Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Codependant Hacker in Search of a Cause

The Salvation Gambit by Emily Skrutskie

by Leave a Comment

After a job gone wrong, Murdock and her gang of con artists are tithed to a sentient warship that’s styled itself into a punitive god. Escaping the ship would be hard enough – but when the Justice takes a personal interest in Murdock, the stakes only get higher. I have been slowing dipping my toes into the space opera genre, mostly via the wonderful Becky Chambers, but I am always on the lookout for more. And the premise of this book immediately sold me – […]

Sweet, Ghibli-esque cottage core fantasy

Flowerheart by Catherine Bakewell

by Leave a Comment

What: Catherine Bakewell’s Flowerheart is a lovely coming into one’s power tale with Studio Ghibli vibes and a charmingly rustic setting,  It’s also a fairytale with wild magic, curses, witches and wizards.  Running through is the rebuilding of a childhood friendship that turns to romance. Who: Clara Lucas is a witch in training, about to turn sixteen, and afraid of her power.  Her magic surges in wild, and sometimes destructive, ways and is affected by her mood.  On the benign side flowers will spontaneously bloom in her […]

Tea and Books with some magic and dragons and soldiers

Can't Spell treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

by Leave a Comment

Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea very much matches the label on the front cover “cozy fantasy steeped in love”. It’s not exactly a romance though, since the main couple is already established at the start, and they actually seem to have a healthy communication dynamic (which it feels like most standard romances must avoid). Unless the love is actually the couple everyone knows are into each other but they refuse to admit it themselves, or maybe it’s the young teenage first love thing that gets […]

A strange little fantasy. I expected nothing less from this author.

City of Last Chances (The Tyrant Philosophers, #1) by Adrian Tchaikovsky

by Leave a Comment

This is a tough book to sink your teeth into. It’s slow to start, and slow to catch your emotions (if it ever catches them all), but still, for the right reader this book could work very well. I always appreciate a well-executed attempt at a unique structure, and we have that here in abundance. Up front, though, the reason this is getting 3.5 stars is that though there were bits that caught my imagination in the first half of the book, it didn’t really […]

“We are but fevered stars. Here a little while, bright with promise, before we burn away.”

Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse

by Leave a Comment

I’ve been struggling with review writing lately and decided to give the 5 Ws way a shot because this book/series is too good to not share. What:  Fevered Star, is the second book in Rebecca Roanhorse’s  Between Earth and Sky series.  The first is Black Sun, which I thoroughly enjoyed!  It is an epic fantasy tale where Gods seek to regain power in the mortal realm and human power players seek to reshape control of the land and seas. Who:  Naranpa, Sun Priest, who has now become […]

Satisfying conclusion to the Last Binding Trilogy

A Power Unbound by Freya Marske

by Leave a Comment

Freya Marske satisfyingly concludes her Last Binding Trilogy with A Power Unbound.  I loved the first volume, A Marvellous Light.  It has a creative magic system and adorable couple Robin and Edwin.  I found the second one, A Restless Truth, to feel a bit rushed due to the time limit on having to occur on an ocean voyage between the US and England.  Also, Maud as a character tends to make me feel breathless with her energy and constant pushing for action.  Though A Power Unbound […]



Help Our Mission

You can donate to CBR via:

  1. PayPal
  2. Venmo