(Johnlock and Other Fandoms)
Hope you guys all had a wonderful new year, and I for one am glad that 2021 is done and over with. It’s been a wild year, and fic-rec wise, I am ashamed to say that I really didn’t read many new Sherlock fics this year. For some reason, I just kept fandom hopping the latter half of the year, mostly because I was too stressed to even start anything new and enjoy it; when I read new Johnlock fics I have to “tag as I read” so that I can file them properly later for you guys. That part felt like a monumental task when I literally couldn’t sleep anymore. I instead did a lot of re-reading of old faves, and indulged in my other fandom loves since doing so was mostly brainless, hahah.
Please don’t take that the wrong way… I love reading Johnlock, but as a fic rec blog that primarily recs fics I’ve read, it’s easier to do the work as I read, and I just… didn’t have it in me. So I am truly sorry in that regard. Thankfully, the community has made up for my slacking 100-fold by helping us discover new stuff all year long. For that I am grateful.
Anyway, all of that was meant to explain why I don’t have a full 25 Johnlock Bookmarks list this year. I decided that, to make it to 25, I would also share some of my fave “other fandom” reads I have bookmarked this year, in the hopes that, if you are also part of that fandom, you may enjoy it too.
I hope you guys like the fics I have selected this year, and will also indulge in all 18 of the the new Johnlock fics I’ve read this year. As always, both sections of this list are in word count order, as opposed to “faves” order! Cheers, and here’s to another year of fic recs! <3
OTHER FANDOM HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Forever be His Little Secret by undernightlight (G, 1,468 w., 1 Ch. || RED DWARF || M-Corp In-Episode Fic, Unrequited Love, Pining Rimmer, Light Angst, Introspection, Memory Wipe) – Lister cannot see or hear him. Rimmer isn’t sure what exactly it is inside of his holographic body that compels him to speak, to confess what he thought he’d take to the grave, what he was very willing to take to the grave, and yet, he sat in their bunk room and spoke it anyway. Part 37 of Gays in Space
Into the Abyss by shadowblade_tara (T, 2,701 w., 1 Ch. || DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN || Post Canon, Developing Relationship, Connor’s LED, LED Mood Ring / Removal Discussion, Big Brother Markus, Connor’s Trauma, Coping With Emotions, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fear of Takeover, Connor’s Mind Palace, Mind Kidnapping, Holocaust Allusions, Introspection, Self-Identity Issues, Slices of Life) – “So what happened when you tried?” “Let’s just say it’s a really good thing Thirium vanishes quickly, and you didn’t get home for another five hours.” It bled – a lot, then. Probably hurt like hell, too, judging from the look on the kid’s face. Part 3 of the Deviance series
Deviance by shadowblade_tara (T, 3,544 w., 1 Ch. || DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN || During Game Timeline, Slight Canon Divergence, Hank POV, Connor’s Journey to Deviancy / Already Deviant Connor, Mentions of Suicide, Mentions of Alcoholism, Friendship) – There’s something different about Connor, the android sent by Cyberlife. Hank’s known it from the beginning. Part 1 of the Deviance series
Homecoming by Queen of the Potato People (T, 3,805 w., 1 Ch. || RED DWARF || Pre-Slash, Rimmer Returns from Being Ace, Reunion, Character Study, Introspection, Angst with Happy Ending) – How does being Ace Rimmer work out for the smeggiest possible version of Rimmer in the entire multiverse? How and why does he return to Red Dwarf? This is one possible take.
Sleight of Hand by Relvetica (T, 14,360 w., 1 Ch. || DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN || Everyone Lives Ending, Hank POV, Mutual Pining, Coping with Deviancy / Emotions, LED Mood Ring/LED Removal Discussion, Human/Android Politics, Human/Android Relationship Discussion, Stubborn Connor, Worried Connor, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Comforting Hank, Experimenting Connor, Introspection, Heart-To-Heart, Obsessive Connor, Love Confession, Trying to Understand Love, Sexuality Discussions, Ken-Doll Android Anatomy, Bed Sharing, Comforting Each Other, Hiding Out, Running Away Together, First Kiss, Open Ending) – Some good endings only really count as good endings because they end before it gets bad. On the other hand, some end before they get better.
