Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time
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About carmelpie

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A runner. A writer. A Pokémon fighter. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: carmelpie's Quick Questions interview.)

carmelpie's Reviews:

They go into the woods and do what?

An Alpine Divorce by Robert Barr

May 7, 2026 by carmelpie 7 Comments

In the lives of these two young people there was no middle distance. The result was bound to be either love or hate, and in the case of Mr. and Mrs. Bodman it was hate of the most bitter and arrogant kind. ― Robert Barr, An Alpine Divorce The term “Alpine Divorce” came to my attention a few weeks ago. Last month, an Austrian man was convicted of manslaughter after leaving his girlfriend behind so he could get help during their mountain climbing expedition. I […]

Filed Under: Short Stories Tagged With: 19th century, Bad Blood, black humor, hiking, Marriage & Divorce, revenge, Robert Barr

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:10 · Genres: Short Stories · Tags: 19th century, Bad Blood, black humor, hiking, Marriage & Divorce, revenge, Robert Barr ·
Rating:
· 7 Comments

None of them know I just gambled away my entire life savings for a lizard that burned half of my house down and escaped.

My Pigeon Familiar (Magical Misfits #1) by Bridget E. Baker

April 30, 2026 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

This cannot be happening. Maybe it’s a bizarre dream. But even in a dream, there’s no way that I can possibly let a pigeon sleep on my bed. It’s like having a flying cockroach in my bed. Just, no. I try to shoo it away, grimacing as my fingers touch its grey and black wings. I tell myself it’s a clean pigeon. Those exist, right? Oh, no. What if it pooped on my bed? ― Bridget E. Baker, My Pigeon Familiar I thought I was […]

Filed Under: Fantasy Tagged With: Bridget E. Baker, Classism, discrimination, fish out of water, found family, New York City, runaway bride, Supernatural Society, Urban Fantasy

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:21 · Genres: Fantasy · Tags: Bridget E. Baker, Classism, discrimination, fish out of water, found family, New York City, runaway bride, Supernatural Society, Urban Fantasy ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

My spellcheck changed “orc” to “orca” and now I want to read that book.

A Vow to Heal (Vows of Unity #1) by Lionel Hart

April 16, 2026 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

Korik does not fit in. With the recent alliance between elves and orcs, he is the only healer in his town. Shy and withdrawn, he focuses on doing a good job and helping the town’s residents. He is tall and gangly, and is more fit to work one-on-one as a healer than as a soldier or tradesman. After successfully delivering the elf prince’s child, Korik gains the trust of the local nobility. They ask him to accompany two elves south, captain Varen and his pregnant […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Romance Tagged With: elves, epic journeys, forced proximity, friends with benefits, gay romance, he's a lover not a fighter, LGBTQ romance, Lionel Hart, low angst, omegaverse, opposites attract, orcs, queer romance, road trip romance, Slow Burn Romance

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:20 · Genres: Fantasy, Romance · Tags: elves, epic journeys, forced proximity, friends with benefits, gay romance, he's a lover not a fighter, LGBTQ romance, Lionel Hart, low angst, omegaverse, opposites attract, orcs, queer romance, road trip romance, Slow Burn Romance ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

“We consider it cruel,” Maia said. “And we do not think that cruelty is ever just.”

The Goblin Emperor (The Chronicles of Osreth #1) by Katherine Addison

April 12, 2026 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

It was the first time in his life Maia had been surrounded by people who were like him instead of only snow-white elves with their pale eyes, and he missed several names in the effort not to faint or hyperventilate or burst into tears. ― Katherine Addison, The Goblin Emperor The memories of a thousand separate cruelties mocked him, but no one save Maia himself had ever counted those as wrongs, and it was unjust to have them declared wrongs now, merely because he could. […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Mystery Tagged With: betrayal, child abuse, coming of age novel, court intrigue, cozy fantasy, estrangement, exile, father and son, fish out of water, geopolitics, katherine addison, Palace politics, Systematic racism, teenage emperor

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:19 · Genres: Fantasy, Mystery · Tags: betrayal, child abuse, coming of age novel, court intrigue, cozy fantasy, estrangement, exile, father and son, fish out of water, geopolitics, katherine addison, Palace politics, Systematic racism, teenage emperor ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

I was in a terrible confusion. Sometimes I thought, but this is your life. Stop fighting it.

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

March 30, 2026 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

And I realized that such childishness was fantastic at my age and the happiness out of which it sprang yet more so; for that moment I really loved Giovanni, who had never seemed more beautiful than he was that afternoon. And, watching his face, I realized that it meant much to me that I could make his face so bright. I saw that I might be willing to give a great deal not to lose that power. And I felt myself flow toward him, as […]

Filed Under: Fiction, Romance Tagged With: gay awakening, James Baldwin, LGBTQIA, paris, queer romance, sexual awakening, tragic romance

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:18 · Genres: Fiction, Romance · Tags: gay awakening, James Baldwin, LGBTQIA, paris, queer romance, sexual awakening, tragic romance ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

I love inappropriate moments. They’re my favourite moments.

The Raven Scholar: The Eternal Path Book #1 by Antonia Hodgson

March 26, 2026 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

Petty grudges are an excellent spur to action. ― Antonia Hodgson, The Raven Scholar “Fascinating,” the emperor said, rubbing his mouth as he took in her appearance. Fascinating was another of those court words, like astonishing, and remarkable, but even worse. Never fascinate an emperor. ― Antonia Hodgson, The Raven Scholar Neema Kraa is happy with her job as an imperial junior archivist and calligrapher. She is proud of how much she has achieved on her own. That’s what people say when they learn of […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Mystery Tagged With: Antonia Hodgson, autistic rep, Classism, exes to lovers, folklore, found family, Loners & Outcasts, nepotism, nobility, reluctant hero, Winner Takes All, wrongfully accused

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:17 · Genres: Fantasy, Mystery · Tags: Antonia Hodgson, autistic rep, Classism, exes to lovers, folklore, found family, Loners & Outcasts, nepotism, nobility, reluctant hero, Winner Takes All, wrongfully accused ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments
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Recent Comments

  • Emmalita
    on Fairy Tale Group Therapy
    Sounds like the kind of thing where you partner with someone who has that area of expertise covered.
  • Liz
    on Fairy Tale Group Therapy
    I completely agree with that, and have even had thoughts of some kind of Romantasy homage fairy tale collection! But...
  • Emmalita
    on Fairy Tale Group Therapy
    This sounds amazing. I saw some discussion today about contemporary monster romance being the descendant of fairy tales.
  • Pooja
    on CBR18 Book Bingo Reading Challenge Begins
    I'm so excited! I've been looking forward to Book Bingo, and the prompts all look great!
  • narfna
    on Yes, hello, we are here, perched on the balustrade, biding our time and being magnificent.
    "The book is not 100% perfect" hard disagree, but i still think you are really smart and i enjoyed your...
See More Recent Comments »

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