Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Called Every Plot Element, But This One Holds Up Better Than “Behind Closed Doors”

Bring Me Back by B. A. Paris

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So going to flat out say this is much better than “Behind Closed Doors” or that book I referred to as when a woman keeps doing really dumb crap for no reason besides plot. “Bring Me Back” had an interesting plot, but what kept me interested were the characters. I didn’t really care for Layla or Finn, but did find the story engrossing. I was very disappointed by the ending, it didn’t really hold up with the rest of the book. “Bring Me Back” follows […]

Most of the Book Focused on Suspense Not the Romance

The Obsession by Nora Roberts

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Not too much to say here. Roberts focuses mostly on the suspense aspect of this book and it works much better. The main reason why I gave it three stars is that I think that it would have been smart to include the POV of Naomi’s brother as well. Thank goodness though he doesn’t enter into a romance in this one. I loved how they both changed based on what happened with their parents and the paths they took. Other than that the book felt […]

A Quick Little Walk on the Dark Side

The Best American Mystery Stories 2018 by Louise Penny (editor)

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I’m going to say that while I did like this collection, I don’t necessarily know that I personally would have called all the included stories “mystery” stories. A lot of them fell into more of a ‘suspense’ or general ‘crime’ genres rather than a true mystery story. That didn’t bother me most of the time, but it was enough of a thing that I wanted to get it out there for anyone who may want to check this one out. As with most short story […]

Apologies to whoever sat next to me while I read this

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins

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The Library at Mount Char is a strange book. Sometimes it’s really interesting and suspenseful; other times, it’s horrific (as in horror literature, not general quality). The thing is, at least for me, is that the two don’t quite mesh together. The general story follows Caroline and Steve, who apparently has some kind of criminal past but now lives a quiet life as a plumber. He meets Caroline who seems a little off but who offers him an unusual amount of money to help her […]

Red Harvest

The Fools In Town Are On Our Side by Ross Thomas

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Dashiell Hammett’s Red Harvest is perhaps my favorite crime novel of all-time. It inspired one of my favorite movies of all time: Miller’s Crossing. It also inspired the Akira Kurosawa classic Yojimbo, which I have not seen, though I want to. Point being: I obviously have a thing for the specific genre where a political actor is caught in a corrupt city and plays both sides against each other for their own benefit. I don’t know Ross Thomas’ inspirations for Fools in Town but I’d be stunned if Red Harvest wasn’t one […]

If ever there was a book that I needed to talk to someone about, this would be it

Blue Hours by Daphne Kalotay

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I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher. This has not influenced my review. Blue Hours is a book in three parts. It is part relationship drama, part international hostage drama, and part infuriating. The story begins in New York City with Mim, a recent college graduate trying to make it as a writer. She lives with several roommates and works in a retail clothing store. She is both too frugal to eat anything but liverwurst at the deli for lunch everyday […]



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