Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings
to spotlight upcoming release we are excited about that we have yet to read.
Here are three upcoming releases that caught my attention and immediately ended up on my wish list I am looking forward to reading all of them.
The Matchmaker by Aisha Saeed
Release Date: April 8, 2025 by Bantam
Release Date: April 8, 2025 by Bantam
A society matchmaker realizes she’s in danger when her clients' weddings are sabotaged in increasingly disturbing ways—an utterly original mystery from New York Times bestselling author Aisha Saeed.
Nura Khan is a third-generation matchmaker in Atlanta and business has never been better. Her exclusive clientele benefits from her impeccable track record. And while a single thirty-one-year-old matchmaker would normally raise some perfectly threaded eyebrows in the community, Nura's childhood best friend Azar is willing to double as her pretend fiancĂ© at her clients’ weddings—as long as Nura is able to hide that her feelings for him might not be so pretend.
But Nura quickly learns that all that glitters isn’t gold. While it’s not uncommon to get the occasional hate mail from rejected prospective clients, after a couple’s carefully constructed wedding implodes, Nura is blindsided by a cascading chain of increasingly terrifying events and realizes someone is taking things too far. With Azar by her side, Nura embarks on a dangerous cat-and-mouse game that threatens not only her safety but everything she's worked so hard to build. [from the Publisher]
There's something about novels featuring matchmakers that draws me to them. This one sounds like it will be an entertaining mystery with a fake-dating romance twist!
Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Release Date: April 8, 2025 by Berkley
Release Date: April 8, 2025 by Berkley
"It's time we name our kingdom!" he shouted over the wind. "I say we call this place Happy Land. If this ain't the land of happy people, then where is it? Why not create our heaven right here on earth?"
In the hills of Appalachia, there once existed a land ruled by a king and queen. Inspired by memories of African kingdoms, a community of formerly enslaved men and women grasped freedom on mountain land they owned. But freedom doesn't always last forever . . .
Today, after years of silence, Nikki has been summoned to North Carolina by her estranged grandmother. But instead of revealing answers about their recent past, Mother Rita tells Nikki a shocking story about her great-great-great grandmother, Queen Luella, and the very land they stand on. Land Mother Rita insists must be protected at all costs.
As Nikki learns about the Kingdom of the Happy Land, she comes to realise how much of her identity is rooted in this family land, and how much they stand to lose if it, like so much else, is taken from them. It's time to reclaim what's theirs. [from the Publisher]
I enjoy multi-generational stories and the setting particularly appeals to me. Inspired by true events too! I want to know more!
The Geographer's Map to Romance (Love's Academic #2) by India Holton
Release Date: April 8, 2025 by Berkley
Release Date: April 8, 2025 by Berkley
Geography professors in a failed marriage of convenience inconveniently reconnect for an emergency mission in this swoony historical-fantasy rom-com.
Professor Elodie Tarrant is an expert in magic disasters. Nothing fazes her--except her own personal disaster, that is: Professor Gabriel Tarrant, the grumpy, unfriendly man she married for convenience a year ago, whom she secretly loves.
Gabriel is also an expert in magic disasters. And nothing fazes him either--except the walking, talking tornado that is his wife. They've been estranged since shortly after their wedding day, but that hasn't stopped him from stoically pining for her.
When magic erupts in a small Welsh village, threatening catastrophe for the rest of England, Elodie and Gabriel are accidentally both assigned to the case. With the fate of the country in their hands, they must come together as a team in the face of perilous conditions like explosions, domesticated goats, and only one bed. But this is easier said than done. After all, there's no navigational guide for the geography of the heart. [from the Publisher]
All of India Holton's books sound like fun, and this one sounds like it will be too!
Do any of these books interest you? What upcoming releases are you looking forward to reading?
© 2025, Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved. If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.