No, it's not earth-shattering, mind-blowing, or even particularly immersive. But when you ship a ship that seems to be written violently out of character nine times out of ten, calling a fic 'pleasant' isn't damning it by faint praise. I liked the fic and its sequel, and I'm glad I read them.
The biggest problem with this fic, IMO, is its rather strict adherence to The Stations of the Canon. While Spike's re-adjustment to being human is handled very well, as is his slowly building relationship with Buffy, the rest of the plot threads are more or less identical to canon, meaning it can get a bit boring at times. Still, the characterization is pretty good (for both the leads and the supporting cast), and there are a ton of lovely character moments. One of the things I liked best was how well human!Spike got along with the rest of the scoobies. It was nice to see a piece where they were supportive of him, and where that support made total sense. Spike's transition from soulless vampire to soulful human is also really interesting, and is notably not rushed at all. It's a plot thread that continues into the sequel.
The whole thing feels pleasantly natural, I guess. People talk. They build relationships. There are problems that aren't solved overnight. It's comparatively healthy, which is a rare and valuable thing for this ship. I'm not a big fan of pointless angst, and while this fic has some angsty bits, they're used to develop the characters and push them to change. It never feels like it's being angsty out of some misguided idea that reading about people who are miserable is always better than reading about people who are somewhat happy.
Was it the best fic I've ever read? No. Not even close. But it was a consistently pleasant and mildly interesting read, and sometimes that's all I really want.
I should mention that I've read a lot of the author's other work, too, and most of it is similar- somewhat underwhelming plot, lots of communication and quality character interaction, and a generally pleasant tone. If you like this one, you'll like her other stuff, too.
Pleasant.
No, it's not earth-shattering, mind-blowing, or even particularly immersive. But when you ship a ship that seems to be written violently out of character nine times out of ten, calling a fic 'pleasant' isn't damning it by faint praise. I liked the fic and its sequel, and I'm glad I read them.
The biggest problem with this fic, IMO, is its rather strict adherence to The Stations of the Canon. While Spike's re-adjustment to being human is handled very well, as is his slowly building relationship with Buffy, the rest of the plot threads are more or less identical to canon, meaning it can get a bit boring at times. Still, the characterization is pretty good (for both the leads and the supporting cast), and there are a ton of lovely character moments. One of the things I liked best was how well human!Spike got along with the rest of the scoobies. It was nice to see a piece where they were supportive of him, and where that support made total sense. Spike's transition from soulless vampire to soulful human is also really interesting, and is notably not rushed at all. It's a plot thread that continues into the sequel.
The whole thing feels pleasantly natural, I guess. People talk. They build relationships. There are problems that aren't solved overnight. It's comparatively healthy, which is a rare and valuable thing for this ship. I'm not a big fan of pointless angst, and while this fic has some angsty bits, they're used to develop the characters and push them to change. It never feels like it's being angsty out of some misguided idea that reading about people who are miserable is always better than reading about people who are somewhat happy.
Was it the best fic I've ever read? No. Not even close. But it was a consistently pleasant and mildly interesting read, and sometimes that's all I really want.
I should mention that I've read a lot of the author's other work, too, and most of it is similar- somewhat underwhelming plot, lots of communication and quality character interaction, and a generally pleasant tone. If you like this one, you'll like her other stuff, too.
Final Verdict: B