CBR13 – Page 42 – Cannonball Read 17

Alcohol is a tricky, tricky, tricky thing and this was difficult to write

Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol by Holly Whitaker

March 23, 2021 by LaneyFace 7 Comments

This is a difficult review to write because it feels so deeply personal as compared to writing about crocodile murders or an enemy-to-lovers romance. Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol details Holly Whitaker’s personal journey with alcohol leading to her sobriety and recovery. It’s equal parts memoir, self-help, and practical programming. I think it’s a book for a wide range of folks, from those who are sober curious, to those who seek a path to […]

Have you ever thought of books as “small flattish boxes… packed with mystery and threat”?

A Judgement in Stone by Ruth Rendell

March 23, 2021 by ElCicco Leave a Comment

“Eunice Parchman killed the Coverdale family because she could not read or write.” I have to say, I found it weird that Ruth Rendell would start a murder mystery by eliminating the mystery in the very first sentence. It’s been a while since I read any Rendell, but I have always found her murder mysteries to be absorbing and unsettling, which is where the fun is. One would never describe her mysteries as “cozy.” The fact that we readers know the who and the why […]

My mind is blown, and not because I’ve been sampling magic mushrooms

Entangled Life: How Fungi Make our Worlds, Change our Minds, and Shape our Futures by Merlin Sheldrake

March 21, 2021 by KimMiE" 12 Comments

I have read many books on science and natural history, but few have made me stop reading every few pages to look up and declare to whomever is within hearing distance (currently, my husband and cats, because we’re in a pandemic), “This is fascinating.” I don’t care if you’ve never read a book about nature in all your previous existence. Entangled Life will ensorcel you with tales of carnivorous mushrooms, zombie fungi, acid trips, and superhero microorganisms that could end up saving the planet. If […]

Let’s pretend this was never published

The Best of Me by David Sedaris

March 21, 2021 by Rooooomie Leave a Comment

I’ve been a fan of David Sedaris’s writing for a very long time; Me Talk Pretty One Day was the first book of his that I read, and I quickly blew through his back catalogue at the time. Since then, I’ve bought and read every new book he has released, including his latest, The Best of Me. I’ve been in a bit of a reading rut this year, so when trying to decide what to read next, I was confident Sedaris’s latest release would break […]

I forgot how recently I read this book, but I liked it

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

March 17, 2021 by LaneyFace Leave a Comment

Here comes my favorite trope again—enemies to lovers! Christina Lauren’s The Unhoneymooners follows Olive Torres, a perennially unlucky woman whose twin sister marries the brother of Olive’s arch-nemesis, the handsome and affable Ethan. When the newlyweds are unable to attend their honeymoon due to an unfortunate bought of food poisoning at their wedding reception, Olive and Ethan are gifted the nonrefundable Hawaiian honeymoon. Reluctant to go, but forced by their respective siblings to accept the trip, Olive and Ethan squabble and verbally spar with one […]

“…isn’t it simpler to believe that we are all of us what we assume to be?”

The Lady Vanishes by Ethel Lina White

March 17, 2021 by ElCicco Leave a Comment

It never occurred to me that the Hitchcock film The Lady Vanishes, which I have not seen, was based upon a novel. I forget how I even came across this one, but I like a good mystery and figured this would not disappoint. Turns out, this mystery is an amazingly suspenseful thriller, with the threat of evil and psychological imbalance on nearly every page. The Lady Vanishes, originally published in 1936 as The Wheel Spins, keeps both the reader and the story’s protagonist guessing until […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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