Can't Wait Wednesday/Waiting on Wednesday #603: Foundling Fathers by Meg Elison

 

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that had been hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlighted upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. I'm now linking up with Can't Wait Wednesday hosted over at Wishful Endings.

From Tachyon Publications: What would a teenage Benjamin Franklin do with an iPhone after he discovers porn? From Philip K. Dick Award winning author Meg Elison comes this ingenious satire of U.S. history and modern technocracy gone terribly, terribly wrong.

“Relentlessly, brutally, scathingly, funny. I’d expect nothing less from the one and only Meg Elison.”
—Sarah Gailey, author of Spread Me

The trouble starts when a curious young man finds a smartphone in his privy. The problem is, it’s supposed to be the year 1750.

The Antediluvian Society—a shadowy cabal of right-wing billionaires—is fed up with a country they cannot fully control or understand. So they have done what any reasonable American patriots would do: Clone the Founding Fathers and raise them in secrecy. The plan, unbeknownst to the boys, is for them to restore America to its “original glory.”

Ben takes his technological discovery to his brothers, Thomas, John, and George. The boys have been raised on an isolated island plantation by Mary Libertas, a firm but kind woman, and Jeff Hancock, their de facto father. But the idyllic life is far too dull for young men. The boys have been chafing at the restrictions upon them (especially Tom, who has impregnated yet another of the servants). Hancock is complaining to the Society that it’s well past the time to tell the boys where they come from and what they must do.

Unfortunately for their keepers, the young men now have a phone…and many other notions.

Seamlessly combining science fiction and history with sharp, witty commentary, Meg Elison has once again shown why she is one of speculative fiction’s most exciting voices.

Foundling Fathers by Meg Elison is expected out 6/23/26 from Tachyon Publications.

Why am I waiting on this book? It's supposed to be funny. And being a mashup of the founding fathers meet technocracy gone wrong, it sounds like it has potential. And this is the perfect year for it.

What book are you waiting on? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out and maybe add it to our TBR lists. Thanks for coming by and Happy Reading!

Can't Wait Wednesday/Waiting on Wednesday #572: Your Behavior Will Be Monitored by Justin Feinstein

 

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that had been hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlighted upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. I'm now linking up with Can't Wait Wednesday hosted over at Wishful Endings.

From the publisher:

In an all-too-plausible near future, emotionally intelligent AI square off against emotionally stunted humans. This addictively hilarious satire deals with vital issues of our time: sentience, purpose, life, death—and how to make a really good commercial. 

Megacorporation UniView is poised to cement their reputation as “the most trusted name in AI.” After pioneering self-driving and HR bots, UniView is now barreling toward an audacious new launch. That is, if they can pull it off in time.

Enter Noah. A down-and-out copywriter reeling from a midlife crisis, he isn’t the typical hire for a groundbreaking tech company full of brilliant engineers and run by a cutthroat CEO. But Lex, UniView’s Head of HR and one of their greatest successes, makes no mistakes—her algorithm ensures it.

UniView’s latest venture—a bot named Quinn that creates revolutionary personalized advertising—needs expert training. Noah needs to teach Quinn—who is a much better student than he ever could have hoped for—the finer points of consumer motivation and the art of writing a catchy tagline.

But when corporate competitors force UniView to accelerate their timeline to market, guardrails around the AI loosen just as Quinn is learning a bit too much.

Told entirely through questionably obtained company emails, chat messages, TED Talks, bot trainings, and more, Your Behavior Will Be Monitored is a hilarious science fictional romp through the promise and perils of an AI-driven future that we probably deserve.

Your Behavior Will Be Monitored by Justin Feinstein is expected out April 7, 2026 from Tachyon Publications.

Why am I waiting on this book? It's a timely topic. And it sounds like it will be a fun read. I'm interested in the format too. I'm wondering how the author presents the TED Talks. And I am wondering how far off the rails Quinn will go and what it will mean for humans.

What book are you waiting on? Share it and a link in the comments so we can check it out and maybe add it to our ever growing To Be Read lists. Thanks for coming by. Happy Reading!

Can't Wait Wednesday/Waiting on Wednesday #547: If Wishes Were Retail by Auston Habershaw

 

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that had been hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlighted upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. I'm now linking up with Can't Wait Wednesday hosted over at Wishful Endings. 

From the publisher:

"Irresistibly fun and funny, with a ton of heart and depth! This is the kind of book that sneaks up on you and sticks with you!”
—Sarah Beth Durst, New York Times bestselling author of The Spellshop

In this hilarious debut fantasy cozy, a rebellious—but enterprising—young woman and an ancient—but clueless—genie set up shop at the local mall.

Alex Delmore needs a miracle. She wants out of her dead-end suburban town, but her parents are broke and NYU seems like a distant dream.

Good thing there’s a genie in town—and he’s hiring at the Wellspring Mall.

It’d help if the Jinn-formerly-of-the-Ring-of-Khorad knew even one thing about 21st-century America. It’d help if he weren't at least as stubborn as Alex. It’d really help if her brother didn’t sell her out to her conspiracy theory-loving, gnome-hating dad.

When Alex and the genie set up their wishing kiosk, they face seemingly-endless setbacks. The mall is failing and management will not stop interfering on behalf of their big-box tenants.

But when the wishing biz might start working, the biggest problem of all remains: People are really terrible at wishing.

If Wishes Were Retail by Auston Habershaw is expected out June 17th, 2025 from Tachyon Publications.

Why am I waiting on this book? It sounds like a fun read. And people really do need to be careful what they wish for. Genie's are notorious for taking wishes literally in fiction. I am wondering if that will be the case here or if there's something else that will cause the problems they face. 

What book are you waiting on? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out and maybe add it to our TBR lists. Thanks for coming by and Happy Reading!

Can't Wait Wednesday/Waiting on Wednesday #400: Crazy in Poughkeepsie by Daniel Pinkwater

 

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that had been hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlighted upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. I'm now linking up with Can't Wait Wednesday hosted over at Wishful Endings.

From the publisher: 

Mick is a good kid, but maybe he can use just a little guidance. But it’s unclear who will be guiding whom, because Mick’s brother came home from Tibet with the self-proclaimed Guru Lumpo Smythe-Finkel and his dog Lhasa―and then promptly settled both of them in Mick’s bedroom.

(The thing about this kind of guru is that he doesn’t seem to know exactly what he’s trying to do. He sure does seem to be hungry, though.)

Anyway, Mick agrees to something like a quest, roaming the suburbs with the oddest group of misfits: Lumpo and Lhasa; graffiti-fanatic Verne; and Verne’s unusual friend Molly. Molly is a Dwergish girl―don’t worry if you don’t know what that is yet―and she seems to be going off the rails a bit.

Along the way, the gang will get invited to a rollicking ghost party, consult a very strange little king, and actually discover the truth about Heaven. Or a version of the truth anyway, because in a Daniel Pinkwater tale, the truth is never the slightest bit like what you’re expecting.

Crazy in Poughkeepsie is a ludicrous romp reminiscent of the Muppets! Weirdness is positive, wonderful, and everywhere in Pinkwater’s writing. This is a book that will make you laugh, grin, and maybe look for more whimsy in your own world.”
—Beth Cato, author of The Clockwork Dagger

Crazy in Poughkeepsie by Daniel Pinkwater and illustrated by Aaron Renier is expected to be published April 12th, 2022 by Tachyon Publications.

Why am I waiting on this book?  It sounds interesting and like a fun read. The blurb draws me even though it's aimed at middle-grade readers.

What book are you waiting on this week? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out and maybe add it to our TBR lists. Thanks for coming by and Happy Reading!