Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time
| Log in
  1. Follow us on Facebook
  2. Follow us on Instagram
  3. Follow us on Bluesky
  4. Follow us on Goodreads
  5. RSS Feeds

  • Home
  • About
    • Getting Started in CBR17
    • Rules of Respect
    • Cannon Book Club
    • Diversions
    • Fan Mail
    • Holiday Book Exchange
    • Book Bingo Reading Challenge
    • Participation Badges
    • AlabamaPink
    • About Cannonball Read
  • Our Team
    • The CBR Team
    • Leaderboard
    • Recent Comments
    • Participant Interviews
    • Cannonballer Location Maps
    • Our Volunteers
    • Meet MsWas
  • Categories
    • Review Genres
    • Tags
    • Star Ratings
    • Featured Review Archive
  • Fight Cancer
    • How We Fight Cancer
    • Donate
    • CBR Merchandise
  • FAQ
  • Contact
    • Contact Form
    • Suggest a Review
    • 2025 Registration
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Newsletter Archive
    • Social Media

About Jake

CBR10 participant
CBR11 participant
CBR12 participant
CBR13 participant
CBR14 Participant
CBR14 Bingo Badges
CBR15 Participant
CBR16 Participant
CBR17 Participant
CBR17 Levels

I love reading! (Learn more about this Cannonballer: Jake's Quick Questions interview.)

Jake's Reviews:

Yeah It Was That Bad

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer

August 22, 2021 by Jake Leave a Comment

I mean…what do you say? I’ve spent most of the summer reading Shirer’s legendary tome on and off. When books failed to inspire or when I had a long drive, I’d put it on audio and knock off two or three sections. It was easy because it never lost its focus despite its grotesque subject matter. Trillions of words have been written about Nazi Germany and trillions more are likely to be written. I don’t have anything unique to say there, though I learned a […]

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Adolph Hitler, Germany, Nazi Germany, the rise and fall of the third reich, william l. shirer, World War II

Jake's CBR13 Review No:130 · Genres: History · Tags: Adolph Hitler, Germany, Nazi Germany, the rise and fall of the third reich, william l. shirer, World War II ·
· 0 Comments

For Three!

The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

Vera Kelly Is Not A Mystery by Rosalie Knecht

Never Easy, Never Pretty: A Fan, A Team, A Championship Season by Dean Bartoli Smith

August 17, 2021 by Jake Leave a Comment

Knocked out three books this weekend, all of which I enjoyed to varying degrees…   The Book of Three A cute, charming fantasy novel. Perhaps a little too derivative of LOTR (the wolf-like character might as well have been called “Gollum”) but still entertaining and occasionally refreshing when compared to the rest of the genre. I also enjoyed a compelling female character that had autonomy without having to be everyone’s Hashtag Badass Woman (in other words: I appreciate a male writer who can write a […]

Filed Under: Biography/Memoir, Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery, Non-Fiction, Sports Tagged With: #fantasy, Baltimore, Baltimore Ravens, Chronicles of Prydain, Dean Bartoli Smith, Dominican Republic, football, historical fiction, lloyd alexander, mystery, Never Easy Never Pretty, NYC, Rosalie Knecht, sports, the book of three, Vera Kelly Is Not a Mystery, Young Adult

Jake's CBR13 Review No:129 · Genres: Biography/Memoir, Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery, Non-Fiction, Sports · Tags: #fantasy, Baltimore, Baltimore Ravens, Chronicles of Prydain, Dean Bartoli Smith, Dominican Republic, football, historical fiction, lloyd alexander, mystery, Never Easy Never Pretty, NYC, Rosalie Knecht, sports, the book of three, Vera Kelly Is Not a Mystery, Young Adult ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Lincoln’s Game of Thrones

Lincoln by Gore Vidal

August 13, 2021 by Jake Leave a Comment

Much has been made of Abraham Lincoln’s political genius. He is often painted as a savant, manipulating both his opponents and allies to align with his will as he navigated the treacherous years of the American Civil War. Gore Vidal brings this to life in a continuation of his Narratives of Empire series. Although not the second book in publication order, it is the second one in sequence, with one loose connection to the first (no spoilers although Vidal clearly wants to thread the story). Burr, […]

