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peonylikeswriting · 3 years

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Review on: Step Up and Tell Us About It by Justagaybean

Before I begin I would like to state that this review is solely my opinion of the story. I acknowledge that the author put hard work into the story and this is not meant to be inflammatory or offensive in any way. The author requested that I review it. If you’re interested in having your story (preferably fanfiction, but I do short stories too) reviewed please contact me through this Tumblr account or my instagram: PeonyLikesWriting. I’m not a professional. Because I am human, this review will most likely have a few typos or run-on sentences. If you find a typo, call me out. Anyways, let’s get to it :)

Ok so first I wanted to start by saying I read this story and its sequel about a month and a half ago before the author asked me to review it. I found it at like 1am or something when I was looking for Tsukkiyama fics. I didn’t recognize the title at first but as I read the summary I was like ‘oh this is familiar’. I’m happy to be rereading it though :)

Step Up and Tell Us About It by Justagaybean*

Author’s Summary:

“Are you guys dating?”

“Since when do you share an apartment??”

“When did you get married??”

Or, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima don’t tell their friends about the big steps in their relationship, they have to figure it out for themselves.

Based on a post by mxnqled on Tumblr! Check them out, they’re really funny and I love their headcanons.

My Rating: 6.9/10

Review:

The first thing I want to point out is that I like the summary. Not because it’s spectacularly detailed or particularly funny, but because it’s really in-character. Yamaguchi and Tsukishima would probably not be the type to flaunt their relationship in public. The enthusiastic part of the volleyball team (e.g. Hinata, Nishinoya, Tanaka, and maybe Yachi and the low-key but still wants answers group (e.g.: Kageyama, Sugawara, Daichi, Kiyoko, and Asahi).

The summary is also part of the reason that I feel like this review doesn’t need a ‘spoiler section’. While most summaries tend to dance around what goes on, or only highlight one part of the plot (which is completely fine and works), this one does a great job of covering this story.

I love how the author wrote the characters and their interactions. My favorites were probably Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, Yachi, and Sugawara. The way you used dialogue and body language descriptions worked nicely. The dialogue also did a good job incorporating the subtle side-ships just enough so they were there which I thought was nice.

The time skips were a little sudden even though there were only two. The one-shot tended to jump around a bit from thought to thought. While it kept the story interesting, it also made it slightly choppy. Since this piece is on the shorter side, it works and helps keep the audience entertained.

I’m happy to plant this review as the third in my garden :) Hope you enjoyed it!

*Check them out on Tumblr too @just-a-gay-bean

#haikyuu #tsukkiyama #tsukishima kei #tsukishima #yamaguchi #tsukkishima x yamaguchi #haikyuu ships #haikyuu recs #haikyuu fanfiction #fanficition #yamaguchi tadashi #fluff #otp #yamatsukki #kiyoyachi

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peonylikeswriting · 3 years

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you told me that you fell in love with it, hadn’t gone as I planned by Justagaybean*

Trigger Warnings: “Hints of suicidal thoughts. It’s implied but it’s there.”

Author’s Summary:

This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. Daichi was supposed to get married. To Michimiya Yui, who was supposed to be the love of his life. But Michimiya has left him at the altar, and Daichi can’t help but wonder if it’s all his fault.

Daichi’s caught up in a spiral of guilt and unanswered questions, and he can’t find his way out. But Daichi’s friends decide that the best way to cheer him up is to take him on what was supposed to be the honeymoon, a week-long trip to Paris. The only problem with this is that Daichi is going with Sugawara Koushi, his best friend, his best man, and the person who knows him through and through.

Who is in deep, pure, unforgiving love, with Daichi.

Suga takes Daichi around Paris, the city he fell in love with all those years ago, trying to avoid feelings and thoughts, but Daichi begins to wonder…

...has he always been in love with Suga, too?

Or, Suga and Daichi go on what was supposed to be a honeymoon. Suga is pining over Daichi but takes him all over Paris. Daichi realizes that he’s maybe been in love with Suga all this time.

For Daisuga Week 2020

My Rating: 8.4/10

Review:

If I’m being honest, at first I was terrified of reading this but started anyway. The author sets it up so well and the Daisuga moments are just perfect. But, I was quickly nearing the end and absolutely dreading them getting together. Why? Well, I just didn’t want Suga to be a rebound. I didn’t want Suga to be like “Oh, Daichi I’ve always loved you” and Daichi to be like, “Ex-fiance? What Ex-fiance? I’ve always loved you too Suga.” Then they happily ride off into the sunset, adopt two dogs and four children, and live in their mansion in France. I am happy to say that this fic is much, much more meaningful and enjoyable than that.