Opinion is the medium between knowledge and ignorance by ImogenGotDrunk (T, 16,912 w., 2 Ch. || DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN || Pacifist Route, Pre-Slash, Pre-Deviant Connor, Depression, References to Suicide, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Alternating POV, Connor’s Freckles, Enemies to Friends, Connor-Centric, Introspection, Canon-Typical Violence, Hurt/Comfort, Connor’s Path to Deviancy, Obsessive Connor) – Hank made his view on androids very clear. No one could mistake where the Lieutenant stood on that particular subject. But as he and Connor begin working together, his opinions seem to drastically change. The only conclusion Connor can come to is that he himself is responsible for it. It must be another instability in his software. After all, changing Hank’s mind was never part of the mission.
Moving Forward, Circuit by Circuit by DoAndroidsDreamOfElectricPolarBears (E, 50,605 w., 18 Ch. || DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN || Post-Ending AU, Amnesia, Connor Whump, Alcohol Abuse, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Android Slavery/Trafficking, World Building, Slow Burn, Hurt/Comfort, Hank Being Hank, Memory Loss/Wipe, Rebuilding Relationship, Case Fic, Protective Hank, Interrogations, Police Work, Love Confessions, Fixing Connor, Caring Hank, Friends to Lovers, Going Undercover, Self Depreciation, Bed Sharing, Kissing and Hugging, Flirting) – After the liberation of androids, society is changing … for everyone except Hank. To him, it seems that life has returned to normal – especially with the absence of his partner. That is, until he finds Connor, components modified and memories erased. The two must work together to catch the man responsible (and sort out their feelings along the way).
ALL 18 JOHNLOCK BOOKMARKS OF 2021
The Last Room At The End of The Hall by Corporate_cards (G, 219 w., 1 Ch. || Fluff) – All things can wait, for finally things work, in the last room at the end of the hall. Part 1 of Random Things I’ve Written In Class – Johnlock
Soaring Above by Corporate_cards (G, 394 w., 1 Ch. || TRF, Light Angst, Superpowers) – “Have you ever though about having a super power…?" Part 2 of the Random Things I’ve Written In Class – Johnlock series
Vale Mea by JohntheBlonde (G, 622 w., 1 Ch. || Implied/Referenced Death, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Pining Sherlock, Epistolary) – ‘I, William Sherlock Scott Holmes…hereby…declare this my last Will and Testament.'
Evermore by SosoHolmesWatson (G, 2,068 w., 1 Ch. || Post-S4, 5-Year-Old Rosie, Love Confessions, Song Fic, Parentlock, Oblivious John, Pining Sherlock, First Kiss, Love Confessions, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Disney Songs, Beauty and the Beast) – For the past years, John and Sherlock have lived at Baker Street again, raising Rosie together–as friends and nothing more. Ever since the little girl has watched her first Disney movie, she is obsessed with princesses. When John comes home one day, he finds his friend and his daughter in the middle of a reenactment of her current favourite. Part 1 of Made of Music
What John Doesn’t Know (Won’t Hurt Him) by blueink3 (NR [T], 4,392 w., 1 Ch, || S3 Fix It, Pining Sherlock, Snippets of Life, Hurt/Comfort, Scars, Fluff and Angst, Five and One, Hopeful Ending, POV Sherlock) – Five people who see Sherlock’s scars before John Watson. But Sherlock’s secrets were never something he could keep from his blogger for long.
When Your Belly’s in the Trench by Morgan_Stuart (T, 4,743 w., 1 Ch. || PTSD, Character Study, Rescue, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Torture, Trauma, Danger, Drama, Kidnapping/Captivity) – The next time that door opens, John Watson will kill the person on the other side.
