Can't Wait Wednesay!

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

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The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers by Samuel Burr
Published by Doubleday on April 9, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Fiction
Goodreads

An extraordinary, gloriously uplifting novel about the power of friendship and the puzzling ties that bind us

Clayton Stumper might be twenty-six years old, but he dresses like your grandpa and drinks sherry like your aunt. Abandoned at birth on the steps of the Fellowship of Puzzlemakers, he was raised by a group of eccentric enigmatologists and now finds himself among the last survivors of a fading institution.

When the esteemed crossword compiler and main maternal presence in Clayton's life, Pippa Allsbrook, passes away, she bestows her final puzzle on him: a promise to reveal the mystery of his parentage and prepare him for life beyond the walls of the commune. As Clay begins to unpick the clues, he uncovers something even the Fellowship have never been able to solve—and it's a secret that has the potential to change everything.

I stumbled upon this book on Netgalley, and there was just something that called to me. The opening sentence in the synopsis is honestly enough for me to want to read it. I am always looking for books that leave me feeling good, so "uplifting" is a siren's call for me. The premise of an abandoned child being raised by a group of enigmatolgists intrigues me. First, because that's an interesting situation, but also because I love math and puzzles. I hope there is lots of that in this book. The cherry on top is the puzzle that will allow Clayton to uncover his parents' identities. Sounds like a winner to me. 

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The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams
Published by Dell on August 17, 2021
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Goodreads

Is it ever too late to leave the friend-zone?

Hi, my name is Bree Camden, and I’m hopelessly in love with my best friend and star quarterback Nathan Donelson (so is half of America, judging by the tabloids and how much the guy dates). The first step is admitting, right? Except, I can never admit it to him because he clearly doesn’t see me that way, and the last thing I want is for things to get weird between us.

Nothing but good old-fashioned, no-touching-the-sexiest-man-alive, platonic friendship for us! Everything is exactly how I like it! Yes. Good. (I’m not crying, I’m just peeling an onion.)

Our friendship is going swimmingly until I accidentally spill my beans to a reporter over too much tequila, and now the world seems to think me and Nathan belong together. Oh, and did I mention we have to date publicly for three weeks until after the Super Bowl because we signed a contract with...oops, forgot I can’t tell anyone about that!

Bottom line is, now my best friend is smudging all the lines and acting very un-platonic, and I’m just trying to keep my body from bursting into flames every time he touches me.

How am I going to make it through three weeks of fake dating Nathan without anything changing between us? Especially when it almost-sort-a-kinda seems like he’s fighting for a completely different outcome?

Send help.
XO Bree

I have enjoyed several books by Adams. They were all fun, sweet, and hit the spot. There are several things here that made me add this book to my TBR. The cover. I adore sports romances and it appears the heroine is a dancer. That was a big part of my world for a long time, and I always enjoy reading about dancers because of that. This also sounds like a sort of friends-to-lovers situation. That's one of my favorite tropes, and then there is fake dating for even more fun. This should be a good time. 

What are you waiting on?
Let us know in the comments!