Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“In Swahili it’s called utu. In Zulu, the word is ubuntu. It translates to ‘humanity,’ but what it really means is ‘community.’ I am because we are. Our humanity is tied together.”

The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope

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Yet another book being done a disservice by its cover. (Should I switch careers and become a book designer? I have zero art skills but I could supervise people who do and like make decisions and stuff!) Anyway, it’s an attractive, colorful cover that I really like the look of, but it doesn’t convey at all the tone of the book or what it is about. I can’t even tell this is a fantasy from looking at this cover, and this is definitely a fantasy, […]

An Immersive World

The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope

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I love a good immersive world in fantasy and speculative fiction, where you feel like you could be in the setting. The Monsters We Defy takes place in Washington, DC in 1925, and Clara Johnson, the main character, can communicate with spirits. I listened to the audio book of this, and Shayna Small does an exceptional job with the voices and the setting and making you invested in the story. I am not surprised to see this won the Audie award for best audio book […]

Great heroine in a 1920s fantasy

The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope

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In The Monsters We Defy, Leslye Penelope takes a small footnote about a real woman who lived in Washington DC in the 1920s and weaves an amazing tale around her.  Clara Johnson was born wrapped in her caul, and because of that she has grown up seeing and speaking with spirits.  As a Black woman in DC in the 1920s, she’s part of a vibrant, striving community struggling to cope with emerging Jim Crow laws and the ever-present threat of white people. Clara wants to […]

More Charm than Trick – it’s a magical heist!

The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope

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CBR14Bingo: Monster – Uh, it’s in the title? OK, ok. The Enigmas Clara deals with are pretty monstrous, and the villain does some pretty terrible and monstrous things. While I don’t read too many historicals any more, I have a definite thing for magical ones. And since I loved the author’s previous fantasy series, I was especially curious to see where she would go with this book. Well, my curiousity was well-rewarded. After all, it’s a magical heist novel! Clara was born with the ability to […]

Fantastic historical heist!

The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope

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I love a good historical fantasy, and this was an utter delight. Set in the early 1920s, Clara Johnson is able to see spirits and other entities from Over There, and because of a deal she made with an Enigma whenever someone asks for help, she is compelled to assist in their own deals with Enigmas. Folks think the Charm is worth the Trick, but Clara is all too aware the cost a Trick actually demands. When she is asked for help figuring out why […]



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