Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Archives for December 2021

The Hating Game, in three reviews

The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

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Re-re-read (December 19, 2021): Yes, I did just re-re-read this one–for the second time this year–after watching the movie. This is definitely getting bumped up to five stars. What is it about this book that is so alluring? I’ve written about it before, but if you scroll through my reviews you can see that I didn’t actually “get” some of the set up Hating Games prior to the start of the romance bits. But now, after having read some lovely reviews of this book and […]

So conflicted about these books, but I will definitely keep reading because I trust my recommenders!

Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson

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It’s going to be hard to keep all the spoiler-y bits out of this review, so I’ll try to bifurcate it such that the spoiler parts are clumped together. First off, Wayne is a treasure and probably the best part of these books. I actually get a strong sense of like, Temeraire + Lawrence from His Majesty’s Dragon and the rest, with Wax a less boring foil for Wayne’s antics than Lawrence even managed to be. (Is it Laurence? That’s how much of a snooze fest he […]

This book is TOO SHORT, which is probably the best critique a book can get

A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow

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A recommendation by narfna! Quite short and interesting, especially writing this review after all the multiverse talk that has permeated the pop culture o sphere with the release of Spiderman: No Way Home. In a nutshell, this is a Sleeping Beauty retelling where Zinnia Grey is our Briar Rose. She’s suffering from a genetic disease brought on by an Evil Corporation, but the clock is running out and she’s unlikely to make it to her twenty-first birthday. Zinnia has decided to live life to the […]

Anachronism isn’t always a bad thing

The Perks of Loving a Wallflower by Erica Ridley

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I think this book is probably the most successful attempt I’ve read (not…that I have read many) at reconciling the dual desires of readers to a) have the lesbians b) wear the corsets. The other paradox that readers want is aristocracy romance + sex, and you usually get there by having the woman not be a full on virginal lady but instead some sort of exception case (like: widowed, openly an escort, lacking a chaperone who would care). So here, the escape valve is a […]

Why every species matters, and how to convince your friends and family

The Nature of Nature: Why We Need the Wild by Enric Sala

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In the antepenultimate chapter of The Nature of Nature, conservationist and National Geographic Explorer in Residence Enric Sala shares the story of how, in 2012, he and some colleagues sought to persuade Gabonese President Bongo Ondimba of the importance of protecting the country’s marine life. The president listened politely to Sala’s presentation, but when his interest began to wane, the team offered to let Ondimba pilot a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) that would allow the leader to observe the life beneath the water in real […]

“His big, obnoxious Scorpio energy is invading your cozy Cancer safe space!”

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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I saved this for Halloween* and I’m so glad I did. It was so atmospheric and spooky and fun, with great worldbuilding and great characters. The only reason it’s not getting five stars is that I was straight up able to predict everything that happened in the plot, because the author telegraphed it all pretty hard. It didn’t really affect my enjoyment that much, because the fun here was the world and the characters, but I of all people should just not be able to […]



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