Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

I Still Don’t Know

Hild by Nicola Griffith

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Very mixed feelings on this one, to the point where I still don’t feel like writing a review. I appreciate what Nicola Griffith is going for: this beautifully detailed account of 7th century England with mysticism, political intrigue and other neat stuff. But man, she just can’t quite make it. I could never connect with Hild as a character; she kind of felt like more of a hologram of what the writer wanted her to be than someone actually human. And yet, Griffith does write […]

Highwaywomen, Smugglers, Ghosts, and Dukes

Moonstruck Madness by Laurie McBain

Chance The Winds of Fortune by Laurie McBain

Dark Before the Rising Sun by Laurie McBain

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Moonstruck Madness – 4.5 stars (Aug 2022) Sabrina is a lady by day, but by night she rides as a highwayman, trying to keep her family afloat. When she clashes with the Duke of Camareigh, her schemes begin to unravel. There is not as much swashbuckling adventure as you usually get in these old bodice rippers, but that was more than made up for by the genuinely strong-willed heroine and her rather sensible reasons for clashing with the hero. Lucien is rather arrogant though, and […]

“Really, if one could not capture a moment in four lines, what was one doing? “

Write for Me, Marquess by Kate Archer

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Juliet, the youngest of the Bennington sisters, has decided that the man she marries must be a poet. And there’s even one in London interested in her – even if his haikus underwhelm her. Certainly a sporting man like the Marquess of Hamill will not suit her, no matter how handsome she finds him. This is the fifth book in the series, but not the final – for the sole Bennington brother remains to be wed. But Juliet is the last daughter, and I was […]

Blood Will Out

The Talk of the Town by Lynne Connolly

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After her two tumultuous years wed to the Duke of Whiston come to a fiery end, all Bianca wants is to lead a peaceful life and regain her reputation. But when she meets Alexander Fraser at a house party, she finds herself falling into both love and scandal once again. This is the last book in the Brazen Burrells series, which follows the three penniless but beautiful Burrell sisters as they try to find their fortune in London. I enjoyed the first book, was somewhat […]

That’s A Lotta Kings!

The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England by Dan Jones

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Yes, my find-Game-of-Thrones-in-history fetish is well known. You don’t need me to rehash it. But one thing I’m not clear on: what is the fascination people have with the Tudors? Is it because of Henry VIII? Elizabeth I? The tv shows? Because I find the Plantagenets far more fascinating. This is the story of how the English empire began to extend its greasy tentacles. Packed with enough court intrigue to suffocate a horse. And Dan Jones is an excellent chronicler of it all. Yes, there […]

Romance Old and New

The Devil Drives by Jane Arbor

Sweep Me Up, Baron by Kate Archer

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The Devil Drives – 3.5 stars As a new bride wed to the man of her dreams, Una should be bursting with happiness. But it turns out that her husband had ulterior motives in wedding her – chiefly, to revenge himself on her for the death of his young cousin. Leave aside the rather convoluted premise, as Zante’s reasons for blaming Una and plan for revenge against her alike are pretty silly, in the manner of olden time Harlequins. But the writing is lovely, bringing […]



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