Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“The only thing every love story really has in common is that it’s worth it.”

Not in My Book by Katie Holt

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Here’s the problem – this is a well-written book. The craft is there. But… I just couldn’t care about what is happening with the characters and kept having to make myself pick it back up between reading other books, which is not at all how I normally approach Romance books. There were times where the characterization felt inconsistent, in the early parts of the book I felt the need to double check how old Rosie was supposed to be. I liked it better than The Maiden and Her Monster because while I felt they shared […]

That which we call a rose

The Names by Florence Knapp

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I’m a sucker for a Sliding Doors kind of story – Lionel Shriver’s The Post Birthday World, Kristin Cashore Jane, Unlimited … – I just enjoy seeing how the author envisions people having completely different relationships based on one decision. Sometimes, there is a sense of poignancy and sadness as a reader as we know things the characters never will, we see how people that could have been best friends in one life are barely passing strangers, seeing a loss the characters never even realize […]

“In my shoes, a walking sleep / And my youth I pray to keep”

Heatstroke (2020) by Hazel Barkworth

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Heatstroke (2020) is clever–cleverer than its cover, certainly cleverer than its title. I remember that the review blurbs on the covers of Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects (2006) and Megan Abbott’s Dare Me (2012) signposted how terrifying teenaged girls can be–and this is certainly a thing, the way teenage girls are inscribed with contradictions of power and anxiety, and Heatstroke does deal with that–but I remember thinking, well, it’s actually the mother that is fairly fucking monstrous in Sharp Objects, and parental figures are pretty absent […]

“Don’t you ever apologize for being who you are or let someone make you feel bad for being Black.”

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

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This book was the “One Book One Community” pick from my local library, wherein they pick a book, all of the book clubs read it, and they bring the author in to give a talk. They have a pretty good track record with me, picking something that I enjoy, and this year was no different. This debut novel walks a delicate line where it covers a lot of groud, but does so evenly which makes for a balanced and interesting novel. It’s a compelling mystery […]

Optimistic dystopian fiction?

The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands by Sarah Brooks

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In an alternate universe in 1899,  travelers wishing to cross the land between China and Russia have only one option: the Trans-Siberian Express. The area known as the Wastelands is a dangerous zone: it’s populated by monsters, the air is poison, and even staring at the view too long will mess with your head. Still, the train has a reputation for luxury, especially if you can afford a First Class ticket. Who wouldn’t want to experience the adventure of a luxurious trans-Siberian excursion, with a […]

“He is a person, complicated and confused. Just like you.”

Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin

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Ayesha at Last is a retelling the story of Pride and Prejudice featuring the titular Ayesha, a Muslim woman in her late twenties who has put aside her dreams of poetry and just finished a career change to become a teacher, financed by her wealthy uncle who has been financially supportive of her family since her father’s death including moving them to Canada and giving them the house they share with her grandparents. She is single and being passed on the proverbial marriage mart by […]



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