1: A Perfect World by Al Steiner They say you can never go back home... but maybe you can make a home? Fuckin' Aye!
It's hard to pick just one by Al; he's amazing. But this one is truly special. The whole story is constant source of wonder after wonder, but the climax and ending here are absolutely riveting. And who knows? Maybe you can go home after all.
2: Jake's Dream Come True by BillyRay This is an epic coming-of-age story about a young telepathic mind controller (MCer). It has a number of time-tested MC story motifs, including a "hidden war" between good and evil MCers, using MC to change people for the better, sadistic ruination of people by evil MCers, and more. I think I can say without spoilers that there is a FANTASTIC plot twist at the end that, in the hands of a lesser writer, might have ruined the whole story. Suffice it to say the twist made a great story even better.
3: Bring Me to Life by ElSol One of the deepest mind control stories I have ever read. The hero is an "everyman" who finds himself in the midst of a strange sort of apocalypse. He is thrust into position where he must take control of several women's lives for their own good, and he grows into the hero/dom that they all need him to be.
4: Chances Are... by Stultus I love a good superheroine story and this is one of the best I've ever read. A poor schmuck from the bad part of town finds his luck. Literally. His new ability to instantly calculate odds AND subtly influence them, gives him an odd sort of power over over both the female-dominated super-powered law enforcement and the male-dominated criminal underworld.
6: The Angels of Bataan by D.T. Iverson This is an amazing story. In terms of tone, story arc, and overall quality it reminds me of Stephen King's story "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption".
A historical story set among tragically real events in the Philippines during World War II, it follows the, well, redemption, of a self-absorbed elitist caught in the Japanese invasion. And, in a way, it also functions as a metaphor for the struggle of health care workers during the COVID pandemic.
And beyond all that it is just an awesome tear-jerking drama. I, for one, would love to see this story one day become a major motion picture.
7: Protect and Serve by Paul Phenomenon An amazing rollercoaster ride of a story. This thriller has it all, mystery, romance, good guys, bad guys, tortured pasts, bright futures, gritty realism, fantasy/sci-fi telepathy powers. This story hits the ground running and never lets up right through the final moment. Paul Phenomenon is a great writer, with other wonderful stories on SOL. This one is far and away his best.
8: Semper Fi by Chase Shivers The backdrop is horrific. In a post-apocalyptic world, America as we know it is torn to shreds, beyond all hope of repair. Even the hero is hopeless, defeated, shell-shocked, trapped behind enemy lines, and barely scratching out his survival. Against this backdrop Mr. Shivers tells an amazing story of love, of hope, of healing. But most of all, this is a story about the power of families, both the ones we are born into and the ones we make or find for the ourselves.
I cannot even begin to express how the simple phrase "There you are" becomes such a *powerful* tool for expressing the wellspring of hope in this story.
9: Rebecca Danced by EzzyB Once, when I was playing Trivial Pursuit with my wife and some friends, she got the following question: "What's 5000 times sweeter than sugar?" She didn't know the answer, so, stalling for time she did her best Shirley Temple imitation, bounced her head side-to-side, and squealed "Me!"
Even sweeter than that is EzzyB's high school romance "Rebecca Danced". But unlike the answer to that Trivial Pursuit question, this story is not a bit saccharine. Yes, the heroine is perfect, but she has a real, believable, relatable tragic flaw. Yes, her hero is also perfect, but he has real, believable, relatable tragic pain in his past. The supporting cast is perfect too, and yet each uniquely themselves.
Enjoy the ride as they all make beautiful music together.
10: Bec by BarBar First in an amazing series about a unique mind, her struggles, her triumphs, her friends, her family.
11: A. King and His Queen by Lazlo Zalezac How can you not love this guy!? He sets up his home life as a porn reality series ... and finds true love.
12: The Preacher Man by hammingbyrd7 A far future dystopia is saved by one amazing person who took a chance, and the amazing people he found along the way.
