Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The other Themyscira

Diana and Nubia: Princesses of the Amazons by Shannon and Dean Hale

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Shannon and Dean Hale continue the fun from Diana: Princess of the Amazons with a similar upbeat tone, graphic novel for younger readers. However, this time we have two alternating points of view, which are the two Princesses of the Amazons, Diana and Nubia. Along with the talents of Victoria Yin, Lynnette Wong, and Becca Carey, the Hales made a story that is a light, but strong, read. From what little I know of the Diana/Nubia story, Diana and Nubia: Princesses of the Amazons seems […]

Old Magic in Not Too Old Times Past

The Left-Handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix

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The Left Handed Booksellers of London sounds like an interesting premise, and thankfully one that gets pulled off reasonably well. One thing I will say right off is that it’s a lot more interesting if you know a little bit about British or Celtic folklore; I also think the 1980s setting doesn’t get enough attention and that’s a totally missed opportunity. In a lot of ways the story is pretty standard: country child comes to the big city to pursue an education and find the […]

The Neverending Battles Get Old

Black Clover vols. 28-31 by Yuki Tabata

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I hadn’t realized how long I’d kind of ignored the Black Clover manga series until I was in the library and saw that I was at least 4 volumes behind; this seems to happen with shonen fighting-based series an awful lot – the pattern of lots of fights with sudden power-ups that feel preprogrammed because the user automatically knows what and how to use the newly developed ability. I’ve gotten behind/bored with quite a few series where this happens; at least Yugi-Oh! had the sense […]

“Like any dealer he was watching for the card that is so high and wild”

Every Gift a Curse (2023) by Caroline O'Donoghue

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“I can feel our bravery fall away as we journey into the wood. We are not built for this. We are not the folksy teenagers you see in adventure stories. There is no one who’s a dab hand at archery, or who can chart our journey by looking at the last few visible stars.” (371-372) Every Gift a Curse is the third and final in Irish author Caroline O’Donoghue’s YA ‘Gifts’ trilogy, following All Our Hidden Gifts (2021) and The Gifts That Bind Us (2022). […]

Fantastic Jewish mythology middle grade!

The Ring of Solomon by Aden Polydoros

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I love Aden Polydoros’ books and when I saw he had a middle grade I was so excited. His books hit a very special place for me, and Ring of Solomon continues that trend. Zach and his younger sister, Naomi, find an old ring at the flea market and plan to get it for their mom for her birthday as she collects Judaica, but when they realize they can use the ring to communicate with animals, Zach decides to keep it for himself. He’s been […]

Maybe that’s how you fool other empaths, like, “hey baby, you just be your high-strung self and let me handle all that scary danger,” but respectfully, Agent Dead Man, I’m pretty sure you are the scary danger.

Liar City by Allie Therin

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Note: the Harper Collins Publishers Union and the NewsCorp have reached an agreement and the union has accepted the contract! I’ve been waiting to talk about Liar City for weeks!!!!! Allie Therin writes wonderful queer urban fantasy, and I would love for more people to start reading her books. I have enjoyed her historical fantasy series and was intrigued to see what she would do with a contemporary alternate universe. Folks, I loved it. Liar City opens with a mysterious phone call at 4 am […]



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