Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“nonetheless, she persisted” — and in style

Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting by Clare Pooley

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CW: remembering now that there is a relationship that is (non-violently) abusive, sort of early stage emotional, except that it’s choreographed well in advance and there’s never any doubt in your mind that it’ll end well (and it does). I think this was a Goodreads recommend, in a subgenre I will call “nonetheless, she persisted” (Lessons in Chemistry comes to mind as the most recent example of this genre that I read). I put it on hold on a whim and quite delightfully opened it when […]

O Will I Ever Be Free of This Losing Streak

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

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CBR 14 Bingo: Funky Not funky haha – but funky weird. Hannah is writing a murder mystery about a quartet of friends, and Leo is beta reading it. But even as the mystery within Hannah’s novel grows complicated, it becomes clear that Leo isn’t who he says he is. I have been cleaning up the ancient dregs of my backlog on NetGalley, which unfortunately is a lot like panning for gold. And thus far I have been, alas, an unsuccessful prospector. This book had a […]

Neverland will never let go…

Hooked by A.C. Wise

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He remembers drowning. That single sentence, recurring often in Hooked, A.C. Wise’s sequel to Wendy, Darling, is the cornerstone of the existential dread that permeates the story. Described as dark fantasy I think this book edges deeper into horror, more even than the first book, which had moments of horror. This is a mean tale and a reinvention of Neverland and the Peter Pan mythos into something modern and terrifying at its core. What set Wendy, Darling apart from the pack of other modern takes on Peter […]

“But, you know, that feeling? When you wake up in the morning and you have somebody to think about? Somewhere for hope to go? It’s good. Even when it’s bad, it’s good.”

One Last Stop by Casey McQuinston

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Cannonball Read Bingo: Bodies Author Casey McQuiston is back after the success of her hit “Red White and Royal Blue” with another LBGTQ romance. Like “Red, White, and Royal Blue,” this story has a fresh take on a meet-cute trope. August, new to New York, is on her way to her diner job when she meets the too-cool Jane on the subway; it’s crush at first sight. She is smitten with Jane’s leather jacket, her smirk, and her old school rocker. But for Jane that’s […]

A Flash in the Pan

Woman, Eating by Claire Kohda

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CBR 14 Bingo: Font I do like that dripping red font, like it’s been chalked on. Also Lydia is a font of misery. Lydia is a vampire – has been all her life, since her mother turned her as an infant. Now she’s living on her own for the first time, and having trouble tracking down blood. Though I did not know there was a term for them, I have long been aware of the Sad, Strange, Miserable Women that populate the modern literary landscape. […]

Brooding heirs, a castle, a ghost, a bad@ss maid, and a kick@ss not-so-damsel in distress

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor by Shaenon K. Garrity

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The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor graphic novel is funny, sweet, goofy, serious and a light read. There is a lot going on and it is also just a simple story of adventure. IT is diverse without being forceful about it, though Girl Power is in your face (but done with love and humor). Maybe it will not become a classic, but Shaenon K. Garrity will be a writer to look out for. I cannot wait to find more goodies by them. Do I smell […]



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