I normally share a review right after I mark a book as finished, but in the case of EXPIRATION DATES, I needed to spend some time reflecting and dissecting it before I could pin down my exact thoughts.

It's the themes that I appreciated most, and since I prefer to not go into spoilers, suffice to say that certain things happen that reframe how I considered the story by the time I hit the end. There are some lines that gave voice to concepts in a relatable way, though admittedly it may come across on the nose as it even rubbed me that way a little.

But overall, this book didn't reel me in as well as other titles (adult and young adult) from this author that I've read previously. I didn't care for the characters, nor was I wasn't invested in the variety of ties between them and what occurred in their lives. And though I appreciated the themes (especially how they shifted my view of the story in hindsight), the execution didn't necessarily feel as neatly done as I'd have wanted it to personally.

This book has likable elements, but is overall just okay.

I am so sad to say this one wasn’t for me. As you all know I am a huge fan of this author but this one I couldn’t get into. I loved the synopsis and the idea of the letters but this book didn’t feel magical. I was expecting more of a magical realism story but that is not what I got. The main character made some questionable decisions but it was the side characters and lack of chemistry that ultimately left me feeling bored. The writing was simple and lacked that ‘wow’ factor. The third act could have been erased since it felt so out of place. It’s almost like the author didn’t know how to write the ending or wrap up the story. Overall, this one was a disappointment for me but that’s okay because I know others might enjoy it.

I was very intrigued by the concept of this story due to Daphne’s unique dating life. Daphne receives slips of paper with a man’s name and how long the relationship is going to last.

The story started off very slow and took me a while to get into it and honestly just when it picked up and I started enjoying it more, everything was wrapping up and it was the end?? We as readers never found out why the notes exist or why she was receiving them in the first place which is confusing given it’s the premise of the book and her “big secret” the entire time.

The chapters alternate between her past relationships as well as the present and while I liked learning about her prior relationships and why they didn’t work out, there was a lot of time dedicated to them and I felt less time was given to her current relationship. Even though he was “perfect for her” and “the one” I feel they had no chemistry. There were also two “twists” in the last half of the book that left me with mixed feelings as they both felt randomly placed and yet I liked the way they were woven into the story.

My favorite part of the story was a scene with her father - which had the most emotion and depth in that scene than the rest of the book. There was a quote in that chapter, “Life is messy and uncomfortable, complicated and beautiful” that I think really sums up Daphne’s character and was a nice addition to the story.

** thanks to NetGalley and Atria for the ARC and chance to read and review **

Being single is like playing the lottery. There’s always the chance that with one piece of paper you could win it all. 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. 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.

I loved One Italian Summer so much and was so excited to see a new book from Rebecca Serle. And this one did not disappoint! While in ways this was just a regular romance story, but then suddenly there were other parts revealed which gave the story so much more depth and emotion. I loved watching it all play out, wondering if Daphne would finally get the happily ever after that she deserves.

Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. I have come to really love this author and will read anything she writes in the future! Also put The Dinner List on my TBR to read soon!

I loved the premise of this story, but I am not the biggest fan of the pacing of the narrative. I felt that it was kind of slow, and I think the sections detailing Daphne’s past relationships contributed to the slow feel. That isn’t to say that I didn’t enjoy these sections — I was curious about her former relationships because going into this one of my big questions was “does Daphne behave differently knowing when these relationships will end and does that contribute to their end?” My favorite part was the turning point when Daphne decided to stop letting the expiration dates dictate her life and she took control of her fate, which is definitely the point of the novel.
Overall, I enjoyed the story, which I thought would be light and fluffy but defied those expectations with some great twists. I definitely enjoyed this one more than One Italian Summer.

Diving into this book felt like catching a refreshing breeze on a warm day. It's a heartwarming, can't-put-it-down, grin-on-your-face kind of story that doubles as an ode to the vibrant City of Angels.

