Waiting On Wednesday (48) When You Were Here by Daisy Whitney

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we are eagerly anticipating.

My choice for this week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

When You Were Here by Daisy Whitney

Expected publication: June 2013 by Little, Brown

Synopsis From Goodreads:

When You Were Here, Lost in Translation meets Where She Went, is about an American teenager who travels from California to Tokyo to uncover the secrets surrounding the death of his mother, all while trying to both hold onto and let go of the girl he’s been in love with his whole life.

Synopsis Direct From DaisyWhitney.com

This is not a story about grief, cancer, or loss, or even the story of a mother and a son, or a boy and a girl. It’s a story about the two most powerful forces known to man – death and love.

Danny’s mother lost her battle with cancer two months before his high school graduation – the one day that she was hanging on to see. Now Danny is left alone, with only his memories, his dog, and his heartbreaking ex-girlfriend Holland for company. He hardly knows what she wants from him or what to say for his valedictory speech, let alone how to live and be happy anymore.

Then a letter from his mother’s friend in Tokyo prompts him to drop everything and travel halfway around the world to discover his mom’s secrets – to reveal why her final months were filled with so much joy. But yet he can’t find the answers, or escape the complexities of his relationship with Holland, just by crossing an ocean. Yet amid the cherry blossoms, temples and vibrant crowds of the neon city – and with the help of an almost-but-definitely-not Harajuku girl – Danny learns that maybe neither ancient magic nor mystical treatment kept his mother going. Kept her happy. Perhaps the secret of how to live lies in how she died. And how she loved.

I was so thrilled when this cover was finally released a few days ago. I think I will implement a tissue rating system because you just know I'm going to be crying while reading this! Emotional Book = Emotional Me. What are you waiting on this week?