Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

About faintingviolet

CBR 4
CBR 5
CBR 6
CBR 7
CBR 8
CBR 9
CBR10 participant
CBR11 participant
CBR12 participant
CBR13 participant
CBR14 Participant
CBR14 Bingo Badges
CBR15 Participant
CBR16 Participant
CBR17 Participant
CBR17 Comments
CBR17 Levels

A reader and caffeine addict who consumes all sorts of books, some just more frequently than others. Your CBR Book Club Maven with over a decade of Cannonballing experience I believe in the beauty that comes from a common goal of reading, reviewing, and discussing. Also, Fuck Cancer. (Learn more about this Cannonballer: faintingviolet's Quick Questions interview.)

faintingviolet's Reviews:

“Gods and goddesses above, he was dangerous, but not for the reasons she’d once feared.”

Zomromcom by Olivia Dade

by 1 Comment

I was unsure about Olivia Dade’s Zomromcom from the moment she shared in her newsletter that this was what she was working on. I’m not, generally speaking, a big paranormal romance person and certainly a book featuring a woman beginning a relationship with a vampire during a zombie attack certainly falls into that category. But I’ve had great experiences with Dade books previously and was willing to give this one a shot; it certainly didn’t hurt that its bright, fun cover qualified for the Purple Bingo Square.  We begin the story by being dumped into action in progress, and it really hampered my ability to sink into the book initially. Honestly, […]

“Because that’s how life tends to work in all its aspects. We try things out, and make mistakes, and recover, and learn from our experiences.”

Band Sinister by KJ Charles

by Leave a Comment

Band Sinister is what happens when an author writes their own version of Georgette Heyer book by throwing absolutely every socially progressive character type into a friend group and then letting them loose on the very suspecting neighbors. I’ve read exactly one Heyer book, Venetia, back in 2016. Initially this read didn’t jump out to me as especially heavy on the Heyer, but more in line with other queer Regency historical romances I’ve read over the years from Cat Sebastian or Olivia Waite, but the parallels are there.   The story here plays with the classic tropes that Heyer […]

“Lies are as dangerous as a sword. They can cut to the bone.”

The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton

by Leave a Comment

I am so torn about the rating of The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton. Part of me was won over by the interesting world Clayton created where people are born alike, with red eyes and grey skin, and hair the texture of straw. What is considered “beauty” – a variety of skin tones, hair colors and types, and body shapes – does not come naturally unless they are a Belle. The Belles have the ability through their arcana (think natural magic ability) to change people’s appearances, but not their own. All varieties are considered various degrees of beautiful, but of course like […]

“Jesus, who would want to read about a failed old nun, with her stipend, and second-hand shoes.”

Murder at Gulls Nest by Jess Kidd

by 2 Comments

What a kooky mystery book. My mom was visiting for the last few days and she and I love to get our blankets and read (which we indulged in doing) so she was perfectly placed to ask me what was going on within the fun orange cover of this book. The quick logline doesn’t really capture the vibe of the book, though, and I don’t know whether I sold her on it or not. Murder at Gulls Nest features Nora, a former Carmelite nun who has left her order after three decades and is on the hunt for a […]

A Perfect Way to Celebrate the Movie’s 40th Birthday

"What Do You Mean, Murder?” Clue and the Making of a Cult Classic by John Hatch

by 7 Comments

My apologies to anyone who wishes they didn’t have to know that this year is the 40th anniversary of the movie Clue. 🙂 One of the Read Harder tasks this year is to read a book about a piece of media you love, and I love Clue. It’s one of my absolute comfort watches, so hunting down this book became a priority.   Author John Hatch also views the movie as one of his favorites, and possibly more of a favorite than he realized before Covid-19 changed the way we […]

“The only thing every love story really has in common is that it’s worth it.”

Not in My Book by Katie Holt

by Leave a Comment

Here’s the problem – this is a well-written book. The craft is there. But… I just couldn’t care about what is happening with the characters and kept having to make myself pick it back up between reading other books, which is not at all how I normally approach Romance books. There were times where the characterization felt inconsistent, in the early parts of the book I felt the need to double check how old Rosie was supposed to be. I liked it better than The Maiden and Her Monster because while I felt they shared […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo