Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

He’s Grumpy. He’s a Ghost.

The Grumpy Ghost Upstairs by Mamiko Shiotani

by Leave a Comment

Online reader copies are all the rage right now, it is environmental and quick and easy to receive. Of course, I sometimes have a hard time reading books from them, but The Grumpy Ghost Upstairs by Mamiko Shiotani and translated by Polly Lawson was an exception. I tend to be able to read picture books online as there is less text and more space to enjoy the overall work. This was especially true with Shiotani’s book. The illustrations and text was Goldilocks/Baby Bear just right. […]

“There’s a difference between someone loving you and agreeing with every single thing you do.”

It's a Love Story by Annabel Monaghan

by Leave a Comment

3.5 stars Thanks to Netgalley and G.B. Putnam for this ARC. My opinion is my own. Jane Jackson spent her adolescence as the comic relief character “Janey Jakes” on a popular teen sitcom. Now she’s a creative executive at a movie studio, and really trying to get a script she loves turned into a movie. Frequently crippled with anxiety and self esteem issues, Jane has learned to “fake it till you make it”, but she may have faked it too far this time. Desperate to […]

A disappointing follow-up to a beloved fantasy novel

Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T. J. Klune

by 2 Comments

I really wanted to like this book. It’s a sequel to The House in the Cerulean Sea, which I really enjoyed. It has great LGBTQIA+ representation, and an important message about resistance and hope. But as much as I wanted to love it, Somewhere Beyond the Sea ended up falling flat for me. Linus Baker and Arthur Parnassus are finally living their happily-ever-after. They live on the beautiful island of Marsyas, with the six magical children they hope to officially adopt. The town they live in […]

Magic in the Tea and Maybe Something Else

The Elegant Courtly Life of the Tea Witch vol. 1 by Ameko Kaeruda, Yorifuji

by Leave a Comment

By the cover and title, The Elegant Courtly Life of the Tea Witch looks like a mildly entertaining cozy fantasy. Remy is a tea witch, meaning she can magically make perfect tea, which o the one hand is enough that she gets to work in the royal palace, but on the other hand classifies her as basically a servant. Remy seems a little lazy and not minding this, but as you might guess, there’s more to her and her situation (mostly just hints in volume […]

A Hallmark Movie with Talking Plants and Flying Cats

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

by Leave a Comment

The Spellshop is not really a cozy romantasy as it has been sold; it is actually a Hallmark movie trying to disguise itself as romantasy. The premise: a young woman flees the city and her big city career to escape a bad thing, moves back to her very rural hometown, meets an annoyingly helpful and cute neighbor, starts a jam-making business. Along for the ride is the sassy sidekick bestie, and a variety of locals, nearly all of whom love her after some initial hesitation, […]

“Toby, please stop punching Etienne in the head. It’s not helping.”

Late Eclipses by Seanan McGuire

by 2 Comments

Ah, the continuing saga of Toby Daye getting kicked in the teeth. After the events of last book, Toby now has to deal with her friends being poisoned, her death getting ever closer, the Luidheag not talking to her, four of five people who just need a fresh one across the face, and the possibility she’s slowly going insane; just another day in San Francisco. Rereading the series, I’ve started noticing how many books have Toby behind the eight ball for most of the plot. […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo