Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle

 

I'm shocked at how much I enjoyed this. I don't like romance novels typically. This was the assigned reading for this month's local book club and it was available to me on Libby so I decided to give it a shot. Absolutely glad I did. Expiration Dates is about a girl named Daphne Bell who mysteriously receives a note each time she is about to embark on a relationship. The note tells her how long the relationship will last. As she goes through life (and her relationships), we get the feeling that it's good to know the length of the relationship beforehand - so she knows how much effort or feelings she should put into it. Until... ? When she received a note with just a name one day, she assumed it possibly meant this was her forever. Or does it mean something else? This book was giving me feelings of Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind. It made me think, on a philosophical level, which most books do not. It also gently pulls at your heartstrings. There are also many memorable quotes in this book as well. There are actually two things unique about Daphne Bell - besides getting notes on every potential suitor, she also found out at the tender age of 20 that she has a genetic heart condition that is not curable and may shorten her life. She thinks it's a good thing that she knows going into each relationship how long it would last, but when she met Hugo, she realized that she actually wanted more time with him than the note said (3 months). On the expiration date with Hugo, he discovered her illness and she dumped him despite the fact she still had feelings for him and he did not want to let her go. They remained friends and Hugo was there for her through thick and thin. We later learn that it was Hugo, who replaced Jake's notecard of 3 weeks and left a new notecard with just Jake's name, leaving Daphne to think Jake was her forever. Hugo wanted Daphne to feel what it's like to love freely. Eventually Hugo comes clean, after Daphne had moved into Jake's house and got engaged to him. Daphne realizes Hugo was the man for her all along and the note isn't an accurate prediction of the future. She breaks up with Jake - who is a nice guy but was never over his late wife, and gets back together with Hugo.