Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

In the Garden of Eden

Bitter Orange by Claire Fuller

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Cbr12bingo Orange, BINGO (color diagonal) Bitter Orange is a rather dark and twisted tale, perfect for those who enjoyed Ottessa Moshfegh’s Eileen. Set during the summer of 1969, this novel features Lyntons, an old abandoned English home in the country, full of secrets and perhaps ghosts; Cara and Peter, an attractive and lively couple who are temporarily in residence there; and a single, middle-aged woman named Frances who also spends the summer there and acts as our narrator, reviewing the events of that time from […]

Look no further: Perfect Christmas gift for all the foodies on your list

The New Homemade Kitchen by Joseph Shuldiner

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CBR12 BINGO: Happy Full disclosure: My husband tested recipes for this cookbook and we are both listed under the acknowledgments as recipe testers. Some years ago, my husband attended a beer crafting class that was offered by The Institute of Domestic Technology and held at the historic Zane Grey Estate in Altadena, California. When he came home and told me that not only did he have a great time, but that there were goats on the estate, I said, “Sign me up for the next […]

…one unalarmed emergency door away from disappearing forever.

Stay Sexy and Don't Get Murdered: The Definitive How To Guide by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

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CBR12 BINGO: Debut This whole hermit lifestyle I have been living for the last five months has yielded a handful of healthy side effects. In an unprecedented turn of events, I have turned to walking as a quarantine-induced anxiety and stress reliever. My sister gave me her old FitBit and my non-athletic competitive spirit kicked in. I WILL get in at least 13,000-15,000 steps EVERY DAMN DAY. Those circles WILL BE closed. If I’m not feeling like slapping on a mask and braving the city sidewalks […]

How to wrestle some success from a dress, a snake and a song.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

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CBR12 BINGO: Green Square A book about the making of a narcissistic, ruthless and calculating leader is either the most perfect book to be reading right now or the worst. I really can’t decide. In Collins’ prequel to her Hunger Games series, the games are pretty primal. The district tributes aren’t all dolled up, given a backstory, housed in elaborate apartments or fed extravagant buffets. They are kept in a cage at the zoo until they are dumped into a war torn arena to duke it out. […]

I am not going to take you on top of a moldy sarcophagus.

A Murderous Relation by Deanna Raybourn

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CBR12 BINGO: Red I am already worried about the day when Raybourn stops writing these Veronica Speedwell mysteries. Truly. These books and Sherry Thomas’ Lady Sherlock series are what fill the little hole in my heart that Gail Carriger left when the Parasols and Protectorate series ended. I need my witty banter laced with sexual tension. I yearn for characters with quirky occupations, impeccable fashion sense and taste for tea and sweets. Give me passages like this and I am satisified: “Veronica,” he said flatly, ” I am not going […]

“My Happily Ever After was a strand of strung-together happy-for-nows, extending back not to just a year ago, but to thirty years before.”

Beach Read by Emily Henry

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Beach Read is an odd example of a charming romance that I liked a lot, even though I found that I didn’t much like the two main characters. Romance novelist January is reeling — her father died, her boyfriend broke up with her, and she found out (AT HER FATHER’S FUNERAL) that her parents’ marriage wasn’t the perfect love story that she always imagined. She has a book deadline coming up, but she has no ideas and nowhere to live, so she moves into her […]



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