Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

It ripped out my heart, returned it, then stole it again

Call of the Wild by Jack London

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Call of the Wild is based on the gold rush, specifically the dogs used in the dogsleds. This is because the main character Buck, is a dog. He lives the high life, lounging around, occasionally hunting, all in the sweet sun. Then, he gets kidnapped and sold to a dogsled. He has to learn to adapt, to fight back, because no one would let him live if they had the chance to kill him. I have so many favorite things about Call of the Wild. […]

If you want a no-holds-barred look at growing up as an undiagnosed autistic, you can’t really do better than this

Strong Female Character by Fern Brady

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Having never had even a passing interest in Taskmaster, only watching one episode and not getting it (my wife’s obsession with Taskmaster TikToks had led to us searching out episodes on YouTube), I knew nothing about Fern Brady going into this. All I knew of her was that she was autistic and a comedian, and all I knew of the book was that it was about her experience as a woman with autism. Suffice it to say, I was surprised by all the different turns her […]

I’m your boogmyan, turn me on

Becoming the Boogyman by Richard Chizmar

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Becoming the Boogyman is the unexpected (at least by me) follow up to Richard Chizmar’s 2021 novel, Chasing the Boogyman. This review contains some spoilers for the previous book. The concept for the series. Chizmar uses a fictionalized version of himself and those around him as characters, which caused some confusion as to whether or not this is a work of fiction or true crime. However, The Boogyman, while terrifying, is completely fictional. Becoming the Boogyman starts off several years after the end of its […]

The Maid: this book was not good

The Maid by Nita Prose

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mood music: you’re no good – Linda Ronstadt This book contains an offensive depiction of a person who has autism. To be clear, it is never expressly stated that the protagonist, Molly, has autism. She only refers to herself as “different,” and having trouble reading faces and social cues. While I am not neurodivergent, my partner is, and when I read him some excerpts from the book, he found them problematic. Molly Gray is a twenty-something-year-old maid who works at a luxurious hotel in an […]

Sigh. Scent memories are real, y’all.

Claimed by JR Ward

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If you are a long time reader and/or participant in Cannonball Read, you may remember that Phatty and I reviewed several of JR Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood (BDB) series as PattyKates. (No, I’m not making fun of Patty. Ward likes to add the letter H randomly to names to make them edgy or something.) Unfortunately, we experienced diminishing returns with her books. We loved the first couple. Really liked the next two or three. Then quickly tired of the trauma, brand name dropping, grunting and […]

Murderbot and ART: relationships, trauma, and planets are the worst

Network Effect by Martha Wells

System Collapse by Martha Wells

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Note: This is a spoiler-free review for Network Effect and System Collapse.  If you’ve read Network Effect dive into both reviews!  However, if you haven’t read Network Effect do not continue on to the review of System Collapse.  In order to discuss System Collapse I need to include information that is learned in Network Effect (which is kind of spoiler-ish if you haven’t read it yet).  If you have not read Network Effect yet, please enjoy its review.  When you’re finished come back for my review of System Collapse! […]



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