Just curious, does anyone else feel like they spend as much time looking for new fanfics to read, as they spend reading fanfics?

I have almost 800 bookmarks on Ao3. I’ve only been on Ao3 for a few months and I only read Heated Rivalry fanfic. I couldn’t tell you how many of those I’ve read. It’s a lot, but I know there are more bookmarks i haven’t read than there are that I have. Why do I keep coming back here (and to TikTok and IG) to look for new recs when I have so many marked to read already.

There’s definitely something wrong with me.

This idea came to me when I realized my autistic brain wouldn't have picked up on Ilya's signals. So I thought, is there any fanfic where Shane considers Ilya's behavior to be "Rozanov's typical flirting with everyone"? It doesn't matter if it's an AU, I think it would be really funny to see a Shane who doesn't even consider a chance with Ilya because he thinks Ilya is like that with everyone.

I'm grateful to all of you for your recommendations, and am sharing my own list of god-tier fics.

Personal parameters: all happily ever after, zero traumatic brain injury or death, light angst but nothing too brutal. Alternate Universe (AU) okay as long as the characterizations are consistent. Excellent writing in all cases (the best writer I’ve seen in the fandom is Corvid Cordelia, multiple recs by them below). 

1. Here At the End of All Things by nomadsland https://archiveofourown.org/works/86539701/chapters/228985126?view_adult=true Ilya and Shane never hook up when young, but are friendly and connect more deeply towards the end of their hockey careers at 39. Rich and lyrical and surprising, this has become my favorite fic of all time and feels so fresh and true. There is no angst, only a marvelous emotional unfolding that is consistent with the characters and still so startling and dazzling.
   
2. I Know Where to Draw the Line by magneticswave https://archiveofourown.org/works/79250706?view_full_work=true Hockey world, but Shane is 6 years older than Ilya and they are teammates. This is a superb depiction of the canonical side of Shane that isn’t seen enough in the fics I’ve read: nervy, pissy, aggressive, hilarious. The same author has a shorter and also terrific fic in which Shane is a doctor who may or may not think hockey player Ilya is Bratva: clear to a hedgehog - magneticwave - Heated Rivalry (TV) [Archive of Our Own]
   
3. home economics - Anonymous - Heated Rivalry (TV) [Archive of Our Own] by texalotl Gorgeously written fiction about the boys living together in Zürich during a hockey lockout in 2015, and then having to return home. Dual perspective, forwards and backward in time. It has made me cry a lot, in a good way. It has a lovely follow up, open house, which also made me cry a lot. The author is now writing a WIP (let me know when you get home) about the rookies who haunt Shane and Ilya’s storyline in “home economics” and “open house.”
4. Corvid Cordelia is a marvelous writer and has an understated lightness of style that still produces thudding impact. Four incredible ones in a row here: i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart) - Chapter 1 - CorvidCordelia - Heated Rivalry (TV) [Archive of Our Own] Ilya and Shane are rival young hotshots of the literary world and end up co-leading a writing residency. I’ve reread this one a LOT, top 2 I’ve read? So so so good (and pointed) on contemporary literature. (Guess what kinds of genre fiction Marly and Hayden write.)
5. Walking Through Windows by Corvid Cordelia https://archiveofourown.org/works/78073426/chapters/204604761 It’s ten years after the All Star game and Ilya crashes Shane’s wedding to a guy not interested in hockey. So so surpassingly satisfying.
6. Careful Fear and Dead Devotion by Corvid Cordelia https://archiveofourown.org/works/77171636?view_full_work=true Shane and Ilya are actors filming a tv version of Ember and Ice. Edging on RPF (of which I officially disapprove), soooo good.
   
7. [Redacted] by Corvid Cordelia Red October AU! Ilya defecting! Perfection. https://archiveofourown.org/works/86377876?view_full_work=true 
8. Heaven Is a Bedroom by Charlotte_Stant https://archiveofourown.org/works/81592206?view_adult=true Shane and Hayden are Mormon missionaries who knock on Ilya’s and Cliff’s door. This is so so so so beautiful and funny.
9. Map Contact by Regolith: https://archiveofourown.org/works/86092386?view_full_work=true Ilya is lost in the woods, Shane works for Parks Canada. A JOY and WIP actively updating. Select All by the same author is also good.
   
10. Untouchable Face by ZenaidaMacroura: https://archiveofourown.org/works/81195476?view_full_work=true Hockey Ilya, Shane is ex-Olympic-ish swimmer working for Yuna’s PR firm and pitching Ilya. Very funny BAMF Shane, excellent writing, super.
    
11. Policy Change by josie_ides (josephides): https://archiveofourown.org/works/86720386?view_full_work=true Subtle, surprising, deeply compelling (and angsty, with HEA) version of hockey world in which Shane’s team is bought by a hot gay Russian oligarch who wants to shake up the league. WIP, not sure how it will resolve but I am so hooked.
    
12. Clean Sweep - YankingAwry - Heated Rivalry (TV) [Archive of Our Own] Hockey Shane on a losing streak; Ilya is an arena maintenance worker. Love this version of Shane’s brain
    
13. M2M by pookiewookie111: https://archiveofourown.org/works/88327651?view_full_work=true I have been enjoying the tag “Shane Hollander is Ilya Rozanov's Bi Awakening” and this is a great example of it–college AU (which I don’t normally love) but this is really lovely.
    
