I enjoyed this book. It has a lot going for it, and while I do love the unique premise, this one just wasn’t a hit for me. There are some really good moments in the book, and I liked but didn’t love it I’m sorry to say.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Oh my gosh, I absolutely loved this book so much!! I read it in just two sittings, I didn’t want to put it down once I started it! I am a big fan of Rebecca Serle’s books, and was so excited to read her newest one.

I thought this book was so unique, and I think that’s what I loved about it the most, it was like nothing I had read before. This book was romantic, emotional, and just so creative. This book took so many turns that I didn’t see coming. The ending was absolutely perfect. If this isn’t on your TBR list, I highly recommend adding it! It’s seriously such a good book, I want to read it again already!

I was lucky enough to be approved for an ARC of Expiration Dates by NetGalley. I was so excited because this was on my tbr immediately after seeing it was coming out!

This book was really cute and I was really intrigued with the idea of her getting a piece of paper from the universe with the name of her next boyfriend along with the exact timeline they would date for. At first I wasn't sure why she would enter a relationship if she knew it was going to end, like why would you emotionally invest for 3 months- or can you EVEN emotionally invest in someone if you know after a specific time in the near future, they won't be in your life anymore (I guess instead of Hugo, but you don't know that you'll still actually be friends after you break up).

Regardless- I still really enjoyed reading that and seeing how she gets her letters. Half way through the book, when she reveals the other box under her bed, I was shocked and actually gasped outlaid. This was definitely a plot twist I did not see coming.

I really enjoyed this book and I am happy with how it ended. Both main characters were lovable and really made me want to pick up my kindle and read at any opportunity I had.

There were some twists that I definitely did not see coming but I could not put this book down.

I loved the unique premise of this book and had such high hopes! It did fall a little short for me, however. For one, I really wanted to know where those expiration dates came from! And It felt like the twist came out of nowhere. It was good, but not great for me.

Expiration Dates follows a woman who knows exactly how long a relationship will last before it starts. The story delves into the psychological impact this foreknowledge has as she manages her first relationship without an expiration date. I guarantee a few twists and some water-eyes with this one!

Thank you to @netgalley and @atriabooks for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Every time Daphne meets a new love interest, she receives a note that tells her the exact amount of time she will spend with them. Then one day, the note only has a name, no end date. But as this new relationship unfolds, Daphne begins to doubt the universe’s plan for her.

This was such an interesting and unique concept. Rebecca Serle always delivers cool stories, and I love her writing style.

I really enjoyed Expiration dates and thought it was a cute, short little read. My only complaint is that I wish it would have been just a little longer to give us more insight into her relationship with Hugo.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC.

Rebecca Serle never disappoints. While the premise was slightly more interesting to me than the execution, I was interested in the story and characters throughout and really enjoyed reading this one.

I’ll begin to say that romance novels are not my favourite genre (they used to be at one point in time) I enjoyed the pacing of this, it held my attention and I read it quickly within a day. Although, I am conflicted about the length of the book, it is on the shorter side. Conflicted because I love a quick short book, and dislike when romance novels are a trillion pages long with minimal plot. But on the other hand, it was so quick it almost felt unfinished? We didn’t get a lot of details, very surface level events and minimal character development.

The concept of this is cute and this would make a great rom com movie.

A quick read on love heartbreak, and discovering yourself! Love the magical realism element and how the story came together in the end.

I enjoyed this book and will recommend to others as a great beach read and one to load onto the kindle. The love stories with quirky fantasy type situations always throw me a bit, but I enjoyed the story and the different romances. The story shifts a bit halfway through to reveal the biggest plot point. I think the conversations between characters were great and I was rooting for Daphne the entire time. My biggest distraction was the CONSTANT description of what everyone was wearing. Serle writes fiction well and is able to paint a picture in the story, but I am thrown every time the color of shorts and tees are mentioned. It happened so much that it needs to be mentioned. Overall a fun read with depth and plot.

ARC review

A compelling story that will tug at your heart strings. It did take a little while for the story to pick up and pull me in, but Rebecca Serle did a good job weaving the story with past and present. Unfortunately, the end was slightly disappointing :(

Fantastic. I have loved all of Serle’s books and this is no exception. She brings in a little magic as usual, which I always enjoy. The first part of the book was fun and light, but mid-book gets even better. I thought I knew where this was going…but I was wrong. I actually woke up early before work to finish— I had to know what happened! 5/5.

i really liked this. written similar to all her others with some magical realism! overall, loved the premise & thought it was well executed! i liked the flashbacks to all of daphne’s prior relationships & i especially enjoyed her friendships. i thought her character growth was good. i can’t help but laugh though because every single chapter started with daphne at some restaurant or some cafe describing her entire order. 4/5 ⭐️

Interesting concept, but one I struggled a bit with. It became predictable half way through. Overall I found this to be a nice light-hearted read and enjoyed the characters..

Okayyy I am obsessed??! I love Rebecca Serle’s novels so much I am not shocked that I love this book. This is easily 5 stars for me. For a single 29 year old, this book came at the perfect time. That is that Rebecca magic for you. This book had so many amazing quotes I cannot wait to share on pub date. This book hit close to home, and I am so happy I was able to read this novel early.

9/10. I love love love this book. It’s unique, thoughtful, inspiring, sad, and hopeful all at once.

