Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Thunderstruck

Thunderstruck by Erik Larson

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Thunderstruck is the story of Marconi and the first radio receiver/transmitter. It is also the story of the first murder solved by radio telegraphy. In that classic Erik Larson style, he weaves together two storylines, making a single cohesive narrative about some relatively dry history that becomes a thrilling race against time. Marconi invented radio telegraphy, aka the ability to wirelessly transmit telegraph signals. This was a critical invention, for at the time there was little understanding about radio waves, and monopolies on literal cable […]

Forced Perspective

Good Material by Dolly Alderton

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Good Material is the third Dolly Alderton book that I’ve consumed, and I’d probably rank it in second place (Ghost will also hold a special place in my mind). It follows the fallout from the breakup of a 35 year old couple, Andy and Jen. What I most appreciated about this premise was the characters’ age. Breaking up at 35 is a totally different kettle of fish than a breakup in the 20s. When you’re in your 20s, there’s a sense of “there’s still time”, […]

Your Mum will probably like this

Mr Einstein's Secretary by Matthew Reilly

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Fifteen years, I’ve been with Mr Girlwhogotoverit, and still, he comes home with books for me that “sound like something [I’ll] like.”  He’s never been right, but I appreciate the attempt to meet me where I live. This is one for Mum and Nan, the literary equivalent of the sort of wine my family calls a “quaffer” – something that you can get through at pace, but which leaves no lasting impression. Pros: Well paced Seamlessly inserts main characters into historical settings Does exactly what […]

What is it about the end of the world?

The Stand by Stephen King

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Almost no event in fiction grabs me more than the collapse of society. Something about how people live when the structures of our society collapse always pulls me in. Seeing the things characters view as important or unimportant after all of the comforts of every day life start to fade away. I do not want civilization to crumble, by any means, but it always makes me wonder about what type of person I would be in that situation. Anyway, that is why I bought a […]

Creatures In The Mist

Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

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All the creepy existential dread your gothic little heart could desire. Opal is scratching out a meager existence in Eden, Kentucky- a small town plagued by more than its fair share of bad luck. With no remorse she will lie, cheat, and steal in service of a better life for her younger brother out of this miserable place. Opal is offered a surprisingly well paid job as housekeeper at Starling House. She knows she shouldn’t take the job, she knows there’s something wrong with the […]

O, what a tangled web we weave…

The Liar's Knot by M. A. Carrick

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I read The Mask of Mirrors, the first book in the Rook & Rose trilogy, last October, and thoroughly enjoyed it, so I was excited to read the sequel, The Liar’s Knot. The books are written by M. A. Carrick, who is actually two people—authors Marie Brennan and Alyc Helms. This book continues the story of Ren, a con artist who has adopted the persona of a foreign noblewoman named Renata Viraudax, who, in The Mask of Mirrors, arrived in the city of Nadežra claiming […]



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