How would you respond if you knew the exact length of every romantic relationship in your life? In Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle, Daphne receives mysterious slips of paper or cards or notes every so often with names and timelines. She eventually figures out, after the first few, that these notes represent the name of the person she’s going to date and how long she’s going to date them. There’s Martin for 3 days and Josh for 6 months and Tae for 2 years… And then one day Daphne receives a note with ONLY a name. Jake.

Is that supposed to mean that Jake is Daphne’s forever person? That no expiration date exists for their relationship? But Daphne has secrets that she’s kept buried from most people in her life and is now keeping from Jake. Does the lack of an expiration date on a piece of paper finally mean that Daphne is in control of her own fate?

If you’ve never read a Rebecca Serle novel (and I’ve only read one other one), she likes to straddle a few different genres. This book, in particular, is contemporary women’s fiction meets romance meets magical realism. Daphne is a character who I found hard to understand or empathize with in the first half of the novel. She’s entirely bearable and not unlikeable but feels… off. During the primary climax of the novel, we learn why. And it’s a compelling enough if not slightly shoehorned reason.

I liked Daphne. I liked her relationships with her closest friends and her boss and especially her parents. The more I knew about her actually, the more I liked her. But I think the plot and that primary climax are going to lose some people.

All of that being said, if you’ve liked any of Rebecca Serle’s novels, I do believe you’ll like this. If you’ve never read her work, give this one a try when it comes out. However, if you already have an established meh or negative opinion, I think you can skip this one. I read In Five Years, a fairly popular book here and on BookTok and enjoyed it enough to request this ARC and I’m happy I did. I thoroughly enjoyed my reading experience and I actually do like how the novel ended. This is a pretty easy 3.75 stars, teetering on 4, for me.

Thank you again to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster (Atria Books) for this advance reader copy. #netgalley #expirationdates

I loved this book! I devoured it in only a few sittings and wish there was more to read. The story line was paced very well and the characters were easy to love!

Rebecca Serle's books are like an Aperol Spritz- they go down easy and make your head spin! She is a master at writing a light read with a deeper message and her latest novel is no exception. Enjoyed it!

I like the bit of “magic” that Rebecca Serle adds to her books. The main character Daphne always knows when her relationships are going to end, until she meets Jake. I struggled with dynamics between Daphne and Jake and felt that they lacked chemistry, especially in the first half of the book. all the secrets come out it brought everything full circle and it was an enjoyable read. I struggled with some of the relationship dynamics in the story, especially wit, the one with no expiration date. At times I could not decide if I liked Daphne or not. Once all the secrets come out it brought everything full circle and it was an enjoyable read. Throughout the book there are chapters scattered throughout that touch on her past relationships and give insight into

Thank you to Net Galley and Atria book for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Such a sweet story of Daphne, a young woman who receives "papers" stating who her next boyfriend will be, and when the relationship will "expire". We read about her past loves and her current love, while treading through her experiences with Hugo, her very best friend and also, past lover. Daphne always knows how long she will date each man, except on the final paper with Josh's name on it. She learns what she really wants in life, and how to deal with the expiration dates.

This book is brief, with fairly short chapters making it a great vacation read. The story is light and easy, and I was compelled to finish the book in record time. I loved the ending, though I found it a little predictable.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Expiration Dates.

Serle is hit or miss for me and unfortunately this one fell into the latter. It’s got magical realism but it didn’t feel like it was explained very well at first and then just kinda dropped off. I didn’t love the main characters and while I don’t love large books, this one felt too short for all that was going on. Neat concept but missed the mark for me

What would you do if every relationship you entered into had an expiration date?

Through this story Daphne learns how to love herself and open up to those around her, even when she would rather just hide the truth away.

Before she dates anyone, she always receives a slip of paper that tells her how long it will last. That is until she meets Jake and his paper has no expiration date.

I loved this story, however I don’t know how I feel about the ending. I can’t say more because I do not want to give spoilers but I really just was expecting something different I think? I was torn between wanting two things and I just can’t wrap my head around if I actually liked how it ended. Overall, fantastic story and I highly recommend. I adore Rebecca Serle and this is the third book I read of hers.

✨✨ I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Special Thank you to NetGalley and Rebecca Serle✨✨

I LOVED Rebecca Serle’s last novel, One Italian Summer, so when I saw she had a new one coming out, I HAD to get my hands on it as quickly as possible.

Daphne has what we all want, to know exactly how long her relationships will last for. As soon as she goes on a date, she will recieve a letter that has the man’s name and number on it. Not a phone number, but the amount of time they will be together. But what happens when she is set up on a blind date with Jake and the letter has no time limit? Does this mean forever?

I LOVED the concept of this book and found it so original. It was interesting to hear about her past relationships and why they ended knowing the timeline. It was a little confusing at times going back and forth from present day to past, but towards the middle I was able to catch on. The ending was little predictable but it was definitely a light hearted quick read that I would recommend! 4 out of 5 ✨ and make sure to look out for it in March!

Thank you to NetGalley for the copy of 'Expiration Dates' by Rebecca Serle!

Throughout this novel I found myself wondering what my life would be like in Daphne's place.

Expiration Dates, in a way felt like two books with one moral of the story. It was inviting, heart wrenching, and a quick read. I do wish there was more depth around the midway point of this novel, but overall enjoyed this read.

I loved In Five Years so I was looking forward to reading this! It had all the makings of a great book - it was just delightful and enjoyed reading about Daphne's search for love. Thank you for this ARC!

I've been a fan of everything Rebecca Serle writes and this one was no different. I was very captivated by the idea of the expiration date notes Daphne received each time she met a new love interest and couldn't wait to pick it up!

