Horatio Hornblower - 9 recs

[recsforalloccasions]

A lot of early Horatio Hornblower fic is no longer online. Stories for which I can no longer find active links have been removed from this recs set.

Hornblower Recs for All Occasions

Part IX: All this other stuff is lovely, but where's the love for the original Hornblower slash pairing? (Hornblower/Bush)

Before the movies, and before there was Archie, there was Hornblower/Bush, the original Hornblower slash pairing. Most of these recs are based on the the characters as seen in the last four movies, but some are informed upon by or wholly based on the books.

Another Sunrise by commodorified - Taking that final step, crossing the line from interest to action is always a perilous moment. Left to their own devices, it's sometimes uncertain whether or not Horatio and William would ever take that chance. Fortunately, Marna knows better then to leave those two to their own devices. This is a story about choices, about looking at all the reasons to hold back and then choosing to move forward instead, about choosing to embrace life and all the risk and joy that choice entails.

Adrift by rach74 - A look at Horatio and William's relationship after Hornblower's marriage, and what happens when Horatio pushes their relationship past the restraints with which William is comfortable. I love this story because it's really all about Bush and how much of the weight of the relationship rests on his shoulders. It is William who recognizes the strictures and controls that bind their relationship, and the importance of the invisible division between Hornblower's life at sea and his life on land with his family. Bush is subordinate to and in love with and occasionally in awe of a willful and complicated man; sometimes it seems like that should make theirs a rather lopsided relationship. In Adrift, Rach recognizes how instead it is Bush who has ultimate control over their relationship, giving it the structure Hornblower can't see, guarding the precarious balance between the personal and the professional, and keeping Hornblower emotionally grounded.

Cold to the Bone by allaire - A short and painfully perfect look at Hornblower's growing feelings for Bush and the barriers he builds around himself to keep that attraction at bay. A perfect exploration of the tense dynamic between Hornblower and Bush in Duty, Allaire perfectly captures the guilt, fear and insecurity that causes Horatio to cut himself off from those he cares for the most.

Flawlesss by coreopsis - On board the Renown, Hornblower finds himself captivated by watching Bush shave. A simple premise which makes for a s short but far from simple story. Coreopsis's writing is gorgeous and vividly descriptive. A spare and elegant look at the tension and passion that underlies Horatio's strict self-control.

Trial Run by la_reine_bleu - A first and last time for Hornblower and Bush on the eve of Horatio's wedding. Breathtakingly hot and painful in equal measure, this is a spot-on look at a Horatio who can only ask for what he wants when he knows he can't have it anymore. la_reine_bleu wrings a world of emotion out of a few choice words, distilling all of Horatio and William's relationship down to this one night and this one fic.

Once Burned by idler_1814 - When Horatio Hornblower takes command of the Hotspur, he does so with William Bush at his side, as a colleague and trusted subordinate; but what he really needs is a friend, someone not to take the place of Archie Kennedy, but to stand in his place now that he's gone, to balance the Captain and the man. Idler perfectly captures Hornblower's predicament; his need of a confidante, the ease with which Bush fits into that role, and his fear that to open up again will only lead him to another insurmountable loss. Her Bush, meanwhile, is a marvel, happily subordinate to Horatio and yet a strong leader of the men in his own right, and possessed of flashes of keen insight that make it easy to see why Hornblower is drawn so to his companionship. Idler charts their precarious relationship through a well-drawn portrait of the Hotspur's life on blockade and the result is a subtle and elegant portrait of a friendship in flux.

The Garden of Prosperine by dastier - The slashiest of the original books is undoubtedly Flying Colours, in which Hornblower and an injured Bush spend several months killing time in the french countryside, hiding out from Napoleon's troops and waiting for an opportunity to make their return to England. It's classic fic-fodder -- isolation from all that is familiar, canon h/c, a lot of unaccounted for time -- and I'm continually amazed more writers haven't made use of it. Dastier's writing has a very distinctive style, lyrical and almost dreamlike, preferring suggestions and implications to emotional or physical explicitness.

A Wild, Unaccustomed Thought by eyebrowofdoom - This is a bookverse story, but it's set during the events of Retribution and Loyalty. eyebrowofdoom paints a vivid picture of Horatio Hornblower, as seen by William Bush and of Bush as seen by himself. She has a true gift for a beautifully turned phrase -- "his flesh was unmoved by his will the way the sea is unmoved by a swimmer", "before Hornblower, Bush had not known that fancy was the underside of brilliance" -- equal parts elegance and illumination. Everything about this story reads as real and human and possible; it's lovely and intense, awkward and terrifically sexy.

Tactics of Desperation by rach74 - Another bookverse story, set in the nebulous period between Flying Colours and Commodore Hornblower when Bush is posted on-shore at the Sheerness dockyards. rach74 imagines what might happen when the normally pragmatic and imperturbable Bush is faced with a future where he may never serve at sea again. We see Bush at his worst here, unhappy in his present and despairing of his future. By contrast we see Hornblower at his best, fierce in his convictions and loyal to his friends, recognizing but not wallowing in his own faults. Rach takes an unlikely premise and makes it ring painfully and beautifully true.