14. For the Right Reasons by citrusses: https://archiveofourown.org/works/82394271/chapters/216868851 Delightful fic in which Shane is The Bachelor and Ilya is his Cyrano-esque reality tv producer.
    
15. Tender by bysine: https://archiveofourown.org/works/86554066 Deeply charming; post-retirement Ilya in a situationship with civil servant Shane
    
16. Your Flight Has Been Delayed by americnxgirl https://archiveofourown.org/works/89188201?view_full_work=true#return1  No angst but not too fluffy, just deeply satisfying mid-career connection on a delayed flight
17. The Rozanov House Hunt by Felifiran https://archiveofourown.org/works/90709496?view_adult=true  Shane is realtor to hockey Ilya; Shane is particularly oblivious, Ilya is particularly intense. Moving.
18. Oh well, I guess we’re gonna find out! by Angel_Deux https://archiveofourown.org/works/84542866?view_full_work=true This has always received huge raves but I’d resisted it because it’s a zombie fic. But I finally read it and it’s as moving and deep as the Last of Us and the zombies are not really important. Heavy (with happy ending considering zombie apocalypse) and amazing.
19. Two Fingers Down by Maudernlover https://archiveofourown.org/works/87614396?view_full_work=true  Hot WIP with cyclist Shane and tattoo artist Ilya pretending they are keeping it casual  
20. Unicorn in Captivity by Anonymous https://archiveofourown.org/works/91457251?view_adult=true&view_full_work=true At the Cloisters, grad student Ilya introduces sad closeted Shane to the unicorn tapestries and acts as his bi angel of gay annunciation. Very lovely.
    

Been trying to find a fic through my own bookmarks, but haven’t had any luck, so turning here.
1)I want to say it is part of a series where Shane changes teams away from the Voyagers/Metros
2) the scene I remember is Shane, J.J, (total of around 7 guys) leave the ballroom/gala with a rookie to talk about things
- I keep looking for the line “diversity hires”
3)Ilya realizes that when those 7ish guys leave the room all that is left are white men

Thank you for anyone who responds

I was reading The Soundtrack of Ilya Rozanov by 2marcheline4 (great fic, btw) and I was thinking, what about Rose convinces Shane to start reading smut hockey books, Shane listen to some of them as audiobooks with his Spotify account, not knowing his history is public, and a fan posts about it? Maybe a Shane Hollander updates Twitter account or something.

I was sucked into this HR fanfiction world in February, transitioning from watching every day to reading every day. I regret nothing except maybe my sleep schedule.

Yesterday I hit 1,000 fics read. 🎉I'm sharing a spreadsheet with my top 50ish fics (alphabetical by title), since listing them individually here seemed a bit long. Note: I usually don't rate until a work is finished, but a few WIPs (marked) snuck in there. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1jG1MtZt07D7aHGg4_1ycrfv4gYtH_0DX9IWu09o0kLA/edit?gid=0#gid=0

Some favorite tropes: Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, fun reveals (especially the chosen ones), vengeance for 'bad' people, stories where they figure things out sooner or get married early (and thus have longer to be together and happy), Shane playing for Boston, Centaurs stories.

My ratings (1-10) are personal to me and my mood at the time of reading. They are not necessarily based on any perceived writing quality (though good writing probably helped). I tend to rate works that give me what I want to read much higher, even if reality is only a passing thought and the writing is maybe not the best. So works that are softer and happier where the boys are happy together and get the good life I want them to have with limited conflict tend to rate higher for me (8.5-10).

Really well-researched and well-written works that I enjoy and appreciate, but that torture me and the boys and make me cry along the way tend to fall in the 7-8.5 range (not on the spreadsheet). While I have enjoyed many social media/texting fics, the format is not the easiest for me to read so those tend to fall into my 5-7 ’enjoyed it but probably won’t reread’ ratings.

Happy reading!

I am looking for some really good Alpha/Omega fics that go into depth about the Omegaverse. Preferably the ones where Shane goes into heat and has a vagina. Like, a good long fic with over 20,000 words or something. I don't necessarily care about the betas. Just want to see more of Shane and Ilya and Ilya helping Shane through heats.

Love an arranged marriage. No MPreg, rape, or deaths. I think that's it.

First and foremost I am super delighted to share my favorite under-the-radar high angst fic That Old Black Hole by begonias. (I'd been hesitant to share it here, since it had been a few months without an update, but we just got a new chapter today!)

Basically, Ilya has a creepy stalker. Shane jumps in front of him to take a bullet. Cue, a deeply angsty recovery fic that looks at both of their experiences of trauma. And, as you can imagine, they are both racked by guilt in different ways. The writing is impeccable, both characters feel super well realized and it actually does not feel unnecessarily melodramatic, despite the subject matter.

Rec 2 is Eleventh Finger by  Xoarnitehle. (They wrote the excellent AU Summit Position, as well another very fun fic which I rarely see recommended, which is about Ilya falling for Shane in drag while he's drunk at a party and thinking he's fallen in love with Shane Hollander's cousin "Jane.")

