Expiration Dates
A Novel
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4.0 • 16 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
The New York Times bestselling author of In Five Years and One Italian Summer returns with “a romantic gem” (Laura Dave, New York Times bestselling author) about a young woman who decides to finally live for herself rather than rely on the universe for answers.
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. The papers told her she’d spend three days with Martin in Paris; five weeks with Noah in San Francisco; and three months with Hugo, her ex-boyfriend turned best friend. 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 name: Jake.
But as Jake and Daphne’s story unfolds, Daphne finds herself doubting the paper’s prediction, and wrestling with what it means to be both committed and truthful. Because Daphne knows things Jake doesn’t, information that—if he found out—would break his heart.
“Daphne’s sometimes heart-wrenching, often heartwarming search for meaningful relationships, both romantic and platonic, is sure to inspire” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) new and longtime fans of Rebecca Serle.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
A woman gets help with her love life from a very mysterious source in this breezy and fantastical romance. Daphne is trying to climb the corporate ladder in the film industry while searching for Mr. Right, and she’s positive she’ll know when she finds him. For years, she’s been receiving mysterious notes that tell her just how long things will last with each new boyfriend. So when her latest note from the universe just says “Jake” with no date attached, she wonders if it means that he’s the one. Rebecca Serle does a great job of drawing you into the inner conflict that this situation creates for Daphne. Because even if the notes seem certain about Jake…she still isn’t. Serle’s style is light and easygoing, but she still knows how to tap into big emotions and make us feel all the feelings. Sweet and sometimes poignant, Expiration Dates left us smiling.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Serle (One Italian Summer) complicates a woman's lifelong search for love with a hint of the supernatural in this stirring romance. Daphne Bell receives a mysterious note every time she meets a new potential love interest. Each missive has only two things written on it: the name of the person and the exact date their relationship will end. It took her a while to work out the pattern, but now she knows the notes are never wrong. Take Hugo, who lasted three months exactly, just as the note said. Now Hugo is Daphne's best friend and her only past partner who's ever known about the notes—but the two have been torn apart by another life-changing secret that Daphne feels she must keep from her paramours. Soon after she enters a relationship with widower Jake, she receives a note with only his name and no date. She hopes this means she's found "the one"—unless her secret gets in the way again. Serle uses this unique conceit to explore heartbreak, grief, self-love, and the importance of living in the now. Daphne's sometimes heart-wrenching, often heartwarming search for meaningful relationships, both romantic and platonic, is sure to inspire.
