Title: Time or Manner
Author: Anaria Northren
Rating: T
Genre: Drama
DLP Category: Time Travel / Alternates
Pairing: None
Status: WIP
Summary: Voldemort uses a time spell to keep The Boy Who Lived from killing him. In his weak state, it backfires. Enter 1991. An amnesiac 10 year old Dark Lord is signed up for Hogwarts, and can't seem to figure out why a certain green eyed hoodlum is their hero.
Link: ff.net


Definitely one of the more original time-travel stories. It's not Harry-centric, but I think seeing Tom on his way to being a magnificent bastard makes up for that, all without crossing into Gary Stu territory (he's very sharp, but sometimes his conclusions are not accurate despite being very reasonable). The story so far, covering the first two years of school, is great; my only real concern is for its future, given the author's tendencies.

 

At first I thought you meant it would be abandoned, but you mean SLASH don't you? It's inevitable.

 

I'm pretty sure this is in the library. Did you check first?

 

We allow slash in the library now? The author is pretty well versed in slash fics, she is getting ready to build the tension, and thats when she will spring at you.

Thats why they call it coming out of the closet, they come out when you least expect it, like a jack-in-the-box.

 

WARNING: Do NOT visit the author's ff.net profile. The story summaries were so full of (and I quote) "slashy goodness" that I'm leaving now to go launder my eyeballs.

 

Stab them! Stab them!

It Burns! Burns! Burns! I can't believe I read that:cry: Kill me now
Edit:
Nooooo! I just read the last gay story on her favorite list. Murder me

 

Goddamn dick-on-dick fiction; I really wanted to read this, too. Ah well.

 

Your all better off not clicking on the link above. I really hate it when authors turn a good idea into a slash.

Yes, I understand gay people have needs, so do creepy yaoi and slash fangirls, and even the rest of us freaks on DLP, but we have to start drawing lines when they are getting their freak on in age 11-13.

This isn't the naruto-verse people!

 

It was an interesting premise...then I noticed the authors apparent build up to fan-girl meltdown. Without the slash, 3.5/5. Since the retarded bitch is going to go homo with this, 1/5.

 

I 2nd that Korisovra, stories like these have so much potential, its like a weapon. In the hands of a talented (straight or anti-slash) writer it could be a work of art.

That said, in the hands of the opposite it just makes you very depressed reading it, unless the person happens to be someone who is into that stuff, and there are a lot of them.

Too many to count.

 

Having no prejudice against slash, I'll take a gander at this and get back to you when I'm done.

EDIT: Present tense? GAH, one point off right there.

EDIT2: Okay, so the present tense was only for the little snippet at the begining- but in general, it's rather a bland fic. It's got an interesting hook, and I find myself continuing reading, and the writing, while bland, is well done, so that's at least passable. I've seen hints of what are clearly Chekov's guns, so I know the slash is coming, I just don't know when or how severe it'll be. Hopefully the fic will keep it mild enough to be readable. If not, well, it's not the worst thing I've read.

EDIT3: Chapter five, and it's been picking up. Just had another one of those inexplicable Chekov's moments- but this one I can file under young Tom being a very peculiar sort of person and not anthing malicious. Fortunately for the reader, the author seems to have a solid grasp on something many fangirls do not- and that's that ten year old boys won't go from sometime enemies to wholesome fuckbuddies in the span of a year. For that I'm grateful.

EDIT4: Just a note, but when I use mention of Chekov's- I'm refering to Chekov's guns. And I don't even know if they're really such, because I'm just assuming there's going to be slash later on- I've not seen neither hide nor hair of it yet.

EDIT5: Chapter six has a scene with very strange phrasing. Very strange. I'm willing to let it go because it's a mistake I see frequently and usually doesn't mean anything. However, the fact that the author regularly uses fanciful words suggests that it's not such an accident. Still... It's nothing to be concerned of yet.

EDIT6: Chapter eight. You were right- I can see the signs of an impending fangirl metldown. There's a scene that involves flushes and an unnamed character eating a lollipop and generally seems out of place.

EDIT7: 4/5. It starts off slow and bland, but picks up as the author gets a feel for the characters and the story. "Book 2" was much better towards the end then the first "Book" was, and it finished decisively. No real sign of any sort of slash- that might show up later, but for now it's entirely safe to read, and a good read. I like the way the story's going, and as strange as it seems, it might not turn out to have any sort of slash at all.


