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

I love coming across this genre every now and then; chick lit with a bit of magical realism. Rebecca Serle has a real knack for this genre and after reading her last book “In Five Years” I knew this would be good. Daphne’s relationship time frames are determined by a piece of paper stating how long each would last. She would receive them is the most random ways. I really enjoyed her relationships with Hugo and Jake. All the characters are so likable! There’s a twist I didn’t expect at all and it threw me for a loop. This was such a good story, I would love to see a sequel.

Her prose is good, she's very descriptive, painting the picture with words so you see and hear the people and places, but the characters of the love interests (Daphne and Jake) aren't as well developed, Daphne is also the narrator, which I think is the only format this story would work from - I can't imagine a third person or dual POV way to make the premise work.

I actually think Hugo (Daphne's bestie) her parents and her boss are easier to imagine as fully formed people. I wonder if that's an intentional choice so you can put some of yourself/partner into Daphne and Jake.

This is a book that made me feel a wide range of things - often frustration at Daphne for keeping secrets, her resignation to the way things are, and the sense that she's stuck - a recipient of life's activity rather than a participant.

Jake, while seemingly "great" and checking all the boxes, bored me, as exciting as cream of wheat, but I think that's intentional, too. Also, I don't want to give the impression that he was entirely forthcoming, the weight of his past presents with secrets simmering just below the surface at all times.

This story speaks to the wrestling of free will versus fate, resignation versus ambition, risk taking versus playing it safe.

Hugo, despite his flaws, was my favorite character, but I really wish that Jake and Daphne made me feel half of what Hugo did.

3.5 stars (rounded up to 4 for the rating scale) because the concept was novel and the writing was lovely but I just didn't feel a case was made to be emotionally invested in Daphne or Jake.

Also, I had to edit this review because it was confusing that the last previous boyfriend was Josh before flipping back to Jake (there was even an error where Jake was used in dialogue with Josh so I'm not alone in the confusion!) so I do think, with going to flashbacks, more dissimilar names are necessary.

I received an eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

📖 BOOK REVIEW

BOOK: Expiration Dates
AUTHOR: Rebecca Serle
FORMAT: Physical
GENRE: Magical Realism
DID I CRY: No
PUB DATE: 3/19/24
RATING: 8/10

Thank you so much @atriabooks for sending me an advanced copy of #ExpirationDates out march 19💚

MY THOUGHTS

I have read all of Rebecca Serle’s books to date and I truly have loved each of them. Her writing is so readable, it cuts out the fluff and really gets straight to the point. I feel that they’re a perfect combination of character-driven and plot-driven. And she always manages to write incredibly unique stories that you won’t find in other books. Her stories tend to be magical realism but not in an overwhelming way.

This particular book i really enjoyed the setting! I felt like LA was home to me after reading it. There was such rich detail while not being too wordy or fluffy. The characters were introduced well and continued to develop throughout the story. I truly loved all of them so much🥹 the plot was fun and i really enjoyed it. The themes, as always, were so special and touching🥹🥹🥹

I think for me, Serle’s books always pack such an intense emotional punch and I didn’t really feel that with this one. As much as I loved this book, I was fully expecting the ending to punch me in the gut and it didn’t. The emotional build up didn’t feel congruent with the ending in my opinion!! All in all tho this was a fantastic book & I can’t wait for you all to read it🫶🏼🫶🏼

This was a sweet, fun, and light read. It was also a quick read for me.

The main character, Daphne, was very likable. The story follows her dating and love life. At times I wanted to scream my opinion into the book, but that’s the sign of a captivating book.

You won’t regret following Daphne through her dating years and will be intrigued with some of the additional life details sprinkled in.

4.5 stars! Another excellent read from Rebecca Serle! Though One Italian Summer is still my favorite of hers, I really enjoyed this one too! The chapters did jump around a bit in a way that ultimately made sense, but it did take me a bit to be fully hooked into this one. But I did get hooked--and read the last two thirds of the book in one sitting. An excellent read!

This book was a roller coaster of emotions for me. At first, I was bored - then shocked, frustrated, and then can’t decide if I loved it or not!

The premise is a fascinating one, and unique, but felt contrived - until it didn’t. I can’t quite put into words, without spoiling it. I think it’d make a fascinating book club book and a lively discussion.

However, I admit I judged it far too soon. The first half of the book for me was a 2-3, but the second half won me over, so a 4 it is!

I enjoyed this more than One Italian Summer but not as much as In Five Years.