Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

All around us are people, of all classes, of all nationalities, of all ages

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

by 2 Comments

CBR 17 BINGO: Border, because the murder takes place just after the train passes over the Yugo-Slavian border, resulting in there being no local police onboard. Also, the collection of guests on the train cross many borders into many different nationalities. Last year I received a beautiful Folio Society edition of Murder on the Orient Express for Christmas and have been waiting for just the right time to re-read this mystery. When I planned a train trip across the Canadian Rockies, I knew the time […]

Good title, nice premise, lots of characters. . . but something didn’t quite click for me

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

by 1 Comment

I’ve had The Thursday Murder Club on my list for awhile now and finally happened to be in the library at the same time this novel was on the shelf! I snagged it, and the book waited patiently on my end table for a week or two until its turn came around to be devoured and loved. Turns out, I probably read too many glowing reviews because I found it to be kind of just. . .pleasant? And I struggled to figure out why I […]

I’d like to see the “cozy” come back to this mystery series

What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley

by Leave a Comment

“I know I’m not the girl I once was, but I’m not really sure yet who I am,” Flavia de Luce bemoans at about the midpoint of What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust. While she’s still quite young (I don’t think she’s progressed past 12 in this latest installment), she does carry the weight of adulthood on her shoulders at times. Technically she’s not alone in the world–she has her dear friend-of-the-family-part-time-servant Dogger, grandmotherly housekeeper Mrs. Mullet, bookish sister Daffy (Feely still being away […]

“Stop dreaming about the spires. It was a dreadful place and those were dreadful people, and you and I got caught in their games and paid for it.”

Death in the Spires by K.J. Charles

by 2 Comments

If you read The Secret History and hated the characters, and the bleak ending made you feel terrible, this might be the book for you! In her first non-romance, we’ve got K.J. Charles trying her hand (and succeeding) at a historical mystery, dark academia style. It’s 1905, and our main character is Jeremy “Jem” Kite, who has just been fired from his job when a letter accusing him of murder showed up in his employers’ mail. This is not the first or even the tenth such letter […]

A Mysterious Introduction to Agatha Christie

The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

by Leave a Comment

Having never read an Agagtha Christie book before, I decided it was only appropriate to begin with her first Poirot mystery, rather than a more well known title like Murder on the Orient Express. The reader follows narrator Arthur Hastings, a soldier recently released on sick leave from the Western Front during WW2. He runs into an old friend, John Cavendish, who invites him to stay at his families sprawling estate, Styles Court. There, Hastings is reintroduced to several characters: Emily Inglethorp, John’s stepmother Mary […]

This book was a ride.

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett

by Leave a Comment

What it comes down to with this book is that I just had a great time while reading it. I really feel like Janice Hallett is getting better with every book. She had the puzzle element down in the first book but I didn’t care about the characters or connect emotionally with the story. In her second book, The Twyford Code, I connected hard with the characters thanks to some clever twistiness and she still had the nice puzzle element, even leveled up a little. With […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo