Yu Yu Hakusho/Fanfic Recs

Proof that there is 10% worth dying for and being revived by Spirit World.

Listed here are fanfictions that have been recommended by Tropers for the Yu Yu Hakusho canon, all of which must be signed to remain on the page. Please use the template when recommending.

You may also add comments about recommendations already listed, but please don't converse/argue here. Save that for the discussion page.

Authors and Websites
Shadow Jaganshi's fics. She has since stopped writing, but the stories are still there.
 * Recommended by Elkian.

Blossomwitch's fanfictions (Particularly "Define Mercy" and Balm of Gilead.)
 * Recommended by User:Serene Shadow
 * Blossomwitch is an amazing writer, and her fics are usually entertaining and worth a read, especially the two mentioned above. She has awesome characterization, and keeps with canon in most cases. There's a bit of slash at times, depending on the fic. All in all it's good work, and worth reading.

Windswift's fanfictions (Particularly Kiss and Secret and Strange.)
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * Windswift is the queen of poignant, brilliant little oneshots. She seems to work well with minute snapshots - she literally has hundreds of them posted, very few of them surpassing a thousand words. Windswift, however, despite her lack of long fics, is my personal head-canon. She's hopped her way through every character and pairing in the show, touching them all lightly with the softest, most compassionate eye, and then moving on. It takes an hour or more to get through all of her drabblish fics, but it's a very enjoyable, thought-provoking hour, and she really does have something interesting to say about everyone. Windswift has never written a fic that wasn't for the whole family, but her ideas and style are very adult. Tropers who try her out are in for a wonderful time.
 * Seconded by RBM Ifan. Windswift is definitely one of my favourite authors on ff.net - her insights into the Yu Yu Hakusho characters (to say nothing of the other series she's written for) are some of the best I've ever seen.

Creepstakes's fanfictions (Particularly Kitsunetsuki and The Silk of Benzaiten.)
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * Creepstakes is easily the best erotica writer in the fandom. She always has an incredible blend of interesting, entertaining, and arousing in her fanfiction, and almost never sacrifices her plots. Her take on the characters and her ability to amuse a reader and continue to amuse them are a gift. Her plots are addictive and always leave me gasping for breath, and she's not afraid of writing rare pairings and new ideas. The majority of her work is male-slash, and explicit male-slash at that - she's delved into sadomasochism, guro, and many other not-nice things, so tropers not looking for darker, libido-driven fics should give her a miss, and even those who don't should remember to heed all her warnings. Still, Creepstakes earns her place as one of the best writers in fandom.

Sans Enigma's Yuu Yuu Hakusho Fanfiction Archive (Particularly Silent and Still and Kurama's Mouth.)
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * This website hasn't been updated since 2001, nine years ago. Still, it's the last bastion of the late and greats, Lulu White Tenshi, Sahari, etc., people who have long since left this fandom. I can't think of a single fanfiction on this site that didn't blow me away, and Silent and Still, my personal favorite fanfic of all time, is housed here. The pairings are mostly Yusuke/Kurama, with some deviations, but they're all proof that people were active and amazing in this fandom long before my time. I mean it when I say that Sans Enigma is always worth a visit, even if you've been there a hundred times. The day it goes down, I'll cry. (Silent and Still has an off-site sequel by a different author, should anyone be interested, called Overcoming Chaos.)

Sekahyyh's fanfictions. (Especially Counting Crows, Hell or High Water, and Silk & Sable)
 * Recommended by Hyrusekki
 * Sekahyyh is tremendously talented and her fics are original, sweeping, and epic. From the level of detail to the vocabulary to the characterization to the research, you can feel the weight of her writing and her stories read less like fanfiction and more like published works. Although her main focus is Karasu/Kurama, she appreciates some of the more forgotten characters in fanfiction, like Toguro, Genkai, and Mukuro, giving them layers and depth. Her erotica is unique and real, her non-con is gruesome and disturbing (such as in Counting Crows), and she not only writes yaoi, but het and yuri as well. Sometimes I walk away from her works shaken, lost in thought, or insanely jealous. She's amazing.

KowaretaTsubasa's fanfictions ( especially Judgment, Fully Exposed, and Little Wishes)
 * Recommended by Sir Psycho Sexy
 * Kowareta Tsubasa is a brilliant writer who has a very intellectual spin on the Yu Yu Hakusho characters. No matter who it is she writes, she can manage to make them sound like the most amazing and mesmerizing characters in the world. I would recommend her to anyone who is getting sick of all of the Transplanted Character Fic in Yu Yu Hakusho fandom, as her writing ability will make you fall in love with the characters all over again. Her scope ranges from the main four to Sensui and Itsuki to the Three Kings (particularly Mukuro) to Toguro and Genkai- and she makes it look effortless to keep them all in character. Highly recommended.

