Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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A romance trope hidden in a fantasy novel

Troubled Waters by Sharon Shinn

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Sharon Shinn is always dependable. I know that doesn’t sound like high praise, but sometimes you just need something solid that you know you’ll enjoy, and this fit the bill. She’s got good characters, interesting (if sometimes a little unoriginal) plots, and happy endings (and terrible covers, good god!). Zoe lives with her father in a tiny town far from the capital city. Her father used to be advisor to the king, but after a disagreement and falling out, he was exiled and ran away […]

Like a Cozy Sweater

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Unquiet Land is the fourth book in Sharon Shin’s Elemental Blessings books. The books are each self-contained stories, so you could probably start anywhere in the series. However, if you do that you are going to be spoiled for events in previous books as they books do come in chronological order and characters from previous books appear in each successive novel. So, I really enjoy this series. It’s not great, it’s not complicated, but it is like a warm sweater you can snuggle down in […]

Breaking my teeth on the sweetness

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This book is one in a series, however it can be read as a standalone as this particular series isn’t a set of books that contains one single plot line but rather a set of books containing stories about a group of interconnected people. Unfortunately, while I really enjoyed the previous books in the series this one fell a little flat for me. Sharon Shin writes very comforting novels, they’re nice to fall into when life gets a little too stressful. This one was just […]

Speak the Truth, Keep no Secrets

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The Truth-Teller’s Tale is the second book in Sharon Shinn’s Safe-Keeper series. I enjoyed this one more then I did the first one, Shinn’s books are just comfortable to read. What they are not is particularly memorable. It’s Monday, I read this on Friday and most of the details are slipping out of my memory. This book is set about 15 years after the events of the first one, and it can definitely be read as a stand alone novel. Adele and Eleda are twins growing […]

To Wish A Secret Safe

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Sharon Shinn is one of my comfort read authors. I don’t find her books particularly ground-breaking and they don’t make me think too hard but they’re comforting to read and I enjoy slipping into the worlds she creates. This one though kind of left a bad taste in my mouth, which is a shame as there were parts I really liked. The book is really more world building then plot heavy, as nothing much happens beyond two characters growing up and discovering their place in […]

Sansa and the house elves

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My sweetie and I have taken multiple multi-state road trips, and we always have problems with food. I always want to try somewhere new and local, enjoying the brief hope and possibility that it’ll be the best place I’ve ever eaten. He always wants Panera or Cracker Barrel. After a few too many Winchester diners and disappointing local ‘flavor’, I started to understand his choices. With Panera and Cracker Barrel, you always know what you’re getting. It’s the same in West Virginia as it is in Missouri, […]



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