Enter Daphne Bell, whose life gets a sprinkle of mystery with the mysterious slips of paper predicting the lifespan of her relationships. Then comes Jake, introduced by a friend, and for the first time, her slip of paper is blank. Zero. Zilch. Could this be destiny signaling he's Mr. Right?

As we explore Daphne's journey and her adorable encounter with Jake, we're treated to snippets of her past loves and her current bond with Hugo—her bestie and ex—who's privy to the secret of the magical notes.

This book stands out for its creativity and sheer enjoyability, offering a read-so-fast-it-blurs kind of experience that leaves you beaming. It sparked nostalgia for my two decades in Los Angeles, bringing joy with each familiar landmark mentioned. If I have one tiny nitpick, it's a culinary preference—I'm team Bristol Farms over Erewhon any day. But that's just me musing on the side.

Oh, my heart! This story is beautifully written with witty banter between characters I just want to be best friends with. I, quite literally, laughed out loud at times. I clutched my pounding heart. I gasped. I let the tears roll down my cheeks. How the author managed to squeeze so much emotion into under 200 pages is a thing of mystery, but I gladly went along for the ride. If you don't fall in love with Daphne, her many suitors, and Murphy the dog-who-doesn't-know-how-to-dog, you may need to check your pulse.

This is my first time reading a Rebecca Serle book, and I would definitely read the author's other books. While I totally didn't love the ending, I really enjoyed the book overall. I found Expiration Dates to be an easy, quick read—and I did get a little choked up. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

✨EXPIRATION DATES✨
Rating: 4 ⭐️ - I Liked It

In one of my most anticipated reads of the year, Rebecca delivers with a story about love, dating, self-acceptance…the list goes on! Huge TY to @simon for my ARC!

EXPIRATION DATES follows Daphne as she conquers life, dating, and love in LA. Each time she starts dating someone new, she gets a note saying how long they will be together. What follows is a really beautiful story.

❤️ for my LOVERS of stories that take place in your 20’s, one’s about DATING and all it’s ups and down, SELF-ACCEPTANCE & LOVE, a touch of MAGICAL REALISM, chronic illness, reflection and growth, FATHER/DAUGHTER relationships

❤️ I loved the THEMES & LAYERS across this book - there were so many facets that whether your a 20 year old in the midst of dating, or have found your forever person - you’ll get all the feels from this story

❤️ these CHARACTERS! I loved Daphne, her parents - the FATHER/DAUGHTER relationships was one of my favorites, Irina, Kendra, Hugo, Jake…

❤️ the perfect amount of MAGICAL REALISM - from someone who tends to struggle with MR novels, this one was just the right amount!

🗓️EXPIRATION•DATES🗓️
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Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for the opportunity to read this book! It publishes March 19th!
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Rebecca Serle’s newest book, Expiration Dates, is a heart tugging magical realism read that will keep you turning the pages.

What I enjoyed: 🗓️
Short chapters
Past/present timelines/flashbacks
Jewish representation
Hollywood setting
The unexpected twist
Hugo
Murphy 🐶
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What I didn’t love:🗓️
The “magic” aspect of this book was a bit weird to me, but the book is built around it, so I guess it makes sense…it just felt a bit out of place to me.
Also, not a fan of the ending. I needed an epilogue at the very least!
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However, many people will love this one and it really does have a great message. 🗓️
3.5 stars

📖 𝘌𝘹𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘋𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘺 𝘙𝘦𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘤𝘢 𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘦

“𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴, 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘭. 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴, 𝘋𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘦. 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴, 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵.“

⭐️ 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙣 𝙪𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙜𝙚𝙢!

This book wasn’t at all what I thought I was going to be from the description! While the beginning of the book was a bit slow, midway through the book I was feeling all the dang emotions! This book made me cry multiple times. Daphne comes off as someone that’s just going through the motions of dating in the beginning. Once you breakdown her walls and get to her secrets, all of her actions make more sense. There were several plot twists I did not see coming! I loved both Jake and Hugo and wasn’t sure how the ending was going to play out. In the end, I cried happy tears.

