Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

I *think* I enjoyed it? Either way, glad I read it.

A Gamble At Sunset by Vanessa Riley

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As seems to continue happening, I was searching for a book to listen to at work on Libby, and Vanessa Riley’s newest, A Gamble at Sunset was available to check out immediately. Riley is one of those authors whose novels I always have the intention of reading. I read one or two of her self-pubbed books a decade ago, but keep Not Reading the others, for no fault other than they’re not at the top of my list when I’m looking for my next read. And that’s […]

The Further Adventures of Eilis Lacey

Long Island by Colm Toibin

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In Long Island, Colm Toibin catches up with Eilis Lacey some twenty years after the events of Brooklyn. As readers will recall, Eilis faced a very tough decision in that novel. Having met and secret married Tony, an Italian-American plumber from a big family, Eilis returned to Ireland to mourn her sister Rose. During that time she reconnected with Jim Farrell, a charming young man preparing to take over his father’s pub. Not knowing of her marriage back in New York, her mother and her […]

Job burn out takes a turn for the literal

A Witch’s Guide To Burning by Aminder Dhaliwal

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This graphic novel is the story of a journey in which magical outcasts, thrown together by fate, must learn to trust and rely on one another in order to heal, grow and find the strength to battle demons. Aminder Dhaliwal has created a magical world with its own unique set of rules. Witches are valued and esteemed so long as they do their job for their towns. Once their magic weakens, they are “cleansed” by fire and a new witch takes over. It’s an old […]

Meryl Streep could have been a movie star

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

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After a very good experience listening to Tom Hanks read The Dutch House by Ann Patchett, I was ready for another. It just so happened that Tom Lake (2023) was on a number of Best Book Lists from 2023, so my next Patchett book was an easy decision. I think the author must have some pull with her narrators because the one and only Meryl Streep reads the Tom Lake audiobook, and it’s not surprising that she does a great job. I think it’s my favorite book by Ann Patchett. Lara […]

The Worst Party Crashers Ever

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

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The government of a South American country believes they can convince a Japanese business to build a new factory in their country and boost their sagging economy. They invite him to celebrate his birthday in their capital, and have arranged a unique and personal gift for the occasion: his favorite opera singer will be in attendance and give a private performance for the occasion. Though Mr. Hosokawa has no intention of building the factory they want, he can’t turn down the chance to meet Roxanne […]

“God, if she caught feelings, she was going to have to kick her own ass.”

Role Playing by Cathy Yardley

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4.5 stars CBR16 Sweet Books: Cozy 48-year-old Maggie’s son has recently moved away to college and now she’s stuck in the big house she got in the divorce some years earlier, in a town where she barely knows anyone. She’s unapologetically grumpy and doesn’t actually want to expand her social circle. She worries about her son in college, however, and keeps trying to challenge him to socialise and make friends. He turns the table on her and demands that she do the same. She has […]



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