This was my favourite yet from this author. I found the main character difficult to connect with at first- it was frustrating how she avoided managing her own life, and also hard to watch her hide a chronic illness from her partner with a history of dealing with illness. but the last 1/3 of the book picked up after she revealed her illness. i liked her dynamic with Hugo!

Short Synopsis:
Would you want to know how long each relationship lasted before starting the relationship? That Daphne’s life. Every time she meets someone new, she gets an envelope with the name and how long each relationship lasts. And then one day she gets an envelope with just a name. And no end date.

My Thoughts:
Rebecca Serle has some of the most creative ideas for books. The premise of this was so interesting. I loved how one of her past 3-month-relationship turned into her best friend. And I loved the concept of how you approach different relationships knowing the outcome. I find the book to be painfully obvious though. And I think I struggle connecting with Serle’s writing and lack of character development.

Read if You Like:
✉️ In Five Years
✉️ Magical Realism
✉️ Love stories
✉️ Fate
✉️ Doc Martins

Thank you to NetGalley for this advanced copy of Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle. Rebecca Serle is one of my go to authors for humor, heart, and romance and this book is no exception. This book is sweet and happy and hopeful. Read this book if you’re looking for an uplifting read.

Expiration Dates is my favorite book (so far) of Rebecca Serle’s! What started off as what seemed like a cute romance of how Daphne and Jake meet and begin their relationship turned into so much more and I loved the journey readers get to go on with Daphne.

There were a few twists along the way which made the book for me impossible to put down because I was curious how it would make things play out. I liked the flashback chapters that explained Daphne’s past relationships and how they helped shape her into who she was.

The Jewish representation in this book was amazing! This book truly felt the most personal out of all of Serle’s books and the representation definitely played a part in making it feel like that,

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me with an early copy to read and review.

There’s just something about this book that pulled me in from the start. It was like a comforting, well-loved blanket that I could just cozy up in. I think it’s the author’s best yet.

With just a tiny hint a magical realism, nothing too bonkers…some romance, some drama and a passage that produced a few tears, culminated in a beautiful read.

As a fan of Rebecca Serle’s books, I was super excited to be approved of her new book. In my opinion this is her best yet! The characters were relatable and lovable it made me not want this story to end. Rebecca is such an amazing storyteller as she pulls at the heartstrings and had me through a couple of loops I didn’t see coming. I found this refreshing and unique and I flew through this book. Thank you netgalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read this ARC, I enjoyed every minute of reading this!

Thank you Atria Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own!

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. Especially where I am at personally I felt connected with the main characters search for love. I thought that the author did an amazing job showing the growth of the main characters. I also did not see any of the twists coming. The twists were also very well written in that I thought they were completely realistic and not so far fetched. I could not stop reading this one! It is not a long book, however a great read!

Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her life. Each time she begins a relationship she receives a piece of paper with the length of each relationship will be. Each suitor has an expiration date. However, when one day Jake doesn't come with an expiration date. Daphne has to believe that Jake could possibly be the one for her. However, as Daphne and Jake's relationship progresses she begins wondering if the paper is so true. Also Daphne knows certain things that if Jake knew them he would be so broken up about them. This story is told with such heartfelt passion.

Content: swearing, spicy scenes

Read if you enjoy:
Romance
Character Development
Twists
Heartfelt reads

This is not my favourite Rebecca Serle book. While the premise is interesting, the execution fell a little flat. A twist is revealed mid-way through the book and then the rest of the story just limps along.

That being said, In Five Years is one of my favourite books, and everyone is allowed to be off once in awhile. I just don't understand why an editor didn't bring up some plot point issues.

As a fan, I won't let one miss prevent me from reading the next release.

This book was a super fast read and it was wonderful. I loved the characters, down to the dog. Even the supporting characters were lovely. The overall plot was extremely unique. There were just enough moments of mystery but felt like a warm hug. Serle’s stories always have a little bit of magic in them and this did not disappoint. Don’t overthink this book. Just read it, and enjoy the journey.

Daphne was a wonderful main character. I loved her friendship with Hugo. I could tell early on that he was going to be the one for her, or at least I had hoped. Jake was wonderful, but sometimes I felt he was too good. Always compromising himself for the sake of everyone else. He totally still loved his past wife, but that’s okay. He was trying to move on. Daphne’s parents were a dream and I loved Irene and Kendra. Her dog was the show stopper.

Obsessed from start to finish. Kept me on the edge of my seat and turning the page. I was fully immersed with the story.

Dating is hard enough. Can you even imagine what it would be like to know when a relationship ends, the expiration date?
I personally couldn't handle it.
How could someone put their time and emotions into something knowing it won't last?
Somehow our heroine Daphne Bell has adjusted to this crazy phenomenon where a slip of paper gives her a name and how long her relationship with that person will last.

The book is told in two parts:
1) Flashbacks to old relationships, how they started and ended.
Hugo, 3 months.
Noah, 5 weeks.
Tao, 2 years and 2 months.
Etc.
2) The relationship with Jake, which had no end date on the paper.
Is he THE ONE? That's what Daphne and we are meant to believe. But honestly, I wasn't buying it. Why? Because Hugo is still in the picture and I saw much more of a connection between them than anything with Jake.

