REC LIST 1.1 - Defy the Stars
Aug. 30th, 2022 10:57 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
earisparticipatesREC LIST 1.1 - DEFY THE STARS
'Defy the Stars' is what I call Reylo fics with the word 'Stars' in the title.
I wanted to start with something simple because that allows me to:
a) search my bookmarks quickly,
b) rec some fic I adore, and
b) introduce people to some of the big tropes in Reylo fic.
1. A Path to Broken Stars
Author: stellardarlings; Twitter; Tumblr
Who does mythology better than Reylos? No one. This is one of my favorite fics in the entire Reylo ship because of its skillful use of the myth of Eros and Psyche as a lens for the Reylo relationship. Kylo Ren, a magic user, betrays his mother’s kingdom of Alderaan to Snoke’s armies. In the desert of Jakku, Rey struggles to survive until a chance encounter with Kylo and his Knights of Ren reveal that, unbeknownst to her, she is a magic user as well. Kylo takes her as an apprentice and begins to train her. The fic deals with themes of masks and hidden identities, female desire, and the greatest moral of all time - AMOR OMNIA VINCIT.
Status: Complete
Rating: M
Warnings: mythologically correct dub-con
2. Under Different Stars
Author: Aaveena; Twitter; Tumblr
Perhaps the largest and most fruitful type of Reylo fanfiction is where an author picks a moment in their story and has a character make a different choice. In Under Different Stars, Ben makes a radically different choice - after the destruction of the Jedi Temple, Ben does not go to Snoke, but rather cuts himself off from the Force and disappears. Rey remains on Jakku, continuing to scavenge, until a bounty hunter named Kylo Ren comes to the planet to pick up an old YT 1300 light freighter from the junkyard.
Status: WIP, 24/35 chapters posted
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: oblique reference to sexual assault
3. A Collision of Stars
Author: dustoftheancients
Completed before The Last Jedi aired, A Collision of Stars was one of the first long fics I ever read in this pairing. It has many of the hallmarks of classic, early Reylo - a darker characterization for Kylo, the incorporation of a lot of established Star Wars lore, and a brilliant prediction of the Force bond but in a way that’s really kind of different. This fic is painful in the best way, creative, gorgeous, and shot through with intense emotion and incisive characterization. The author took what we learned in the Force Awakens and careened off into the galaxy, developing their own narrative that is completely plausible and incredibly engrossing.
Status: Completed
Rating: Mature
Warnings: violence, cannibalism, plenty of dark side stuff
4. Stars Across Your Skin
Author: andabatae; Twitter
A modern AU with two of my favorite tropes - 1) at least one of the pairing is an artist, and 2) the two interact over the Internet without realizing who each other are. Rey is an art director and Ben is a photographer working on the same project, a fashion shoot. And they HATE each other - or so it seems. This is a particularly beautiful story because it also deals with intense loneliness. Both Rey and Ben are touch starved, and it laces their interactions with anguish and, later, ecstasy.
Status: Complete
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Discussion of emotional trauma and neglect
5. Broken, Accidental Stars
Author: HarpiaHarpyja; Tumblr; Twitter
Here we have a fic dealing with one of crucial the tipping points of the sequel trilogy - Kylo Ren and Han Solo on the bridge in Starkiller Base. In this fic, Kylo Ren makes a different choice, he leaves the First Order and returns to the Resistance with Han. But this is not a happy ending, just a difficult beginning. He is not entirely healed, not entirely forgiven, and not entirely comfortable. And Rey? Rey is conflicted and difficult. Honestly, this is one of my favorite characterizations of Rey out there - she is stubborn, smart, angry, compassionate, curious, and utterly herself.
Status: WIP 34/40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: nothing i can remember
6. Holo Porn Stars: The Career Change
Author: CaptainMarvel42; Twitter; Tumblr
Oh crack!fic, the engine that keeps many, if not all, of us going. This is a canon fic where footage of the Interrogation leaks on the holonet and many in the galaxy read the encounter as . . . sexually charged. So naturally, the galaxy starts making porn about it. Rey and Kylo are appalled at the low quality of much of the porn and decide to see if they can do better.
