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

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Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell
Published by William Morrow on July 30, 2024
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Goodreads

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Eleanor & Park and Attachments comes Slow Dance—a bright, beaming power ballad of a novel about a love so true it refuses to be forgotten.

Back in high school, everybody thought Shiloh and Cary would end up together . . . everybody but Shiloh and Cary.

They were just friends. Best friends. Allies. They spent entire summers sitting on Shiloh’s porch steps, dreaming about the future. They were both going to get out of north Omaha—Shiloh would go to college and become an actress, and Cary would join the Navy. They promised each other that their friendship would never change.

Well, Shiloh did go to college, and Cary did join the Navy. And yet, somehow, everything changed.

Now Shiloh’s thirty-three, and it’s been fourteen years since she talked to Cary. She’s been married and divorced. She has two kids. And she’s back living in the same house she grew up in. Her life is nothing like she planned.

When she’s invited to an old friend’s wedding, all Shiloh can think about is whether Cary will be there—and whether she hopes he will be. Would Cary even want to talk to her? After everything?

The answer is yes. And yes. And yes.

Slow Dance is the story of two kids who fell in love before they knew enough about love to recognize it. Two friends who lost everything. Two adults who just feel lost.

It’s the story of Shiloh and Cary, who everyone thought would end up together, trying to find their way back to the start.

I know everyone always gushes about RR's young adult books, but I happen to like her adult books better. Attachments remains high on my list of favorites, and I know I was thrilled to see a new adult book coming from her. 

I love the idea of this book. Best friends who were pegged as the couple-that-should-have-been get a second chance many years later to see if that connection still exists. This sounds like a mix of two of my favorite tropes - friends to lovers and second chance romance. I never tire of those tropes, and I know RR will give me a beautiful, sweet, and humorous story that will make me happy. I think there is something poetic about two friends finding each other again at a time where they are feeling lost. I am sensing lots of stars for this one. 

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