Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

A Somewhat Predictable Novel with a Strong Heart

The Bones Beneath My Skin by T. J. Klune

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I think Artemis Darth Vader might be one of my favorite characters. She’s one of the 3 main characters in this book, and she’s so much fun. Our trio is rounded out with Nate and Alex. After being fired from his job, and while still dealing with a complex emotional reaction to his parents’ deaths, Nate heads to the cabin in Oregon that his parents left him. He is surprised to find it occupied by Alex and Artemis (Art), who are on the run and […]

There’s a magical home for everyone, even if you stopped looking

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

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The House on the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune is worthy of all the hype. Linus works for a government agency that manages magical children. He is essentially a social worker. He sticks to himself and follows the rules to the letter. How else can he minimize conflict in his life? He lives alone with his cat and is rather ordinary if you ask him. He isn’t quite coasting more like he doesn’t want to upset the order. He absolutely does not want to garner […]

“But perhaps that’s the point: the trials and tribulations of life weigh heavily upon us, but we find people to help lighten the load.”

Somewhere Beyond the Sea (Cerulean Chronicles #2) by TJ Klune

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THIS IS IT. I’M DOING IT. MY 52ND BOOK REVIEW OF 2024 BABYYYYYYYYY. And what a delightful tome to end it on!  I have been eager to read the 2nd in this series since it came out, but of course the holds list at the library is five-ever deep. And then, I walk in two weeks ago and TAH DAH it’s on the hot picks shelf, where they put out 1 or 2 copies of new books that you can check out, for one less […]

A Journey From Lawyer to Redeemed Ghost

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

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I’m not sure why I delayed reading this for so long, aside from some preconceived expectations about how the book might end, but I’m glad I finally gave it a shot. Our protagonist, lawyer Wallace Price, is not a very good person. The negative thoughts or stereotypes you may have had about lawyers pretty much apply here. He’s a workaholic who cares about little more than winning cases. When he unexpectedly dies from a heart attack, only 6 people attend his funeral, and that includes […]

“There must be no greater feeling in the world than to know that this isn’t forever.”

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune

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TJ Klune’s The House in the Cerulean Sea was the sort of whimsical, heartfelt novel that felt like an instant classic. It is perhaps no small coincidence that it’s publication coincided with the early day of Lockdown in March of 2020. What I (we?) were looking for at that time were books that provided a soft landing. The House in the Cerulean Sea offered what so little in the world could offer at that time – a sense of home and comfort. The characters were […]

A Gentle, Heartwarming Story of Magic and Humanity

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

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TJ Klune manages to weave the mundane and fantastical together in this heartwarming novel. Linus Baker is a caseworker for the Department in Charge of Magical Youth (DICOMY), which registers and tracks magical children (and later adults with the Department in Charge of Magical Adults – DICOMA). He visits orphanages of magical children to make sure they are being well-run, and when he’s not out on field assignments, he’s one of hundreds of drudges toiling away at desks in DICOMY. He has no life to […]



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