<b>4.5 stars</b>
Thank you to Netgalley, Jackie Lau and Atria Books for this ARC. My opinions are my own.

Noelle Tom feels like she's in a rut. She's underappreciated at work, she doesn't have much of a social life to speak of, and she's pretty much given up on love and dating. Having worked late yet another Friday evening, Noelle goes to the night market and buys some dumplings from a mysterious old woman who claims they will "give her what she needed most".

Unfortunately, eating the dumplings causes Noelle to be trapped in a time loop. Every morning, no matter what she tries or does, she wakes up on Friday the 20th of June. All of her work is reset, any conversations she has are forgotten the next day. She can cut and/or dye her hair, and it's back to her usual length the next morning when she wakes up. Any money she spends, no matter how big a sum, is back in her bank account as well. When she tries to return to the night market, the old woman's food stall is nowhere to be found, even if everything else plays out the same for her, every day. Only Noelle remembers all the things she has tried and experienced. She needs to figure out what will break her out of the time loop.

After some time, reliving the same day on repeat, Noelle locates another woman, Avery, who also ate the mystery dumplings and is stuck in the same time loop, if possible in an even worse situation than Noelle (she has her period and has discovered that she wants to break up with her boyfriend - and every morning she wakes up in bed with him again). Avery and Noelle bond over their unusual situation, and while everything else resets each morning, they remember the conversations and experiences they have have together, allowing them to slowly develop a firm and supportive friendship.

Noelle keeps running into Cam, a friendly and handsome brewery owner. Every time he sees Noelle, he seems to almost remember her, prompting Noelle to believe he might be able to help her get out of her predicament. She orchestrates a long series of different meet-cutes, and as she gets to know him in a series of dates, she falls in love with him, while he has to be reminded of who she is with each new reset.

I've been reading Jackie Lau's novels for a few years now, and she keeps getting stronger and more sophisticated as a writer. Normally, her novels are straight contemporary romances, set in Canada. Here she introduces an element of magical realism with the time loop, and in the first half of the novel, especially, the focus of the story isn't so much on the romance between Noelle and Cam, but the friendship between Noelle and Avery, who both very much need someone else to listen to and support them in their lives. While Noelle is trapped in the time loop, as she gets to know Cam a bit more with each new encounter, he keeps forgetting her, and it's not possible for their relationship to really progress.

In the second half of the novel, Noelle and Avery are faced with a new challenge, as they are unexpectedly freed from the time loop, but instead of waking up on June 21st, it's January 24th. More than seven months have passed, and some version of them seems to have lived through these months, without either of them having any memory of the passing time. Avery seems to actually be engaged to her boyfriend and will need to deal with that. Meanwhile, Noelle needs to figure out why her sister doesn't seem to want to see or speak to her anymore, but also has a real chance to build a proper relationship with Cam.

Because of the time loop element, this novel is a rather unusual romance. If the friendship developing between Avery and Noelle doesn't work for you, this book might seem slow and frustrating, since most of the actual romance stuff comes in the second half. I really liked it, though, and recommend it to fans of Lau's previous novels.

<b>Judging a book by its cover: </b>I think the cover is cute, and the dark blue background with what looks like little golden dots gives it a more magical, whimsical feel. I like how we get three versions of Noelle and Cam, growing increasingly closer to one another as the story progresses.

Thank you to @jackielaubooks for an early copy of her new book Time Loops and Meet Cutes!! I had such a fun time reading this!

After eating some dumplings at a night market, Noelle gets stuck in a time loop. She has no idea what to make of the situation and while trying to navigate living the same day over and over again, she meets Avery, who is also stuck, and Cam who is ever so cute but because of the time loop, he never remembers her name. Except he remembers HER. He doesn't know why he knows her or where he knows her from but he remembers her face (swoon).

Over the course of the story, Noelle and Avery try to figure out how to get out of the loop while simultaneously actually living their lives. I also enjoyed the budding romance between Cam and Noelle. It was fascinating to see all the ways Cam remembered Noelle even if he wasn't sure why. I found the story fun and sweet and had a blast reading it.

As with any Jackie Lau story, do not read it hungry. Ever. Just don't. But do read it and all of her books. Thank you again to Jackie for having me on her ARC team!

Time Loops and Meet Cutes comes out May 6 and is available for pre-order now!

This book was quirky and fun and sweet. At first I wasn’t sure what to expect but was pleasantly surprised. The character growth and development was amazing.

10/10—this book is a total treat! Jackie Lau delivers a fresh, fun take on the time loop trope. Noelle is stuck reliving June 20th, and while the first half focuses on her trying to escape, the second half dives into discovering why it happened. It’s funny, heartfelt, and will make you hungry—for food, love, and connection. Set in Toronto and featuring a swoony Asian brewery owner, this is a must-read. One of my new Lau favorites!

Noelle Tom is stuck in a time loop and is forced to keep repeating June 20th over and over after eating some magical dumplings at a night market. She meets Avery who is also stuck in the time loop and the two women develop a friendship and attempt to help each other get out of the loop. Even though Noelle becomes frustrated with trying to escape the loop, she does have one positive thing going for her. She has met a wonderful man named Cam who she can't seem to stop running into every time she experiences June 20th. Every time they meet, he asks if they've met before because she seems so familiar to him. She keeps trying to figure out what she needs most since that is what the woman who sold her the dumplings said they would give to her.

I really enjoyed the twist on the classic time loop trope. I loved that we got to experience Cam's perspective since he was not in the loop but kept experiencing deja vu with Noelle and seemed to feel like something (or someone) was missing from his life. I liked that Noelle used her time in the loop to make some positive changes in her life by mending some of her strained relationships with her friends and family. She also made changes when she realized how unhappy she was in her job. This story had a wonderful message about how we should not be afraid to take risks and appreciate all the little things in life and try not to take things for granted.

Read if you enjoy:
Magical Realism
Insta connection
Time Travel
Steamy, Slow Burn Romance
Friendships
Dual POV

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The nature of this trope is repetitive. A lot of the same over and over and I found myself getting bored, wishing for the loop to end. I didn’t expect that. It was fun to experience our FMC trying different ways to break the loop, and meet cutes with Cam over and over. But the overall story wasn’t anything special IMO.

I received an advance review copy for free from the publisher via Netgalley and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I love Jackie Lau's books and this one did not disappoint. Creative concept , fun story and interesting characters. The characters are charming and lovely, very relatable . The author does a good job exploring themes of grief and self-discovery while keeping the story moving and engaging. . And as with most Jackie Lau books there is some steam!

Thank you for the ARC. I always enjoy Jackie's books

I struggled to get into this book and the writing felt very juvenile to me, unfortunately. I wanted more from this.

This was really cute! I love a good magical realism romcom, so magical dumplings? I’m down! Though I’d rather not get stuck in a time loop and fall in love with a guy who’s constantly forgetting he met me. Cam is a sweetheart though and Noelle is relatable.
I recommend for romance fans who love constant food references. 😅

I received an advance copy from the publisher, all opinions are my own, and a review was not required.

So adorable! This was such a fun and lighthearted time loop story that was so easy to breeze through.

Time loop stories with romance can often be problematic due to the dynamics of the scenario, but Noelle's interactions with Cam always came across as very natural and unproblematic- I really appreciated how their relationship developed.

All the descriptions of yummy food also made me crave dumplings and boba, so be prepared.

This is my first book by Jackie Lau, and I will definitely be checking out more of her books!

I love the concept of this book and I really like a lot of aspects of this book but it did not feel fully realized. there was no goal they were moving towards and when they got out of the time loop it felt awkward and we got zero real answers. I also wish the male characters pov chapters had been expanded or completely taken out.

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of the eARC to read and give my honest feedback.

Tropes: Second Chances, Time Loop, Strangers to Lovers, Opposites Attract, Magical Realism

While the title of the book made me think that this would be a cutesy little rom com, I was incorrect. This book does have a cute romance, but it also hits on some heavy topics as one would expect when you have to relive the same day over 100 times.

This book honestly ripped my heart and stomped on it- but like I was okay with it? Noelle, our FMC, goes to a night market and eats some dumplings, but little did she know that they would make her get stuck in a time loop. She tries everything to get out of the loop- a meet cute where she kisses a cute guy, quitting her job, trying to get a pay raise at her job, seeing her family, etc- yet nothing works.

Then Avery, who is also stuck in the loop, meets Noelle and they start a budding friendship. I loved their relationship- since neither one of them had strong female relationships, them having each other was a new experience.
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Then there was Cam- our love interest- yet he can't remember Noelle who he has met over 50 times, kissed, and more. This aspect of the story was literally gut wrenching. Him re-meeting her every day hurt my soul- I cannot imagine having to pretend that I had no prior knowledge of someone I was falling in love with.

The ending seemed a tad rushed to me- <spoiler>and the big reveal of the interconnected aspect of Cam with the old woman that sold Noelle the dumpling- was odd to me, like she was related to him? </spoiler>

Overall- I enjoyed the story and really loved Noelle's characters growth- learning that she could leave her job, she wasn't the sole person to keep her family together, reconnecting with her sister- was PHENOMENAL. I also loved Cam and Noelle's relationship so so much.

