DNF @ 34%

This breaks my heart, being such a huge fan of Rowell's, but I had so many issues with Slow Dance.

1. I could not stand the immaturity of the main character. Her high school POV and her adult POV read exactly the same. There is zero growth, honestly, I'm tempted to say she got worse.
2. Do these two even like each other? I mean seriously, we're supposed to be feeling terrible about all these "missed opportunities" as to why they never got together even though they love each other so much but I never saw it. It should've happened by 34%.
3. I just recently finished Scattered Showers: Stories and I realized within those stories (and now this one) that Rainbow's main characters all read so similar. Too similar.
4. I can't stand the miscommunication trope, and this was absolutely it with a heavy dose of self-sabotaging.

Thank you Netgalley and William Morrow for the ARC of Slow Dance! Slow Dance was so incredibly sweet. I still think about Shiloh and Cary months later after reading it. The story was honestly a bit slow...but the sweetness prevailed for me.

Wonderful story, great character development, great writing! Highly recommend this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it

Not my very favorite Rowell, but a really good one. I found Shiloh so relatable and the storyline was appealing and compelling. I’m glad she’s writing about older characters now.

I really enjoyed this second-chance friends-to-lovers romance. It was real and sweet and nostalgic and everything I want from a Rainbow Rowell book. One of my favorite reads of 2024.

Thanks to William Morrow for the copy to review.

4.5 stars Thanks to Netgalley and William Morrow for this E-ARC. I want to start off saying that the characters are annoying Shiloh more than Cary lol I feel better now. With that being said the story is sooo beautiful. It talks about them in the present and in the past high school and one year in college. The title is perfect because it was really like a slow dance watching Shiloh and Cary come together and then come apart and reunite once more. This is a book that you feel what the characters are going thru more than anything else and I love that when a book can make you feel its just the most beautiful thing ever.

Book 1 of 2025 - ✅! Thanks to NetGalley, William Morrow & Rainbow Rowell for the ARC of “Slow Dance” in exchange for my honest review.

Having read some of Rowell’s YA work (I much preferred the Simon Snow/Fangirl universe to Eleanor & Park for a myriad of reasons, but I digress…) - I was looking forward to venture into Rowell’s adult work. Set in Nebraska and told from both present day and the past - we learn about our FMC, Shiloh & our MMC, Cary - 2 people who meet in their youth, as they both “live on the wrong side of the tracks.” The Second Chance/“it’s always been you” is well done here, and because the reader follows their stories for multiple decades, the pacing felt right to me. The book occasionally felt repetitive, but not so much so that it would bring the entire rating down.


2/5 🌶️- this is not a young adult book and has a few spicy scenes, and 4/5 ⭐️ overall. 💐🚢🎭 #NetGalley #slowdance

*2,75 stars* I’ve enjoyed several of Rainbow Rowell’s romance stories, but this one didn’t make my list of favorites. I appreciated the realistically flawed characters and some of the sweet moments between the two main characters, but much of the book felt slow and repetitive to me. In contrast, the end felt rushed and left me feeling unsatisfied.

Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC.

This story is perfect for those who love: what ifs, friends to lovers, slow burn, second chances, missed opportunities, and “it’s always been you”. I really loved reading this. I enjoyed the time hopping too, I found it very helpful and important to get glimpses into Cary and Shiloh’s past. It felt a little rushed at the end, but that honestly didn’t take away from the story for me.

I mean this as a compliment: I love how simplistic Rowell's writing style is. There's something about the no fluff prose that is hooking. Like in her other works, Slow Dance is character driven. If you're the kind of reader who enjoys easy to consume books, this book's for you.

Unfortunately this was very boring for me and the dialogue was so monotonous. I didn’t feel a connection to the characters or the story, which I’m very disappointed by.

Rainbow Rowell is often the author I turn to if I want a comfort read. This is not to say these books are always happy and lighthearted; to the contrary, she writes relatable characters is relatable situations, which can sometimes be quite dark and tough. Slow Dance was a perfect example of this. On one hand, it was a light romance, and on another, it was a deeply toughing journey of acceptance, healing, and moving on even when life did not go its expected route. As someone approximately the age of the protagonist(s), there were some moments that felt almost too poignant to me, and I really enjoyed seeing how the characters reacted.

Initially I was a little concerned if I'd get confused due to the manner in which Rowell jumps around the timeline, but she masterfully gives enough indicators and story beats to smoothly and satisfyingly piece together the timeline and get the full magnitude of the characters' pasts and their effects on the present. While the overall plot was not very memorable, I enjoyed my time with Slow Dance and will be recommending it to some friends. Thanks again for access to this ARC!

While several have listed this on their best books of 2024 lists, I struggled with it. I actually put it down and have not finished it, but I do intend to give it another chance soon. I found it dry and I didn't really connect with the characters, but maybe on the second try I will get the hype about it.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this advanced reader's edition. Unfortunately, I will not be able to give it the time required to write a thorough review and will be unable to read it for this purpose.

This book is a very sweet, slow burn. Don’t expect to read hot and heavy romance, but instead a quiet love that blossoms years after the protagonists intended it to.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

I haven't read many Rainbow Rowell books but the ones I have red I have loved. This one is no different.

I really enjoyed the back and fourth from the past and the present in this book. The love journey or main characters went on when they were younger and then again when they were older. I also really enjoyed how flawed our main characters are in their own ways personal and with others.

I really enjoyed the MMC the most, he is definitely a new book boyfriend of mine.

Thank you netgalley for a copy of this book to read and review.

Thank you so much @WilliamMorrowBooks for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 30 July 2024)

SYNOPSIS | Shiloh + Cary were best friends throughout high school, but they didn't connect in a romantic way until college. Their relationship ended badly and they reconnect again 14 years later at their best friend Mikey's wedding where Shiloh is recently divorced and Cary is still in the Navy.

WHAT I LIKED:
- Junie + Gus (the kids) were beyond delightful if not slightly precocious
- short chapters helped push this slow burn romance along
- kind of slice of life vibes with authentic relationship issues

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- fraught with miscommunication
- the characters overanalysing every situation yet misunderstanding the other persons intentions
- Shiloh + Cary's inability to have a meaningful conversation for the majority of this story
- as the reader I didn't get to experience their growth from teenager to adult (Shiloh especially still felt pretty immature as a 30 year old)

This book's exploration of friends-to-lovers relationships and second chance romance, paired with its reflective and emotional tone, will resonate with readers that enjoy humorous and heartbreaking love stories. As you follow Shiloh and Cary's journey from inseparable teens to far-flung adulthoods, you'll be swept up in this hopeful romance and invested in their relationship. The story is a relatable portrayal of a single mother navigating love, loss, and self-discovery.

Rainbow Rowell delivers again - a book filled with relatable feelings, thoughts, and emotions on messing it up, but somehow muddling forward until it becomes right.

Shiloh and Cary were always close, so close their fellow high school students never were really sure if they were a "thing" or not. Everyone assumed they were, or would eventually be so the true evolution of their relationship was never really clear. Shiloh married another, and now divorced with two kids is wondering what happened when she meets Cary again at a mutual friend's wedding.

The reader will always find connections in Rowell's books: either personal connections or characters who are so like others in their world. Her books offers so many opportunities to view and think of things from another perspective based on similar life events. Pick this up when you are in a contemplative mood!

I apologize for being so late with this review. Once I started reading I couldn't stop. Shiloh and Cary's inability to communicate made me fearful that the ending would be sad or tragic, which isn't what I normally go for when choosing books. But their story is compelling and kept pulling me through to the happy ending. Thank you for allowing me access to this story.