In Five Years

This is a heartwarming story about friendship, self-discovery and destiny. It's a book that hit close to home for me and, for a rather short book, it packed quite an emotional punch. 

While at first glance, In Five Years seems like a romance, its focus is on the powerful bond between friends, in all its awesome, messy and complicated glory. Initially, I had only skimmed the blurb and I'm rather glad I did. It doesn't describe the main plot and while some may find that misleading, I appreciate that the blurb didn't give too much away. Going in with less preconceived ideas made the story more powerful for me. 

“You mistake love. You think it has to have a future in order to matter, but it doesn't. It's the only thing that does not need to become at all. 
It matters only insofar as it exists. Here. Now. Love doesn't require a future.”

This is a story about one woman's personal journey as her life leads her in unexpected directions. It's about the influence of fate and the relationships in your life that have helped to make you ... you. I'll admit that I was curious about how one scene would be worked into the plot. I knew it had to happen but felt let down with how it was incorporated. It felt rushed and the scene didn't jive with the relationships that had developed. But I appreciated the shift at the end causing the story to go to unexpected places in a you never know what destiny will throw at you kind of way.

In Five Years in a heart-wrenching and thought-provoking story about the messiness of relationships and the remarkable bond and influence of true friendship. It is a short but powerful read that equally warmed and broke my heart in the most amazing ways. If you read this book, make sure you have a Kleenex box nearby. You're going to need it.


Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to the publisher for providing me with a complimentary digital copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Author: Rebecca Serle

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Type: eBook

Source: NetGalley

Publisher: Atria Books

First Published: March 10, 2020

Book Description from GoodReads: Perfect for fans of Me Before You and One Day—a striking, powerful, and moving love story following an ambitious lawyer who experiences an astonishing vision that could change her life forever.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

When Type-A Manhattan lawyer Dannie Cohan is asked this question at the most important interview of her career, she has a meticulously crafted answer at the ready. Later, after nailing her interview and accepting her boyfriend’s marriage proposal, Dannie goes to sleep knowing she is right on track to achieve her five-year plan.

But when she wakes up, she’s suddenly in a different apartment, with a different ring on her finger, and beside a very different man. The television news is on in the background, and she can just make out the scrolling date. It’s the same night—December 15—but 2025, five years in the future.

After a very intense, shocking hour, Dannie wakes again, at the brink of midnight, back in 2020. She can’t shake what has happened. It certainly felt much more than merely a dream, but she isn’t the kind of person who believes in visions. That nonsense is only charming coming from free-spirited types, like her lifelong best friend, Bella. Determined to ignore the odd experience, she files it away in the back of her mind.

That is, until four-and-a-half years later, when by chance Dannie meets the very same man from her long-ago vision.

Brimming with joy and heartbreak, In Five Years is an unforgettable love story that reminds us of the power of loyalty, friendship, and the unpredictable nature of destiny.