Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

I guess I’m one of the few people who really liked this one!

Book of Night (Book of Night, #1) by Holly Black

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This has been getting pretty bad reviews, especially for how anticipated it was. Most of my friends have given it three stars or lower, or DNFed it. I was determined not to let that affect me, and I’m so glad I didn’t! This is a deceptively small book that gets off to a weird start, but as I kept going, I found myself so drawn in emotionally, and really invested in Charlie and her relationship especially with Vince, her mysterious boyfriend. I loved Vince right […]

“Yes, you’re afraid of me because I’m better than you are. And if you give one talented woman the power she deserves, another will follow. Then another. And together they’ll show that their way is better. Then your whole fake fucking world will come tumbling down.”

The Change by Kirsten Miller

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This book is more complicated than you think it’s going to be just by the premise, which admittedly is a great way to get you in to the book. Basically, in the world of this book, which is only about a hairsbreadth away from being our world, some middle-aged women develop magical/supernatural powers when they are going through menopause. These are the protectors, the healers, the fighters, and the witches. Our three main characters are Nessa, Harriett, and Jo, and they find each other at […]

Witches, found family, and a big FU to transphobes.

Her Majesty's Royal Coven (Her Majesty's Royal Coven, #1) by Juno Dawson

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This was a lot more emotionally fraught than I expected it to be. And that ending 😩 I was hopeful going in to this that Juno Dawson’s first adult book, and first fantasy book would be good, because that premise sounded like so much fun. And while I was rewarded with a quality book that I really enjoyed reading, it really wasn’t all shits and giggles. Come for the 90s nostalgia, female friendships, a cool take on contemporary witches, and then leave heartbroken by the […]

A witch and a witch-hunter, sitting in a tree . . .

Boss Witch (Fix-It Witches, #2) by Ann Aguirre

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30 Books in 30 Days, Vol. 2 Book 21/30 Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the audio ARC. It hasn’t affected the content of my review. I liked this better than the first one! By quite a bit. The romance was very nice. I liked both Clem and Gavin, and thought they had lovely chemistry. The book really took off though when the non-romantic plot got going. I’m glad to say that the fact that Gavin is a witch hunter is not wasted, at […]

“Shakespeare knew too much.”

The Left-Handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix

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I really had a good time with this one. I didn’t realize it was YA going in, but while it did lean into YA sensibilities at points, mostly it just felt like a kooky magical adventure story. It was very hard to put down, and I found myself constantly wondering what would happen next, which doesn’t really happen all that often to me anymore because I read so much (usually for me these days I vacillate between “I pretty much know what’s coming” because I’m […]

Another feel-good entry from T.J. Klune.

Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune

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For me, this needed just a little more dark elements to balance out the schmoop, which is a thing I’m still not fully on board with in terms of Klune’s writing, although it hit me less here than it did in Cerulean Sea. But overall this was a lovely read, like a warm hug. While I do have some criticisms, mostly to do with an overdose of earnestness and not enough subtlety (also known as schmoop), I really did enjoy this book. It was an escape […]



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