I really enjoyed that we got to see multiple different scenarios play out throughout Daphne's life - when she was a young girl and had her first "boyfriend", first (and last) dates, and long-term college boyfriends. I could have read even more of those stories.

One complaint I think many people will have is that this does not read like a romance - it's more women's fiction. I prefer women's fic over romance, so this worked for my benefit. I was constantly asking myself what I would do in Daphne's situation - the introspection that was sparked improved my reading experience.

I would say that I was a bit confused when Daphne's heart condition started taking over the main plot of this book. I see why it was done, and it added another layer to Daphne's decisions, but I think with such an interesting plot for a book, I was disappointed it rivaled something else (her heart condition) for the focus.

Overall a very enjoyable read - will definitely continue picking up whatever this author writes!

Wished for a different ending but it made sense. Read as more women’s fiction than romance but it was a quick enjoyable read, people will enjoy. thank you for the ARC!

This book was a quick and easy read. Overall, it was enjoyable. However, it was nothing that wowed me. I found the ending to be quite predictable from early on in the book. I’ve been impressed with Rebecca Serle’s books in the past, and this one just felt average.

✨ ARC Review ✨

Book: Expiration Dates
Author: Rebecca Serle
Genre: romance
Format: 📕
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Synopsis: Each time Daphne meets a man, she receives a piece of paper with his name and a number on it which corresponds to how long they will be involved. She has no idea where these papers come from, but they have always been right. Or have they?

Review: This is my third book by Rebecca Serle, and just like the others, I was immediately drawn to the characters and the bits of magical realism. Each story is 99% real with just that 1% bit of magic, which makes to me makes it a sort of elevated, relatable story. Expiration Dates is the same feel, and I loved the theme of the book and each turn it took. I wanted to know how it unfolded and couldn’t put it down. Ultimately though, I think the main male characters were too cocky and too bland to be likeable. As far as how the book ends, I’m mostly happy because it feels true to the way the story unfolded, but I felt the epilogue was set way too far in the future. What happened in a year and half from when the book ended? It doesn’t seem like a timeline that makes sense for the characters and their friendship.

I wanted to love this, and I did to a point, but I wanted a different ending. That seems to be the theme for me for this author. I think the book was lovely and a lot of people will absolutely adore it.

Thank you to @atriabooks, @netgalley, and @rebecca_serle for the advanced copy of a great book.

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Rebecca Serle's latest book follows Daphne as she looks for love. Daphne started receiving the cards in fifth grade, cards that would tell her how long her relationships would last. Jake's card doesn't have a timeline. Could this mean he's the one? Her forever.

At times I wanted to skip to the end to see what would happen. I knew what I felt needed to happen, but I wasn't sure how many more layers the author would add to this story. Daphne's search for love was at times sweet and at other times agonizing. As a reader, I wanted to give her advice, scream at her, tell her to forget the cards and live. Serle's books always give the reader lots to think about. Deep questions about love and relationships explored through interesting characters and beautiful settings. Another enjoyable book by a fantastic author.

This is the very first time that I have received a free advanced copy of a book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. “Expiration Dates” was very intriguing to me as it contains a unique story component where the main character, Daphne Bell receives mysterious pieces of paper that say a guy’s name and timeframe (which indicates how long she will date them). It took awhile for me to get into the book as I felt like Daphne kept herself from letting anyone get to know her, including the reader. She revealed a secret about herself halfway through the book and it made me feel betrayed that I didn’t know sooner. I think I would have enjoyed the book a lot more if I had connected with Daphne. Overall I did enjoy the book and thought it was a really interesting storyline. It made me appreciate the unpredictable aspects of life. I just wish there was an epilogue as I would have liked to have read how everything played out. I didn’t like how the story cut off.
This was my first Rebecca Serle book and I want to read her other books now.

I saw where this one was going from a mile away and loved every minute. Also, loved that the concept was different and not explained away. We all need a little extra magic in our lives sometimes.

Another fabulous read from Rebecca Serle. I absolutely loved how she wrapped this gem up. It really made me think about how I look at love, and I appreciated that. So often rom-coms follow the same basic equation, but this one threw a fun spin in.
I would definitely recommend this quick, light read. Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me to read and review! It was just what I needed! ❤️

I love that I could see into her mindset and read exactly what she was feeling when she thought out situations. Her thoughts flowed well and moved the book along very quickly. Cassandra's narrative voice is wonderful. She is serious at times, but also very witty, which makes for an engaging read.

This is my second Serle book and my favorite of the two,( the first was In Five Years.) I’m not a regular reader of romance but what I like about Serle’s writings are that she doesn’t just write about romance, her books always deal with so much more plus I love that she always includes magic or fa fantasy aspect!

The premise for this book is a girl named Daphne receives anonymous notes with the names of men she will meet soon and the number of days, weeks, months or years that relationship will last. There are some great twist and turns to keep the reader on thier toes but it was the contemplation of living your best life no matter the circumstances particularly what we owe ourselves and those we love when making those decisions that really hooked me in about half way through the book. I became invested in Daphnes future and the people close to her. Overall it was a fast fun read but also made me think about those important decisions we have all faced when deciding what comes next.

If you enjoyed John Greens The Fault In Our Stars or Jodi Picoult’s Wish You Were Here than I think you would enjoy this book, especially for book clubs, as the deeper subject matters it explores beyond themed romance will promote lively discussions.

This book left me happy to anticipate Rebecca Serle’s next piece of work! A solid four stars!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC and the opportunity to do an early review.