ThothMoon's fanfictions (especially Graduation, Cockroach, and Will You Accept the Charges?)
 * Recommended by Sir Psycho Sexy
 * Thoth Moon is another writer who can add great intellectual depth to the Yu Yu Hakusho universe- not to mention she actually shows her work whenever she has to go beyond YYH canon to find something relevant to her fics. Her NC-17 rated stories are very playful while remaining true to the characters and making the reader think, as well as retaining the requisite Togashi-level Gorn where it is appropriate. In this troper's opinion, Cockroach in particular stands out because it is the most comprehensive Deconstruction of Mister Seahorse that he has read in any fandom- but the other fics are excellent as well. A must-read.

Graphospasm's fanfiction
 * Recommended by Lurking Beneath
 * Now, seeing the sheer amount of OC-centric stories in this writer's profile is enough to throw even some of the least judgmental readers off. Don't let this fool you, though- Graphospasm is one of those few fanfic writers who know how to do O Cs right. Her original characters are easy to relate to, believable and entertaining. Her fics are fun without feeling too bubbly, and they all have plots worth getting into. Some of the early chapters of her fanfiction (such as Future Talk) are slightly off-putting in their... typicality, but Graphospasm has grown as a writer and her stories have grown with her. The canon characters don't take the back seat, Kuwabara is treated like a great person and nobody is OOC. Fics this troper would particularly recommend are "Fakes & Fiends", "Future Talk," "School Daze" and "Touched."

Koko-chan and the Blue Spanch
 * Recommended by Shareth
 * These two have collaboratively produced the funniest series of Yu Yu Hakusho fanfiction this troper has ever read. There are a few minor spelling errors, and people twitchy about male/male relations had best give "Grandfather of Fire", the seventh in the series a miss (the Hiei/Kurama is present in most of the others, but not in center focus), but this crackverse is well worth dealing with those minimal flaws. This troper clearly remembers both her and her brother reading it as young teens and not only not being permanently scarred by the experience, but laughing so hard our faces hurt. Great stuff... and the later crossover of the Quinverse with Weiss Kreuz is just as gut-bustingly funny.

General Fics
''Stories focused on the family and the friendly relationships of the cast. Plot-focused stories or light day-in-the-life stories. Pretty much anything that isn't focused on romance.''

Changing Death by borderline_mary
 * Recommended by Serene Shadow
 * Synopsis: Six months after the Dark Tournament, Kurama goes on an important mission that is kept secret from the rest of the team. The results of this are catastrophic, and things may never quite be the same for anyone.
 * Comments: This is easily the best Yu Yu Hakusho fanfiction I've ever read. It has amazing characterization, a unique style, interesting takes on the way the characters think, and a plot that's as ingenious as it is entertaining. The fic takes a slightly angsty tone, but that's very justified, and it's an extremely worthwhile read. As of January 2012, it's still being updated, though the author is close to completion.

"Future Talk" by Graphospasm
 * Recommended by Willowleaf
 * Synopsis: Dying didn't spell the end for me. It gave me a chance to save a world, and a new shot at life. Only, to get that shot, I had to give up my everything. To save the people I've come to love in this new world, what must I give in exchange?
 * Comments: At *six-hundred thousand words,* this is a monster epic of a story that starts out in a deceptively standard way. But the further the story dives into the plot the more it becomes obvious that the author has a deep love for exposing, subverting, and deconstructing cliches at every chance. The plot is a well-planned masterpiece that well deserves every second of your time it takes to read it. Updates on Sundays and is nearing completion.

The Best Defense by JoIsBishMyoga (and its sequel, A Good Offense. Also, Sidefics.)
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * Synopsis: The Best Defense is a Yu Yu Hakusho/Harry Potter crossover of epic proportions, noticeable for its twisting of a trite stereotype (the Tantei going to Hogwarts to help out in the fight against Voldemort) into something truly enjoyable that is somehow more than the sum of its parts.
 * Comments: There are relationships of all kinds in this fic, including het and slash, but they're very much in the background. The Best Defense et al. are fun and well-written, and in length and quality the whole thing reads more like a novel than a fanfic. JoIsBishMyoga is absolutely channeling J.K. Rowling, and it makes the eleven-year-old girl in me who dreamed of going to Hogwarts very happy. Incomplete, with The Best Defense finished and A Good Offense on a hiatus ongoing. No new sidefics have been put up for some time.
 * Seconded by RBM Ifan. The Best Defense and its sequel are easily the best HP/YYH crossovers I've ever read, and among the best YYH fics. JoIsBishMyoga is an amazing author who manages to take the casts of both series and make every character both interesting and believable. Furthermore, it's obvious that she's put in a lot of time and research into mapping out the fic - she incorporates aspects of both cultures and notes where they clash, and has incorporated the YYH characters' abilities into Harry Potter's magic system quite creatively. Overall, a very good set of fics.

In Vice Versa by Hungry Sano
 * Recommended by Sir Psycho Sexy
 * Synopsis: What if Keiko had died instead of Yusuke, and Keiko and Shizuru had become Spirit Detectives instead of Yusuke and Kuwabara? A wonderful look into What Might Have Been. (Incomplete- up to nine chapters)
 * Comments: The only genfic that really sticks out in this troper's mind years after he had first read it. Hungry Sano, despite this being an AU fic, channels Togashi's narrative style and sense of humor perfectly, and makes Keiko and Shizuru's Xenafication and overall change from the canon timeline very believable- for example, Keiko dies at the point in the manga where Daisuke Motomoto tried to rape her. Not only that, he has some very well-written OC's (a rarity in this fandom) and some very believable changes in the canon timeline due to the switch in main characters. The only bad point is that it's not finished, and it's only up to the Three Treasures arc so far. Nevertheless, a good read.

