Compiled by the Espresso Addict

Espresso Recommendations

Innovative and stylish fanfiction, showcasing the very best across multiple sf, fantasy & literature fandoms. Good writing in all its forms can be found here, including gen, het, slash, OCs, AUs, crossovers, future fics, humour & pastiche

Contents: 1010 recs in 235 fandoms; 65 links

ST: Deep Space 9

Kira Nerys

Select other characters via the dropdown menu, or return to the ST: Deep Space 9 characters index

A Clear Conscience by Una McCormack

Post-war politics, devious plotting and a sympathetic original character

[Added 16/04/2003; Drama; 6000-20,000; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Elim Garak, Julian Bashir, Kira Nerys, OC]

Dislocation, Condemnation, Revelation, In Temptation by Sabine

Lovely idiosyncratic details in the dream sections make this piece stand out from the crowd

[Added 15/12/2004; Drama; 2500-6000; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Dukat, Kira Nerys, Weyoun]

Fire Bringer by Deborah

"Blue-eyed children are lucky, they used to say, children of the Spirits." Worth a try for Dukat's take on Cardassian religion alone

[Added 15/12/2004; Romance/Erotica; 1000-2500; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Dukat, Kira Nerys]

Five Things Which Never Happened by Selena

Five different AUs focusing on the relationship between Kira & Dukat, each one a completely believable story in its own right, with some delicious sideturns from canon. One of the most interesting responses to the 'Five Things...' meme I can recall, in any fandom. Simply wonderful! Selena has repeated the exercise for Garak & Bashir, in Paths Not Taken, also highly recommended

[Added 08/07/2004; Drama; 6000-20,000; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Kira Nerys, Dukat, Odo, Tora Naprem, Weyoun, Damar, Kira Meru; Paths Not Taken: Elim Garak, Julian Bashir, Tora Ziyal]

Incarnations by Mosca

'Time passes differently in the Great Link than it does in the humanoid realm, so I could not say how long I'd spent there. I only knew that it was time I left.' Strays a little off the beaten track, but Mosca's firm grasp of characterisation sweeps the reader along

[Added 08/07/2004; Character Piece; 1000-2500; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Odo, Kira Nerys]

The Life That Is Waiting by Lunabee

'She spends most of her free time on the Promenade with Jake, one arm around his shoulders and the other cradling the curve of her belly, watching the cosmos fracture again and again through a viewport. But Ben never comes.' Delicate portrait of Kasidy, and Bajor, after the finale. Sweet but not sentimental

[Added 24/08/2013; Character Piece; 1000-2500; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Kasidy Sisko, Kira Nerys, Ezri Dax, Ishka, Lwaxana Troi]

The Long Haul by Yahtzee

"It's not as though the Starfleet people will be here very long. They'll blow in, full of themselves and proud of their wealth, pretending to be the saviors of the Bajoran people." This quiet character piece, set immediately before the series starts, just matures with each rereading

[Added 15/12/2004; Character Piece; 1000-2500; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Odo, Kira Nerys, Quark]

Nerys and the Emissary by Beatrice Otter

'"Thank you for trusting me," Sisko said, with what she suspected was irony. / Nerys snorted. "I don't trust you. I trust the Kai." Who, apparently, trusted this smooth-nosed foreigner.' A thoughtful deconstruction of the colonialist underpinnings of the DS9 pilot, together with a welcome reminder of Kira's character early in the series

[Added 10/12/2018; Character Piece; 2500-6000; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Kira Nerys, Ben Sisko, Jadzia Dax]

Our Bodies, Our Selves by Ryfkah

'Still, she understood the weight of a corpse. A corpse weighed about the same when you killed it as it was going to weigh for as long as you had to carry it. New life, on the other hand, was an unknown quantity which – it turned out – continued to accumulate unexpected bulk on both the physical and the metaphorical level.' Insightful double character study that draws parallels between Kira's alien pregnancy & Odo's solidity

[Added 15/10/2015; Character Piece; 2500-6000; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Kira Nerys, Odo]

Strongest Star by Sophia Gratia

'"You'll have us all dragged in front of HUAC and jailed for this, Kay, you know that," he'd growled, but there had been warmth in his voice and he hadn't hesitated even one moment to sit himself down and start typing. She'd wanted to kiss him, for that.' Moving 'Far Beyond the Stars' sequel that can be read as a meditation on the power of fanfiction. (Crossover with various Trek)

[Added 18/01/2014; Drama; 1000-2500; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Kay Eaton, Benny Russell, Far Beyond the Stars ensemble, Benjamin Sisko, Kira Nerys; Crossover]

War Songs by Raven

'"The Festival of Alignment," Sisko says, impatiently. "Is it a fast, a party, a military commemoration, or what?"' A quiet, sweet but not cloying ensemble piece that explores found family. Very much in the spirit of the lighter parts of the show

[Added 28/10/2017; Drama; 1000-2500; ST: Deep Space 9; Characters: Benjamin Sisko, Kira Nerys, Shakaar, Miles O'Brien, Julian Bashir, Keiko O'Brien, Jadzia Dax, Jake Sisko, Odo, Rom, Kasidy Yates, Molly O'Brien]