This Year by DiscordantWords (T, 6,283 w., 2 Ch. || TEH Divergence / No Mary, New Year’s Eve, John’s A Mess, Jealous John, Awkward Conversations, Trapped in a Closet, Estranged After Return, John POV, Semi-Reunion, Angry John, First Kiss, Reconciliation, Clueless Sherlock, Happy Ending) – Last year, Sherlock Holmes showed up at the Landmark with a fake moustache and a bad French accent and threw John’s entire life into disarray with two words: "Not dead.” This year, there are more surprises in store.
holding steady by darcylindbergh (E, 12,724 w., 4 Ch. || Post S4, Love Confessions, First Kiss, Growing Old, Gone Fishing, Mood without Plot, Soft Sherlock, Caring Sherlock, POV John Third Person, Anxious Sherlock, First Kiss / Time, Touching, Feeling Old, Sherlock Worship, Crying Sherlock, Cuddles, Comforting, Introspection, Retirement, Hand Holding, Forehead Kisses, Caring John, Bed Sharing, Emotional Love Making) – Sitting on a thick wool blanket at the end of a rickety dock side-by-side, legs dangling over the edge, a styrofoam container of wet, dark dirt between them, they’re fishing. John knows what this is about. This is about finally figuring it out.
A Hooligans’ Game Played By Gentlemen by scullyseviltwin (E, 15,213 w., 1 Ch. || First Time, Rugby as Foreplay, Porn with Lots of Plot, John POV, Ogling, Body Appreciation, Cranky Sherlock, Slow Burn, Bed Sharing, Cuddling, Touching, Heavy Petting, Blow Job, Botttomlock) – In which John wants to get back in shape, does so, joins a rugby league and has sex with Sherlock Holmes. In that order.
A Gossamer Dream by CarmillaCarmine (E, 15,985 w., 4 Ch. || Writer/Teacher AU || First Meetings, Friends to Lovers, Writer John / Teacher Sherlock, Fluff, London, Holding Hands, Online Friendship / Romance, Phone Sex, Anal Sex, Happy Ending, Alternating POV, Scottish John, Online Relationship, Internalized Homophobia, Hand Holding, Forehead Touching, First Kiss/Time, Texting/Sexting, Rimming, Toplock, Sherlock Speaks French) – Sherlock had never realised one could care so much about someone they’d never met in person. Now he is about to meet the friend with whom he’s been chatting online for months and his anticipation is reaching a crescendo.
A Quiet Life by DiscordantWords (M, 25,176 w., 6 Ch. || Post S4, Retirement, POV Sherlock, Awkwardness, Established Relationship, Family Dynamics, Minor Character Death, Questionable Parenting Choices, Non-Linear Narrative, 20 Year Old Rosie, Meddling Mycroft, Pining Sherlock, First Kiss, Love Confessions, Angst, Sherlock Whump) – There had been three days of silence and a funeral. Sherlock had the terrible feeling that whatever happened next would depend, entirely, on him.
How To Unfold a Heart by elwinglyre (E, 25,477 w., 7 Ch. || Post S4 Fix It, BAMF John, Mentioned Eurus, POV First Person Sherlock, Case Fic, Fluff, Slow Burn, Topping from the Bottom, 3 Yr Old Rosie, Introspection, Sexual Fantasies, John Worship, Ogling, Hand Holding, Kidnapping, Domesticity, Sherlock Whump, First Kiss/Time, Doctor John, Caring John, Soft Sherlock, Sensuality, Touching, Crying, Love Confessions, Anxious Sherlock, Rimming, Toplock, Fingering, Bossy Bottom John) – To Sherlock’s dismay, John’s return to Baker Street with Rosie is only temporary. Sherlock’s daily visits to Regent Park with John and Rosie illuminate his lost childhood memories and missed opportunities. But with each trip to the park, Sherlock also feels a growing sense of hope. That is until the past horrors return unexpectedly in a cryptic note folded in the shape of a heart. To decipher the message, Sherlock must uncover the nature of the hearts around him, including his own.
Rupert Street by WritingOutLoud (M, 27,262 w., 9 Ch. || Alternate First Meeting || Case Fic, Sexuality, Demisexual Sherlock, Drugging, Smart John, Sherlock Has Internalized Biphobia, Fluff, Angst with Happy Ending, Gay Bar, Flirting, John Manipulates Sherlock to Eat, John Deduces, Arguments, Kidnapping/Torture, Hospitalization, John Whump) – Discharged from the war with nothing but the clothes on his back and a realisation of his bisexuality, John Watson has to learn who he’s become. He can’t afford London on an army pension, but the city is the only friend he has. In an effort to understand his newfound queer identity, he heads to a bar one night, where he stumbles across a mysterious stranger who turns his life upside down. ‘I dug around inside myself, and I’m not quite sure what I found, but it was beautiful and terrifying all at the same time.’
Sunday Evening 6 p.m. by Silvergirl (E, 30,712 w., 6 Ch. || Post-TRF / TEH Divergence, Grief / Mourning / Stages of Grief, Mutual Pining, Dreams, Reunion, Love Confessions, First Kiss / Time, Alternating First Person POV, Smart John, BAMF Boys, Emotional Love Making, Song Fic, Referenced Suicide, First Kiss / Time, Touching, Sleepy Sherlock, Blow Job, Villain Mary) – Six months after Sherlock jumped, he learns that John is dedicating songs to him on a requests-only radio programme. Is John just working through grief? Or is he—communicating? Fixes the hell out of S3 by pre-empting it altogether. Remember, as TAB told us, John is Pretty Damn Smart.
Deck the Halls by itsalwaysyou_jw (T, 31,018 w., 24 Ch. || Advent Fic / Multiple One-Shots, Assorted Tags) – One Johnlock ficlet for every day leading up to Christmas. Who is ready for pining, first kisses, established Johnlock, and everything in between? This collection of stand-alone ficlets will have it all.
Lucifer’s Gardens by ampersand_ch (E, 32,679 w., 12 Ch. || GERMAN VERSION || Romance, Friendship, Friends to Lovers, Murder, Poison / Drugging, Mystery, John Undercover, Academic Club, Therapy, Rituals, Jungian Archetypes, Doctors & Physicians, Grief/Mourning, Esotericism, Hospitals, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions, John Falls In Love With Another Man, Jealous Sherlock, Crying, Doctor John, Hand Holding, First Kiss/Time, Mysticism, Hugging, Touching) – John goes undercover for an investigation as a favour to Lestrade in a village in Suffolk. The events surrounding the case awaken deep-seated fears in Sherlock. While John begins to come to a realisation of what he needs in Lucifer’s Gardens, Sherlock tries to find a way to reach John – in more ways than one.
You Might Just as Well Be Blind by ArwaMachine (E, 56,625 w., 12 Ch. || Fake Relationship, For a Case, Bed Sharing, Platonic Cuddling, Jealous Sherlock, Oblivious John, BAMF Hudders, Fluff and Angst, Frottage, Anal Sex, Happy Ending, Case Fic, Flirting, Pining John, POV John, Toplock, Possessive Sherlock, First Kiss/Time, Infidelity) – When a serial killer starts targeting couples, Sherlock and John must do what they have to do in order to get to the bottom of things. Unfortunately, John already has a girlfriend. Surely pretending to be in a relationship with Sherlock won’t pose any problems with his relationship, will it?
The Lost Special: Family Matters (As Do Relationships) by ShirleyCarlton (M, 144,688 w., 40 Ch. || S4 Fix It Fic / Meta Fic, Unreliable Narrator, John’s Mind Bungalow, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, Demisexual Sherlock, Holmes Family, John Whump, Gay Mycroft, Misunderstandings, Drug Addiction, Parenting, TFP is a Nightmare, Virgin Sherlock, Slow Burn, Minor Character Death, Switchlock, John’s Past, Sherlock’s Past, Eurus, Love Confessions) – Sherrinford is not really the name of some high security prison. That was just a figment of John’s frantic coma dream. And Eurus is not actually Sherlock’s sister. That’s just something random she said to John before shooting him. Sherlock and John were never actually estranged. That was just their act to cover up what really happened to Mary – or Rosamund Moran, as her real name has turned out to be. Sherlock does have a secret sibling, though, and his name is Sherrinford. After finally eliminating Moran – though in a rather dramatically different way than they had envisioned – and exposing the truth about Eurus, John encourages Sherlock to delve into his past and to find out whether the reasons to keep Sherrinford away from Sherlock were the right ones, and to discover what really happened in 1981. Along the way, Sherlock and John gradually, finally, stop keeping each other at a distance, and eventually become a proper family of their own.
