Can’t Wait Wednesday: More February 2021 Book Releases

 

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Can’t Wait Wednesday is hosted by Wishful Endings. I get to show off the interesting new books that are coming out soon. These books are being released in the last two weeks of February. If you’re curious about early February releases, I blathered about those here.

 

 

More February 2021 Book Releases

 

 

 

 

THE INITIAL INSULT BY MINDY MCGINNIS

 

Young Adult Horror / Mystery / Thriller

February 23, 2021

 

Tress Montor knows that her family used to mean something—until she didn’t have a family anymore. When her parents disappeared seven years ago while driving her best friend home, Tress lost everything. She might still be a Montor, but the entire town shuns her now that she lives with her drunken, one-eyed grandfather at what locals refer to as the “White Trash Zoo,” a wild animal attraction featuring a zebra, a chimpanzee, and a panther, among other things.

Felicity Turnado has it all—looks, money, and a secret that she’s kept hidden. She knows that one misstep could send her tumbling from the top of the social ladder, and she’s worked hard to make everyone forget that she was with the Montors the night they disappeared. Felicity has buried what she knows so deeply that she can’t even remember what it is . . . only that she can’t look at Tress without having a panic attack.

But she’ll have to.

Tress has a plan. A Halloween costume party at an abandoned house provides the ideal situation for Tress to pry the truth from Felicity—brick by brick—as she slowly seals her former best friend into a coal chute. With a drunken party above them, and a loose panther on the prowl, Tress will have her answers—or settle for revenge.

 

Why I’m excited to read it: Well, clearly it’s inspired by Edgar Allan Poe. Of course I have to read it! I love Poe. The revenge plotline is intriguing. I’ve read a few Mind McGinnis books. I love her writing style. It’s sparse and crackling with tension. Her characters aren’t afraid to do whatever it takes to survive.

 

Buy it on Amazon

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PREPPED BY BETHANY MANGLE

 

Young Adult Contemporary

February 23, 2021

 

Always be ready for the worst day of your life.

This is the mantra that Becca Aldaine has grown up with. Her family is part of a community of doomsday preppers, a neighborhood that prioritizes survivalist training over class trips or senior prom. They’re even arranging Becca’s marriage with Roy Kang, the only eligible boy in their community. Roy is a nice guy, but he’s so enthusiastic about prepping that Becca doesn’t have the heart to tell him she’s planning to leave as soon as she can earn a full ride to a college far, far away.

Then a devastating accident rocks Becca’s family and pushes the entire community, including Becca’s usually cynical little sister, deeper into the doomsday ideology. With her getaway plans thrown into jeopardy, the only person Becca can turn to is Roy, who reveals that he’s not nearly as clueless as he’s been pretending to be.

When Roy proposes they run away together, Becca will have to risk everything—including her heart—for a chance to hope for the best instead of planning for the worst.

 

Why I’m excited to read it: It’s supposedly funny. I’m always ready for a funny book. I’m also very interested in Roy’s character. Why is he pretending to be clueless? Prepped is recommended for fans of Jeff Zentner. Zentner’s novels are heartbreakingly realistic, and he’s great at writing about teens in small towns. I’ll be thrilled if this book is similar to his novels.

 

Buy it on Amazon

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THE VALLEY AND THE FLOOD BY REBECCA MAHONEY

 

Young Adult Fantasy

February 23, 2021

Rose Colter is almost home, but she can't go back there yet. When her car breaks down in the Nevada desert, the silence of the night is broken by a radio broadcast of a voicemail message from her best friend, Gaby. A message Rose has listened to countless times over the past year. The last one Gaby left before she died.

So Rose follows the lights from the closest radio tower to Lotus Valley, a small town where prophets are a dime a dozen, secrets lurk in every shadow, and the diner pie is legendary. And according to Cassie Cyrene, the town's third most accurate prophet, they've been waiting for her. Because Rose's arrival is part of a looming prophecy, one that says a flood will destroy Lotus Valley in just three days' time.

Rose believes if the prophecy comes true then it will confirm her worst fear—the PTSD she was diagnosed with after Gaby's death has changed her in ways she can't face. So with help from new friends, Rose sets out to stop the flood, but her connection to it, and to this strange little town, runs deeper than she could've imagined.

 

Why I’m excited to read it: This just sounds bizarre. I love weird desert towns and want to read all the books that are set in them. For some reason, deserts attract the strangest people. I may be wrong, but the plot is giving me vibes of Neal Shusterman’s Challenger Deep. Weird things are happening, but the reader isn’t sure if they’re really happening, or if it’s all in the main character’s mind.

 

Buy it on Amazon

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STRONG AS FIRE, FIERCE AS FLAME BY SUPRIYA KELKAR

 

Middlegrade Historical Fiction

February 24, 2021

 

Meera's future has been planned for her for as long as she can remember. As a child, her parents married her to a boy from a neighboring village whom she barely knows. Later, on the eve of her thirteenth birthday, she prepares to leave her family to live with her husband's—just as her strict religion dictates. But that night, Indian soldiers mutiny against their British commanders and destroy the British ammunition depot, burning down parts of Delhi. Riots follow, and Meera's husband is killed. Upon hearing the news, Meera's father insists that she follow the dictates of their fringe religious sect: She must end her life by throwing herself on her husband's funeral pyre.

Risking everything, Meera runs away, escaping into the chaos of the rebellion. But her newfound freedom is short-lived, as she is forced to become a servant in the house of a high-ranking British East India Company captain. Slowly through her work, she gains confidence, new friends, new skills—and sometimes her life even feels peaceful. But one day, Meera stumbles upon the captain's secret stock of ammunition, destined to be used by the British to continue colonizing India and control its citizens.

Will Meera do her part to take down the British colonists and alert the rebellion of the stockpile? Or will she stay safe and let others make decisions for her? It really comes down to this: how much fire must a girl face to finally write her own destiny?

 

Why I’m excited to read it: The plot sounds more mature than other middlegrade books, which I would have appreciated as a kid. Most children’s books were too tame for me. I love the questions this novel asks. I think they’re very relevant to modern times. Will you risk your own comfort and safety to make life better for others?

 

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Are you looking forward to any February book releases?