I'm 32 years old and an avid Harry Potter fan.

My favourite book from the Harry Potter series: Prisoner of Azkaban

My favourite characters: Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Harry Potter, Severus Snape and Albus Dumbledore... I didn't really know what to make of Dumbledore in the first 4 books. But now, after OotP, he appears just as fallible as the others. He isn't omniscient, he makes mistakes but I truly believe that he wanted (and still wants) to protect Harry from every harm his connection with Voldemort could cause him. And that he finally showed some of the affection (and grief) he must be feeling for Harry simply touched me. And Snape... well, I guess not everything is as it appears after HbP.

I think that DH managed to bring the series to an ultimately satisfying conclusion but, frankly, to me the Potter-series lost some of its magic after book 4. Those first 4 parts will always have a special place in my heart, they set up such a high standard that the later 3 parts just failed to uphold.

Nonetheless, I'm still very much into fanfiction - perhaps because I see some of that promised potential better fulfilled in these works than in anything JKR managed to put forth. And honestly, I think JKR read too much fanfiction herself at times because some of her ideas awfully reminded me of what I've read quite a bit earlier here on this site...

So, since now every fanfic is categorically an AU, what stories do I prefer to read?

I LOVE stories where Sirius has to show his parental side towards Harry. Unlike in some stories I've read so far, I really think that Sirius escaped from Azkaban to care for Harry, not out of duty to James. If that were the case, then why risk detection while hoping to get a glimpse of Harry in Magnolia Crescent?

I also like Snape/Harry-mentor-stories very much. I think that Snape and Harry have much in common and once they overcome their mutual dislike they could be able to form a working relationship. Harry needs a firm hand to guide him - especially since he's so unwilling to place his trust in an adult figure and thinks he has to take on everything by himself - and I strongly believe that Snape needs to be pulled out of the hole he's been digging for himself his whole life.

In essence, stories have to contain:

lots of character-interaction
emotions - they make the characters and the stories alive

What I absolutely don't like to read:

spelling mistakes - sorry, but it's really a major annoyance if I have to figure out the words before being able to actually read the story
misspelling of names, places, characters - it's called fanfiction, and it's not farfetched to think that a fan might actually be able to spell the names, and places of his fandom correctly

Now, I'd just like to list finished stories that I enjoyed a great deal, unfinished ones are still available in the favourite stories-part:

Never Alone, Never Again by Bored Beyond Belief
Harry's holiday reaches its lowest point. Will Harry finally be able to have the kind of love everyone else seems to take for granted? (summer after 4th year, non-OotP-compliant)

Recnac Transfaerso by Celebony
Harry gets cancer in result from saving a Muggle's life, but will this become just the thing to save the Wizarding world? (5th year, non-OotP-compliant)

and its sequels Flawed Perfection
and Full Circle

Alternate Ending to Recnac Transfaerso by Celebony
What if everything had ended differently?

Broken Dreams by shadowarwen
Harry's routine letters stop coming. The Order is too concerned with a development in the Department of Mysteries to notice. What happens when they finally do? (AU after OotP)

Somewhere I Belong by shadowarwen
Severus Snape discovers a hidden truth about Harry's home life. And decides to take matters into his own hands. (AU, summer after 4th year)

and its sequels Somewhere I Belong II
and Somewhere I Belong III

Hunting the Traitor by FairyTale
Would Harry's life have been better if he hadn't lived with the Dursleys? Seven year old Harry Potter's world collapses within the blink of an eye, and now it's up to Remus to hunt down the traitor responsible for it. (AU, pre-Hogwarts)

Midnight Guardian by ksomm814
What if a certain phone call pushed Uncle Vernon too far, changing everything? The truth will be revealed but which version will Harry believe? (AU, 3rd year)

and its sequels Trials of a Champion,
Burden of a Destiny,
Power of Hogwarts
and Rise of the Protector

Grim Dawn by Robin4
Prior to Harry’s third year, he leaves the Dursleys, desperate to escape. But before the Knight Bus can stumble upon him, he encounters someone far different, and his world begins to change. (AU, 3rd year)

Fever by P.A.R.
Over the summer Harry becomes ill with something that seems to defy any attempts to cure him, leaving Sirius and Remus at loss of how to save him. (summer after 4th year, non-OotP-compliant)

Beyond the Heart by Lyssaphra
Summer after GoF is hell for Harry. As Snape comes to fetch him from there at the request of Dumbledore, he is enraged by the situation. He will not allow this anymore. Harry will NOT spend another summer there.(non-OotP-compliant)

AU -- stories that stray from the books prior to OotP, mostly "What if"-stories (What if Sirius had escaped earlier? What if Sirius had remained the Potters' secret keeper? etc.)
non-OotP-compliant -- stories that stay true to the books up until GoF but not to OotP because they were either published before or shortly after its publication

I hope you'll enjoy them as much as I did! And please feel free to notify me of any Sirius/Harry story you liked! I simply can't get enough of them!

If you're at all into "Lord of the Rings", then I recommend you read the "Mellon Chronicles" by Cassia&Siobhan (http://www.fanfiction.ws/~cassia). They are based on the notion that Aragorn grew up as Elrond's foster son in Rivendell and that he has known Legolas since his youth. And those two get themselves caught up in every mishap imaginable! g Recently, they removed their stories from , but on the author page there still are links where to find them on the net.

And recently I stumbled across a fantastic Star Wars-AU by red rose knight which is based on the question what would have happened had Qui-Gon not died at the end of The Phantom Menace:

The Book of Paths:

An Uncertain Path
Obi-Wan is a lone knight looking for a purpose. Qui-Gon survived the battle of Naboo to train Anakin. This is the tale of the different path Obi-Wan?s life has taken. (4 years after TPM, AU)

and its sequels The Long Twilight Path,
The Book of Paths: Snapshots
and The Chosen Path

Enjoy!