If you cast this story aside based on the author's other works, you're doing it a disservice. It is quite good, and was just what I needed to rejuvenate my interest in the fandom. I hope to see more like it, as it takes a solidly new and interesting approach to the universe.

 

1. No, I checked, it's not in the Library.

2. Two actual reviews. Anyone want to give this one a try? Assuming it isn't slash (since it doesn't seem to be slash for now)?

 

I vote Tinn for the job. All say 'Aye'?

 

My eyes are fried from staring at my screen for so long, doing uninteresting things, and my brain turned liquid and started trickling out of my ears when I had my eighth hour of class today.

>_>

Give me one or two days?

And that doesn't mean you lazy fucks shouldn't review either.

 

Huh. I just read this the other day, and I really enjoyed it. I thought I'd found a great fic to keep me entertained once 'The Lie I've Lived' and 'The Denarian Lord' were finished. I may have jumped the gun on that one.

The writing is solid, and very enjoyable, but towards the middle of the fic, you can clearly see the buildup to a Harry/Tom pairing. I dunno, the writing is good enough (and I'm bored enough) that I may follow it to the end anyway, despite the seemingly imminent buttsecks.

 

It's really not what you guys were expecting at all. There's no slash at all(at least, so far), and I actually sort of like Tom's characterization. It's not an excellent story, but it's interesting enough and the writing is decent enough that if it keeps getting updated I'll keep reading for now. It sort of grows on you as you read, so even if you don't like the first two chapters give it a shot, and don't judge it by the other stories the author wrote. 3/5

 

I read it a while ago, and from what I remember it was a good one.
Definitely didn't feel like slash.
On the top of my head, I would give it 4/5, mainly because this is the only fic I have read that has Voldemort and Harry in school together.

 

This story is actually fantastic. People have just been knee-jerkily giving it a 1, out of sheer hate of slash. It's pathetic to be so small-minded as to judge a story based on the other work an author has done. Actually read the story, then try rating it again. It has great characterization, the characters make sense, Harry and Tom act like they both have penises, which is usually what is missing in bad slash. The magical system is fascinating, Ginny is actually made into a fun, believable character, and Tom's reasoning makes perfect sense, even when it's wrong.

It's a really great story.

 

First, I'd like to say I read this story before looking at this thread, or the author's profile. To date, there was nothing that jumped off the page at me and screamed "HARRY AND TOM ARE GOING TO HAVE TEH BUTTSECKS!!1!", so I'm simply going to hope it stays that way. Author profile makes me more than a tad nervous, though.

Onto the actual story. It's...quite good, actually. I'm not sure I entirely like the turn it took in the last chapter, but that's more a personal preference for how I would have liked to see the story turn, rather than an actual fault. It's an engaging look at a calculating Tom Riddle, and how he views his place in the world. Neville as the closest thing to a 'friend' that he has works pretty well, and I find myself mildly amused at the way Ginny Weasley is written. There's some depth to the character, and I sort of find myself hoping for a Tom/Ginny pairing down the road. Mostly because that means the author wouldn't give in to her tendencies.

I'd give this a very solid 4 and possible 5, for now, though I can see it drifting downhill a little after the latest revelation of sorts. I'll be following it closely.

 

I really wouldn't assume automatically form the author's favourite list or whatever that the story is going to be slash. At the moment, and I've read the whole story, it rather looks as though Tom will stay alone for good or at least quite a while. Eidolonic has a point, though. The Ginny/Tom pairing could very well happen, but it would be at a later stage. They're still 12 and 13, mind you!

I had some difficulties to really get into the story. It's difficult to explain, but some fics just have this atmosphere which captures your attention and makes you want to read the story without taking a break, as fast as possible. "Time or Manner" does not possess such an atmosphere. It improves after a few chapters, but never reaches the level of a truly excellent fic. However, I do have hope for the future. The third "book" will probably still be mediocre, but as soon as we reach the fourth year, there's a whole new realm of possibilities. I hope the author completes her work, there's a lot of potential. Although the chapter size is decent, the slow update rate takes some of the fun out of it.

At the moment, I give the fic a solid 3/5. However, reagrding that the story has so much potential, I rate it 3.75/5. Definitely something worth to watch.