What do you think?
Rate this book
Given In Evidence
Sherlock AU
Coming back from the dead can be a complicated business. With a new case on the horizon, rebuilding a life is one thing... rebuilding a friendship quite another. For Sherlock and John, things may never be just the same...
Words:97892 complete
Cover by xistentialangst
Artpost 2: http://toviv.tumblr.com/image/3360705...
Artpost 3: http://khorazir.tumblr.com/tagged/ver...
Coming back from the dead can be a complicated business. With a new case on the horizon, rebuilding a life is one thing... rebuilding a friendship quite another. For Sherlock and John, things may never be just the same...
Words:97892 complete
Cover by xistentialangst
Artpost 2: http://toviv.tumblr.com/image/3360705...
Artpost 3: http://khorazir.tumblr.com/tagged/ver...
294 pages, ebook
First published October 1, 2012
1 person is currently reading
23 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Read
January 18, 2019Post-Reichenbach stories are my favorite Johnlocks. The swirl of emotions: grief, despair, betrayal, relief, joy, anger, love, and all because of good intentions. How to reconcile them. Good writing, but the energy required to get through understanding new emotions warred against the sexual dynamics of power play--almost too much to cover in one go.
May 19, 2016
3.5 Sherlock is dead and John is engaging in dangerous activities that might get him killed, because he doesn't care about life any more. Then, Sherlock is back and everything is back the way it should, except that Sherlock might have feelings for John. A lot of push and pull, Sherlock is very indecisive. He wants John and the full relationship, then he doesn't. He wants to be friends with benefits, then he doesn't. An interesting issue of control in the bedroom is brought up but never really flushed out. Sherlock is submissive but doesn't want to be seen as weak. The characterization and relationship is pretty close to original, but something was off just enough that I couldn't love this. The case they were working on was just blah, I don't know why it was even needed. I did like some of the intimate moments between Sherlock and John, and Sherlock learning to show a bit of vulnerability.
January 4, 2014
Always hovering somewhere over the divide between deliciously angsty and nauseatingly melodramatic, between wryly amusing and forcedly clever, between being a discovery of new sides of John and Sherlock and annoyingly OOC.
It kind of drove me crazy is what I'm saying, and at some point I was even tempted to quit - which was helped by the fact that there was no perceptible tension surrounding the mystery and its solving.
All in all, I'd say I agree with GR's definition of two stars: it was okay. Really, very okay. I'm absolutely sure many people would love it.
I just can't say I, myself, actively liked it.
It kind of drove me crazy is what I'm saying, and at some point I was even tempted to quit - which was helped by the fact that there was no perceptible tension surrounding the mystery and its solving.
All in all, I'd say I agree with GR's definition of two stars: it was okay. Really, very okay. I'm absolutely sure many people would love it.
I just can't say I, myself, actively liked it.
October 6, 2022
3.6, rounded up w/o question because it's very well written.
I like the shorter gap between Fall and Return, I like John in control of his anger, I like the way they are both so concerned with whether or not they can be what the other needs, and the bumpy process of forging their new relationship is insightful rather than contrived.
John initially has reasonable assumptions that Sherlock would be as demanding in the bedroom as he is elsewhere, which would NOT work for him (though Sherlock has quickly realized just how much his instincts respond to commanding Captain Watson in this sphere), and Sherlock doesn't truly know or understand what he wants in terms of *emotional* connection (since Mycroft and the rest of the world have made him see it as a weakness).
Sexual dominance and submission is not my personally-prefered dynamic, but as long as there's mutual consent and pleasure, and not true pain or humiliation, I can enjoy the story, and that's definitely the case here. John makes certain that Sherlock isn't martyring himself just to keep John in his life, and it's never an extreme version of dominance anyway.
And I need to make it clear that the story isn't *just* about the romantic rollercoaster: the Work is a big part of their life, and there are cases, too, of various sorts. I felt like such a dunce when I finally clued in to the punny ACD canon connection of client Gary's case, the Yard is stumped by a gang of thieves, and the tangle involving the homeless shelter both John and Sherlock are involved with was excellent, with an ending that's . (Gaaah, I can't say more w/o worse spoilers!)
There are links on several chapters to illustrations by fan artists (of varying skill, tbh), and an attractive pictorial alternate cover by toviv which I prefer despite its horizontal rather than cover-standard proportions. (I tried to embed it, but that didn't work for some reason. 🤷)
I like the shorter gap between Fall and Return, I like John in control of his anger, I like the way they are both so concerned with whether or not they can be what the other needs, and the bumpy process of forging their new relationship is insightful rather than contrived.
John initially has reasonable assumptions that Sherlock would be as demanding in the bedroom as he is elsewhere, which would NOT work for him (though Sherlock has quickly realized just how much his instincts respond to commanding Captain Watson in this sphere), and Sherlock doesn't truly know or understand what he wants in terms of *emotional* connection (since Mycroft and the rest of the world have made him see it as a weakness).
Sexual dominance and submission is not my personally-prefered dynamic, but as long as there's mutual consent and pleasure, and not true pain or humiliation, I can enjoy the story, and that's definitely the case here. John makes certain that Sherlock isn't martyring himself just to keep John in his life, and it's never an extreme version of dominance anyway.
And I need to make it clear that the story isn't *just* about the romantic rollercoaster: the Work is a big part of their life, and there are cases, too, of various sorts. I felt like such a dunce when I finally clued in to the punny ACD canon connection of client Gary's case, the Yard is stumped by a gang of thieves, and the tangle involving the homeless shelter both John and Sherlock are involved with was excellent, with an ending that's . (Gaaah, I can't say more w/o worse spoilers!)
There are links on several chapters to illustrations by fan artists (of varying skill, tbh), and an attractive pictorial alternate cover by toviv which I prefer despite its horizontal rather than cover-standard proportions. (I tried to embed it, but that didn't work for some reason. 🤷)
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews