4.25 stars

I enjoyed this and had a good time reading it. I generally like time loop stories if they're done right, and this was a good one. I liked the way Noelle orchestrated her various meet cutes, and I really loved the friendship that developed with Avery. There was a bit with Avery's storyline that felt unresolved to me (SPOILER: Why was Avery's time loop reduced to furthering Noelle's story instead of complementing it?)

And that cover? Looking back at it now, after reading it, and it is so well done! There is a little spice sprinkled in, which was fine. There are so many descriptions of food and now I want dumplings. But maybe not at the risk of a time loop.

Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for the opportunity to read and review.

I received a copy of this eBook from netGalley for a honest review.

I've enjoyed Jackie Lau's books in the past but this one with it's slightly magical feel is the best I've read of hers! So much to feel and think about. Noelle is definitely in need of a shake up in her life and Cam is so perfect for her. Just a wonderful story.

This was a fun, heartfelt novel with a clever take on the time loop trope. It packed in humor, warmth, sweet chemistry between the main characters. While it's a quick read, it still manages to pack in good emotional depth and self discovery.

Noelle Tom, a workaholic engineer, wakes up one day to discover she’s living in a time loop. At first, it’s all fun and games but then she meets Cam, a handsome brewery owner. He never remembers her the next day…

ARC Review- The concept is really cool and what initially drew me into the book. The moment I started with the book, I instantly giggled. I love the Asian rep. Another thing is that I completely understood the fight between her and her sister. It hit a little close to home and I just wanted to be there for moral support and hug the girls. However, Noelle was an annoying character for me. I don’t think the choices she made were always right. Her character is a little uptight and a perfectionist, but even when she found out she was stuck in the time loop, she still picked safe options. Like I understand it’s scary, but the whole point of this was to learn to live a little, and that’s what we’re NOT doing. And when she gets out of the time loop, she still acts the exact same way like did NOTHING happen to you? It was just frustrating. I would like to thank Atria books and Netgalley for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Like all good stories, this one starts with dumplings and since dumplings are my favorite food group (sue me) I knew I was already in love with this book from page one. And I honestly adored this book! Noelle is so authentic and relatable, even though she’s stuck in a time loop, and Cam is perfection. Fans of the movie Groundhog Day will love the time loop part of the story and the love story will appeal to those of us who love romance books. This is definitely worth the read!

A cutie little rom com, a treat for fans of Fifty First Dates and other 90s/00s rom coms.

I had a great time with Noelle and Cam’s story, but perhaps an even better one with the friendships developed in the book. Solid female friendship is often underrepresented in media.

The only mild criticism I would give is that the pacing did seem a little off at times, and reference to Fifty First Dates or Groundhog Day, Everything Everywhere All At Once, or even Freaky Friday would’ve been appreciated. As she realized what was happening, connecting it to familiar stories. Noelle clearly appreciated media and cinema, but no quips to related films were found which seemed a little out of character.

Being stuck living the same day repeatedly isn’t what anyone wants to do - let alone be the only one doing it. That is until she finds one other person that shares her experience. Will they find a way out and a way to get those they want to remember then to do so.

Noelle goes through the motions of her mundane life - overworking herself, taking things too seriously, and not investing time in her interpersonal relationships. On June 20th, after leaving work well past dinner time, she finds herself wandering around a market. An older woman selling dumplings catches her eye, so she stops there. They’re delicious, and the woman tells her they will bring her just what she needs. The next morning, Noelle discovers it is June 20th again. And again, and again - for days on end. Unsure what caused the loop or how to get out of it, Noelle searches for answers, others like her, and for ways to escape. One thing on her mind to escape? Kissing the cute guy she keeps running into.

Y’all. Not to be dramatic, but this book was so cute it made me want to cry. I loved this so much! I love a time loop book, and am fascinated that authors can continue to write unique ways of cause, entering, and escaping. With this one, I could not predict how Noelle was going to get out of this loop. There was only one twist I could predict and even with that, I wasn’t sure what caused things. I am obsessed with the main characters - I resonate with Noelle because she’s bad at flirting, and I resonate with Cam because he gets anxious and worried about losing a good thing, wanting to make it work. I loved all of the attempts and suggestions of escaping the loop. Avery was a great side character as well. Loved the family stressors and just found this really well put together.

This was a fun read! Time Loops & Meet Cutes would be a great read for those who like Ashley Poston. I thought the romance between Noelle and Cam was really cute and I was engaged in each loop that Noelle experienced. The reliving of June 20th over and over again forces Noelle to examine her life - job, relationships, and goals and make changes to find true happiness.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the advanced copy. Time Loops & Meet Cutes hits shelves on May 6, 2025.

What a new, refreshing twist on contemporary romance!

Noelle has a tough day at work and decides to treat herself to dumplings at the night market. She then finds herself stuck in a time loop - for seven months! On the way she meets Avery who is also stuck in the same loop (it's her birthday and her boyfriend forgot AND she's on her period!) and Cam, whom she thinks might be the key for breaking the loop. She winds up falling in love with Cam, who doesn't remember her every single day (how "50 First Dates!") but remembers subtle things like her beer order.

When the loop finally breaks, it's January and neither Noelle nor Avery have any memory of what happened to them outside of the loop in the past seven months. They have to learn to live with choices they've made while also living with the lessons they learned while in the loop.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eArc.

** Disclaimer: I would like to thank Atria Books/Simon and Schuster for providing me with a free ARC of this book. My opinion is, of course, my own. **

What could make a fun, flirty contemporary rom-com even more fun? Why, time travel, of course! Or at least, that seems to be the intention behind Jackie Lau’s newest book, "Time Loops and Meet Cutes". "Time Loops and Meet Cutes" finds our hapless heroine Noelle forced to repeat June 20th over and over again as she keeps encountering a handsome and charming man named Cam—who can never quite remember who she is. Can Noelle find a way out, or will she be forced to repeat June 20th forever?

In a genre currently over-saturated with a handful of tropes, "Time Loops and Meet Cutes" stands out as a rom-com that feels fresh, emotional, and above all, intriguing. I tend to find rom-coms easy to put down, but with this particular rom-com, I found myself invested in Noelle’s plight: the experiments she conducts to understand the rules that govern her time loop, her (many, many, many) attempts to break out of the time loop, and the emotional journey she goes on as she finds herself repeating the same day over, and over, and over again. The time loop gives her the chance to let go and take risks—but it also leads to heartbreak, because her relationship with Cam can never progress beyond a first date.

Like any book, "Time Loops and Meet Cutes" does have its weaknesses, the most prominent of which (at least for me) was the characterization. None of the characters in this book surprised me at any point, and Noelle and Cam in particular weren’t specific enough to feel like real people. Imagine two cookie-cutter rom-com leads, and you already know what Cam and Noelle are like: Noelle is sensible, smart, capable, and slightly uptight (she just needs to learn to let go and live a little!), and Cam is laid-back and charming and sensitive and has never had an interesting thought in his entire life (at one point he also feeds her cinnamon rolls… which feels a little on the nose).

But (again, at least for me) the book’s weakness were ultimately counterbalanced by its strengths; I was especially impressed by how well "Time Loop and Meet Cutes" managed to balance all of its different story elements—the time loop, the romance, Noelle’s emotional growth—to create a book that's well-paced, well-plotted, and consistently entertaining. If you want to pick up a beach-read-worthy rom-com that will keep you reading, make you laugh, and maybe even tear up a bit, you really can’t go wrong with "Time Loop and Meet Cutes".

4.5 stars – Time Loops and Meet Cutes by Jackie Lau is such a good book! I stayed up until 1:30 am to finish it. It was a fun take on two women in Toronto repeating the same day over and over. Their loops brought them to appreciate what they have in their lives and identify and focus on those things that are missing. This was a really good book! Do yourself a favor and read it when it comes out in May 2025.

Thank you, Atria and NetGalley, for this ARC. This independent, honest review is happily shared.

Thank you to NetGalley and @AtriaBooks for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one was such a charming twist on the classic time loop story. After a trip to the night market and a plate of mysterious dumplings, Noelle suddenly finds herself reliving the same day—June 20th—again and again. She doesn’t know why or how to break the loop, but there’s a hint from the dumpling vendor that she’ll get “what she needs most.” Which, as it turns out, might not be what she originally thought.

While Noelle is stuck in this repeating day, she ends up doing a lot of self-reflection—thinking about her job, her relationships, and what she actually wants from life. She also meets two people who end up playing a big part in her journey: Avery, who’s also caught in the loop (which was a fun and unexpected twist), and Cam, the charming brewery owner she keeps randomly running into.

The daily meet cutes with Cam were adorable—I loved seeing how their connection shifted each time, especially those little moments where he almost recognized her. There’s also a sweet, grounded friendship between Noelle and Avery that brought a lot of warmth and humor to the story. Honestly, I would’ve happily read a whole spinoff just about the two of them navigating life together.

The repetition dragged a bit at times (kind of inevitable with this kind of plot), and I do wish the loop’s “why” had been explored a bit more clearly. Still, the emotional payoff worked for me. The story’s really about growth—learning to take chances, let go of fear, and make space for unexpected joy.

Overall, it’s quirky, thoughtful, and full of heart. A cozy little rom-com with just the right amount of magic.
4 Stars!
#NetGalley, #AtriaBooks, #TimeLoopsandMeetCutes, #JackieLau

For lovers of stories with a little infusion of magical realism in them. Noelle and Cam are destined to meet.. again, and again and again. The only problem? Noelle is stuck in a time loop.

While there were some issues for me personally with this book (why is a time loop the FIRST thing Noelle guesses after she gets stuck?) overall it was a fun read that I finished in a day.

Cute dual point of view rom-com. Noel and Cam meet after eating the same food cart dumplings, but do they actually meet? This time loop story shows how deep heartfelt memories can live and the power it takes to remember them. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

OMG! This book was so freaking good! I loved everything about it and it was a fun, emotional, steamy read. I love time loop movies and this book was just like watching one of them. What I liked the most is that we got to see Noelle and Cam’s life after the time loop ended. How long Noelle and Avery was in that time loop is a bit heartbreaking but I am so glad they had each other. I do not think either of them could’ve survived if that hadn’t been the case. I really enjoyed Cam and Noelle’s relationship and all the supporting cast. This book kept me enthralled and I read it in one sitting. Once I started, I couldn’t stop! I cannot wait to read more books by Jackie Lau!

Thank you NetGalley, Atria books, and this author for the chance to read this e arc of this book. I loved the premise of this book. The time loop got a little long and I was ready for them to get back to real life. I thought it was a little crazy how they got out and would have loved to know what really could have gotten them out. I love Cam and Noelle and the 50 first date vibes. The lessons in the book about taking risks and learning to live life again were enjoyable. A cute read but I was left wanting more.

Review times loops and meet cutes

The premise of this book is intriguing, but its execution falls short. The basic plot revolves around Noelle, who consumes some dumplings at a market and finds herself trapped in a time loop, reliving the same day repeatedly. She befriends Avery, another woman stuck in the loop, and together they embark on a journey to break free. While the rest of the world progresses in time, the two ladies take risks and make attempts to escape their temporal confinement.

During her time in the loop, Noelle encounters Cam and experiences a series of first dates reminiscent of the movie 50 First Dates. The premise itself is not bad, but the execution suffers from timing issues. The ending feels rushed and lacks the excitement it could have potentially achieved. At best, this book is a library rental.

Thank you, Atria Books, for providing this book for review consideration through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

Thank you, Atria Books, for an advanced digital copy of this book!

Time Loops & Meet Cutes is a delightful, heartwarming read that gently reminds us to appreciate the little things, nurture our friendships, and find balance beyond work. If you enjoy Ashley Poston’s novels, this one will be right up your alley.

Noelle wakes up on a Friday—and keeps reliving the same day. What sounds like a nightmare turns into something unexpectedly sweet when she discovers she’s stuck in the loop with Cam: charming, funny, emotionally open... and he bakes. Basically, the rom-com dream guy.

Each loop becomes its own quirky romantic adventure, filled with awkward moments, swoony banter, and meaningful growth. Noelle’s relationships—with both Cam and her best friend Avery—shine, and her personal development is a joy to watch.

While the dialogue occasionally felt a bit stiff and the time loop mechanics could’ve used more depth, the emotional arc more than made up for it. One late-story conflict didn’t fully land for me, feeling somewhat unnecessary given all Noelle had already learned. Still, this didn’t take away from the overall charm.

Engaging, fun, and full of heart, this book was an absolute treat. Highly recommend!

Noelle is stuck in life, at a job where she puts in more effort than what she’s paid for, where she’s too fearful of being hurt to put herself out there, and where everyone else in her life is kept at a distance. That is, until she’s actually stuck. In the same day over and over.

Cam has a feeling that he’s missing someone special in his every day life. But when he meets Noelle on a random February afternoon, he feels he knew her in another lifetime. But he can tell she’s keeping something from him and he fears he may have scared her away with his honesty.


This was a cute little romance! For a book where the character relives the same day over and over for 60% of the book, the actual days and how Noelle spent her time didn’t feel repetitive. I loved watching Cam fall for Noelle over and over again.


Some issues I had:
The pacing was a little weird to me.
Some of the sentiments of the main character felt repetitive. It felt like Noelle rehashed the same three character flaws she possessed every other chapter.
Cam’s character didn’t feel fully developed.


What I loved:
The unpredictability of what Noelle and Avery would do next to break the loop
The concept in general was interesting



Overall, this was a 3.75 rounded up to 4 stars. I’d recommend it if you like a romance with a little magic in it!