I loved Sugawara’s character in general. Sugawara is a supportive, caring, and somewhat selfless character and this fic really brings that out. The author didn’t make him hopelessly in love to the point where he became unbearable to read about. I also like how the story didn’t completely shift to Sugawara’s unrequited (or not so unrequited) love and remained focused on Daichi and his feelings for the most part.

There were a lot of breaks in the text. Usually, I’m not a big fan of having the author break everything up so much and jump around from setting to setting. However, I did feel like each little section was important and carried the plot forward. I think the way it was broken up also helped the story flow better and helped the story not drag.

From this point on, there will be spoilers. You have been warned :)

I love Sugawara’s love for Daichi. He planned the wedding, he wished them the best, he was ready to let Daichi go because he thought he'd be happier with Michimiya. And! And, he wasn’t spiteful or openly jealous or angry about their arrangement. In fact, the only time the reader really directly sees Sugawara upset about him and Michimiya is when she dumps him. Shortly after he thinks the lines: “I would never treat you like that if I had you.” He pushes those thoughts away, though, because he makes Daichi’s happiness his first priority. At the same time, Sugawara also knows his worth and doesn’t want to be a rebound. Which is also extremely important so I’m so, so glad that the author addressed that.

I’m also glad that this was addressed because this story sets Sugawara up as a ‘replacement’ for Michimiya. Michimiya was supposed to go to France with Daichi. She spoke French and she was excited about it, just like Sugawara. I didn’t realize this until later on, but Sugawara and Michimiya probably had quite a few parallels. Or, at least parallels which Michimiya was pretending to be someone Daichi would like.

Now let’s talk about the lines: “‘Will you wait for me? Because you are the only thing that seems real to me right now.’” It’s disgustingly cheesy and straightforward but I like it so much. When characters say exactly how they feel, it usually irks me because I’m unable to do that. In this case, the build-up was just right.

For the time skip, I like how the author chose three years because anything less would’ve felt a little quick. To be honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of the time skip but it was important. Daichi and Sugawara got together on really unsteady ground, meaning that their relationship could’ve gone really bad. The author could’ve left it open-ended which would’ve made it sting and feel incomplete. The time skip to the wedding really showed that after Daichi stopped hurting, he was still able to love Sugawara. Also, the vows were adorable and I loved them so much.

Daichi making peace with Michimiya was also something I liked. But, having her in the front row was a little bit extreme. I’m glad that Sugawara and Daichi are both comfortable enough in their relationship to invite her though.

Should you check this out? Yes. Yes, you should. There is so much thought that went into this fic and so many things that I absolutely loved about it. It’s cute, it’s a little angsty, and it doesn’t completely hate on Michimiya :)

I’m happy to plant this review as the second in my garden :) Hope you enjoyed it!

*Check them out on Tumblr too @just-a-gay-bean

#daisuga #rec list #daisuga rec list #haikyuu ships #haikyuu #haikyuu!!#daisuga reivew #fanfiction reading #daisuga fanfciton #kagehina #haikyuu fanfiction #fluff #haikyuu recs #Sugadai #otp: ineffable

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peonylikeswriting · 3 years

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Review on: Invisible String: A Werewolf Mates Short Story by storiesbysawyer

Invisible String: A Werewolf Mates Short Story by storiesbysawyer *

Author’s Summary:

When Sebastian Emory, the only human unofficially adopted into a werewolf pack, gets sick while the gang is away, it's up to the Alpha to take care of him. But Sebastian gets more than he bargains for when he discovers his unrequited feelings may not be so unrequited after all.

Invisible String is a werewolf mates short story, complete at 2900 words. This story is not linked to any upcoming full-length novels, like some of my others, and was written specifically for Werewolf Week.

Targeted Audience Age: Probably from 10-13 My Rating: 5.5/10 Rating with Respect to the Targeted Audience: 7.3/10

Review:

The story plunges the reader right into Sebastian’s room where he’s clearly suffering from some terrible flu that he’s persistent on curing by himself. Dakota, the Alpha of their pack, pays him a visit, finding him in a rather terrible state. An endearing sick **fic unravels as the story goes on, showing just how caring Dakota can be.

One of my favorite parts of this story is Sebastian’s character. The author managed to weave his insecurities into the story in an easy-to-read way. They’re presented slowly and build up as the story goes on.

I also heavily enjoyed how the author first showed Dakota as annoyed, only to take it further and show that it was actually his way of showing concern. He obviously wasn’t exactly sure what to do in the beginning and took a little bit of time to assess the situation (which I found to be quite cute).

