Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Frankenstein but plants and gay!

A Botanical Daughter by Noah Medlock

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I saw a reel on Instagram from the author talking about this book, and I was immediately sold. Frankenstein? Queer? Messy, messy characters? Sign me up! And this absolutely delivers on all fronts. The beginning of A Botanical Daughter is a little slow, but it perfectly sets the scene of Grimfern, an estate inside a greenhouse outside the closest village, and the three main characters – Gregor, botanist and lord of Grimfern; Simon, taxidermist and romantic partner to Gregor; and Jenny, local village girl whose […]

Queer awakenings aren’t just for teens

Cash Delgado is Living the Dream by Tehlor Kay Mejia

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I was a little hesitant to pick this book up after I couldn’t get into Sammy Espinoza, but I’m so glad I gave this a shot after all! Even though this takes place in the same town and there’s several Sammy cameos, this absolutely stands on its own with its focus on Cash and wanting to save Joyce’s, a local dive bar. This is also a book where “everything is political” really keeps coming to mind in the way it challenges gentrification and is so […]

Satisfying conclusion to the Last Binding Trilogy

A Power Unbound by Freya Marske

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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 […]

Fantastic witchy YA!

How to Succeed in Witchcraft by Aislinn Brophy

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I got an arc of Aislinn Brophy’s upcoming <u>Spells to Forget Us</u> so being me, I decided to read her debut first, and this was phenomenal. Shay is in her junior year and burning the candle at both ends in the hopes of wining the Brockton scholarship, a scholarship for her school that would pay for college tuition and basically ensures she’d be able to go to a licensing college. There is so much good commentary on access and privilege and the American dream through […]

Fun & Delightful Black Sapphic Romance

A Little Kissing Between Friends by Chencia C. Higgins

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I feel like I’ve been waiting for this book forever, so as soon as I got approved for an arc I had to immediately jump in. And I am so glad I did! I’ve loved Chencia’s books since I read Wolves of West Texas, and seeing her story-telling grow and develop is just amazing. A Little Kissing Between Friends is such a delight of a book and had me laughing constantly. The friendship between Jucee and Cyn is so wonderful, and I also love how […]

Magical queer historical romance

Of Socialites and Prizefights by Arden Powell

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Arden Powell has been on my radar for a while and I’ve been collecting their books, but lesbians is what finally broke the seal (I am but a simple lesbian lol) and now I want to dive into the whole Flos Magicae backlist to see all the characters in their own stories. Deepa is a singer at a club and doesn’t believe in love, so when one of her paramours curses her to become a leopard every midnight and tells her the only way to […]



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