Aqua Utopia｜海の底で記憶を紡ぐ
izzy's playlists!
h
noise dept.
No title available
No title available
occasionally subtle
Show & Tell
sheepfilms
Mike Driver
almost home
ojovivo
Peter Solarz
JVL
Sade Olutola
🪼
NASA
KIROKAZE
RMH
art blog(derogatory)
seen from Syria
seen from Saudi Arabia
seen from United States
seen from Germany
seen from United States
seen from Türkiye
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Romania
seen from Saudi Arabia
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Russia
seen from Germany
seen from United States
seen from Austria
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
seen from Spain
seen from United States
seen from United States
@icecastlerecs
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @missmichellebelle Rating: General Word Count: 10,851 Summary: Yuuri wonders what he must have done that, of all the strangers in all the world, the one walking towards them has to be the beautiful mystery man from their Splash Mountain photo.
A. says: This was incredibly cute and full of #goodvibes. May it bless your day and bring you joy! I loved how warm and tender and fun it was. Disneyland magic.
You recommend such good fics! Thank you for your work with this blog! :D
*insert crying emoji* I’m glad you’re enjoying!! It means a lot to me when people tell me they appreciate the recs. ♥♥♥
I try my best to rec stuff I really loved, and it’s great to see when people love the fics too! :)
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @lucycamui Rating: Explicit Word Count: 86,132 Summary: Yuuri Katsuki has always been his own worst critic, and a series of unfortunate short-lived relationships has him convinced that he flubs things more in the bedroom than out on the ice. So, of course it would turn out that the ridiculously charming Russian he’s matched with online is a pornstar.
But perhaps, a ‘professional opinion’ is exactly what Yuuri needs…
A. says: I laughed so hard as I was reading this! It was completely unexpected. This is amazing. Beyond the light-hearted veneer, this is surprisingly realistic, heartwarming, and a little heartbreaking all at once. Maybe it’s just me being An Old, but it’s so nice to see fics which show characters who don’t fall in love at first sight even if there’s an initial attraction. They try for second dates to see if they work out. They pretend to be Cool even if they’re not, because that’s what you do when you’re essentially dating a stranger. I especially love Yuuri tries so hard, even through his anxiety. And the dialogue is hilarious and on-point.
This is now complete! If you’ve been waiting to read it all at one go, now’s your chance. :)
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @stillmadaboutpetra Rating: Mature Word Count: 33,353 Summary: Victor, a Charm of Good Fortune, can make anyone’s dreams come true. Except for his own. And, for some reason, except for Katsuki Yuuri’s.
A. says: I really like this author’s writing! Their pacing is great, the emotions rendered with tender genuineness, and the dialogue snappy and thoughtful. This story is a lot of fun and yet… warm, at the same time. The Katsuki family’s easy acceptance of Viktor’s odd intrusion into their lives is very much like canon. It’s a lovely read.
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @forochel, art by @aprilshydoeden Rating: Teen Word Count: 36,098 Summary: Katsuki Yuuri, an archaeology post-grad, gets drunk on a remote beach on Rebun Island, Hokkaido.
It's sunset, and he's about to discover a whole new world.
A. says: This is such a fun mashup of mermaids!! and academia!!! It’s just a wonderfully heartwarming, nerdy read. ❤ I really loved their interactions and learning from each other.
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @stardropdream Rating: Teen Word Count: 6460 Summary: Sixteen-year-old Victor time travels to the future. Yuuri's the one who has to deal with that damage, all the while missing his Victor. The most unsettling thing of all: it's very difficult to read this Victor.
A. says: This is so poignant. I love fics like this, which show Yuuri’s thoughts on a younger Viktor, with the hindsight of adulthood. It makes for some very complicated feelings. The author rendered their feelings towards each other—their loneliness, unease, and longing—perfectly. It’s lovely.
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @caseyvalhalla Rating: Teen Word Count: 14,047 Summary: When Victor falls, he goes down hard.
A. says: I loved this so much, and the amount of hits and feedback it’s got now is criminal. It’s no secret that I love introspective fics, and to read one that explores Viktor’s psyche so well is a treat. But not only that -- there’s a wonderful part from Yurio’s POV that hits home too hard. I won’t spoil it for you, but I have a small request: to all the younger fans of YOI, I hope you watch YOI again 5, 10 years later, and catalogue the differences in your viewing experience.
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @orchids-and-fictional-cities Rating: Mature Word Count: 41,315 Summary: Katsuki Yuuri has been cursed to spread misery and grief to those who dare to come close to him. Viktor Nikiforov has been sentenced to wander the earth, unable to die, granting wishes to mortals in the hopes that one of them might give his life meaning in exchange.
They meet in a tempest of April snow.
A. says: Aaaahh I loved this one. In a fandom which is saturated with so many amazing ideas, it’s difficult for one to be truly unique. This one has that! It’s such a wonderful combination of supernatural elements, folklore, road trips, with a clock that’s constantly ticking down... The execution is great, and the art and text complement each other perfectly. What I really loved was all the nods to canon in this fic, even though the setting is so different. It was wonderful to see Viktor and Yuuri’s journey in slowly falling in love, just like on the show.