Since Hugo is the only one that knows about these slips of paper, it takes time for Daphne to be called out for her behavior regarding these prophecies, of sorts. Why does she have to accept what a piece of paper says? If it feels right with someone, maybe the paper is wrong. And it is like someone unplugged Daphne and plugged her back in. *recompute* Then she wakes up and the story has the expected conclusion.

The storyline is obviously pure fiction but overall was a creative approach to the dating scene and finding one's forever someone.

Rebecca Serle knows how to tell a great story that catches your attention from word one and Expiration Dates is no exception. The plot is well developed and the characters are easy to like- all in all very enjoyable.

I was happily surprised at how much I loved this story! There is a magical realism element in the story where Daphne receives pieces of paper with names of people she'll date and how long the relationship will last. She goes into each one knowing there's an expiration date and anticipating the end before it arrives. It's relatable because whether we know the ending ahead of time or not, all relationships (romantic or platonic) have an expiration date. The one relationship we experience without this is the relationship we have with ourselves. How much will we open ourselves up to the possibility of love and hurt knowing that eventually (maybe tomorrow or maybe in 50 years) it will end. She finally receives a paper with a name and no amount of time listed - will she go into this relationship being open to more or has the paper already decided for her?

Such an engaging story and beautifully written with a number of plot twists along the way that genuinely caught me off guard.

The plot of this book was SO intriguing, but I think it fell a little flat during execution. It had its redeeming moments sprinkled throughout, but overall I got little personality from our FMC and little to no chemistry between her and the MMCs.

Not Serle's worst, but not my favorite of hers either.

I am a fan of Rebecca Serle's writing and Expiration Dates is a beautifully written story of Daphne's love life. Every time Daphne meets a new man, she receives a piece of paper with his name and a number on it, which is the exact amount of time they will spend together. When she's set up with Jake, she receives a paper with his name on it—only, there's no number. It's blank. Daphne and her best friend Hugo (whom she dated for 3 months and is the only other person who knows about the notes!) work to decipher what it means. As Daphne and Jake's story plays out, Daphne wrestles with commitment and what the truth behind the blank paper is trying to tell her. Overall, I enjoyed Expiration Dates and following Daphne's story. Rebecca Serle is very talented at weaving together magical realism and romance, which is clear in her new novel. However, I was left with questions at the end and, ultimately, I just wanted to know more about the notes and Daphne's future!

“We have to be cracked open sometimes. We have to be cracked open sometimes to let anything good in. What I see now, emerging in the mirror, is this one, simple truth: learning to be broken is learning to be whole”.

This quote accurately sums up the whole book. Daphne is trying to live her life to the fullest, with a debilitating heart-condition, a dog that doesn’t act like a dog, and a best friend that’s still in love with her, all while getting these notes.

Notes that tell her how long she’ll be with someone. Would you like if someone told you your date?

At first, this book was slow. Eventually, it began to pick up speed. I loved the concept of the book, even though at times it confused me as to where Daphne was actually at. This is by far my favorite book by the author.

Thank you Net Galley for the ARC!

The premise of this book is great however I felt it was lacking. It was such an interesting and original idea however I think it only scratched the service of the story of the main character Daphne. I think her character arc could have been developed further. It was a fun and quick read.

I usually absolutely adore anything that Rebecca Serle writes, but this book felt extremely choppy to me. I really enjoyed the concept of the book itself, but I feel like the execution was sub par: Since Daphne was young, she received notes of who and for how long she would date a man, until one day, she receives one with no time limit. She has a health problem, struggles to open up, but takes in the challenge and is understanding of the time limit she has, but it prevents her from truly taking a chance on some of the relationships she experiences.

The book started off sort of slow, but then I was able to steam roll through. Again, I appreciated the concept and enjoyed Daphne's connection to past lover and best friend Huge, but smack dab in the middle of the story we learn about Daphne's heart condition and there is a huge emphasis on that. Again, there's a lot of choppiness in the story line and it doesn't feel like it fully flowed together!

Expiration Dates tells the story of Daphne, a single woman whose best friend is Hugo. Daphne has a secret - a few secrets actually - but the secret where the book gets its title is that Daphne receives anonymous notes about her relationships with men - a name and a time frame, such as "Hugo, 3 months," meaning that she would have a relationship with that man for exactly that time period and then it would end. Interesting premise but the story gets a little confusing with the alternating time periods and alternating mens' names and time frames. Through it all, Daphne and Hugo remain close as friends after their time together as lovers ends. What will happen to their friendship when Daphne meets "the one" whose paper lists no expiration date? I enjoyed this story with its likeable characters and Rebecca Serles' easy-to-read writing style. I look forward to reading more by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

i was really let down by this book. the female character felt very self-important and shallow. i did not like the ending jake was clearly the better man for her but she ends up with a guy that manipulated her?? that's not it