Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“I hate having emotions about real humans instead of fake ones, it just leads to stupid moments like this.”

Exit Strategy (The Murderbot Diaries #4) by Martha Wells

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I have many grudges against the New York Times, dating back many years (even while acknowledging the amazing work its staffers can do), but I think the Times review of Exit Strategy almost perfectly describes who and what Murderbot is, “”a beautiful blend of exhausted cynicism and deep, helpless love”, because while Murderbot hates having feelings and would likely try to argue that it can’t love, it is the only explanation for the choices it makes throughout this book.   In Rogue Protocol Murderbot goes […]

“Nobody grabs SecUnits. I hadn’t realized this was a perk until now.”

Rogue Protocol (The Murderbot Diaries #3) by Martha Wells

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When I read this book in January of 2019 it was my least favorite of the original four (spoiler, it still is), mostly because I didn’t connect with the non-Murderbot characters. To a degree that is still true, I feel less connected to them than I did to Mensah’s team in the first or the programmers in the second. But, on a second visit I think that’s probably by design, as Wells is clearly juxtaposing Don Amene and Miki against those other relationships. There is […]

Too Many Jasons

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

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Jason Dessen is a physics professor at a low-level university, living in Chicago with his art teacher wife Daniela and their teenage son Charlie. Jason and Daniela had high hopes for their careers once upon a time, but an unplanned pregnancy knocked them a bit off course. Now, they have a happy home life that is just a bit tinged with regret for what might have been. One night Jason reluctantly heads out to a bar to congratulate an old friend for winning a prestigious […]

“I liked protecting people and things. I liked figuring out smart ways to protect people and things. I liked being right.”

Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells

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My Murderbot re-read continues with the introduction of my favorite character, ART (which, side note, it has taken me over five years to notice that ART is in the title Artificial Condition). Book two picks up quickly after the events of All Systems Red, with Murderbot having left Mensah and her team to figure out what it wants with its freedom, now that it is off inventory from the company, but not wanting to be a “pet robot”. Quickly, Murderbot realizes it wants to get […]

Infinity War – But Even Better

Wicked Problems by Max Gladstone

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Earlier this year, I reviewed Dead Country, a newer installment in Max Gladstone’s Craft Sequence. Dead Country was an unusual entry in the series with its simpler parred back narrative and more personal focus— until we hit the end of course. That’s when a then-low lying series-spanning threat suddenly decided to make itself known. This leads us to Wicked Problems, which deals with the massive fallout. Tara had previously returned to Edgemont to deal with the aftermath of her father’s death, and while there, had […]

Shiver me timbers and all that good stuff

Sea of Thieves: Sea Dog's Search by Jeremy Whitley

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Sea of Thieves: Sea Dog’s Search by Jeremy Whitley and illustrated by Rhoald Marcellius is more of a 2.5 than a 2. That is not to say this graphic novel is not good, in fact, it is a lot of fun. But nothing “grabbed” me into saying “Best book.” We know the stories of female pirates proving themselves to their families and self, and the illustrations are in a traditional comic format. However, if I had known about the podcasts, shows, and the other items […]



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