Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

‘“Nonsense, my dear! It is the 1920s, you know.” She squeezed Bella’s hand. “The world is changing. For the better, I hope.”’

Hotel Portofino by J.P. O'Connell

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CBR 14 Bingo: Hot We are on the Italian Riviera in high summer, and the characters lavish in beach days and garden parties. Bella Ainsworth has just opened her hotel in Portofino, but she is already facing trouble – unruly guests, blackmail, and some business about a Rubens… This was my second stab at this book. I received an audiobook ARC originally, but I found it could not keep my attention so I went with an ebook for the library instead and it coasted by […]

‘… and to the women of science whose names we will never know -‘

The Physicists’ Daughter by Mary Anna Evans

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CBR 14 Bingo: Minds Justine’s true weapon is her mind, the things she learned from her parents, and her ability to solve problems and crack codes. Justine, a physicists’ daughter who lives in New Orleans, suspects that someone at her factory is a saboteur trying to thwart the war effort. But even she doesn’t know that she is the crosshairs of a spy. I really thought very hard about my rating for this book – I was torn between three stars and four, because while […]

Kraft mac-n-cheese, but there’s some ham & broccoli mixed in

Scythe by Neal Shusterman

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Scythe, by Neal Shusterman, is a high-concept dystopian YA that came out a little later (2016) than some of the blockbuster successes of the subgenre — which is a damn shame, because it’s extremely competently done. Way way way better than, say, Divergent or The Maze Runner. The world-building premise is that society has conquered natural death thanks to the emergence of an all-governing, all-wise AI called the Thunderhead, and the subsequent development of cures and healing nanites that can revitalize people if they die — […]

The Title is a Bit of a Spoiler

Court of the Vampire Queen by Katee Robert

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Three things before I get into the review. The term “reverse harem” is racist and I won’t be using it. It’s based on a racist understanding of what a harem actually is. If you have questions, google “harem is racist” and you’ll get better deep dives into Orientalism and hypersexualization than I could possibly give. Court of the Vampire Queen was previously released as three novellas in the Bloodline Vampires series – Sacrifice, Heir, and Queen. There is a lot of blood, drinking blood, and […]

“some perfect and unexplainable force of love”

Strange Flowers by Donal Ryan

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CBR Bingo Square: Time I mentioned my summer of Irish fiction to my former mentor, and after recommending Dorothy Macardle to him, he enthusiastically recommended Donal Ryan, and especially his newest book, Strange Flowers, to me. Turns out one of the libraries where I hold a card had a digital copy available, so I checked it out (and ordered two of his previous novels) and got to work. Y’all, it was a good recommendation. The novel unfolds in distinct parts, each named for a book of […]

Coming to America

The Next Ship Home by Heather Webb

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CBR 14 Bingo: New I’d left my knowledge of Ellis Island behind in fourth grade; I’ve never read any book about it before this. Alma is a matron on Ellis Island; Francesca is a young woman hailing from Sicily. They become friends, but when as efforts to reduce corruption on the island come to the forefront, they must choose whether they will step forward or stay silent to protect themselves. Long ago in elementary school, our teacher decided that a good way for us to […]



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