Official Description:
Four weeks before her wedding to Edward, Bella is frustrated. She knows there’s little-to-no chance of getting him to bend his rules and boundaries now, but there’s no harm in fantasizing about what could happen later. So she begins compiling a list…
Word Count: 209,217
When Kassiah asked me to rec The List, I was instantly transported to another place and time. I found myself smiling as I recalled the story. The List took my fanfiction cherry on so many levels, I doubt I will have enough room to give it the appropriate amount of love and respect here.
I found out about fanfiction, and subsequently The List, in a rather roundabout way. I reluctantly read Twilight after vehemently refusing to open them when my gay best friend literally forced me. We were sitting in Starbucks, and I kept saying, “No. No. No. I won’t do it. I can’t.” Famous last words. After Edward walked into the cafeteria, I was toast. So, I read and reread the entire series several times, because I wanted more. I wasn’t done with the characters, not by a long shot. I went to Stephenie Meyer’s website, found Midnight Sun, and the secret to the universe was unveiled before me: EPOV. UNG.
I found the link for Twilighted on her website, but in all honesty, I have to admit I was very skeptical. I mean, amateurs writing about the characters I love? How could that possibly be any good? Well, desperate times call for desperate measures, so I gave it a try. Thus, was my fanfiction addiction born.
The List was the first story I ever reviewed. I’d been happy to lurk up until that time. In fact, I dreamed up my incredibly unique screen name in about 5 seconds so that I could register to leave reviews. Laura Cullen was the first author with whom I interacted online. I even went to the scary story threads on Twilighted so I could share my enthusiasm about the story. This entire world was so new to me; it felt silly and wrong to be so excited about something, but I suspended my fears and did it anyway. Laura was such a nice guide, too, kindly replying to reviews, PMs, and on her Twilighted thread.
I came across The List early in the story, when only a handful of chapters had been written, before its popularity really took off. The concept was so fresh and intriguing, I simply had to give it a try. The basic premise of the story is that Edward has turned Bella into a very sexually frustrated woman, and who can blame her? Doing nothing more than kiss the love of your life for years would get a little old, regardless of how dangerous it might be to have sex with a vampire. Understandably, she starts to fantasize about the things she’d like to do with Edward once they’re married. She gets pretty worked up by her fantasies, so she decides to create a list of her ideas. She starts writing The List one morning when she wakes up very sexually aroused. When Edward appears in her room unexpectedly, he freezes, because he can smell how wound up Bella is. And this, my friends, is where things start to get really interesting.
I always felt that Stephenie’s version of Edward’s lack of sexual interest in Bella was disingenuous, to be honest. The books’ fade to black moments, especially on Isle Esme, were nothing more than a cop out. The fact that Edward never got carried away when they made out wasn’t really believable to me. Regardless of whether or not it was kosher to have premarital sex in Edward’s mind, he was turned at age 17—he had to be in a perpetual state of adolescent horniness as a result. More than anything, I wanted to read a story that further investigated this idea. I always wanted to see the evidence of this, even if Stephenie wasn’t willing to go there.
When I discovered The List, it was like a dream come true. Everything I yearned for between Bella and Edward was right there, and Laura Cullen didn’t pussyfoot around. Bella wants Edward; Edward wants Bella. And, little by little, they start to practice getting closer to each other, pushing the boundaries, and OH. MY. GOD. The results are incredibly erotic.
I think one of my favorite aspects of The List, aside from the fact that we get to see just how badly Edward wants her, is that Bella is no shrinking violet. Sure, she’s inexperienced, but every time they get a little bit further in testing the boundaries, she gains more confidence. At one point, she tries to explain it to Edward:
Well, okay. See…sometimes I feel like there are two sides of me. The side that is confident in myself and us and completely understands your need to have strict boundaries of all sorts. And then there is the side, much smaller, that can’t help but read rejection and undesirability into your words whenever you make us stop.
It’s so liberating to watch Edward ease his guard down bit by bit, because he simply cannot hold himself back any further. As her confidence grows, so does her imagination, and it yields such incredibly enticing output. It seems like her life is suddenly full of sexual possibilities, now that she has opened her mind up to them.
