Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The Magicless Hero who Muscles His Way Through, and we’ve seen it all before

Mashle: Magic and Muscles, vols. 1-2 by Hajime Komoto

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I think I saw an excerpt of Mashle: Magic and Muscles somewhere and decided it looked dumb. Then I decided to give it another chance when I was shelf-surfing in the library which turned out to have volumes 1-2. The premise of this manga series and most of the key characters so far are pretty recognizable. The hero Mash is a magicless idiot with only ridiculous strength to get by in a world where magic defines your status and prospects. To get his dad out […]

an EXCELLENT book to end CBR13 on just under the wire!

The Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson

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I’m so torn about this book but at the same time I’m very into it! I’m back to realizing why people always speak of Sanderson as being a good author, in that he can weave together multiple plot points in a way that seems natural. There’s still too much plot in these books for their length, and I have no clue why my brother said “these are basically like shorter novellas compared to the original trilogy.” I mean, they are shorter books but they have a […]

the december rush

The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

The Haunting of Gillespie House by Darcy Coates

Your Fathers, Where Are They? And Your Prophets, Do They Live Forever? by Dave Eggers

Not a Happy Family by Shari Lapena

Near the Bone by Christina Henry

How to Take Smart Notes by Sonke Ahrens

The Lightness by Emily Temple

The Very Nice Box by Eve Gleichman, Laura Blackett

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris

A Children's Bible by Lydia Millet

Come Tumbling Down by Seanan McGuire

Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman

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Franny, Jet, and Vincent Owens take special joy in disobeying their mother’s rules. They wear red shoes and black clothes. They read books about magic. They fall in love. It’s the Lower East Side in the 60s. Who can blame them? I didn’t realize this was a prequel. I just picked it up at an airport bookstore when I had 3 hours to kill and a low phone battery. I’m grateful this is the only book that called out to me. I’m always drawn to […]

Welcome to the House of Whispers

House of Whispers Vol 1: Power Divided by Nalo Hopkinson, Neil Gaiman, Dominke Stanton

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I have a blossoming habit of buying graphic novels, but rarely find the time to read them. I picked up House of Whispers Volume 1: Power Divided from the independent Black-owned bookstore, Sistah Sci-Fi. I wanted to support them on Indie Bookstore Day. I’ve been meaning to start the Sandman novels by Neil Gaiman, but it always felt so daunting! When I came across this volume, it was an instabuy since I’ve been meaning to read something by Nalo Hopkinson. House of Whispers kicked off […]

“Learn what your city has forgotten. What men of power have forgotten time and time again, throughout history – that there is always, always something mightier.”

Shorefall (The Founders Trilogy, #2) by Robert Jackson Bennett

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I feel like Robert Jackson Bennett has a good storyteller’s head on him. I like the way he took the already awesome events of the first book and expanded on them, not just in scope (terrifying bad guy!) but in theme and character as well. This book absolutely 1000% avoids middle-book-in-a-trilogy syndrome. Stuff was happening 20-30% of the way through that you’d expect to happen at the end of a book. Sancia, Gregor, Bernice, and Orso are still together as a little band three years […]

Deeper into the Psy-Changeling world I go

Branded by Fire (Psy-Changeling, #6) by Nalini Singh

Blaze of Memory (Psy-Changeling, #7) by Nalini Singh

Bonds of Justice (Psy-Changeling, #8) by Nalini Singh

Play of Passion (Psy-Changeling, #9) by Nalini Singh

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I’m completely hooked on Nalini Singh’s expansive Psy-Changeling universe. In this near-future world, the psy run the world with cool efficiency. They have powers ranging from telekinesis to foresight. The Psy have shunned all emotion with the Silence protocol. Any psy who shows emotion is reconditioned, which means a full lobotomy level brain wipe. They go to such extremes because their powers have driven people to homicidal rampages. At the start of the series, a Psy council member wants to partner with the San Francisco […]



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