Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

About Emmalita

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Lives in Austin, Texas. She/her. Loves reading books, writing about books and talking about books. On the CBR Board. May send you an email. Thinking about new challenges. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: Emmalita's Quick Questions interview.)

Emmalita's Reviews:

Every time we hear a song, it’s both old and brand-new. That’s the point of music.

Back in the Day by Katrina Jackson

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I love Katrina Jackson’s writing, and her 2021 novella, Back in the Day, is one of my favorite pieces of writing in any genre. I finally bought the audiobook version narrated by Jakobi Diem. His narration is perfect, and he found new ways for this book to make me cry. I really didn’t think I could fall more in love with Jackson’s writing, but the richness Diem brought to her words proved me wrong. I am literally crying right now just thinking about the way he […]

Despite her past experiences with murders, she had not yet learned that the most inescapable force in the world is irony.

The Rushworth Family Plot by Claudia Gray

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I really enjoyed this installment of the A Mr. Darcy and Miss Tilney Mystery series, The Rushworth Family Plot. The elder Darcys have decided young Mr. Darcy mush go to London with them, and when their visit is cut short, that he must stay as continue to socialize (reminder, the elder Mr. Darcy was not in favor of his son’s attachment to Miss Tilney). Miss Tilney’s grandfather, having hear that Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy has turned up his nose at his granddaughter, has decided that Juliet, […]

When I probe the gallimaufry of blurred memories from that night I can still feel the potency of the ungovernable impulse that demanded I place my palms on her bony shoulders

The Potency of Ungovernable Impulses by Malka Older

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Every time I pick up a Malka Older book, I am struck anew by how beautifully she writes. As much as I enjoy the melding of mystery, romance, and science fiction in her Mossa and Pleiti series, the way she uses words is such a joy to read. The Potency of Ungovernable Impulses is the third in the series, and you must read the first two books in order to understand this one. The Rector’s actions in The Mimicking of Known Successes continues to reverberate. Mossa and […]

The only focaccia recipe that’s easier involves buying focaccia from a store

3 Doughs 60 Recipes by Lacey Ostermann

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Bread is life! I make bread at least twice a week and I’ve reviewed bread books before. Recently, I’ve been making sourdough, but Bree Bridges (one half of Kit Rocha and an official Hero of Democracy) started making Lacey Ostermann’s Same Day Focaccia and was having so much fun that I had fomo. And, like, fomo I can do something about. I already have 10 pounds of King Arthur Bread Flour on hand and the ability to open Instagram. After watching a whole lot of […]

Is this sapphic spy romance fun but frustrating, or frustrating but fun?

If I Told You I'd Have to Kiss You by Mae Marvel

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Mae Marvel’s If I Told You I’d Have to Kiss You is a good read. For the most part, the spy shenanigans and the romance are well balanced, and the characters are fun. It’s a second chance romance and a spy hunt for a MacGuffin. In the last 20%, when KC and Yardley have officially decided to get back together, the tension slackens when it should ramp up. The MacGuffin hunt for the bad guy is less compelling when separated from the yearning for lost love […]

Three books

Love at a Funeral and Other Awkward Conversations by Sophie Andrews

Tangled Ambitions by Sophie Andrews

The Bartender’s Baby by Sophie Andrews

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Canadian romance author, Zoe York, started posting about her love of Sophie Andrews’s book, Tangled Ambition and compared it to one of my favorite romances, Kate Canterbary’s The Worst Guy. I snapped it up. I liked Tangled Ambitions enough that I picked up a couple of other books by Sophie Andrews. One of the things I like about Andrews’s books is the way her characters live progressive values. I also love the way she can lean into the angst. Tangled Ambition: longtime professional rivals (enemies-ish), Taylor […]



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