Status: Complete
Rating: Mature
Warnings: dub-con is a plot point in the in-universe porn
Happy Reading Everyone!
'Defy the Stars' is what I call Reylo fics with the word 'Stars' in the title.
I wanted to start with something simple because that allows me to:
a) search my bookmarks quickly,
b) rec some fic I adore, and
b) introduce people to some of the big tropes in Reylo fic.
1. A Path to Broken Stars
Author: stellardarlings; Twitter; Tumblr
Who does mythology better than Reylos? No one. This is one of my favorite fics in the entire Reylo ship because of its skillful use of the myth of Eros and Psyche as a lens for the Reylo relationship. Kylo Ren, a magic user, betrays his mother’s kingdom of Alderaan to Snoke’s armies. In the desert of Jakku, Rey struggles to survive until a chance encounter with Kylo and his Knights of Ren reveal that, unbeknownst to her, she is a magic user as well. Kylo takes her as an apprentice and begins to train her. The fic deals with themes of masks and hidden identities, female desire, and the greatest moral of all time - AMOR OMNIA VINCIT.
Status: Complete
Rating: M
Warnings: mythologically correct dub-con
2. Under Different Stars
Author: Aaveena; Twitter; Tumblr
Perhaps the largest and most fruitful type of Reylo fanfiction is where an author picks a moment in their story and has a character make a different choice. In Under Different Stars, Ben makes a radically different choice - after the destruction of the Jedi Temple, Ben does not go to Snoke, but rather cuts himself off from the Force and disappears. Rey remains on Jakku, continuing to scavenge, until a bounty hunter named Kylo Ren comes to the planet to pick up an old YT 1300 light freighter from the junkyard.
Status: WIP, 24/35 chapters posted
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: oblique reference to sexual assault
3. A Collision of Stars
Author: dustoftheancients
Completed before The Last Jedi aired, A Collision of Stars was one of the first long fics I ever read in this pairing. It has many of the hallmarks of classic, early Reylo - a darker characterization for Kylo, the incorporation of a lot of established Star Wars lore, and a brilliant prediction of the Force bond but in a way that’s really kind of different. This fic is painful in the best way, creative, gorgeous, and shot through with intense emotion and incisive characterization. The author took what we learned in the Force Awakens and careened off into the galaxy, developing their own narrative that is completely plausible and incredibly engrossing.
Status: Completed
Rating: Mature
Warnings: violence, cannibalism, plenty of dark side stuff
4. Stars Across Your Skin
Author: andabatae; Twitter
A modern AU with two of my favorite tropes - 1) at least one of the pairing is an artist, and 2) the two interact over the Internet without realizing who each other are. Rey is an art director and Ben is a photographer working on the same project, a fashion shoot. And they HATE each other - or so it seems. This is a particularly beautiful story because it also deals with intense loneliness. Both Rey and Ben are touch starved, and it laces their interactions with anguish and, later, ecstasy.
Status: Complete
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Discussion of emotional trauma and neglect
5. Broken, Accidental Stars
Author: HarpiaHarpyja; Tumblr; Twitter
Here we have a fic dealing with one of crucial the tipping points of the sequel trilogy - Kylo Ren and Han Solo on the bridge in Starkiller Base. In this fic, Kylo Ren makes a different choice, he leaves the First Order and returns to the Resistance with Han. But this is not a happy ending, just a difficult beginning. He is not entirely healed, not entirely forgiven, and not entirely comfortable. And Rey? Rey is conflicted and difficult. Honestly, this is one of my favorite characterizations of Rey out there - she is stubborn, smart, angry, compassionate, curious, and utterly herself.
Status: WIP 34/40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: nothing i can remember
6. Holo Porn Stars: The Career Change
Author: CaptainMarvel42; Twitter; Tumblr
Oh crack!fic, the engine that keeps many, if not all, of us going. This is a canon fic where footage of the Interrogation leaks on the holonet and many in the galaxy read the encounter as . . . sexually charged. So naturally, the galaxy starts making porn about it. Rey and Kylo are appalled at the low quality of much of the porn and decide to see if they can do better.
Status: Complete
Rating: Mature
Warnings: dub-con is a plot point in the in-universe porn
Happy Reading Everyone!