Of Snowballs Cell Phones and Homicide by Final Arc
 * Recommended by Anonymous Apathy
 * Synopsis: "In their own words, Yusuke and Kurama desperately attempt to explain why they tried to kill Yukina." - FF.net summary
 * Comments: A hilarious post-series character piece. Though most character's quirks are exaggerated somewhat for comedic purposes, the fic shows a loving attention to detail for the original canon. One of the funniest things I've read in a long time.

Sleight of Hand by Le'letha
 * Recommended by Hot Headed Astronomer
 * Synopsis: Crossover with Star Trek the Next Generation. While moving refugees and hunting down a dangerous ship with lethal cargo, two unexpected guests come to help them on their quest. Their names? Hiei and Kurama.
 * Comments: A well-written (obviously) and quite funny crossover between the two series. Provides an interesting dynamic between the two universes.

Shipping Fics
Stories focused on the romantic relationships between the cast.

The Impalpable Ash by spicedcheese (formerly The Unconventional Lady).
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * Pairing: Kurama/Shizuru (het).
 * Synopsis: It's really an incredible fic that's almost hard to define - it's not so much about Kurama and Shizuru's relationship, but more the science fiction elements of the plot. It's very erudite, and transcends normal romance. Post-series.
 * Comments: This is a beautifully written fic by an author who knows what they're doing. The plot is consistently surprising, the characterization is interesting and new, but more than that, it's creative. I've never been more surprised by a fic, and the surprises never seemed like cheap plot twists - spicedcheese gets my vote for best het writer in the fandom. Incomplete, not abandoned.

Red and Black by Adi88.
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * Pairing: Karasu/Kurama (male-slash).
 * Synopsis: A crossover with Neil Gaiman's Sandman, which takes place mostly in dreamscape. Karasu is haunting Kurama's dreams, and Kurama takes matters into his own hands.
 * Comments: Brilliant. Honestly, brilliant. Adi is creative, writes better than 99% of the rest of fandom, can draw on themes and draw out emotions, gives each character an interesting and believable psyche that transcends canon, and does it all without sacrificing a believable ending. Even if you don't like Karasu or Karasu/Kurama, you'll enjoy this fic. Complete.

Leashed by Penguin-sama.
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * Pairing: Yomi/Kurama (male-slash).
 * Synopsis: Kurama, the great strategist, chafed under Yomi's rule in canon. Leashed is a behind-the-scenes look at Yomi and Kurama's relationship, done in an intriguing, almost aggressively non-stereotypical way. It could fit comfortably in the Three Kings Saga without hurting anything, post-Yomi's summons, pre-Shura.
 * Comments: It's very funny when it wants to be funny, but Leashed tugs at your heartstrings without being maudlin or gauche or obvious about it. Kurama is everything he should be, cold, calculating, and the real emotions behind it are just too selfish, too demanding, and too tied into his humanity for him to leave anything for his past and Yomi. Yomi, on the other hand, feels the front he's had a thousand years to perfect disintegrating, and watches all his attempts to win Youko over or control him explode in his face. Another brilliant fic. Complete.

Immortal by Fawx.
 * Recommended by Sekahyyh
 * Pairing: Kuronue/Kurama (male-slash).
 * Synopsis: Set post-series, this fic is about bad guys, good guys, and the return of Kuronue. Kurama feels ill with premonitions, and a series of events leads him back to his ex-partner Kuronue. It's a very clean story that always reminds me, despite artistic license and liberties taken, of Yu Yu Hakusho canon.
 * Comments: A good old rousing adventure story, that's what Immortal is, with plot twists and surprises galore. Fawx keeps together an enjoyable, interesting work, harnessing all the different emotions of traditional fantasy literature. Her sleek prose is sure to enchant, and her characterization aligns nicely with canon without becoming bland. Fawx is doing some very cool things with the plot and characters that are certainly worth a read.

Vice and Virtue by Sekahyyh
 * Recommended by Sir Psycho Sexy
 * Pairing: Sakyo/Shizuru (het).
 * Synopsis: Sekahyyh says it best herself: "In Dante’s hell, the circle of fraud was guarded by a dragon, hypocrisy, with the face of a man and the body of a monster."
 * Comments: A very dark and erotic fic, although not going above a PG-13 rating. This troper loves this fic because it's one of the very few Sakyo/Shizuru fics where both are in character, and you fully get to enjoy the Mind Game Ship aspects of the pairing. Plus Sakyo is at his Complete Monster best- intellectual, but also cold, cruel, and ruthless, while Shizuru gets to play the Deadpan Snarker. A very effective piece of fiction in general, especially due to the strong characterization and the parallels to the Divine Comedy.