Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

In which we have an abundance of evidence that Tolkien *really* had a thing for eagles.

The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien

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This is a book, like The Lord of the Rings, that I think I will appreciate more each time I read it. The only time I’d read it before this was my senior year of high school during the height of my LOTR fervor, and it entirely overwhelmed me. I remember I had to have a notebook near me while reading on which I drew a lot of family trees. I had a need to keep all the elves and endless descendants of Beor straight. […]

Penric and Desdemona, name a more iconic duo

The Assassins of Thasalon by Lois McMaster Bujold

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The Assassins of Thasalon is the latest in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric series. Most are novellas but we have the treat of a full length novel this time. The plots continues from the last novella  The Physicians of Vilnoc (not last in publication date but in chronology) and is the 10th in the series. Penric is settled down with a young daughter toddling about adorably and another on the way. One of the things I love about this character is his kindness, even though he’s a […]

When your vice becomes a virtue

A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee

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Mackenzie Lee’s novel is a fun romp across 18th Europe with a bitchy bisexual mc, his brilliant ace sister, an unrequited love for his gay best friend and a host of murderous aristocrats in pursuit. The plot moves fairly quickly with snappy dialogue supplied by Lord Henry “Monty” Montague, a seemingly unrepentant spoiled brat rogue on his Grand Tour. Monty is a great character, who manages to never be completely obnoxious in his clueless privileged bumblings. He retains enough awareness to make him truly charming- […]

The Alchemy Side Might Be Interesting

The Ancient Magus Bride: Wizard's Blue vol. 2 by Makoto Sanda, Isuo Tsukumo, Kore Yamazaki

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I’m probably back to graphic novels for a bit both because I’m getting a little behind with a few series I follow, and I’ve got some stress going on both at work and elsewhere for the next week or so. Nothing serious, but lightening the reading sometimes helps ease the unease. So, I picked up Wizard’s Blue vol. 2 off my TBR shelf; it’s been there a while and I was hoping it might be not too dark; thankfully it wasn’t. It’s not all sunshine […]

Reconstruction Reimagined

The Conductors by Nicole Glover

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I remember reading something about Nicole Glover’s novel before it came out and thinking, “That sounds funs.”  It did not disappoint.  The story is set in the Reconstruction of the 1870’s but this is a reimagining of historical events with magic as an important element.  Before the war, Hetty Rhodes, a former slave, was a conductor on the Underground Railroad using magic, smarts, and luck to bring other slaves north to freedom. Now that the Civil War has ended, Hetty and her husband, Benjy, are […]

Take your medicine, boy: The Wheel of Time (Part III)

The Lord of Chaos by Robert Jordan

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I low-key started to hate this series in the last book. I think I actually hate it now. It took me three weeks to get through this book. I think I read the previous book, The Fires of Heaven, in about four days. If you haven’t read my previous reviews of this series, I’ll start off by saying there is an attempt at an interesting sex dynamic here. The magic system is split into the “male half” (saidin) and the “female half” (saidar). This could […]



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