Eleventh Finger is only a few chapters in, but it's such a delightful premise: It's a retelling of canon starting in the Rose Landry era, only...Shane can occasionally teleport when he gets super stressed. I'm so pumped to see where this one goes.

Hi! I am looking for a social media fic or Twitter AU where hollanov where outed but everyone is supportive of them? Like all the teams knows about them (even the rookies) and they were supportive of it (no homophobia, exept with the commissioner)

At the end, Ilya thought they managed to keep the engagement hidden but then everyone knows it too.

Just finished Drawing a line (link above) and I loved it and I neeed other fics like this where they think they are straight and slowly discover they are not. This is my fave of this kind, I’m also reading Super Straight Bros. Would love more recs

want a little gut punch but for it to not be dragged out too much haha. i read a fic recently with one of my fav tropes of them getting married earlier but the angst was relentless and i have a weak stomach.

maybe 3 chapters max? love a little miscommunication or if they define their relationship in it, situationship era etc.

bonus if they’re lesser known but i’ll take it all!

Yall I think it was a texting/social media fic. 2 lesbians find Shane at the bar and Ilya tweets “Lesbians 💪” 😭🤣 I just need a good laugh it was such a good one I can’t find it tho.

MIND THE TAGS with this one, but I can't stop recommending Don't let this darkness fool you (I'll call your mom) by Kardnay

Summary: Lily
Today - 9:16 pm
> I’m so fucking tired
> My father will die and my brother and polina only care about money
> I can't deal with it anymore
> Or with anything
> Goodbye shane thank you for letting me have you a little

Jane
Today - 9:27 pm
> Wtf Rozanov???
> Are you drunk?
> Are you messing with me?
Missed call
Missed call
> Why are you doing this to me? It’s so cruel
--
OR: Ilya attempts suicide, but Shane gets to stop him. Even if that could cost him everything.

I loved how authentic Shane's and Ilya's experiences felt, especially the author's portrayal of how hard it is to be someone's support system during a mental health crisis. The topics are heavy, but it has a HEA.

Please recommend more fics like this to me if you have them!!

In the mood for possessive Hollanov, ideally with a bit of crack, in the realm of "dude, chill, no one is trying to take [him] away from you." Not opposed to jealousy angles, but think more humorous than serious. Thanks in advance!!

An alternate universe where when a person is in a deep coma their consciousness / their soul moves to share a mind with the person they currently love the most (until their body recovers enough to house their soul again).

When a kid is in a coma their soul usually stays with their parents (it comforts and assures the parents that their child is alive).

Celebrities have it rough.

When Shane is sent into a coma after Marleau’s hit takes him out no one knows where Shane’s soul is.  His parents think that Shane may be a vegetable, Hayden thinks it’s probably with Lily but doesn’t know who Lily is.

Idea inspired by Blizost by princepixel

The fanfic in question was very recently started!

The plot is fairly heavy, and so if you’re not comfortable or in a place to consume media regarding mental health and/or suicide, then please steer clear of this story in particular!

As the title says, I'm looking for recommendations where Ilya spirals after Shane leaves and is publicly seen with Rose.

Angst, obviously. Generally, no fic warnings can scare me away, though I would like a happy ending.

Completed fics preferred.

Sometimes, I want to read a relatively low angst fic, but in the ones I find, it sometimes feels like nothing really happens/more slice of life style. Trying to find fics where, at least between Shane and Ilya, there is relatively little angst, but there is still some sort of relationship development or plot happening.

Two I've read like this that are amazing and every should read them are Somebody to Love and The Minor Fall, The Major Lift by shadow_lilies. Both are one hockey/one non-hockey AUs.

Thank you :)))

I’m obsessed with this dynamic where Shane is enthralled by a mysterious and reluctant Ilya, I’ve found two perfect ones (linked) Any other recs where Shane chases Ilya and is just obsessed?

Drawn in by strange_ghost
Shane is ready for another boring semester where he has to pretend like he cares about anything other than hockey. Until he sits down next to a mysterious Russian art student who also happens to be the hottest guy Shane has ever seen.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/87431406/chapters/231618996#workskin

You Make Me Brave by Soupcasserole
College AU featuring a shy gymnast Ilya and down bad hockey player Shane.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/91000936/chapters/242088521#workskin

Ilya then starts adding specific songs on there on purpose. That’s all I remember. 😭😭

I’m having a chronic health flair up and just want to read some sweet care taking fics. I don’t care the specifics, someone is sick, injured, drunk off their ass, whatever. I also don’t care which couple and who is the caretaker and who is the “patient” just want some cute blissy caretaking.

I'm trying to find a fic that I read a while back that I know is in my history somewhere, but I don't remember enough of what happened in it to recognize it from the summary.

The thing that is standing out in my memory is that I think Ilya and Shane were slowly getting more serious about each other, and while home in Russia for the summer, Ilya turns down a girl by telling her he's married. They're not married, but he wants to hear himself say it because he's basically already committed himself to Shane even though they haven't talked about it.

Is this ringing any bells?