Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

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Elastic tension lashed their cars together across space, alone on the road, nothing in his head but grief and freedom.

Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

February 26, 2026 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

Andrew held the clutch and eased onto the gas, pushing revs while the digital readout reminded him to hold it, wait for the right moment to explode. Sam’s fingers touched the rim of the moon hanging in the sky. A shudder ripped across the bones of Andrew’s forearms, terror and delight and the promise of risk bringing him to life. ― Lee Mandelo, Summer Sons For fuck’s sake Andrew. Is there anything in this scenario that feels heterosexual or well-adjusted to you? ― Lee Mandelo, […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery Tagged With: American History, angst, Classism, curse, dark academia, drug use, Fighting, gay awakening, gay romance, Ghost Stories, homoerotic behaviour, Lee Mandelo, LGBTQ author, LGBTQ romance, murder mystery, Nashville, psychic abilities, queer romance, self-destruction, sexual tension up the wazoo, street racing, Tennessee, toxic friendships, toxic relationships, Toxic Romance, transgender characters, transgender main character, trauma bonding

carmelpie's CBR18 Review No:9 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery · Tags: American History, angst, Classism, curse, dark academia, drug use, Fighting, gay awakening, gay romance, Ghost Stories, homoerotic behaviour, Lee Mandelo, LGBTQ author, LGBTQ romance, murder mystery, Nashville, psychic abilities, queer romance, self-destruction, sexual tension up the wazoo, street racing, Tennessee, toxic friendships, toxic relationships, Toxic Romance, transgender characters, transgender main character, trauma bonding ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Careening over the cliff, crashing into the ocean, and exploding on impact.

The Favorites by Layne Fargo

May 26, 2025 by carmelpie 1 Comment

They didn’t simply want us to be lovers. They wanted us to be so in love, we’d burn the whole world down to be together. ― Layne fargo, The Favorites I have a backlog of reviews to write, but it took a truly bonkers story to yank me out of my holding pattern, tear open my window, and scream into the void. The Favorites is that story. This book has everything. Buckets of blood? Check. Violently gory injuries with ice skates? Check. Skating partners who […]

Filed Under: Fiction, Sports Tagged With: bad romance, Classism, dramatic bitches, ice dancing, Layne Fargo, obsession, Rivals, the olympics, toxic relationships, Toxic Romance

carmelpie's CBR17 Review No:14 · Genres: Fiction, Sports · Tags: bad romance, Classism, dramatic bitches, ice dancing, Layne Fargo, obsession, Rivals, the olympics, toxic relationships, Toxic Romance ·
Rating:
· 1 Comment

Super Toxic Romance

Magnolia Parks by Jessa Hastings

December 9, 2024 by finnyfinfinn 4 Comments

Is this Harry Styles fan fiction? I kept waiting for someone’s parents to try to sell them to One Direction to cover their gambling debts. Magnolia Parks is a young and beautiful London socialite. BJ Ballentine is the bad boy influencer who broke her heart. They grew up together, were dating, broke up because of his infidelity, and now they’re “best friends”. I totally got suckered into this book by the cover. The pink heels are very cute so I threw this on my holds […]

Filed Under: Romance Tagged With: Jessa Hastings, Romance, toxic masculinity, toxic relationships

finnyfinfinn's CBR16 Review No:21 · Genres: Romance · Tags: Jessa Hastings, Romance, toxic masculinity, toxic relationships ·
· 4 Comments

Let’s get out of here. You’re free from that waffletart now.

Hair and Heart: An MM Fairy Tale Romance by Rhys Everly

Pictures of You by Leta Blake

June 14, 2024 by carmelpie Leave a Comment

Hair and Heart: An MM Fairy Tale Romance By Rhys Everly Val is in a conservatorship. He is a pop musician who has been under the care of his uncle since teenage Val blacked out during a psychotic episode and set fire to his home, which resulted in the death of both of his parents. Since that episode, he has been under his uncle Fred’s care. Val is in his early twenties and is tired of making the same generic pop ballads that made him […]

Filed Under: Fiction, Romance Tagged With: 90s, coming-of-age, conservatorship, drag queens, emotional manipulation, gaslighting, gay romance, Leta Blake, mental health issues, Pop Star, queer romance, Rhys Everly, toxic relationships

carmelpie's CBR16 Review No:54 · Genres: Fiction, Romance · Tags: 90s, coming-of-age, conservatorship, drag queens, emotional manipulation, gaslighting, gay romance, Leta Blake, mental health issues, Pop Star, queer romance, Rhys Everly, toxic relationships ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

It’s corn! (I can tell you all about it)

What Stalks Among Us by Sarah Hollowell

April 10, 2024 by Pooja Leave a Comment

When best friends Sadie and Logan stumble across a strange corn maze out of season, they decide to venture inside on a lark. But when they stumble across what appear to be their own murdered bodies, they discover that they have become trapped in a time loop with a murderer on their heels. Thank you dreadpiratekel for putting this book on my radar – their review mentioned monsters made of corn, time loops, and all the way in which toxic people suck, and I was […]

Filed Under: Fiction, Horror, Young Adult Tagged With: friendship, horror, magic, murder, Sarah Hollowell, toxic relationships, witchcraft, Young Adult

Pooja's CBR16 Review No:53 · Genres: Fiction, Horror, Young Adult · Tags: friendship, horror, magic, murder, Sarah Hollowell, toxic relationships, witchcraft, Young Adult ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Angst!

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

August 25, 2022 by carmelpie 2 Comments

“It was funny, the Gray Man thought, how humorous she always appeared, how that smile was always just a moment away from her lips. You really didn’t see the sadness or the longing unless you already knew it was there. But that was the trick, wasn’t it? Everyone had their disappointment and their baggage; only, some people carried it in their inside pockets and not on their backs. And here was the other trick: Maura was not faking her happiness. She was both very happy […]

Filed Under: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult Tagged With: angsty teen, brothers, child abuse, coming of age novel, found family, historical fiction. psychic, Maggie Stiefvater, orphans, poverty, psychic abilities, Tarot, toxic masculinity, toxic relationships

carmelpie's CBR14 Review No:22 · Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult · Tags: angsty teen, brothers, child abuse, coming of age novel, found family, historical fiction. psychic, Maggie Stiefvater, orphans, poverty, psychic abilities, Tarot, toxic masculinity, toxic relationships ·
Rating:
· 2 Comments
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Recent Comments

  • Classic
    on A Spell for Saints and Sinners by Emily Carpenter
    Awe thanks. I wasn’t even tempted because it was so bad I had zero urge to read about a twist....
  • Kyl
    on A Spell for Saints and Sinners by Emily Carpenter
    😆 I would've skimmed and peeked and then probably been mad at myself for wasting my time. I admire you!...
  • Classic
    on A Spell for Saints and Sinners by Emily Carpenter
    Nope. 😆. I stop and that’s it.
  • Kyl
    on A Spell for Saints and Sinners by Emily Carpenter
    Are you saying you didn’t even peek at the ending to find out the twist?!
  • lafocareta
    on OK Colonizer
    Oh, I'm so glad! If he does try it, please report back!
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