlFriday as she brings us a tasteful gem about a hard detective and a distraught heroine. What ultimately becomes of it is an unexpected and suggestive twist that will leave you roaring with laughter. The story offers a much needed positive, more realistic advancement on Ron's character than most authors are willing to supply.
Enjoy!

Game of the Week- Sept. 21

This has been a long time coming but this week's Game of the Week is 2009 Dobby Award Winner The Puzzling Prattlings of a Pultchritudinous Potions Professor. This novella by JuicyJuice is a delightfully humorous sin. Depicting Severous Snape in a favorable insanity it parallels Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. The crafty ramblings that JuicyJuice coins will have you laughing out loud on numerous occasions. The story itself moves along quickly never losing its masterful pace. One is reminded of the long-forgotten master of humor Elektra when reading this. So gifted is JuicyJuice that it is hard to believe that this is the same author who brought us the one-shot "We Were Brave Once." This magnificent piece is the penultimate of JuicyJuice and most definately worth the visit after PPPPP. This also reminds the reader of a short story by Electra, one that was written when Harry Potter and his fan fiction were still fresh. Enjoy!

The Overrated Seeker

A good seeker may not catch the snitch every time but when they do they almost always capture the win. This is for the seeker who captures the snitch when it doesn't matter. A prime example of that is a novella by Violet Gryfindor called Murder on the Hogwarts Express. Don't be fooled by the hardware that Murder took home (it won a Dobby for Best Novella in 2007). The story is a graciously short read that originally was to be a parody of the traditional mystery genre; i.e. Sherlock Holmes. Intended to be witty and whimsical it comes out immensely flat. It is so corny one would think it was set in a cornfield. The horridness of the preceding sentence is the best you will find in this read. If this is the prime example of Violet's work then steer clear altogether and check out some of the featured authors in this blog.

Hall of Fame Keeper

This section is to cover J.K.'s own work and a fantastic keeper of hers is Chapter 15 of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: "The Quidditch Final." Superbly written this is the height of an era in the Harry Potter books. It has Quidditch and petty rivalry when the trio still focused on those things like nothing else. Well at least Ron and Harry. Hermione is still rooted in schoolwork. Obviously it shows the Gryffindors finally winning the Quidditch Cup at Hogwarts and it also contains Hermione's now-famous slap of Draco Malfoy. There's pure joy that erupts in both the reader's and Oliver Wood's face when Harry catches the snitch. This is the closest Harry will ever get to being a normal person. The match itself is brilliantly portrayed, sugarcoated by Lee Jordan's commentary. You will rarely find better writing from Rowling as her stories start to become darker and the conflict that is resolved at the beginning of this chapter becomes a trend.

Chaser Formations That Don't Work

The Draco/Hermione 'shippers are starting to piss me off. Yet they dominate the FanFic stage. What is so appealing about Draco? Why do so many want to shuffle Hermione into the same boat? It's ridiculous! Anyone with any sense would realize these two characters would not come within ten feet of each other much less fall in love. I suppose the appeal to so many is the angst that is sure to follow such a relationship around. If Draco/Hermione 'shippers are a powerhouse in the FanFic world than Angst is the electricity. There are so many Angsters out there it's borderline insane! Once again, what is the appeal? Is there such a need for an outlet in your supposedly miserable lives that you have to butcher Draco and Hermione's characters? Here's the bottom line Draco's character is too proud to ever like Hermione. Hermione is to grounded to ever like Draco. She will forever go for the Ron-like character, he is simple. As much as you Hermione-worshipers hate to admit it, Hermione would rather not go after the mysterious. She likes straight up facts and she loves to be in control. Ron is humble enough to let her have that while coincidently being the only character able to let her be loose. Deathly Hallows when Ron runs off anyone? If we didn't learn something essential about Hermione then we're never going to. Somehow I doubt that Draco would have had the same effect on her.

Game of the Week- Sept. 14

The story that has really brought game this week is a one-shot by SilverThimble. It is "Wormwood". This brilliant tale strikes a chord in every Harry Potter fan's heart. It touches on a deeper subject then most dare to approach and it essentially destroys the incorruptible image of Harry Potter himself. Yet this only aids in his character development as we can more easily relate to him. The work itself is gorgeously detailed and it gives a very complex yet tight narrative. A shorter read than last week's and perhaps all the better for it. Enjoy!

Game of the Week- Sept. 7th

The story that I think has really brought game to Harry Potter Fan Fiction is a completed novel by momotwins. It is The Unsinkable Molly Prewett of course. This novel is a brilliant write that bravely strays from the base characters of Potterverse and focuses on a minor character like never before. Set in an era that is as hazy as it gets in Rowling's world it would have been easy for momotwins to stray from canon yet she does not. Instead she stays as close to canon as possible, never stirring the pot to the point of insanity. This helps the story immensely, as one feels as though they are reading Harry Potter all over again. momotwins spins a interesting tale of love while creating a cast of characters that rivals JK's own. As a side bonus there is a mildly intriguing side plot that is fleshed out in the accompanying short story by momotwins, "Shift." In fact there is a wide array of accompanying short stories by momotwins which I suggest reading upon finishing Unsinkable. They include; "Fireworks: Premature Ignition," "I Will Follow," and "The Black Velvet Band" which almost certainly classifies as a bit of a sequel. Enjoy!