Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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“She was a half-wild thing of ink and grass and sea breezes, raised by books and rabbits and fairy lore, and that was all she cared to be.”

The Magician's Daughter by H. G. Parry

May 10, 2026 by Malin Leave a Comment

Biddy lives on a small, magically isolated island off the coast of Ireland with her guardian/foster father, Rowan, and his familiar, the rabbit Hutchincroft. No one who doesn’t know that it’s there can find it. While Biddy has no magic of her own, she has grown up with it all around her. Yet magic is fading in the outside world, and far too often, Rowan has to leave Biddy to go to the mainland in bird form to find some small reserves of it. She […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction, History, Mystery Tagged With: alternate history, cbr18, edwardian, family, h.g. parry, historical fantasy, magic, narfna, shapeshifters, The Magician's Daughter

Malin's CBR18 Review No:26 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, History, Mystery · Tags: alternate history, cbr18, edwardian, family, h.g. parry, historical fantasy, magic, narfna, shapeshifters, The Magician's Daughter ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Sometimes, a book cover promises cats and lies. This book, on the other hand, delivers in spades. SO many cats, guys.

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett

April 24, 2026 by Malin 1 Comment

4.5 stars Nowhere Book Bingo 26: A book involving animals Monthly Keyword Challenge 26: Cat Official plot summary, because I finished this back in February, and my perimenopausal brain isn’t exactly helping here: Agnes Aubert leads a meticulously organized life, and she likes it that way. As the proudly type-A manager of a cat rescue charity, she has devoted her life to finding forever homes for stray cats. Now it’s the shelter that needs a new home. And the only landlord who will rent a […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction, History, Romance Tagged With: Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter, alternate history, Canada, Cats, cbr18, Heather Fawcett, historical fiction, Howl's Moving Castle, keyword 26, magic, Malin, Nowhere Book Bingo, paranormal fantasy, romantic

Malin's CBR18 Review No:20 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, History, Romance · Tags: Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter, alternate history, Canada, Cats, cbr18, Heather Fawcett, historical fiction, Howl's Moving Castle, keyword 26, magic, Malin, Nowhere Book Bingo, paranormal fantasy, romantic ·
Rating:
· 1 Comment

Hippos of the Deep South

American Hippo by Sarah Gailey

March 29, 2026 by Pooja Leave a Comment

In a world where the American Hippo bill passed (look it up, it was real!) and the vast Mississippi became the home of deadly feral hippo, Winslow Houndstooth and a crew of rogues, murderers, and con artists have been contracted to take it back. This book consists of the novellas River of Teeth and Taste of Marrow and two additional short stories, which all take place in this alternate United States and follow Winslow and his motley crew of hippo riders. Firstly, I love hippos, I love the idea of […]

Filed Under: Fiction, Speculative Fiction Tagged With: #fantasy, adventure, alternate history, crime, historical, lgbt, novella, Sarah Gailey, short stories, Speculative Fiction

Pooja's CBR18 Review No:23 · Genres: Fiction, Speculative Fiction · Tags: #fantasy, adventure, alternate history, crime, historical, lgbt, novella, Sarah Gailey, short stories, Speculative Fiction ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Come for the cats, stay for … also the cats

Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett

March 11, 2026 by Jen K Leave a Comment

Like many other Cannonballers, I was familiar with Heather Fawcett because of the Emily Wilde novels, so when I saw her next novel was going to involve a magical cat shelter, I was in, even though I hadn’t enjoyed the third Emily Wilde novel as much. Overall, I had a really fun time with this but it really was primarily due to the cats and the cat shelter, and I actually would have enjoyed even more cats, and day to day life at the shelter. […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction Tagged With: alternate history, Canada, Cats, cozy fantasy, Heather Fawcett, magicians

Jen K's CBR18 Review No:24 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction · Tags: alternate history, Canada, Cats, cozy fantasy, Heather Fawcett, magicians ·
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· 0 Comments
The books, "The History of the World Begins in Ice", "Cold Magic", "Cold Fire", and "Cold Steel" by Kate Elliott arranged on a bookshelf.

Prolonging my time in the Cold Magic world with short stories and essays

The World Begins in Ice by Kate Elliott

January 6, 2026 by Dome'Loki Leave a Comment

I first learned about Kate Elliott’s Cold Magic series while reading John Scalzi’s website.  In the Big Idea section Elliott described what The History of the World Begins in Ice is all about.  It is a collection of short stories written in the “Spiritwalker Trilogy” as well as essays about the characters and aspects of the world.  The trilogy sounded fascinating, to quote Kate: When I began writing Cold Magic, my primary goal (besides making it shorter than Traitors’ Gate) was to tell a story that would […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction, Romance, Short Stories Tagged With: #fantasy, alternate history, cbr18, Dome'Loki, dragons, essays, Fiction, kate elliott, magic, Romance, short stories

Dome'Loki's CBR18 Review No:2 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Romance, Short Stories · Tags: #fantasy, alternate history, cbr18, Dome'Loki, dragons, essays, Fiction, kate elliott, magic, Romance, short stories ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Blue Notes

Cahokia Jazz by Franics Spufford

December 28, 2025 by Halbs Leave a Comment

Reading this book was a unique experience for me. Since it focuses on First Nations in America, some parts are tough and sad. I borrowed it from the library and wasn’t sure I’d finish before it was due, especially because of the heavy moments. But I felt I owed it to the main character to see it through. That’s never happened to me before. I’m glad I finished Cahokia Jazz. The story has really stayed with me, even though I’ve returned the book. The story […]

Filed Under: Fiction Tagged With: alternate history, First Nations, Franics Spufford, jazz, Noir

Halbs's CBR17 Review No:23 · Genres: Fiction · Tags: alternate history, First Nations, Franics Spufford, jazz, Noir ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments
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