💕 There are a lot of life lessons in this book that I feel many people will be able to relate to.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮:
Daphne Bell isn’t like everyone else. She gets mysterious notes that tell her the name of her next relationship, and how long it will last. When a note appears that simply has a name on it and no expiration date, Daphne has to figure out how to finally settle down and be happy.

𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨:
💕 Contemporary Romance
✨ Magical Realism
🚪 Closed Door Romance
⏰ Flashbacks

Expiration Dates releases on March 19th! Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for my early copy of this story so that I could share this honest review!

“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.“

My Grade: B ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A magical and heartwarming novel that shows the complexity of falling in love. The novel gets very serious in the last half, but I felt it added to the overall journey of the FMC.

Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of 5. Good kissing scenes, and low key sex scenes that never went overboard. Nicely done!

The Good Stuff:
-I myself am not Jewish, but I absolutely loved the Jewish culture!
-Daphne's parents are adorable and I loved the later conversations she had with her father. Such words of wisdom!
-Hollywood!
-BFF Hugo and Daphne has terrific chemistry! I loved their journey!
-I really enjoyed all of the flashbacks showing Daphne's relationships and how the mysteriously appearing papers played out.
-It was refreshing to read a FMC that wasn't immature or acted like a teenager,
-Two doggies and a scene that showed just how important the love of a pet truly is!
-The epilogue! Loved it so much!

The Meh Stuff:
-Where was the shock to the magical notes that just kept appearing out of nowhere? This was so much needed, especially since that was the premise of the book.
-I was not prepared for the twist in the story. It did add something to Daphne's journey , but I personally found it a bit triggering and others may as well. I always appreciate it when a content warning is included at the beginning of the book, and it should have been included here as well.

Contemporary with a light touch of magical realism
Felt very tell, not show.
It had so much promise - how much of our lives is driven by choice vs destiny? however, it felt very unfulfilled.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Atria Books for my #gifted copy of Expiration Dates!

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: 𝐑𝐞𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐜𝐚 𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐞
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝟏𝟗, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

★★★★★

Daphne Bell and her love life is dictated by little pieces of paper. Whenever she meets a new man, she receives a small paper with his name and a number on it, which indicates the exact time they will be together. Some relationships last a few days, while some last up to a few months. For over twenty years, Daphne has been given an expiration date. On the night of her blind date with Jake, the paper she receives has no date. With no expiration date, is Jake the love of Daphne’s life?

This was such a quick, yet engaging read and I loved learning more about Daphne through the multiple timelines which offered different glimpses at her life. I really loved the main characters and felt like they were so well-developed. This was such a beautifully written book and I highly recommend Expiration Dates if you love magical realism!

🗒️Magical Realism
🗒️Multiple Timelines
🗒️Self-Discovery
🗒️Unexpected Twists
🗒️Lovers to Best Friends

“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.”

Posted on Goodreads on March 13, 2024: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram - Full Review- on or around March 13, 2024: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on March 19, 2024
**-will post on designated date

What a lovely little read; Serle's work in intertwining the vaguely-supernatural notes that provide the "expiration dates" of protagonist Daphne's romantic relationships with the notion of expiration dates in a much more concrete and realistic manner is excellent, and Daphne and her supporting circle are all pretty delightful characters. Is it ultimately anything that will change the landscape of fiction as we know it? Nah. But it was a quick and charming read that's perfect for piquing every possible feeling a reader can have, and for spending a few hours wrapped up in a story with a relatable and engaging heroine and her posse of colorful, engaging friends and family.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
2.5 stars rounded down
***spoilers***

I wanted to love this story so much! We follow Daphne, a girl who receives a piece of paper from the universe with a man’s name and frame of time right before/after she meets the person. Example, John, three weeks. She knows she’s about to meet or has just met John, and their relationship will last three weeks. Finally one day, she receives a note with only a name, Jake. That should mean forever, right?

