FanficRecs JBlaze's review
Crossing is an expanded and smutty version of Zuko and Jet's meeting on the ferry to Ba Sing Se in three plotty parts. Both Zuko and Jet are shockingly in character for such a lurid fic. Jet's monomania and bad-boy charisma are spot-on, as is "Lee's" surly attitude and paranoia. The second half of the second part and the third part are true to canon: Jet discovers that Lee's uncle is firebender and what results is some seriously questionable smut. If the dark spin on canon aren't your style (as it wasn't for me) Sodom Quake was lovely enough to pen an extremely long AU ending to the first fic, called Float, in which Jet doesn't find out the truth behind Lee until later. Float basically takes the second half of the second part and the third part and replaces them. Like the prequel, it's hauntingly in character. Neither Jet nor Zuko are Sues, and both can be infuriatingly dense and stubborn at times — which is pretty much spot-on to their characters. What results is an extremely emotionally complex and action-packed AU of the entire third season in which Jet does not die, and Zuko has his final Heel Face Turn in a much more dramatic way. Unlike a lot of shipping fics, the author also includes some fantastic characterization outside the pairing, and explores the complex relationship between Zuko and Iroh and increases the plausibility of Zuko's later recognition of his father's abuse. While Sodom Quake manages to plot enough original material to make it a firm AU, there's enough of the canon that it isn't unrecognizable or too far-fetched. I think it's one of the best Ba Sing Se AUs, outside of Vathara's Embers
. As a bonus, both fics are totally completed. Extremely highly recommended, if you can cope with the disappointment after the fic is over that the pairing is so rare!
FanficRecs Ailey's review for Crossing and Float
How many ways are there to say amazing? A masterpiece. A tour de force. How about a freaking religious experience? Best fic I've ever read for any fandom, hands down; it helps that I'm a Jetko shipper, but this would've converted me if I weren't. Float is heartbreakingly sad, fist-pumpingly triumphant, and eyebrow-singeingly hot (not to mention stunningly intelligent, deeply believable, and occasionally hilarious) all wrapped up in one incredible, novel-length package - the textbook definition of an emotional rollercoaster. The only downside is the crippling withdrawal when it's over.