The premise is such: Whenever protagonist Daphne meets a man she also receives a piece of paper with their name and a time frame of how long they will date/be together. Sometimes she's disappointed by the outcome, sometimes it makes it easier to end things. But one day she receives a piece of paper with just a name, no date. And so she continues her relationship with Jake thinking that he is "the one." However, there's something missing and she doesn't know what to do or how to handle it.

It's a great look into the debate of destiny vs choice, and how we handle such situations.

Honestly, it made me question my own relation with my best male friend. I'm constantly asked why he and I aren't together, and I have no solid answer for them. I don't think there's anything there, nor would there ever be, but the fact people always question our relationship makes me question if there should be.

Thanks to publisher Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC.

Rebecca Serle is one of my favorite authors and always leaves me thinking about the stories and characters long after I’ve finished reading. Expiration Dates is no exception. The characters are both relatable and likable

Daphne Bell is on a journey to find love and she receives mysterious cards that correspond to her current dates, until one day she doesn’t receive a timeline. Does this mean she’ll stay with her current date, Jake? There’s something she knows and is holding back that might change everything.

This book had me in all my feels, absolutely loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her. Every time she meets a new man , she receives a slip of paper with his name and a number on it—the exact amount of time they will be together. The papers told her she’d spend three days with Martin in Paris; five weeks with Noah in San Francisco; and three months with Hugo, her ex-boyfriend turned best friend. Daphne has been receiving the numbered papers for over twenty years, always wondering when there might be one without an expiration. Finally, the night of a blind date at her favorite Los Angeles restaurant, there’s only a Jake.

But as Jake and Daphne’s story unfolds, Daphne finds herself doubting the paper’s prediction, and wrestling with what it means to be both committed and truthful. Because Daphne knows things Jake doesn’t, information that—if he found out—would break his heart.

This is my 3rd book by Serle and I keep coming back because I keep hoping she will nail it. Cute romance novels seem to have many extraneous details that have little to do with the character themselves. There is this deep subject and then there's these sentences describing lipstick colors, sweater choices or body shape. Ire ally wanted to root for something but I was just not invested and disappointed at the end. I don't want to provide spoilers so I'll just say that.

Thank you NetGalley and Rebecca Serle for the ARC.
Expected Publication March 5, 2024
2.5 stars

This review contains spoilers!

I when I began Expiration Dates, I had high hopes for the book. Reading the provided synopsis I was certain I would love it. And I did, until I was about 60% of the way through.

We follow Daphne Bell, a young woman living and working in California. All her life she has been receiving small notes with only a name and length of time. The name is the name of someone she will meet and date for the specified period of time. I was instantly intrigued because how on earth does this happen? And who has been dictating her love life?

The book is full of plot twists, which normally I find to be a good thing, except the plot twist in this book hit a little too close to home and its inaccuracies enrage me.

At 21 years old, Daphne suffers a widow-maker or sudden cardiac arrest. She learns that she has a congenital heart defect (also referred to congenital heart disease, but I prefer defect in place of disease). All CHDs occur in utero before birth**. They are among one in thousands of types of birth defects.

In Daphne's case this defect went undetected until she was 21 when she had a severe heart attack. This is not common, but it isn't uncommon either.

I give you this background to provide the back drop for the inaccuracies - The author indicates the defect is genetic and unexplainable. This isn't completely correct; not all heart defects are genetic but they are usually unexplainable.
The author explains that Daphne is in stage 2 heart failure which will only get worse over time. NOT TRUE! Some CHD adults do recover and come out of heart failure with lifestyle changes and the right medications.

The placement of her scars from surgeries are circumspect. The author tells us Daphne hasn't had open heart surgery yet there is a scar on her sternum; that is generally associated with open heart surgery. One of her scars is under her left breast. In fact, the author tells us her scars are hidden by her breasts/have faded considerably.
The fading I believe. However, your breasts don't usually hide scars associated with an ICD placement as those are generally placed in the upper left side of the chest, below the clavicle but above the heart. This means her breasts wouldn't be able to hide said scar. Devices generally only last 7-10 years (at the most!) so the likelihood of Daphne having at least one device change between her diagnosis and the present is about 75-80% possible, which means her scar would be relatively fresh.

Once the author made that jump in the plot, I lost quite a bit of interest in the book. It was easy to see she was trying to make the correlation between the heart defect and the slips of paper of would-be boyfriends. But it was a very thin comparison.

To firm up that comparison the author began flashbacks of other boyfriends and their expiration dates.

Linking the heart defect to the boyfriend papers was a poor attempt at drawing inferences and similarities between the two. In my opinion, the reasons for the papers was never really explained or solved adequately.

I could however, understand why she didn't want to tell each boyfriend about the heart defect. The fear of rejection is strong when you have a birth defect that can easily define your life but that's where I draw the line on plausibility.

Again, I really wanted to like this book and I had high hopes for it UNTIL the heard defect plot twist. Once that happened, all credibility in the story was lost.

** I provided all the information on congenital heart defects because I have one. I have a pacemaker as a result of my congenital heart defect and have had one since I was four months old. I'm also in heart failure.

Thank you to Atria books/Simon & Shuster as well as Netgalley for providing me with a digital Arc of this book.

Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her. Every time she meets a new man, she receives a slip of paper with his name and a number on it—the exact amount of time they will be together.

I was intrigued immediately from that synopsis and the book did not disappoint. I found Expiration Dates to be a quick, easy read that I did not want to put down. I really enjoyed Daphne's love story - with the men in her life and ultimately with herself. I was pleasantly surprised with the direction the book took and where Daphne ended up. Very enjoyable read. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for this ARC.