Finds’s Recommended Series Reading Order Lists!
I’ve had it suggested to me that I put together a reading order list for my OC-based fanfics, given that many of them have connections to each other. It’s a good idea, so this post is my attempt to do that. For each of my primary series and character groups, I give notes on recommended reading order (or lack thereof).
Please note, however, that the order in which the series/character groups are listed here is not a required order in which to read those groups. (For example, the fact that the Lasan Series is listed before the Gand Series doesn’t mean the former is intended to be read before the latter.) That’s why I call this “lists” rather than a singular “list.”
All links are to AO3.
The Lasan Series
(Banner by @jedi-valjean ! Thank you again!)
This series includes stories of a wide variety of lengths, from short vignettes to lengthy multichaps. Within the series, the stories are ordered chronologically in-universe (note that that is not the same as the order in which they were written by me). You may read them in that order if you wish, but in most cases, they are standalone stories, and it’s not necessary to read them in the order in which they’re placed in the series.
I say in most cases, not all, because a few stories in the series come in pairs that I recommend reading in a specific order for purposes of establishing necessary/helpful context:
- @spacemomcreations ’s The Beginning of Honor before Sleeping Honor (that story of hers is the shoulders on which my entire series stands)
- The Sad, Sad Story of Porfozald Marballees!, Calm after the Storm, and “I am my prayer to you,” in that order
- From the Mountain’s Heart before Romance among the Stones
- Shaman, Traveler, Oracle before Stand Together on the High Places (Yes, I know ShTO is very long, but STOHP directly references some happenings from chapters 19–23 and 29–30. To save time, you could read just these parts before proceeding to STOHP.)
- Stand Together on the High Places before the third and final section of Long, Lonely Time
The Book of Gand and the Gand Series
(another awesome banner by @jedi-valjean !)
The Book of Gand is a single long multichapter work, and its component parts are intended to be read in order (part 1, then part 2, etc.—I’m aiming for four five parts eventually). It is organized as a series simply because that’s the most effective way to organize such a work on AO3.
The shorter stories that I have placed under the series heading Gand Series are of course related to BOG and incorporate some of the same characters and elements, but it is not strictly necessary to read BOG before reading them, nor is it crucial to read the shorter stories in any specific order.
The Early Rose Evergreen Stories, the Rose Evergreen Stories, and the Drabatan Lady Stories
This is where things become tricky, because the this is where things become interconnected. There are five characters in the crew of the Rose Evergreen, but four of them originated in the other series listed above:
- Telfien (Gand Findswoman), who is also a central character of BOG and the Gand Series but enters the Lasan Series in Shaman, Traveler, Oracle, chapter 14;
- Shulma (Lasat shaman), who is also a central character of the Lasan Series;
- Lua (Drabatan seamstress), who was first introduced in Shaman, Traveler, Oracle, chapter 15 (and thus within the Lasan Series);
- Rika (R1-K4, astromech droid), who was also first introduced in Shaman, Traveler, Oracle, chapter 15 (and thus within the Lasan Series).
So, here’s what I recommend:
The group of stories I’ve labeled Early Rose Evergreen stories are very short one-shots that feature both Glockel and Telfien, dating from 2014–15 (before I created Shulma, Lua, and Rika) and most in response to various prompts I received in the past.
- Because I hadn’t yet created Shulma, Lua, and Rika when these stories were written, I consider that they take place before Shulma and Lua joined the Rose Evergreen—that is, before the stories in the regular Rose Evergreen Stories series. However, you don’t need to read the early stories in order to understand and enjoy those ones.
- Except for the first three items in the early series (Early Morning Thoughts of a Hutt’s Gardener, Pandemonium at a Hutt’s Garden Party, and Of Urgent Transmissions and Curious Dropped Objects), which form a brief arc of their own and are best read in order, the reading order of these stories is not important, even if some stories refer briefly to events within another. (For example, The Spacer’s Song expands on a previous happening mentioned by Telfien in In Search of a Hutt’s Dinner Music—so yes, the former would have preceded the latter chronologically, but it’s not absolutely necessary to read them in that order.)
The group of stories labeled Rose Evergreen Stories feature all five members of the Rose Evergreen ensemble: Glockel, Telfien, Rika, Lua, and Shulma, and the Drabatan Lady Stories center on Lua.
- Reading order within these groups is not necessarily important, either, but for context on how the Rose Evergreen group came together, you might find it helpful to check out chapters 15–16 of ShTO. This is not only the first appearance of Lua (the Drabatan lady herself) and Rika (Glockel’s astromech), but also where Lua and Shulma join the crew of the Rose Evergreen to form the ensemble of five characters.
- For one of the five women’s first missions together, read ShTO chapters 19–23 (which also features some Ryn guest OCs borrowed from the my talented friend and OCologist aikisenshi). Again, potentially helpful for context, but not absolutely necessary.
And that should, more or less, cover it. Whew! I hope that didn’t make matters even more complicated than they are. Questions are always welcome!