Filed Under: Fiction, History Tagged With: abraham lincoln, Gore Vidal, historical fiction, Lincoln, politics

Jake's CBR13 Review No:126 · Genres: Fiction, History · Tags: abraham lincoln, Gore Vidal, historical fiction, Lincoln, politics ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Library Bingo

The Dark Tunnel by Ross Macdonald

The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris

Billy Summers by Stephen King

The Broken Girls by Simone St. James

A Darkness More Than Night by Michael Connelly

August 9, 2021 by Jake Leave a Comment

I haven’t been able to keep up with the Cannonball Read Bingo, but I have been reading stuff for my library’s bingo, which helps because it encourages me to try things I’d either put off or left on my shelf to rot…   The Dark Tunnel ** Went back to the beginning with Ross Macdonald for this one. I love Ross’ Archer series and his standalones aren’t bad but this one is. Unfocused plotting, expository dialogue, characters conveniently bouncing in and out. Macdonald was trying […]

Filed Under: Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Suspense Tagged With: A Darkness More Than Night, Billy Summers, espionage, harry bosch, horror, Michael Connelly, Michigan, mystery, New York City, Race, Ross MacDonald, Simone St. James, Stephen King, Terry McCaleb, the broken girls, The Dark Tunnel, The Other Black Girl, thriller, Vermont, Zakiya Dalila Harris

Jake's CBR13 Review No:125 · Genres: Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Suspense · Tags: A Darkness More Than Night, Billy Summers, espionage, harry bosch, horror, Michael Connelly, Michigan, mystery, New York City, Race, Ross MacDonald, Simone St. James, Stephen King, Terry McCaleb, the broken girls, The Dark Tunnel, The Other Black Girl, thriller, Vermont, Zakiya Dalila Harris ·
· 0 Comments

Persisted

The Watergate Girl by Jill Wine-Banks

July 27, 2021 by Jake Leave a Comment

Watergate has become a later-in-life hobby of mine. I’ve devoured books on the subject, though I missed the news of last year’s release of Jill Wine-Banks’ account, likely due to covid related distractions. Banks was the only female on the Watergate special counsel’s prosecution team at a time when things were changing for women in the workforce. Her experience not only is critical for progress in America but occurs at a pivotal moment in our nation’s history, where the well-being of institutions are criticized and […]

Filed Under: Biography/Memoir Tagged With: Jill Wine-Banks, legal, The Watergate Girl, true crime, Watergate

Jake's CBR13 Review No:120 · Genres: Biography/Memoir · Tags: Jill Wine-Banks, legal, The Watergate Girl, true crime, Watergate ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Long Love The King

American Royals by Katharine McPhee

July 26, 2021 by Jake Leave a Comment

I read this as part of a library reading challenge: genre I don’t read. I don’t read a lot of romance and, while this won’t change my mind on that, I can appreciate why people like this. Being a mystery fan, I expect that there’s a certain amount of cynicism with the genre. Cynicism towards governance, relationships, general human behavior. I feel like the best mysteries and crime novels tell us about ourselves, as if holding up a cracked but clean mirror. Romance has kind […]

Filed Under: Romance Tagged With: alternate history, american royals, Katharine McPhee, Romance, royalty, Young Adult

Jake's CBR13 Review No:119 · Genres: Romance · Tags: alternate history, american royals, Katharine McPhee, Romance, royalty, Young Adult ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments
  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • …
  • 65
  • 66
  • 67
  • 68
  • 69
  • …
  • 142
  • Next Page »


Recent Comments

  • Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
  • Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
  • Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
  • Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
  • Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.
See More Recent Comments »

Support Our Mission

  • Support Our Mission: Donate Today!
  • FAQ
  • Shop
  • Volunteers
  • Leaderboard
  • AlabamaPink
  • Contact

Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo

The reviews and comments posted on this site reflect the opinions of individual posters and do not reflect the views of Cannonball Read.

© 2025 Cannonball Read Inc., a registered 501(c)(3) | Log in