FanficRecs On-going, but promising
The characters have been handled remarkably in-character; Professor Horace Slughorn and Tom Riddle deserve a special mention, since from their very first appearances I was convinced that it was them. The secondary characters play their roles well, mainly giving Harry the opportunity for Character Development.
The progression in the relationship between Tom and Harry is slow, but natural. Tom's friends are well-written, forcing Harry to see them as human beings, who are flawed but not without good qualities.
Unusually for Time Travel fanfiction for this fandom, the Unspeakables take charge of Harry from the beginning (this might not have been the case had he not appeared out of nowhere inside the Department of Mysteries, but still), restraining what he can do and say. There are interesting loopholes around this, but they are not immediately obvious.
Even more surprising (and suspicious), is that everyone in the past knows Harry's real name, and that he comes from 50 years in the future, which leads to speculation about how much he is changing the timeline—or if he is even changing it at all.
Since this Harry traveled back in time from the battle in the Department of Mysteries at the end of the fifth book, he doesn't know about the content of the Prophecy, the Horcruxes, Voldemort's full background or about Slughorn and his Slug Club, limiting his resources—knowledge of the future is his main weapon against Riddle, and the reason why he is initially treated well by Riddle and his friends.
Also, major props for making Tom Riddle's motivations believable.
For all that the story has clichéd elements, the author doesn't take the easy route with them. Everything that happens in the story has a sound reason, and the author makes sure that every step taken by the characters feels like the natural reaction of a human being, not just fictional characters mechanically acting out their parts in order to move from Point A to Point B.
The updates are slow, but the fic is still alive.
It is worth checking out, at the very least.
FanficRecs One of the best fics I've read by far
I found this fic from this very recommendation, and, initially, I was very skeptical. I am not usually one for time travel fics, for all the usual reasons. I like a coherent plot, I like characters to be well written, and I like romance to be realistic. These elements are usually missing from fics with this sort of plot. Not so, with Words Fail.
It's a bit odd to find yourself liking younger versions of Death Eaters, I will tell you that. The author nails Riddle's relationship with his group of 'friends' and really makes the characters believable. Harry starts to think of these people as his friends, and it's not hard to see why. They are likable, in their own ways, and don't become bland or fade into the background even once romance becomes a larger part of story, something that you will greatly appreciate, especially with, in this troper's opinion, Avery and Rosier.
Furthermore, Riddle himself is not a victim of Draco In Leather Pants. This is really quite extraordinary, as I was honestly expecting it, as a caveat for reading a fic like this. It simply seemed like a concession that would have to be made. But, no, the author writes him so that he is in character. It's really something, especially if the reader is someone like myself, who likes Riddle to be arrogant, secretive and subtle. There is no angst or anger to him, just an inquisitive mind, a person who is making a name for himself, and has his own motives, just as he should.
I am slightly worried by the fact that the troper below pointed out: everyone in the past knows Harry is, well, Harry. This being 1942 no one knows him as the Boy Who Lived, of course, but it does feel a bit like the author might have slipped up in letting Harry go by his own name and not using magic to conceal his appearance. However, the fic is so well written that I am, by and large, willing to ignore this for the time being.
Overall, I can't recommend this fic enough. It updates slowly, and I usually have to reread from a few chapters prior to the newest one when it does, but it's well worth it.