Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Blood Will Out

The Talk of the Town by Lynne Connolly

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After her two tumultuous years wed to the Duke of Whiston come to a fiery end, all Bianca wants is to lead a peaceful life and regain her reputation. But when she meets Alexander Fraser at a house party, she finds herself falling into both love and scandal once again. This is the last book in the Brazen Burrells series, which follows the three penniless but beautiful Burrell sisters as they try to find their fortune in London. I enjoyed the first book, was somewhat […]

Are Hot Dogs Really Just Psychedelic Sandwiches?

Under The Influence by Eliot Rahal, Stefano Simeone

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FBI Agent Cara Cole goes undercover at a university to infiltrate an alleged Internet-based cult called Hot Dog Party, which is led by a teenage influencer who had his fifteen minutes of fame as a meme. I enjoy bizarre horror, I have always liked a good story about cults, and the phenomenon of parasocial relationships is a subject I’ve been hearing more about lately. I also really do not like the taste of hots dogs. As such, this graphic novel sounded right up my alley. […]

Skin

Perdition U.S.A. by Gary Phillips

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I’ve written it in other reviews and I know it can come off as pandering so forgive me but one of racism’s many sins is that the Ivan Monk series isn’t more widely available. Yes it does have a certain niche following among those of us who peruse mysteries. But good God, I go to a mystery section at my local Barnes and Noble and there’s so…much…dreck (and Agatha Christie reprints which — to be clear — is not dreck but that estate really doesn’t […]

“We shall be useful. But just as importantly we shall be defiant, occasionally ill-mannered, and completely indomitable.”

The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies by Alison Goodman

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The historical detail of this book was incredibly pleasing (the afterword notes that she submitted 2/3 of it as her dissertation for her PhD!) and I am definitely in for reading more from this series. My favorite thing from this author that I’ve read by quite a large margin. I was pretty sure going in that this was a romance, because of the cover and the ladies in dresses, but like the cover (which hides its weapons amidst the folds of a dress) this book […]

The Truth Doesn’t Matter

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

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Five years ago, Lucy was found wandering the streets, dazed and covered in the blood of her best friend. No one knows what happened, but everyone believes that it was Lucy who killed Savvy – until a podcaster comes to town to dig up the whole case again. I generally avoid the recent spate of mystery books that use podcasts as plot devices. For one, I’m not even a fan of investigative podcasts, and it’s always seemed more like a framing gimmick than anything else. […]

“I think you’ll find ‘in heat’ only applies to dogs. De Niro is a man, an acting man”

The Clementine Complex by Bob Mortimer

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Hey y’all long-time-no-see! I’ve missed this so! Much like our trusty narrator Gary, I also script entire conversations with local squirrels when I walk through town. I have a regular rodent repartee while walking to the bookstore (I KNOW!) every day.  Unlike Gary, I have not been pulled into a conspiracy involving novelty print socks, a shady detective agency, an elderly hacker, and a corn-cob shaped USB dongle. This certainly isn’t a complaint; I am quite happy in my lane at the moment and I […]



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