Daphne’s story is one of choice vs. fate or destiny. I did not like Daphne. I felt that she never made a decision for herself and blamed her papers, accepted them for the only way life should go. If she wanted to keep seeing someone, instead of trying to continue past whatever time the paper said, she’d just throw up her hands and literally called time’s up. One great, SPOILER, example is her breakup with Tae. She says they broke up over bad cell reception. Tae was upset she didn’t call from the hospital. She said she tried but the reception wouldn’t let her call go through. Then she thinks about how she didn’t actually try to call, and she’s lying.

When Hugo finds out she’s sick, that she’s been hiding so much from him, he is surprised that she kept a big secret from him. She immediately panics and breaks up with him only because she realizes it’s been 3 months to the day which her note said was their time. He didn’t choose to leave her.

How she also always wanted to move to New York but never made the decision to act on it.

Also, she milked the heart condition way too much. As someone who works in the medical field, she acted like she was given and immediate death sentence and would drop dead at any second…

I loved Hugo and the idea behind the story, but it was really hard to root for Daphne.

Review

Tysm for the advanced readers copy @netgalley @atriabooks

I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS ONE! I can see how this may not be for everyone, I’ve seen such mixed reviews. It is very, contemporary.

Her writing is simple but has weight. I felt so many different feelings throughout. Atmospheric, makes me want to visit LA. I was waiting the whole book for something to break my heart and of course it did. Provoked some deep thinking about life, love and friendship. Also, maybe a side thought I should save for a book club, but I really think people with anxiety would just relate so much to this book.

You could really label this as so many different themes: coming of age, radical acceptance, self growth, contemporary romance, grief/loss.

“I thought if I had all the answers, I’d I was always one step ahead, if I knew my hand, I would never loose. But being surprised by life isn’t loosing, it’s living.”

“What can I say, I wanted a love story that sung.”

3.5⭐
Genre ~ women's fiction
Setting ~ California
Publication date ~ March 19, 2024
Est page Count ~ 268 (39 chapters)
Audio length ~ 6 hours 54 minutes
Narrator ~ Julia Whelan
POV ~ single 1st
Featuring ~ magical realism, short chapters, slow burn, very minimal steamage

Dahpne (33) takes us on her dating journey's, whether they last 1 night, 3 weeks or 3 months, each one's end time was already written in the stars, or on a postcard that is.

Even though she dates a lot it's pretty light on the romance and more about her journey to find the one. The dates are more as a flashback and not as they're happening, too. I don't have any complaints about the characters as they're all pretty likable.

Overall, it was fast paced, lighthearted in parts and heavier in others with a good amount of wit. I actually laughed quite a few times. I even shed a quick tear at the end when she was having a heart to heart with her father.

Little niggle ~ I could have went without the description of everyone's outfits just about every time someone new came on page.

After reading In Five Years, I should have expected there to be a twist. This book was such a fast read. I was shocked by how fast it went. I think the storyline needed it to be that fast or things would have gotten too deep. While I would have loved more of the ending, I appreciate that it ended the way it did. It ended with hope and promise.

Thank you to NetGalley @netgalley and Atria Books @atriabooks for a free copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review!

This was a very unique concept for a book! Whenever Daphne meets someone she’s going to date she receives a slip of paper with the length of time of each relationship until one day she just receives a name and no length of time.

I really liked the magical realism aspect of this book and I thought it was written really well and not overdone. I liked seeing every relationship she had and how it lead up to the final one.

Also the Jewish and chronic illness rep was written so well. Especially the parts about where she’s afraid people will judge her and treat her differently if they know about her chronic illness.

The ending wasn’t my favorite but it made for a nice book.

If you like books with magical realism and a unique love story then pick up this book!

Comes out March 19, 2024!