This delightful rom-com infused with magical realism offers a fresh take on love and self-discovery. After a painful heartbreak, Noelle has buried herself in work, letting her love life fade into the background. But everything changes one fateful Friday when she visits the Night Market for dinner—triggering an unexpected time loop that traps her in an endless cycle, reliving the same day again and again. As she navigates the strange repetition, Noelle gradually uncovers what truly matters, piecing together the mystery behind the loop while searching for a way to break free. Thoughtful, charming, and heartfelt, this novel is a captivating journey of growth, second chances, and embracing the unexpected.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books and Emily Bestler for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a cute little time loop tale!
Summary: Noelle has a repetitious life of monotonous work days and uneventful nights. At least, she thought so, until she ventures to the food court at a night market after a late night at work and eats a little old lady’s delicious dumplings. She has a minor breakdown on a bench, gets comforted by a stranger, and otherwise calls it an uneventful night. And then her alarm goes off on a Saturday when it’s not supposed to… and lo and behold… it’s Friday yet again! 🤯 Totally thrown off and feeling like she’s lost her mind, she drags herself to work and relives the day, questioning her sanity. She rewrites the proposal her work partner botched, again… as she wonders about what could’ve triggered this time loop. Returning to the market, the notices a difference- no little old lady’s in a dumpling booth. Could this be the key to what’s happening? The story goes on for Noelle to repeat June 20th again and again, slowly changing things as she is determined to get out of the loop. She is surprised to meet Avery, another person apparently trapped in the same time loop, and they work together to try to solve this mystery. Noelle has also continually met Cam, a sweet and irresistibly interesting bar owner. Through her days, she begins to wonder if knowing him is the key to releasing the time loop.the frustration mounts as she relived dozens of first dates that he’ll never remember. Will her and Avery ever find a way out? Or are they destined to stay in a forever June 20th?

Review: I really loved the premise of this story and found it engaging and curious. I did feel at times it was too drug out, but pushed through because I was intrigued enough that I needed answers! Overall, the characters were well-developed and easy to relate to. The plot was interesting and comical at times, so it kept my attention. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the gift of an ARC of this title. All opinions are my own.

I love time loop stories.

There’s something really fascinating about the idea of day repeats, or getting caught in time, or really just time in general. And there are obviously a whole ton of people just like me who find the concept engaging since there’s a plethora of these stories available in just about every medium. Time, as an idea, is just one that draws people in.

What’s somewhat ironic about this book as a whole is that I really enjoyed it. I cannot help but feel, though, that were I to compare it to several of my other absolute favorites it doesn’t really hold up in comparison. The truth of this falls somewhere in the consideration of part two of the book—boy meets girl.

While the introduction to the main character and the journey of watching her stumble through the repetition of the same day over and over again—and the fact that she had a friend!—was amazing, it was the time loop escape and roundabout way everything came together in the end that I hated. I can’t quite put my finger on why, but it all sort of felt very flat and convenient. And sure, I can understand the author’s reasoning, where the idea for it all came from and joined together. It’s just…I was editing the entire second half in my head.

And perhaps my disappointment is because, at some point, I had made a prediction for an idea that I’d personally grown attached to and was simply disappointed when that idea didn’t come to fruition. Maybe it’s because I just didn’t care to be in Cam’s head. I’m truly not sure. What I do know, however, is that I wanted a different ending. I wanted Cam’s side of the story to be resolved differently. And for that, I lost some of my adoration.

All that said, I do think that this is in incredible story with wonderful characters and one well worth reading.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
⭐2.5⭐

This was a cute story, but I could not understand why the author had to put the menstruation detail in the story. My God for seven straight months?! That is just sheer torture and she’s a side charcater too! The main character wasn’t even that likable and I didn’t feel for her as bad as I felt for her friend, Avery, who had a crummy boyfriend and was stuck in a physical rut.

This book had an intriguing plot, but ultimately fell short due to its lack of character depth and an underdeveloped plot. While the time loop trope initially grabbed my attention and had some promise for a unique romance plot, it felt repetitive, with limited emotional exploration or real purpose behind the time loop. I really wanted to love this!

Sincere thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

this was a really fun magical realism/groundhogs day scenario. I think I loved everything except how this all wrapped up. The whole thing with the grandma being related to the MMC, and it all going full circle like that was a little strange. 3.5 stars

First off I have to say I absolutely love Jackie Lau’s Canadian romances! She does an amazing job, creating her characters and visualizing the Canadian locals that she writes in.

In Time Loops and Meet Cutes, I absolutely loved her use of the Groundhog Day trope, a day that repeats over and over again. Noel Tom is pretty strait laced by the book and isn’t getting anywhere in life until she takes a step out of the ordinary and goes to a night market and decides to munch on some dumplings …. unknowingly to her these dumplings are magic and now she’s cursed to repeat the same day, June 20th, over and over until she can get it right!

Along the way, she meets Cam a brewhouse owner and finds through her repetition of days the courage to step out of her shell and get to know him - day after day!

But eventually, she wakes up and it’s not June 20th anymore! And she needs to find a way to capture what she has gained and learned over her many June 20ths!

This was such a fun take on this idea, and I loved seeing Noelle come out of her shell and discover what she wants and that she has the ability to make those changes in herself to get it! It’s so good to see such personal growth in a romance!

This was such a fun read with great flashed out characters and scenery. Jackie Lou does an amazing job bringing these characters to life and putting you in there position.

Jackie is one of my favourite contemporary authors and I get so giddy when she’s got a new book coming out - I can’t recommend this one enough!

“It allowed me to take risks I never would have taken otherwise. It also helped me better appreciate certain things in life.”

this is such a unique spin on alternate universes/multiple timelines! i really enjoyed the themes of friendship and family. the romance was sweet and made full circle at the end! i also really liked that there’s asian representation and the fmc is in stem (she’s a mechanical engineer)!

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books | Atria/Emily Bestler Books for an ARC of this title!

🤍🥟⏱️