Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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“I don’t know if any of the people we know are suspicious or whether they’re just trying to live their lives.”

The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey

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Thanks to NetGalley and Tantor Media | Tantor Audio for the ARC. It hasn’t affected the contents of my review. I’m a little annoyed that this was marketed as a mystery when it is very much not, but it was a very good book, so I can’t in the end remain annoyed. I just wish I’d been able to set my expectations accordingly. This is, in fact, historical fiction that errs into literary territory on occasion, with a smidgeon of crime for light flavor. This takes place […]

The Downfall of Anne Boleyn

Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel

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Bring Up the Bodies starts shortly after the end of Wolf Hall. Thomas Cromwell and King Henry VIII are guests of the Seymours at their estate, Wolf Hall. In the previous book, Thomas had developed feelings for Jane Seymour and had considered asking the king for permission to wed. But now Henry has begun to spend time with Jane, at the not-so-subtle encouragement of her family, and to tire of his marriage to Anne Boleyn, which has not yielded the son he so desperately wants. […]

“If a book is well-written, I always find it too short”

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

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4.5 stars CBR17 Bingo: Black (a book with a black cover) I had completely forgotten that I read and reviewed this book back in 2016. My original review can be found here. My plot summary of the more than 200-year-old novel can be found in my previous review. Nevertheless, my reading experience this time around was different enough from earlier times that I wanted to write about some of my thoughts and observations, not to mention some of the points of discussion that came up during my […]

“It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”

All of Us Murderers by KJ Charles

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I am ever so pleased with my first Aardvark book! Only my third 5-star rating of the year (although a couple have been close).  I chose this one on vibes – I was partway through Band Sinister and enjoying myself, loved the cover, and was in the mood to say yes to some gothic mystery goodness. All of Us Murderers is KJ Charles playing with all the gothic novel tropes and putting her own spin on making the queer textual in a genre where it was subtext for most of its history.  The book starts with […]

“Why do I have to be nice when most of the men aren’t?” (double Bingo)

Carrie Soto is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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Nowhere Bingo 25: A book about sport CBR17 Bingo: Play (tennis) Official plot summary (finished the book in August): Carrie Soto is fierce, and her determination to win at any cost has not made her popular. But by the time she retires from tennis, she is the best player the world has ever seen. She has shattered every record and claimed twenty Grand Slam titles. And if you ask Carrie, she is entitled to every one. She sacrificed nearly everything to become the best, with her […]

Black Cover and Maybe Some Black Hearts or not so Black

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

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Bingo 19: Black Leigh Bardugo’s The Familiar has a cover almost entirely in the proper color. Mostly, this is a story about people who want things they think they either cannot or should not have. Luiza is part Jewish (dangerous during the Inquisition) and has some minor household magic; her milagritos are things like she can make the bread unburnt. She wants to be something more than the scullery maid; she wants better, more money, more comfort, just more. There’s also her boss Valentina who […]



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