Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

And then there were none – or were there?

Reckless Girls by Rachel Hawkins

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Lux and her boyfriend Nico are eking out a poorly-paid, uncomfortable living on Maui after their dream of sailing Nico’s boat, Susannah, across the Pacific was smashed due to damage to the boat which they still can’t afford to put right. The situation is rendered more irritating to Lux since Nico’s family is rich, and if he applied for help from them, the boat could be fixed, and they’d be free to travel. Instead, and after Lux is fired from her room cleaning job at […]

The Wife Upstairs: Who’s conning whom?

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

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Book four of five that I should have reviewed weeks ago… Rachel Hawkins’s The Wife Upstairs follows a woman named Jane who has found her way into the upper-crust neighborhood of Thornfield Estates in Alabama as a dog-walker to the rich and occasionally famous. One day she bumps into the neighborhood’s most eligible bachelor/widower, Eddie Rochester. He is recovering from his wife, Bea’s mysterious death. Soon, Jane is walking Eddie’s dog. And staying in Eddie’s house. And wearing an engagement ring. The only problem is – […]

A talking cat that only says ‘Treats.’

The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling

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I wouldn’t change a lick of this. I can’t really think of a reason not to give it five stars. I sat down on a Sunday morning and read this straight through, and it was a pleasure and a delight. I’ve been reading as many fluffy and witchy reads as I can since the beginning of September because I’m just feeling that right now, and publishers have been so obliging. I liked Witch, Please, and loved Payback’s a Witch. And I loved this one, too. Sometimes you […]

A Very Thriller Retelling of Jane Eyre. Recommended for haters of Mr. Rochester. Fans of Bertha Mason might be disappointed.

The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins

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So many 3.5 star books lately, and so hard to decide whether to round up or down. In the end, it was down for this one, because I don’t think, had I not read Jane Eyre, that I would have been very interested in it at all. I think it would have read like just another thriller. But, it was well done, I think. I just have thriller fatigue. And I love Jane Eyre, and while this book shares characters, the characters don’t share motivations, […]

Fluffy Young Adult Romance and Fun

Her Royal Highness by Rachel Hawkins

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So I’m weirdly starting off my first review in almost a year with a sequel, but here we are. I read the first in this series, published under two different names: Royals or Prince Charming, towards the end of 2019. It was a light, fluffy, fun romp of a young adult-ish romance? No clue where the library would put these: nothing explicit, but still definitely romance and involving teenagers/early 20’s. So something like that. New adult? Somewhere in that range. Millie is a girl running […]

High School Drama + Magic + Alabama + Hipsters

Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins

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In my inaugural post of the year, I mentioned that part of my 2019 reading goal was to read more books by international and female writers in order to expand my horizons a bit. I’m also trying to jump out of my typical genres, to see what’s out there. Rachel Hawkins’ Rebel Belle was a fun diversion from what I normally read. It’s the perfect kind of book to listen to whilst road tripping – light, fun, and entertaining. Amy Rubinate’s narration style was a welcome passenger […]



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