Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

The Cozy I Needed

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

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I’ve been hearing about this book for awhile now, first when it was the self-published phenomenon (I think I even checked it out on KU at some point), and then when Tor picked it up and it was a major publisher phenomenon. But “cozy fantasy”??? When I’m very much not a fan of cozy mysteries? I figured it would be boring with forced quirky characters and improbable coincidences. That’s what “cozy” means to me when it comes to stories. Well, as much as my husband […]

I saw it coming but that’s not totally a bad thing

A Venom Dark and Sweet by Judy I Lin

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I was right. The main threat introduced in A Magic Steeped in Poison that is more directly addressed and defined in A Venom Dark and Sweet was indeed of the ancient evil thing wants to resurrect and take over and destroy the known world. A Venom Dark and Sweet does manage to give heroine Ning more personality though in spite of maintaining her first person voice alternating with a third person representation of Kang’s perspective on things. They’re sort on the same side but also […]

“I suggest a daring stealth adventure, and you have to ruin it by telling me it’s going to involve books.”

AMarvellous Light by Freya Marske

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Freya Marske’s A Marvellous Light is a charming enemies-to-lovers novel that definitely includes books. Briefly, Sir Robin Blythe is appointed as a parliamentary liaison tasked to investigate magical events and brief the prime minister. Edwin Courcey, a bookish man, is his magical contact and, perhaps, supervisor. Blythe is unaware that there is magic in England when he assumes the role, but shortly after, he is set upon in a dark alley and a magical tattoo is imprinted on his arm; he seeks out Courcey for […]

Chosen Ones and Their Problems

Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

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Rainbow Rowell was inspired by her own Simon Snow novel and fanfiction that she created in her novel Fangirl, so she decided to go ahead and turn it into its own book (now a trilogy). Both paying homage to subverting other Chosen One and fantasy novels, as well as fanfiction, Simon Snow is the story of a mage grappling with being the Chosen One while also living his day-to-day life with its attendant relationship dramas. In particular, it is expected that he will save the […]

What Happens When the Past is Forgotten

The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro

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The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro My rating: 4 of 5 stars I chose this for the CBR15 Passport Challenge in the “Travel Your Bookshelf” category. The first time I read Buried Giant, it was going to be a 3 star rating the ending saved it for me. That moment on the shore with Axl and Beatrice gets me in the feels. It’s such sharp, intense writing that leaves a strong impression on a reader. That deserves recognition. Originally, I thought the plot didn’t have much […]

The popular thing I don’t get

Tower of God, vol. 1 by Siu

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You know how when there’s all this hype over a story and then you finally get to it, and it just doesn’t seem that special? That’s Tower of God vol 1. Granted, the anime is the thing that really took off and I’m looking at the comic strip version that the anime’s based on, but still. This seems so generic, I don’t get it. Basically, there’s this mysterious tower, and if you get in (and apparently only the chosen usually are allowed) then you have […]



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