Seriously, “once upon a Marquess” has literally zero to do with the plot except that the male lead is a Marquess. I can’t imagine that Milan had anything to do with it unless she was off her tits. Given that she self-publishes, it can’t have been pressure from the publishers. I am a fan of Milan specifically, and I have fond feelings for romance in general, but the naming convention is total sexist bullshit that infantilises the readers and detracts from the genre. Am I […]
Insert Witty Shakespeare Pun Here
Another year, another attempt to complete a Cannonball goal, which I have dropped down to the quarter cannonball. My reading is not the problem here. It’s my reviewing that sucks balls. Also, my terrible, terrible, awful, beautiful Destiel fanfiction habit. I read like three books for the latter half of last year because of the sheer volume of fanfiction I read, it’s not even funny. Maybe ten books. Certainly no more than ten. Maybe fifteen. But whatever! This year I shall intersperse my crack habit […]
Tho’ much is taken, much abides
On a frozen world far outside of civilised space, Breq is distracted from her self-appointed mission of vengeance by a face from her distant past. Seivarden was the sole survivor of an assassination attempt on the Lord of the Radch a thousand years ago, a period in Breq’s past which becomes more and more relevant as the narrative weaves on. Breq is the last remnant of the troop carrier Justice of Toren, lost to all parts of herself and cast adrift two decades previously. She […]
Vampires should always be this sexy
I went on holiday last week and prepared my kindle with a bunch of interesting new books, several of which have been recommended by fellow Cannonballers. The first one I read, though, was one I bought a while ago in a Humble ebook bundle: New Amsterdam, by Elizabeth Bear. More of a collection of short stories than a novel per se, the book contains several mysteries which are investigated and solved by three connected people: the vampire Don Sebastien de Ulloa, the sorcerer Abigail […]
Manic Street Dream Girls
I read this at the request of a friend, who had really enjoyed it and wanted me to read it as well. Thanks to Malin (thanks Malin!) I was able to get hold of a copy and read it in an evening. My cheesecake -loving friend really enjoyed it; my own feelings were slightly more mixed. Paper Towns is a book in three parts, but defining them involves spoiling the story, so I’m going to stick to being vague. All three parts have a […]
This is why I am slightly afraid of plants
Melanie is one of a small group of children who are educated at an exclusive facility, with highly trained security personnel and top-tier medical experts on hand. Her education is extensive and varied. She is a precocious and brilliant girl, with an inquisitive personality and a great deal of self-control. Her survival instinct is finely honed. This all comes in very useful when she, her favourite teacher, two of the guards and one of the doctors are forced to flee their facility and run for […]