Libba Bray – Cannonball Read 17

I’m sorry, “heavily fringed orbs” is not a sexy way to talk about your international anti-magic stalker’s pretty eyes, and all y’all are dumbasses

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

March 10, 2023 by Bothari43 7 Comments

Ugh, this was an annoying disappointment. I had read one Libba Bray book previously that I liked, about teenage pageant contestants stranded on an island, and hoped that this book about teenage witches at a finishing school for girls would be equally fun. Instead, it’s annoying, and the girls are annoying, and the book would’ve been a short story if anybody had bothered to SPEAK TO EACH OTHER. Plus, redemption arcs for the mean girls? That is a suspension bridge of disbelief too far for […]

Extra Reading March 2022

Batman: The Killing Joke by Christa Faust and Gary Phillips

The Big East: Inside the Most Entertaining and Influential Conference in College Basketball History by Dana O'Neil

In The Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero

The Banks by Roxane Gay, Ming Doyle (Illustrator)

One Night, New York by Lara Thompson

The Secret Lives of Married Women by Elissa Wald

Lost and Found in Harlem by Delia C. Pitts

Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Scandal in Babylon by Barbara Hambly

Sadie by Courtney Summers

April 1, 2022 by Jake Leave a Comment

These are the books I finished in the month of March in which I didn’t have time or words to elaborate on… Batman: The Killing Joke *** Two of my favorites team up for a Batman prose novel? Yes! But the end result is just okay. Interestingly enough, I think both writers do a better job with the random Gothamites than they do with the Caped Crusader and his primary nemesis. You’re fine just reading Alan Moore’s legendary graphic novel. The Big East: Inside the […]

Pretty young things solve supernatural murders in 1920s NYC (Complete bingo card!)

The Diviners by Libba Bray

October 11, 2020 by Malin Leave a Comment

#CBR12 Bingo: The Roaring 20s (could easily be used for Violet as well) 17-year-old Evangeline “Evie” O’Neill can sense people’s secrets if she holds a personal object belonging to them and concentrates hard on it. She becomes decidedly unpopular in her home town when she gets drunk at a party and reveals that one of the town’s golden boys knocked up a hotel maid and paid her to have the problem “dealt with”. He accuses her of slander and threatens to sue her family. Evie […]

A great series goes out with a whimper

The King of Crows by Libba Bray

May 11, 2020 by pixifer Leave a Comment

The King of Crows is the fourth and final book in the Diviners series. The series is about a group of superpowered teenagers in 1920s New York City. Evie can read objects to learn about the owners; Memphis can heal diseases and injuries; Theta has fire that shoots out from her body; Henry can walk in people’s dreams and influence their dreams; Ling can walk in dreams to talk to the dead; Isaiah sees the future; Sam can become invisible; Jericho has superhuman strength and […]

“The colonizer writes the history, winning twice: A theft of land. A theft of witness.”

Before the Devil Breaks You by Libba Bray

March 30, 2019 by cosbrarian Leave a Comment

In this third installment of Bray’s fantastic Diviners series, Libba Bray finally pulls together many moving pieces and lays down the major themes of the series with gusto. If I could sum it up in one phrase, I’d call this book “Ghosts are scary, but not as scary as evangelism” Or “Ghosts are scary, but it’s your fault.” The Diviners are a diverse group of supernaturally talented young people in 1920s NYC (who aren’t officially called “The Diviners” but simply “diviners” at this point). In […]

Going Obnoxious Teenager

July 5, 2018 by Bothari43 1 Comment

I read Libba Bray’s Beauty Queens several Cannonballs ago and enjoyed it, so when I was looking for something a little lighter, I thought I’d check out another one of hers. I’m not sure if I picked the wrong one, or if Beauty Queens was a fluke, but I did NOT enjoy this one. Jackass is 16 (I finished the book two days ago and have already forgotten his name). Jackass is your typical teen character: bored with school, with his parents, with his sister, with life. He’s obnoxious […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

Help Our Mission