I'm looking for some good, novel-length stories I can get lost in. It doesn't even have to have much action or drama -- actually it might be better if it's without unnecessary drama or angst.

It's actually a bit difficult to explain...

...

You know those stories with immersive world-building that envelop you like a warm blanket on a rainy day? That keep you going just for the world and the character interactions? Without massive explosions and tons of blood? Yeah, I'd like some of that right now.

Anyone know any?

 

Strangers at Drakeshaugh by Northumbrian reviews The locals in a sleepy corner of the Cheviot Hills are surprised to discover that they have new neighbours. Who are the strangers at Drakeshaugh? When James Potter meets Muggle Henry Charlton his mother Jacqui befriends the Potters, and her life changes.Harry Potter - Rated: T - English - Mystery/Family - Chapters: 26 - Words: 115,741 - Reviews: 1261 - Favs: 1,257 - Follows: 1,641 - Updated: Jul 28 - Published: Sep 17, 2010 - [Ginny W., Harry P.] [Ron W., Hermione G.]

 

Thanks . I've read it already -- or partially, that is. Something made me stop, though; don't know why.

 

Out of the Depths

 

If you don't mind a story from a different fandom, To the Stars is >500,000 words and has some fantastic world-building. From the OP of the review thread:

As for Harry Potter stories, you might like Changeling.

 

Thanks.

I don't mind other fandoms. Indeed, one of the stories that would probably serve as a good example as to what I'm after would be "Victory at Ostagar" for the DA fandom (though I'm still not enthusiastic about the Loghain romance there).
I'm not familiar with PMMM. Is the story a good read for someone who has no clue about the fandom? It certainly wouldn't be the first time I've read fan fiction before the canon material.

 

On the Wings of a Phoenix is my all time favorite fic. I rec it pretty much any time I get a chance. There's a lot of amazing ideas in it, even though some could have been implemented better. It features a Harry that is caught between the ideals of both sides of the world, yet wants nothing more than to be neutral.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4610832/1/The_Journey_From_Oidhche_Shamhna Probably the best "founding of hogwarts" fic.

 

Not for everyone - it's very slow - but I did enjoy reading The Legacy.

While it starts at the very tail-end of OotP and does feature a marriage contract plot device (with Daphne Greengrass), the main selling point of the story for me is in the events after Voldemort's takeover. I think it was able to convey the sense of growing gloom and hopelessness with dealing with a Voldemort-run Ministry, as Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Daphne Greengrass are largely confined to Grimmauld Place.

A lot of the plot involves waiting, recovering, and eventually, they begin plotting - action comes few and far between, but what few fullblown battles there are fast and well-written. Quite a bit of time is devoted to the setup, with the execution of the actual plots occurring very rapidly. Despite Harry gaining some power-ups of a sort, he largely beats his adversaries through superior planning and preparation. (There is a mild amount of wizard bashing in the fic - it occurs few and far between, but Harry and Hermione disparage wizarding knowledge of the Muggle world on a few occasions. Also, several of the plots concocted are inspired by Muggle devices and phenomena)

The main pairing, HP/DG, also develops very very slowly. They start out and remain neutral partners at best, with the contract effectively a convenient sham - neither plan on engaging in anything resembling martial roles or duties and the contract is set up in such a way that doesn't involve them having to be involved.

The presence of a marriage contract put me off reading this fic for a while, since I abhor that plot device in general. Thankfully, it's treated as a business arrangement at best within the plot and doesn't take up a lot of space.

Again, very slow fic. One can accuse the author of having very poor pacing and putting in too much padding, but the author was able to convince me of the world and the characters, for what it's worth.

 

Slow is not the right word to describe that story. Glacial is more like it. I see it every time I browse the HP/DG section, and my jaw drops further and further as I see the word count go up. As far as I can tell, the story just goes in one giant circle for 700k words, with far, far too much of it involving just sitting around in Grimmauld place doing nothing. The story could probably be told in under 100k words and lose nothing. I think I'd rather describe it as tedious, rather than slow.

 

If you don't mind other fandoms, the Son of Suns trilogy sounds like a good fit. Quite a bit of angst, but done well.