One thing that caught me off guard was the pacing. The overall pacing of the story seemed to be too fast and the conflict resolved itself a little too quickly in a way that left me feeling a little bit like, ‘oh, ok’. I wish the author had included maybe 500-1000 more words to just let the reader into Sebastian and Dakota’s usual dynamic as well as solidify their relationship.

All in all, it was a cute little one-shot that serves its purpose and is perfect for its target audience. If you’re looking for a cute hurt/comfort soulmate story between a werewolf and a human, this is for you.

From this point on, there will be spoilers. You have been warned :)

First of all, I should mention that I walked into this story with absolutely no knowledge on werewolves (unless Jacob from Twilight counts). So I know little to no werewolf terminology or folklore.

Looking at the story, Sebastian seems to be accustomed to being left alone and Dakota checking up on him probably means a lot. I thought this part was especially sweet because it shows that Dakota, in his own way, cares for Sebastain.

The character’s personalities remained consistent for the most part. Dakota, as an impatient yet caring alpha, and Sebastain, a stubborn boy who has a hard time finding value in himself.

As someone who has gotten pass-out sick an embarrassing amount of times in embarrassing places (in the middle of a quiet, test-taking classroom) I would like to say that if someone ever passes out, or is going to pass out, have them lie down. Don’t hold them up! Why? Because the blood rushes to their feet and it’ll take them longer to feel ok if you make them stand up. I also would say that I couldn’t concentrate on anything. I only mention this because Sebastian seems rather comfortable with being carried by Dakota and just not embarrassed of his state. I also mention this because Sebastian seems to have a rather coherent train of thought. I understand that everyone handles pain and sickness differently, but I just thought I’d include this.

I really loved Sebastian’s interaction with his adoptive mom. That part was especially nice because you got to see Sebastain have a more comfortable conversation with someone he loves in a platonic way.

In my opinion, this story was written very similarly to fanfiction. I feel like the author is accustomed to writing fanfiction because the whole style was very fanfiction-esque. This isn't a bad thing, but the author didn’t really develop the characters in the slow ways a story would.

I appreciate the fact that the author made Sebastian bisexual. It’s a great way to show that just because you’re experiencing attraction for the same gender, doesn’t mean you have to pin yourself as gay and only gay.

Now let’s get to the reveal. A seemingly-unconcious-character-listens-in reveal. I have nothing against reveals that happen in this way, but it’s a little bit unoriginal and was put up in a rather fast-paced way. Dakota also seemed to be aware that Sebastian was awake at the time, which was a little weird.

Second, after the reveal, Sebastian’s reaction seems rather muted. That leads me to the conclusion that his attraction to Dakota was mostly physical up until the very end when he sees a slightly more vulnerable side of him. However, this might just be because the story ends shortly after.

Like I said before, this was a cute story and I think anyone with the time should check it out :)

I’m happy to plant this review as the first in my garden :) Hope you enjoyed it!

**I use the term ‘fic’ to describe any work of fiction.

*Check them out on Instagram too: storiesbysawyer

#reviewing #story review #short story #small authors #short fiction #fiction #reading #fiction reading #fiction reviewing #werewolf #werewolf week #werewolf fiction #werewolf review #soulmate #werewolf mates #werewolves #werewolf packs

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peonylikeswriting · 3 years

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Does anyone want me to read and review their fanfiction?

Disclaimer: I am not a professional and my reviews will be honest.

Hello :) I just really love reading fanfiction and I think it’ll be fun to read over some stories and just talk about them. I want to form a Rec List to help readers find authors that I think they’ll enjoy reading from :)

Note: I will only review them if the author asks me/allows me too. I don’t want to give unsolicited advice. The reviews will be on Tumblr and I’ll link to the story. I’ll also leave a comment on the original piece about what I liked. Reviews will have a spoiler-free section and a spoiler section.

Here are things I won’t read (this list is ongoing):

NSFW: I won’t read stories that are ^just NSFW^! If your story just contains a few NSFW scenes, that’s fine but I will mostly likely just scroll over them.

A/B/O Stuff: This is a really big maybe for me. To be honest, A/B/O isn’t really my cup of tea.

I will reluctantly read anything in first person even though I prefer third

No Y/N stuff. I don’t have anything against it, I just don’t want to ruin the wonderful universe my characters reside in with my presence.

Here are some fandoms I’m in as well as some ships I follow (I also read fanfiction from books):

*Haikyuu

Iwaoi, Tsukkiyama, Kuroken, Kagehina, bokuaka basically anything with anyone lol.

Voltron: Legendary Defender.

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Yuri!!! On Ice

I have more but I probably won’t be able to list them all. Just send me your fanfiction and I’ll tell you if I can read it or not :)

*I put an asterisk because I’m actively in that fandom at the moment.

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