High School and College AU recs

[argentumlupine]

I am a sucker for high school and college AU stories. There’s just something about them. Maybe it’s the angst or the characters’ inexperience or how the stories often end up being really sweet and joyful. I don’t know. But I love them a whole lot. So here are my 3 favorite high school AU and 3 favorite college AU podfics. (With some bonus recs because I couldn’t resist.)

Most of these are Bandom, but because they’re AU stories you really don’t need to know the canon at all, so even if Bandom isn’t your fandom, give these a try. You know you want to.



High School AUs


[BANDOM] This Seed Burst and Grown, read by pennyplainknits | Pete/Patrick | Mature | ~1 hour
Summary: Patrick's sixteen and mostly innocent and kind of confused and Pete's older and cooler and fucked up in ways that just make Patrick like him more.

pennyplainknits’s performances are always amazing. She puts in so much emotion and humor and LIFE into the stories she reads. It’s a real joy to listen to her. This is my favorite of hers, not least because it is very clear how fond she is of the characters (especially Pete). It’s a lovely story, but what really makes it shine is Penny’s reading. The first time I listened to this, it was for the sole reason that Penny was reading it and I was flying through her Bandom catalog. I didn’t actually know much about Fall Out Boy at the time. Didn’t matter. I was entranced. Still am. This is one of my most-listened podfics for good reason. It is wonderful and I usually end up listening to it twice back to back because I love it so much.

Side rec for one of her other Bandom podfics that fits my theme:

Stars When You Shine, You Know How I Feel | Spencer/Patrick | Mature | ~1 hour

College AU centered around drumline. Includes drumming, boys in love, a really fantastic best friends relationship, and pennyplainknits’s amazing reading.

[BANDOM] (Not Actually) Vampires!Verse, read by isweedan | Frank/Gerard | 1st story G, 2nd story R | ~1.5 hours
Summary: The only thing Frank cares about is figuring out why Gerard's suddenly avoiding him -- because what's the point of losing your virginity on Prom Night if you can't tell your best friend about it in the morning?

Oh, isweedan. She is SO GOOD at reading humor. You can hear the glee in her voice as she reads, which means whenever I listen to her I have a huge smile on my face. Her podfics are so much FUN. Teenage failboats in love is one of my favorite things ever, and isweedan pulls out all the humor and joy in this story. If you need a podfic to make you flail with happiness, try this one.

I have SO MANY favorite lines from this podfic. isweedan is just so FUNNY, and then when the story turns moody she switches so easily to tone it down and focus in. So great.

Side rec for one of her other Bandom podfics that fits my theme:

I Was Your Silver Lining | Frank/Gerard | Explicit | ~6.5 hours

Werewolves, high school Frank, reincarnation, Gypsy magic, AWESOME emotional reading.

[BANDOM] This Never Happened, read by klb | Frank/Gerard | Explicit | ~3 hours
Summary: What would happen if Frank had to move in with the Ways for his senior year of high school? Not!fic.

I know this has been recced for Amplirecathon this year already, but it is well-deserved because this podfic is AMAZING. It is funny and touching and klb has a way of digging in to the story and pulling out every nuance that is just magical. And in this podfic, the not!fic style lends to a reading that feels like she’s telling the story from memory, just letting it roll, warm and effortless and wonderful. And her reading of emoticons is hilarious and perfect, and bessyboo’s music and sound effects really add to the atmosphere and it is just one of the best things EVER. Seriously.

Side rec for one of her other Bandom podfics that fits my theme:

The Anatomy of a Fall (WIP) | Frank/Gerard | Explicit | ~3 hours so far

One of my favorite stories (which I read before I really had a grasp of Bandom characters). And I am falling even more in love with it because klb’s reading is SO GOOD. I was trying to hold off on listening to this because it’s a WIP, but I just couldn’t resist and okay, yeah, I’m glad I didn’t wait because it is WONDERFUL.

College AUs


[I WANT TO GO HOME! (book)] A Very Long Summer, read by calathea | Mike/Rudy | Teen & Up | ~4 hours
Direct link to podfic (this used to be linked on her website, which she has taken down, and isn’t linked on her AO3 page) or link to text at AO3
Summary: Mike and Rudy go back to Camp Algonkian Island... as counsellors!

This is the first podfic I ever heard, before I knew podfic was a THING. Really, I had this for YEARS before I landed in Bandom and saw pod_aware and discovered that OMG there is this thing called podfic where have I BEEN?! I have listened to it countless times because the story itself is great fun, but calathea’s delivery (especially of Rudy’s snark) is what really makes the podfic a real joy to experience.

