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Book blurbs typically don’t sell me on a book. I’m the worst and pick books based on covers almost all of the time. Don’t try and change my ways, I’ve done this since I had free reign in the teen section at the local library. It’s found me some true gems, I promise. And it solely stems from my desire to have an in-house library. Anyways, I read a book blurb and it made me want to read a book. The cover is pretty too, but I actually wanted to read the story behind the book sleeve. 

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle sat amongst my digital but dusty TBR list on Goodreads (ps: you can follow me on Goodreads here!) for months since its early 2020 release. The setting is New York City and features a not-so-love story. 

I have a secret obsession with New York City. In high school, I was convinced I’d go to NYU, major in English and work in publishing for the rest of my literary days. Well, I didn’t go to college right away, and I currently live in farmland Minnesota. But I still daydream of days in the city. Roaming the streets, stopping at that new coffee shop, eating that dope bagel down the street (and then getting sick after bc I can’t have gluten), and reading a book in central park.

I think I’m intrigued by NYC because it feels like the place to figure yourself out. It’s the best place to be lost and messy because it’s equally mesmerizing and filled with endless opportunity. Opportunity may not even be the right word. It seems….forgiving. It’s only a few miles long, but there’s so much space to learn and discover and mess up and become who you need to become. 

The back book blurb felt like a story of someone messily becoming themselves in the most mesmerizing and forgiving city. So I couldn’t wait to dive into it, and boy did I dive into it. I read it in one night (picture Jacob’s shocked face when he looked over two hours later and I was silently crying with 50 pages left).

Synopsis:

Dannie Kohan can’t believe her life — the perfect Manhattan lawyer gig and a brand new diamond ring on her finger. The night her boyfriend proposes Dannie can’t think of anything else she could dream of. And then, she falls asleep. She wakes up 5 years later with a different ring and different man. She’s freaked when she wakes up but brushes it off.  It’s just a dream, right? Right. Until four and a half years later the man from her dream shows up in her life.

What I Liked:

This book is well written. Serle is a genius for beginning the book right in the middle of the conflict. It’s a romance, but also has major drama, suspense and conflict that makes you want to keep reading. I seriously could NOT put this one down. I kept saying just one more chapter until I turned the last page over a few hours later. It takes engineering and thought to craft a book that you can’t put down.

The plot twist. Just. The plot twist. I can’t say much without giving it away, but the plot twist made me cry. It made me angry. It made me so incredibly sad. It made me like the book more than I’d originally felt. The plot twist feels like a gut punch, but it’s worth it.

This book is a not-so-love story and I’m here for this storyline. I love a good romance, but I also love when things get sad and messy and real. This book harnesses that vibe, and also takes place in New York City. What more can I ask?

What I Didn’t Like:

I  H A T E D  Dannie for at least the first half of this novel. Until the plot twist happens, she’s a bad friend and a bad girlfriend. It’s frustrating and annoying to watch her actions and the way she treats people. She redeems herself post-plot twist, but my hatred was strong before this.

Overall:

In Five Years by Rebecca Serle follows Dannie Kohan and her perfect life as a Manhattan Lawyer and recently engaged woman. Life is perfect until a terrible dream the night of her engagement starts to come true just four and a half years later. This book is addicting to say the least. Serle is a genius in plot construction. This novel has a plot twist that packs a rough gut punch. This one is a 4/5 for me. I took one star off because I really hated Dannie before the plot twist. Grab this off of Amazon here or Bookshop here for an easy breezy summer read — thanks for supporting me and my reading addiction!