Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

When Reality and Fiction Overlap in NYC

The World We Make by N. K. Jemisin

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Bingo 17: North America This might be a little obvious but since The World We Make could actually fit several categories, I’m using for North America because it takes place largely in New York City, and most of the main characters are living avatars of the boroughs of NYC, as well as an avatar for the city overall. The gist of the novel remains similar from the prequel (this is part 2 of a duology): the avatars of Manhattan (Manny), Queens (Padmini), Brooklyn (Brooklyn), Bronx […]

“Don’t swim with the dolphins during a labor dispute. No matter how much they try to convince you otherwise.”

Starter Villain by John Scalzi

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I really enjoyed Starter Villain, and then I put it aside for a couple of weeks (*cough*months*cough*) because I had other reviews that need to be written sooner, and when I came back to write this review, I had a warm fuzzy feeling, but nothing of substance to say. That’s not the worst thing I can say about a book – that all I remember is a good feeling. So I reread Starter Villain, and that was not a chore. I enjoyed it again, though I […]

Adding vampires to history and historical fiction, metaphor or plot device?

Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman

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Bingo 16: History Scarlet is basically fan-fic of historical fiction; totally counts for history since the historical part is real (revolutionary-era France). The historical fiction base is The Scarlet Pimpernel, set in the aftermath of the execution of the rulers of France; if you don’t know the story basically the mysterious masked hero from England saves the lives of French nobility by sneaking them out of France while the French authorities try to put a stop to that. So, basically, Batman who is British and […]

Dan Brown Writing Victor Hugo would need a CW

The Watchers by Jon Steele

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Bingo 15: Violence The Watchers, had it been better known, would likely have faced bans for the violence, the sex, and the use of religion. I was also a little surprised there was no CW; it kind of needs one given how graphic certain parts of the story get in terms of the sexual and standard violence, some suggested but an awful lot directly shown, especially the last 100 pages or so. Basically, The Watchers is what I image you’d get if Dan Brown had […]

A story that grabs the characters literally (you figuratively)

Shadow Hills by Sean Ford

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While I don’t not think that Shadow Hills by Sean Ford is “OMG BEST BOOK EVER” there was something about it that “grabbed me.” The surface stories are a plague story and an environmental story. But there is also family dynamics at play for two of the main characters. Brothers Cal and Will’s story might be ending but sisters Annie and Dana are starting new. The town is a mess and the ooze (a tar like goop that devours/covers its victims) makes things worse. What […]

CBR Bingo 15: On the Road

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

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This book could fit into several of Bingo categories, and sadly has been banned in some places (usual suspects). Written in 1993 and set in 2025, The Parable of the Sower is a frighteningly plausible story about a world impacted by climate change, political breakdown and economic and social inequity. The protagonist, Lauren Olamina, is a black teenager who has grown up outside of Los Angeles. Cars are a thing of the past, electricity is scarce and becoming scarcer. There is little rain to grow […]



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