In case you’re reading this thinking “I’ve never heard of this book, why would I want to listen without having any idea what the canon is,” let me tell you this: I had no knowledge of the original material before I read (and later, listened to) the story. I think I read the book several months after I first listened to the podfic. Whatever. All you need to know is that Mike and Rudy are friends who met at summer camp and they tried to run away from camp because they both hated it. Also there was a subplot where a beaver was building a dam. It’s kind of ridiculously fun, so if you can get your hands on the book (out of print, sadly) it’s worth the time, but listen to this podfic first. It’s better. There are summer camp shenanigans, pranks, pining, snark, and boys in love. It is too much fun to pass up, seriously. (Plus, once you’ve listened, there are written sequels to enjoy. \o/)

No side rec because she hasn’t recorded any others. :(


[BANDOM] She (Within the Measure of a Day), read by shiningartifact | Frank/Gerard | Explicit | ~1 hour
Summary: Gerard steps out in heels for Halloween. Everybody enjoys it. Some enjoy it more than others.

Oh my god. What can I say? This is one of the first Bandom podfics I listened to and it is one of my absolute favorites. shiningartifact has a way of reading that is really intimate, like she’s telling a secret, and her voice is damn sexy. Wow. She takes this (very hot) story to a whole new level. Gerard in drag, costume party, college AU, HOT SEX. What more do you need? *makes shooing motions* Go listen.

Side rec for one of her other Bandom podfics that fits my theme:

A Matter of Logistics | Frank/Gerard | Explicit | ~45 minutes

Scorching hot high school AU story + shiningartifact’s skilled and sexy reading = you’d better listen in private. SO HOT. SO GREAT.

[AMERICAN IDOL] Tightly Knit, read by fire_juggler | Kris/Adam | Explicit | ~3 hours
Summary: College student Adam falls for Kris, knitting shop owner by day and gay erotica writer by night. Adam finds himself wanting to strip away Kris’s layers (literally as well as figuratively), but will that be enough to make Adam mess with his carefully laid plans?

I have only the vaguest knowledge of who Adam Lambert and Kris Allen are, but I couldn’t pass it up because I’ve heard some of fire_juggler’s other work (AWESOME) and it’s a college AU! And I read the summary and okay, yeah, I had to listen.

I am so glad I did, because fire_juggler is amazing. Her reading is lovely and she really pulls out Kris’s insecurity and Adam’s confidence in their dialogue. She also does some really smart things with music and sound effects, and her pacing is perfect, and oh man it is just awesome. I listened to this one twice pretty much back to back because I loved listening so much. This podfic is GREAT.

No side recs because she hasn’t done any other high school or college AU podfics in my fandoms. ;__; FINE, I will just go listen to Tightly Knit again. PROBLEM SOLVED.



HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE AU PODFICS ARE AWESOME! \o/

Comments

[anotherslashfan]

This is a great recs post :) I know many but not all of the podfics, so thanks for providing me with new listening fodder.

[argentumlupine]

Thank you! Took me forever to articulate my thoughts -- I have a new-found appreciation for people who rec often.

Hope you enjoy the new ones! :)

[letsgofriday]

School AU's are my crack - I adore everything to do with them. This is a great list, thank you.

[argentumlupine]

Thanks! :)

(They're my crack, too. I LOVE THEM.)

[fishpatrol]

Eee, A Very Long Summer! I remember listening to that podfic over and over before I'd discovered Amplificathon and the Audiofic Archive (oh man, and this was, like, five years ago). It's such a delightful podfic and I hope more people will discover it through your rec! :>

[argentumlupine]

A Very Long Summer is one of the best things ever, for real. This post was originally going to be just High School AU, but I extended it to College AU also just so I could rec AVLS. (And then I realized I had other must-rec college AU podfics, so yay!)

[fire_juggler]

High School and College AUs are like crack to me, too!!!! And there are a couple here that I haven't come across before *runs off to download* I'm so flattered to be included here, especially with so many other podfics that are in my absolute top favorites! Thank you so much for the rec and the recs. I'm always always always looking for a few new HS/College AUs to add to my collection! ♥

[argentumlupine]

Tightly Knit rec is well-deserved. It is AWESOME. ♥

Enjoy the new-to-you stuff!

[shiningartifact]

Hey there. Just perusing this year's rec posts and came across this one. Not only do I love Bandom and high school/college AUs (and found some podfic on your rec list that I'd never heard), but I stumble across two lovely recs for my stuff. <3 Seriously, this made my day - thank you so much. I'm so glad that you enjoyed them enough to rec them. :)

I'm excited to listen to the podfic that's new to me! Thanks for your post! :)

[argentumlupine]

I love your voice and your podfic kind of a lot. Thank you for many hours of awesome. ♥

Enjoy the new podfic!