In Five Years: A Novel

This book was so different. So unique. And a complete breath of fresh air.

It’s an easy, short, quick read that illicit so many emotions. In just 250 pages you get to witness the growth and evolution of Dannie and I didn’t realize it would make me feel as much as it did.

I spent pretty much all of this book thinking I knew what was going on and what was going to happen, and I was completely wrong. But I’m not disappointed. There are so many good lessons in this book that make you take stock of your own life and I loved it!

Rebecca Serle's writing is sweet and engaging, easy to read in a few sittings. Dannie, the protagonist, and her fiance are young, successful and perfectly compatible. They have their dream jobs and a home in NYC by the time they are 30 - It is a nice change of pace from reading about serial killers from dysfunctional families. The night they are engaged, Dannie falls asleep for an hour and dreams that she wakes up in a different apartment, with a different man, 5 years into the future... The plot is a little contrived, but if you picked this book to read, you expect to suspend your disbelief. I found it refreshing that the twist towards the end was not what I had imagined, it made the book much more valuable to me. Two thirds of the way in, I am crying - it is so touching to see the way Dannie loves her friend, Bella. I like the point this author makes in her books that a strong, lasting, unconditional love can be for friends, as well as for a spouse or family and her characters do not exist just for a man to sweep them off their feet and save the day. The only part I didn't get was the significance of the "Eye Chart" art Bella bought for Dannie.

I have mixed emotions about this book. Three stars. The good: Interesting story about two female friends. I somewhat understood why they were so close but never really understand why they were THAT close. Yes, the book is mostly about this friendship and it’s tragic ending, but something felt off to me. Both sets of their parents were definitely not exactly ideal. No wonder they formed such a close bond. The bad: This book made me so glad I don’t live in NYC and am not a high-powered attorney or whatever. Their lives are full of take-out food, fancy restaurants, coffee shops, wine bars, red wine only, high end clothing stores, Armani suits, X colored shirt with X colored tie. I can’t relate to all of these trappings. It felt very shallow and superficial to me. I get it, Dannie, is used to a black and white life, all pre-planned, contracts, mergers, acquisitions, etc. but her own life was really a mess. Who cancels a wedding a week or two before and then never even mentions or processes the fall-out? This too felt very shallow. It was an interesting premise. I do feel like I got immersed in the NYC lifestyle of ordering take-out or making reservations 3 times a day, but I didn’t really learn or experience anything important.