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri, Yuuko&Yuuri Author: @kiaronna Rating: Teen Word Count: 56k so far Summary: “The two Japanese singles medalists make a beautiful pair! Here, at the 2009 Tokyo GPF, we have the start of this power couple’s reign!”
Yuuko and Yuuri dominate the singles skating competition as Japan’s power couple—except they aren’t a couple, and when their old skating idol stumbles into their personal life, everything rapidly goes downhill.
A. says: (First of all, apologies for the dearth in blog updates. I’ve been a bit busy lately and just didn’t have the energy. It’ll most likely be sporadic from now on. If you wish to keep up with the blog, you can set up notifications for it on your phone! Thank you for your messages, likes and reblogs this year; I hope you’ve been enjoying the recs.)
I’ve been following this fic’s updates, and it’s hit a point where Viktor and Yuuri understand each other, and it’s so rewarding. I really like the writing in this one. Yuuri’s narrator voice is easy to follow and the rhythm of the words really flow. Viktor and Yuuri get to know each other in turns, and it’s just so wonderful to see them slowly falling in love. Viktor, for the first time, and Yuuri, seeing Viktor for who he is beyond his idol worship.
What I also love is the strong friendship component in this fic. Yuuko is so supportive of Yuuri, and it’s clear how much Yuuri appreciates her and wants to do the same for her. Friendships in stories are so important to me, and I love reading about them. ❤
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @martymusesloveinexile Rating: Explicit Word Count: 89,442 Summary: Once a well known ballet dancer in St. Petersburg, Victor Nikiforov finds himself exiled to Sakhalin Island as a political convict in 1881. As a man sentenced to katorga he will never return to European Russia or his life on the stage. Known as the "Edge of the World," his life on Sakhalin could not be further from the life he once knew. Strange circumstances lead his path to cross that of a young Japanese man, one of the very few still living on the island. Katsuki Yuuri leads a life of exile of a different kind, one that is largely self-imposed. Drawn to each other, despite their differences, something slowly begins to grow between them. When a narrowly avoided tragedy leaves them stranded together for a long, cold Sakhalin winter, they are challenged to face what their relationship really means, and what future it could possibly have.
A. says: I really enjoyed this! The author made the POV work for a historical style. Viktor and Yuuri are so tender in this. There’s a lot of hurt/comfort, and the Viktor and Yuri sibling relationship in this is particularly wonderful. It’s appropriately soft, powerful, and tense at the right times. The story is also rich in cultural nuances that the author has obviously researched.
WIP updates
Almost all of the fics in the WIP tag have updated since I first recced them. Please check them out!
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri, Yuuri&Yuri Plisetsky, Viktor&Yuri Plisetsky Author: Anonymous Rating: Mature Warnings: Non-con roleplay Word Count: 8715 Summary: Yuuri and Victor are roleplaying non-con when they’re caught out by a furious Yuri, who thinks Victor is attacking Yuuri for real. Even after it’s all explained, Victor has to mend his relationship with Yuri.
It’s a slow process, culminating in several days of small disasters at Worlds.
A. says: This was really sensitively-handled and well-done. It felt startlingly real, and the character growth we see at the end of the fic is rewarding: I loved the versions of the characters we see at the start of the fic, but I loved them even more at the end. Yuri especially, whose youthful brashness mellows just a bit to complete mending his and Viktor’s friendship. I loved this!
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri Author: @witchsbane Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic violence Word Count: 100k so far Summary: Yuuri Katsuki is a hitman burdened with a debt he can never repay. His target: Viktor Nikiforov, next Pakhan to one of the most dangerous families in the Russian mafia.
When the two are drawn into a treacherous alliance after a mission gone wrong, the bonds of love and loyalty to family and duty begin to unravel—even as they get more tangled up in each other.
A. says: *jazz hands flailing* This fic is so well-written and engrossing. The author does really well in conveying time and place, and the action scenes are some of the best I’ve read in fic. I really love Yuuri’s inner thoughts here; it’s a very convincing character voice. The style of prose is sharp, with every detail clearly thought out. And you could cut the sexual tension with a knife. If you’re a fan of loyalty kink and power dynamics like me, this is definitely something you’ll love. :D
Pairing: Viktor/Yuuri, Otabek/Yuri Plisetsky Author: @waldorph Rating: Teen Warnings: Major Character Death Word Count: 5330 Summary: The 2022 Olympics were Yurio's to lose.
A. says: Please heed the content warnings above before choosing to go in.
It’s a really well-written fic about grieving. I thought the arrangement of the flashbacks to the past was particularly well-done. The fic just feels genuine--it’s not tropey angst. It’s real. The grief, the disbelief, trying to control one’s emotions and yet having it spill out at unexpected times... How little things seem huge in the finality of death. I really enjoyed Viktor’s POV in this.
oh, re: changing font size—you can control-f in the HTML for "font-size" and change whatever value that comes after it (something like "9px") to a larger number, like "12px"
Thanks for your help. :D I’ve fixed it. Hopefully this is better now.
Blog theme
I managed to change the font colour! Stark black actually looks pretty awful on my screen, like little ants, so I tried to do a shade that’s in between. I hope it looks better for you, anon.
You could change the body color from C4C4C4 to 000000
Thanks! I’m guessing that changes the colour to black. I’m going to look at it on the weekend. Meanwhile, please bear with it!