Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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The Duke and the Opera Diva

After Dark with the Duke by Julie Anne Long

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Mariana Wylde arrives at the Grand Palace at the Thames only seconds after curfew, dripping wet and terrified, since she escaped her own lodgings because a literal angry mob blocked her residence. The talented opera singer, dubbed “the Harlot of Haywood Street” by the press after two rich, young noblemen fought a duel for her favour (something she very much didn’t want them to) and one of them nearly died. Her reputation is in tatters and she’s almost broke but begs the proprietresses of the […]

what IS your deal??

Sugar Street by Jonathan Dee

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I read this book in half a day. I enjoyed the first third or so, then was increasingly frustrated with its lack of focus and definitely unsatisfied by the ending. This (unnamed) guy is on the run. That is interesting – you know, how would you even do that? Turns out it’s pretty difficult. He’s only using cash, has no ID, has fled his home, ditched his car, all of the things, in an effort to disappear. He ends up in an (unnamed) city, and […]

Do You Hear What I Hear? and if Not, So?

The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki

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When does a book become real? And for that matter, what is real? These questions run through Ruth Ozeki’s The Book of Form and Emptiness as the main character, Benny, fourteen years old, struggles with the death of his father, adolescence and the voices of inanimate objects that he cannot shut out. The story is told by Benny, and also a book. The book not only narrates Benny’s story, but talks with Benny directly, or talks directly to the reader pontificating on books, the art […]

despair and disorientation

The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri

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3.75 stars Nuri and Afra are Syrian refugees trying to make their way to England, where Nuri’s cousin, who also fled Syria, awaits them. They’ve suffered a loss that’s left Afra blind and functionally paralyzed with grief. This grief is like a tangible thing Nuri has to negotiate while at the same time trying to persuade her to leave, and also to keep from her as much as possible the level of danger they’re in by staying. Their PTSD, despair, and loss of hope have […]

Charming start to CBR15

Snowdrift and Other Stories by Georgette Heyer

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I found this collection thanks to one of the many articles that pop up in my social media recommending various types of book to me. I can’t remember what the list was (I think it was some sort of recommendations from the New York Public Library), but given last month’s arrival of snowstorm Elliot plus the overwhelming amount of holiday stuff I had to do, a collection of short stories set in the Regency period seemed like a fun diversion. And it absolutely was! If […]



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