My favorite parts of the story were watching Edward come undone by Bella’s ingenuity. She gets a brilliant idea to do something simple, like a game of Truth or Dare, and it gets a sexualized twist. A dare to join her in the shower—with bra and panties on, naturally—becomes one of the most intense shower scenes I’ve ever read (for those of you familiar with the infamous shower scenes of MsKathy, that’s saying a hell of a lot). Edward avows that there will be no touching, and both parties will remain clothed in their underwear, but then he grabs a scrunchie and starts washing Bella. Not only that, he spends an inordinate amount of time making sure her tits and ass are adequately clean. Nice try, Edward. You doth protest too much.
Laura Cullen‘s characterizations of the other Twilight characters were so fun and loving, she really did them justice here. She made Emmett very playful, teasing Bella constantly in a big brotherly kind of way. Alice is very true to her canon incarnation, but is also instrumental in helping Bella to achieve her goal of crossing items off of The List. Carlisle is supportive and kind, providing Bella with guidance and empathy.
I want to nominate Laura Cullen for an unofficial Fanfiction award: Best use of a tattoo. In a flash of inspiration, Bella decides to get a tattoo on her breast—Edward’s signature. When she reveals it to him, his pride and appreciation are sublime. In another chapter, when Emmett and Jasper catch a glimpse of her tatt, it gives Edward instant “props” with his brothers, making him even more delighted over her ink. That’s not the end of the story, however—we find out that once Bella gets turned, the tattoo becomes raised, so Edward can run his finger over her new vampire skin and feel it. It’s incredibly sexy and alluring, and the best use of a tattoo ever.
I could go on for ages about how fun this story is, but I think it is better to simply entice you to experience it for yourself. It’s a playful, funny, clever, smoking HOT story, and very well written. There is a reason The List has over 13,000 reviews, and only one unspoken question remains—why the heck are you reading this recommendation when you could be reading The List?
Bella’s List:
1) Against the tree by the meadow
2) Feel his full weight on top of me
3) French kiss
4) See him naked
5) Shower together
6) Against the cold tiles in the shower
7) In his car
On our lab table
9) On his leather couch
10) I want him to come in my hand
11) IN MY MOUTH
12) His mouth on me, there
13) Whatever it takes to get him to say FUCK again
14) Get him to talk dirty in general
15) Submit
16) See him hunt
17) Have Edward taste my blood
18) Dominate
19) Phone sex
20) His mouth on my breasts, suckling me
21) On his piano
22) Mark me
23) Outside during a thunderstorm
24) In front of the fireplace in the Cullen’s living room
25) Role Playing: teacher, doctor, police officer, vampire
26) Rough
27) Get spanked
28) In the water (in the lake)
29) In a hottub!
30) On a beach
31) In a public place
32) 69
33) Eat an Edward ice cream sundae
34) Him in leather
35) Have him take me from behind
36) Seduce Edward with a striptease and then ride him cowgirl
37) Blindfolded
38) Tied up
39) Voyeur
40) Watch Edward pleasure himself
41) Play out one of Edward’s fantasies for him
42) Have you rip my clothes off with your teeth and/or hands
43) Biting
44) Be able to French kiss in your mouth
45) Toys?
46) Masturbate while you watch
47) Outside under the lights of the aurora borealis
48) You standing up holding me while we…
49) Whatever it is I need to do to make you growl and/or purr
Here’s what we had to say before:
I have seen this story so many times and for some reason didn’t start reading it. Well, I am sorry now that I didn’t give it my full attention a long fucking time ago. Gah. Just wow. This story is fuckhot. It amazes me how much LauraCullen is able to keep the characters in character and continue to give us the delicious hotness that comes from The List. Basically, Bella starts writing a list of things that she wants to do with Edward both before and after the wedding. Throw in a little help from Alice, a little advice from Carlisle, and Edward’s unexpected reaction to her arousal, and you’ve got tons of, um, fun. This story is definitely worth you adding to your List.
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