Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Debt of Honour

The Honourable Schoolboy by John Le Carré

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With the United States in steep (and willing) decline globally, surrendering its power on the world stage, I’ve looked to the works of John Le Carré for inspiration. Le Carré’s greatest gift as an espionage writer was chronicling the decline of Great Britain as a world power and doing so with a combination of wistful attitudes and thrilling writing. Yes there’s a lot of talking, a lot of musing in the books and it can take a while to set the stage. But when it […]

This One’s A Thriller

The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War by Ben MacIntyre

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First of all: RIP Oleg Gordievsky. I picked this up unaware he died earlier in March. Or maybe I had heard it and my subconscious urged me to read it. Either way, hope he rests in peace. Yeah the “reads like a thriller” tag is accurate here. I really do need to read more Ben MacIntyre. I’ve tried with MacIntyre before and while his books are good, I need to be in a specific headspace to read non-fiction and stuff kept getting in the way. […]

Final 2024 Leftovers

1876 by Gore Vidal

Joe Country by Mick Herron

James by Percival Everett

Slough House by Mick Herron

Kiss Her Goodbye by Allan Guthrie

The Contemplative Tarot: A Christian Introduction to the cards by Brittany Muller

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Hope everyone had a wonderful 2024. Remember that while we can’t control the horrors of the world, there is joy to be found in the presence of those we love. 1876**** Didn’t hit as hard as Burr; Burr’s presence was the center of the story that made it go, whereas this book wants to highlight every major player in the 1876 election. But Vidal does a good job of evoking the atmosphere of the time: the unapologetic corruption, the paranoia of another war and the […]

Thanksgiving 2024 Leftovers

Remembrance Day by Henry Porter

Dead Lions by Mick Herron

Zero Days by Ruth Ware

Whisper Down the Lane by Clay McLeod Chapman

Killing Castro by Lawrence Block

Deadly Beloved by Max Allan Collins

Spy Hook by Len Deighton

London Rules by Mick Herron

Real Tigers by Mick Herron

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Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate. Remembrance Day**** An interesting take on the English-vs-Irish spy novel and while the author telegraphs too many things, he knows how to keep a story moving. Barely clears the 4-star threshold but if I invest time to read something almost 500 pages long, it has to be at least “good” and this was. Dead Lions, Real Tigers, and London Rules**** I had originally meant to do a big long post on my love/grr relationship with Mick Herron’s Slough House […]

Three For When It Happens Here

Spook Street by Mick Herron

Guide Me Home by Attica Locke

The Order by Daniel Silva

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Like a lot of folks in the ten days since the election, I’ve perhaps been slow to process the news. This has impacted my reading. Whereas I’m usually a speed reader, I have found myself often putting off my reading to do some mindless activities. Dealing with reality can be tough, the uncertainty of what comes after the next two months are over is difficult to grapple with. Inadvertently, the three books I’ve read from immediately before the election into the ten days since have […]

Escapist Fun

The Expats by Chris Pavone

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The Story: Kate Moore’s husband is offered a cushy job in Luxembourg, so they pack up their life in Washington, DC, and go. What no one in her life knows is that Kate–who up until the move seemed to be a pencil pusher at firm in Washington DC, and in Luxembourg is a stay-at-home mom–wasn’t just any pencil pusher but was in fact in the CIA. And soon enough, weird things start happening in Luxembourg that ping her CIA-dar. Another American couple moves to town, […]



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