Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

“As a heartless killing machine, I was a terrible failure.”

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

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CBR13Bingo: Book Club (local library genre book club) Look, I love Murderbot so deeply that it is very hard for me to explain why without just devolving into a squeeing mess. When my local library’s genre book club picked this as its monthly selection, I was overjoyed, but a bit wary of how the, uh, older and more critical members would take it. But I vastly underestimated Murderbot’s appeal! “As a heartless killing machine, I was a terrible failure.” It’s just another routine contract for Murderbot, until […]

My general feelings for this book can be summed up as UGHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

Red Mars (Mars Trilogy, #1) by Kim Stanley Robinson

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I think I am allergic to Kim Stanley Robinson. Loved the idea behind this book, extremely disliked the execution. I tried reading 2312 years back, and similarly, any cool tingly science feelings I got from that book (which if I’m remembering right, starts with a moving, mechanized city on Mercury) was completely murdered by the boring as hell characters and lack of emotional through-line. I just remember the boredom with that one, but here I was not only bored but frustrated and annoyed by KSR’s attempt […]

A wondrously weird book. #CBRBINGO – Free!

Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

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Thanks to Tor/Forge for the eARC! It has not affected the content of my review. This book was so very weird and so very lovely. I very much enjoyed it. I’ve been dragging my feet on this review but it’s pub day* so I need to buckle down. This is one of those cases where the description really doesn’t do the book justice, and also it very much will not be everyone’s cup of tea, because it resists classification, and takes three very good ideas […]

“Truth is a human right.”

Axiom's End by Lindsay Ellis

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I have no idea who Lindsay Ellis is, so I picked this up solely based on the blurb. I have a definite soft spot for first contact stories, especially ones where the humans involved are not, well, exactly who you’d pick to represent humanity. “Truth is not freely given in our society; it must be taken. Where walls are built, tear them down. Where borders are drawn, erase the line. Where you see wax, break the seal. Truth is a human right.” It’s 2007, and […]

Not a Whimsical Portal Fantasy, But a Corporate Retail Portal Fantasy

Finna by Nino Cipri

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Oh, there’s always been something a bit sus about that certain Swedish furniture store, hasn’t there? Just a little? About how once you go in, there’s no telling how long it’ll take you to get back out again. Whether or not it’s a new throw rug or some nice meatballs, there’s always something that keeps on trying to draw you away from the exit It’s this feeling that made me pick Finna first out of all the Hugo-nominated novellas to read, as the premise of […]

Little Sister has punch

Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters volume 1 by Chris Samnee

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I was going to include Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters volume 1 with Barb the Last Berzerker not because they are by the same author(s) and/or illustrator(s), or even because they had similar themes. Now, they do both have a wild child (Barb in one and Jonna in the other), but their paths are radically different. One is on a journey to stop an evil wizard and likes to have a chat or two, the other hits first, second, last and does not talk much […]



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