Can't Wait Wednesday!

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I am combining CWW with Books From the Backlog hosted by Carole at Carole's Random Life in Books. This will allow me to feature some newly "rediscovered" books, which I plan on reading, alongside a new release.

This week I can't wait for:

The Insomniacs
Marit Weisenberg
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Mystery
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Release Date: September 1, 2020
Goodreads

A sharp and romantic novel about two suburban teens who can’t sleep uncovering the secrets of their neighborhood by night. Think The Summer I Turned Pretty with flashes of Rear Window!

When seventeen-year-old competitive diver Ingrid freezes up and sustains a head injury at a routine meet, her orderly life is turned upside down. Now housebound and sedentary on doctor’s orders, Ingrid can’t sleep and is haunted by the question of what triggered her uncharacteristic stage fright.

The only thing she remembers about the moment before the dive is seeing Van, her neighbor, former best friend, and forever crush, on the sidelines. Then one sleepless night, she sees Van outside her window...looking right back at her. They tentatively begin “not sleeping” together every night but still living separate lives by day.

Ingrid tells herself this is just temporary, but soon, she and Van are up every night together, increasingly intertwined in helping each other put pieces of memory together. As Van works through his own reasons for not being able to sleep, both of them are pulled into a mystery that threatens to turn their quiet neighborhood into a darker place than they realized.

Why I want to read this book

I mean, it starts by calling the book "romantic", and we all know that's my favorite kind of story. I am also really curious about this Van kid. Why does he come in the night? He is really there? And then there's a mystery too. I am more than curious to learn more about Ingrid and all the things she is up to each night. 

Sloppy Firsts
Megan McCafferty
Series: Jessica Darling
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: Crown
Release Date: March 5, 2002
Goodreads

“My parents suck ass. Banning me from the phone and restricting my computer privileges are the most tyrannical parental gestures I can think of. Don’t they realize that Hope’s the only one who keeps me sane? ... I don’t see how things could get any worse.”

When her best friend, Hope Weaver, moves away from Pineville, New Jersey, hyperobservant sixteen-year-old Jessica Darling is devastated. A fish out of water at school and a stranger at home, Jessica feels more lost than ever now that the only person with whom she could really communicate has gone. How is she supposed to deal with the boy- and shopping-crazy girls at school, her dad’s obsession with her track meets, her mother salivating over big sister Bethany’s lavish wedding, and her nonexistent love life?

A fresh, funny, utterly compelling fiction debut by first-time novelist Megan McCafferty, Sloppy Firsts is an insightful, true-to-life look at Jessica’s predicament as she embarks on another year of teenage torment—from the dark days of Hope’s departure through her months as a type-A personality turned insomniac to her completely mixed-up feelings about Marcus Flutie, the intelligent and mysterious “Dreg” who works his way into her heart. Like a John Hughes for the twenty-first century, Megan McCafferty taps into the inherent humor and drama of the teen experience. This poignant, hilarious novel is sure to appeal to readers who are still going through it, as well as those who are grateful that they don’t have to go back and grow up all over again.

Why I want to read this book

I have such a thing for those diary type books, and I love getting to spend a long period of time getting to know their characters and their worlds. I have been told the Jessica Darling books are in the vein of Chloe Snow and Ruby Oliver, and that right there is enough reason for me to pick it up. I have been wanting to read these books for years, but my eLibrary only had the third book, so I put it off for a while. Then I won a gift card and purchased the first two books a few years ago, and yeah, you know how it goes. Getting an ARC of McCafferty's newest release is the kick in the pants I needed to start this series, and I am very excited about it. 

What are you waiting on?
Any backlog books you want to read soon? 
Let us know in the comments!