Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“You have to be very strong to live close to God or a mountain, or you’ll turn a little mad.”

Black Narcissus: A Novel by Rumer Godden

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Cbr16bingo Dun dun This is my first foray into Rumer Godden’s works. Black Narcissus was published in 1939 and was turned into a movie in 1947. Apparently it was made into a 3-part miniseries on FX a few years back, too. I was aware that Godden’s work often touched on matters of religion and spirituality but I was not prepared for the suspense and foreboding that haunt the pages of this story. It reminded me a bit of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca — an innocent […]

I hope we don’t wait 7 years for a Book 3

My Favorite Thing is Monsters Book 2 by Emil Ferris

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Cbr16bingo Pride (Emil Ferris is bisexual and several of her characters are LGBTQIA2S+) Book 2 of My Favorite Thing is Monsters (MFTIM) finally dropped this year, 7 years after Emil Ferris’ outstanding and much acclaimed debut graphic novel. As ever the art is stunning — colorful ballpoint pen on lined notebook paper with amazing detail and homages to horror comics on every page. MFTIM is 10-year-old Karen Reyes’ story of events from spring and summer of 1968 in Chicago. It’s the story of her family’s […]

A re-read that holds up

My Favorite Thing is Monsters Book 1 by Emil Ferris

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Cbr16bingo Dreams graphic novel features dream sequences, nightmarish horrors and main character’s dream is to become a monster (werewolf) I reviewed this graphic novel for CBR9 and loved it. The second volume has only just dropped this year and a re-read was needed as I’d forgotten most of the plot over 7 years. This is a story of monsters and horrors, but of course the scariest things are not supernatural but very real and human. Through gorgeous detailed art and skillful storytelling, Emil Ferris creates […]

Nowhere had she encountered as many puppeteers as in Hollywood

Table for Two by Amor Towles

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CBR16 BINGO: Golden, because the novella Eve in Hollywood takes place during the Golden Age of Hollywood BINGO: Part 1, Part 2, Dreams, Golden, Scandal I was so taken with A Gentleman in Moscow that the gathering up and devouring of more of Amor Towles’s works became inevitable. While not quite reaching the same level of charm as the aforementioned tale of a Russian aristocrat, Table for Two is a solid collection of short narratives that mingle humor, tragedy, and resilience. Table for Two feels like […]

Four Weddings and a Funeral

Husband Material by Alexis Hall

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CBR16 Bingo: Rings (a whole bunch of rings being exchanged in this book) In Boyfriend Material, Luc and Oliver met, pretended to date for a number of reasons, pretended to be in love, fell in love, broke up, and then decided to actually date for real. By the time this book starts, they have been together for a good while (I want to say at least a year?) and as is often the case at a certain age of your life, they keep being invited […]

“And then, Rue, I met you. And you casually cracked my life into before and after you.”

Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood

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Rue Siebert has never wanted a relationship, she’s finds men to hook up with on dating apps and has a strict rule about one night only. When her latest date is interrupted by her drunken brother and the night doesn’t end the way she expected, she breaks her rule and gives the guy her phone number. Nevertheless, she doesn’t expect to see him again. Unexpectedly, she sees him again as soon as the next morning, when he is part of the venture capitalist firm, which […]



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