Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Bridge of Scarlet Leaves
by Kristina McMorris
Publication Date: March 1

A poignant novel of love and courage, set against one of the most controversial episodes in recent American history. In it, a white woman secretly elopes with her Japanese-American boyfriend Lane Moritomo…the night before Pearl Harbor is bombed. Right away, the newlyweds face far more than family disapproval: in the eyes of a fearful nation, Lane is no longer just an outsider, but an enemy. When he is interned at a war relocation camp, Maddie chooses to follow and as she struggles for approval from her new family, Lane risks everything to prove his allegiance to America.

Kristina McMorris researches heavily and uses her unique insight as the American daughter of a Caucasian mother and Japanese immigrant father to spotlight rare perspectives from history. As a young woman, she heard the extraordinary account of a family friend – one who had fought for America in WWII while his brother fought for Japan. Eventually, that tale became the inspiration for BRIDGE OF SCARLET LEAVES. In seeking to tell the story of the Japanese-American WWII vets who are rapidly becoming extinct, McMorris brings to life an interracial romance challenged by war, internment camps and displaced loyalty.