The Body Thief

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Fanfiction
Title: The Body Thief
Author(s): Russet J. McMillan
Date(s): 1 February 1999
Length: 44,793 words
Genre(s): Slash, Bodyswap
Fandom(s): The Sentinel
Relationship(s): Jim/Blair
External Links: The Body Thief at Squidge.org
The Body Thief at 852 Prospect
The Body Thief (Part 1) and (Part 2) at storyteller's campsite
The Body Thief at storyteller's campsite
The Body Thief at AO3

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The Body Thief is a Jim/Blair story by Russet J. McMillan. It was originally posted to 852 Prospect, which was imported to AO3. Some of the comments by fans on Prospect-L about this story in 2000 focused on cultural appropriation and cultural erasure.[citation needed]

Summary:

After Jim gets shot, he has a chance to explore his feminine side.

Alternative Summary:

Trying to bring down Nathan Secrist, a professional assassin, Jim Ellison is shot and wakes up later in the hospital, having had strange dreams about the jungle. But with waking up, his real problems have only begun...

Reactions and Reviews

Unknown Date

[Annabelle Leigh]
Russet McMillan has written several of my favorite stories, including Sugar is Sweet and her sprawling, magnificent Time Heals series. But Tales of the Body Thief is quite possibly my favorite. Jim is critically injured, nearly killed and wakes up in the body of a young woman, who had been in a coma. Russet's description of Jim experiencing life in a female body just blows me away, as does her ability to get across the emotional complexity of the characters and situation.[1]
[SaschaM]
A little strange story based on the plot from Body Thief by Anne Rice (if I understand correctly), where Jim gets shot, kicked out of his body and takes refuge in the body of a 18 year old girl. One of my absolute favorite stories. NC-17. m/m, m/f [2]

2000s

[allaire mikháil]
The very best TS slash story ever written. It still staggers me. A hommage to Anne Rice's equally stunning 'Tale of the Body Thief' (in her Vampire series), Russet spins a tale that leaves Jim stranded in another body... desperately trying to get back into his own while trying to adapt to the fact that his current body is... female. I'll never tire of this story. I can't.[3]
[allaire mikháil]
Russet McMillan's "The Body Thief" is not undisputed and evidently used to be a topic on [Prospect-L], but while it may contain a few clichés, they are completely overshadowed by the intensity of the plot, the strength of Jim's POV, the characters' emotions, and the author's style. It is a homage to Anne Rice's 'Tale of the Body Thief' in her Lestat series and transfers the book's plot onto Jim. Russet leaves him stranded in another body, desperately searching for a way to get back into his own while trying to adapt to the fact that his current body is... female.[4]
[anonymous]
She deftly handles issues of gender, love and trust. Yes, there are a few flubs in the story, but overall, the writing calibre is amazing and she faces the problems head on.[5]
[Tobyfan]
I found a Sentinel gem. The Body Thief by Russet McMillan. It's loosely based on Anne Rice's The Tale of the Body Thief. Jim finds himself recovering from a gunshot wound in a woman's body. When he tries to find out what happened to his own body, he finds a killer inside. Very intriguing. It's a long story, but well worth the read.[6]
[scribblinlenore]
Russet McMillian is one of the classic authors of Sentinel fan fiction, and this is one of my favorites of her stories. Jim is grievously injured, almost dies, and when he wakes up, finds himself in the wrong body, the body of a young woman who had been in a coma for months. "The Body Thief" is a long, involving read of how he gets his life back, gets the bad guy, and figures out his feelings for Blair along the way. Not everyone enjoys a gender!swap story, but this one is really so much more. It makes wonderful use of the Sentinel mythology, is well-plotted, emotionally intense, sexy and just...really smart.[7]
[timian]
I'm generally disinterested in gender swap stories, but this one I found fascinating, and so well written. I also love how intelligent Jim is here. So nice to see.[8]

2010s

[quyllur]
This story has long been one of my favorite Jim/Blair stories. I love Mrs Sutterly and all of her kids. I like how Jim, as Cherelle, got along with them. I really loved how Blair put two and two together and figured out that Cherie was Jim. I loved the mystical images. I find myself speculating on what happens next [...]. You did such a marvelous job with this story.[9]

References

  1. ^ Annabelle Leigh. "Recommendations". Fiction by the Sea. Archived from the original on 2001-05-31.
  2. ^ SaschaM. "Slash Online : [ Recommendations ]". Slash Fiction Online. Archived from the original on 2003-06-13.
  3. ^ allaire mikháil (2000-05-23). "The Sentinel Slash Stories - Recommendations". storyteller's campsite. Archived from the original on 2001-02-12.
  4. ^ allaire mikháil (2000-05-23). "the sentinel fan fiction - recommendations". storyteller's campsite. Archived from the original on 2007-10-26.
  5. ^ Recommendation from Prospect-L, quoted anonymously. (August 2000)
  6. ^ Tobyfan (2002-12-22). "Anne's Favorite Slash Fanfic". Blogger. Archived from the original on 2023-04-11.
  7. ^ scribblinlenore at crack_van (2005-12-20). "The Body Thief by Russet McMillan (NC-17)". LiveJournal. Archived from the original on 2023-05-03.
  8. ^ timian at crack_van (2005-12-21). "The Body Thief by Russet McMillan (NC-17)". LiveJournal. Archived from the original on 2023-05-04.
  9. ^ quyllur (2014-07-15). "This story has long been one of my favorite Jim/Blair …". AO3. Archived from the original on 2023-05-05.
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