Rainbow Rowell is one of those authors whose books I will buy and read sight unseen. She writes endearing, memorable YA romance and heart-wrenching, lasting adult romance, and her latest, to be released at the end of the month, pulls together all the elements she writes best to paint the arc of two people who have always been everything to each other but lost it somewhere along the way.

Slow Dance follows the lives of Shiloh and Cary, two high school best friends whose lives were so entangled they were each privately convinced risking anything more would ruin their relationship. When Cary graduates, he joins the Navy, and his choice to leave while Shiloh went to college and began her own separate life, convinced each of them they were fine without the other.

But when a mutual friend gets married and they see each other again for what feels like the first time (Shiloh married, had two kids, and divorced in the intervening years), they know what they've always felt is still there.

"Cary kissed her through it. Long, sad kisses, with his hand cupped around the back of her head. These were kisses without hopes or ambitions. They were apologies. Eulogies."

The slow-burn is borderline glacial, I'll admit, and that took this down from five stars in my book. At 93% I still wasn't sure how things would wrap up, and the climax/conclusion felt a bit rushed after the languid pace of the rest of the book. BUT Rowell's writing is so good that it mostly made up for the disjointed pace.

"If she emptied her head in his lap, all that would fall out was his name."

and

"'I'm so happy right now,' Cary said—but it came out solemn. He wouldn't blame her if she didn't believe him.
Shiloh looked in his eyes. 'Really?'
He nodded. 'Don't begrudge me this life.'"

I'll be recommending this one to longtime Rowell fans, as well as those who enjoy sweet, tender romance without a lot of spice.

Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

DNF 21%

Woof I was not feeling this one at all. I was thinking about DNFing earlier but I wanted to make it to around 20% before I threw in the towel.

The writing just seemed really weird, almost lazy to me. And I was not connecting with either character at all. Just the whole thing was very two dimensional. Shiloh thought this. Shiloh did this. Shiloh, Shiloh, Shiloh.

Sorry, Rainbow 💚

Thank you Netgalley and William Morrow for access to this arc.

“Slow Dance” is a quiet story that sneaks up on you. These are characters who have been through a lot even as teens. Living in north Omaha is hard but Shiloh and Cary have extra burdens they’ve carried. Shiloh’s mother has no idea who Shiloh’s father might be and the two lived alone with Gloria often bringing men home and then later reminding Shiloh to keep her door locked. Cary’s got a complicated family with siblings, step-siblings, half-siblings, stepfathers – who were mostly drunks and abusive, and a mother who isn’t his mother – exactly.

It’s fifteen years since everyone fled – Cary to boot camp and the Navy, Shiloh to college, and Mikey off to do his art. And somehow everyone is now back in Omaha – Shiloh and Mikey to stay and Cary to be there for Mikey’s second wedding. Shiloh misses the wedding, because her ex (probably deliberately) isn’t on time to pick up the kids, and wonders if Cary will be there. Cary is there and wonders if Shiloh, who wasn’t in the church, will be there at all. Could this finally be the right moment for everything to work out between them?

The dual-ish timelines let us see the three friends as they were and as they are now. Think back to how you were at age nineteen and compare that to your mid thirties. Things change, right? Life knocks you around, things don’t turn out quite as you thought they would, people mature, and other people get older and need help. “Slow Dance” takes these characters through all that.


There’s no “WOW we’re in love” moment. After they’ve finally started to communicate all the things each thought the other knew, these two will need to sort through fifteen years of what they’ve lived, argue a little, talk a lot, reflect a great deal and only then start to make decisions about how to move forward. Even the sex is non-orgasmically real. This is the good, the bad, and at times the ugly. Cary and Shiloh know each other better than almost anyone else and even though the love is there, it’s still hard. It’s still work. Still at the end of the “day,” I think they’re on their way to finally getting it right. B

I absolutely loved this novel. I have always been a Rainbow Rowell fan and have loved her YA and adult works alike. The characters were unique and dynamic yet incredibly relatable. The plot was moving, and the emotions were palpable. I haven't cried at a book in a while, but this one made me shed a tear.

Loved it, loved it, loved it. What a way to write about love, as realistic as it gets. It's probably the most honest love story of childhood friends to lovers. Rainbow’s writing! All the feels. I really appreciated the home state love of Nebraska and the details of growing up in a suburb and coming back to it, how accurate it was. Sometimes these characters were unlikable but they were so genuine too.

This was dreamy, sweet, and wonderful. I loved Shiloh and Cary. I feel like it’s been a while since Rainbow Rowell released an adult novel, and I have missed her. She has such a compelling and unique voice. I loved the premise here - the inclusion of the characters’ financial situations and the military aspect both felt fresh and different than other things I’ve read lately. The timeline could have felt disjointed but it felt like it worked perfectly. Highly recommended!

Thank you to the publisher - I received a complimentary eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell is a delightful book. It was fun to follow Shiloh and Carey as they manage to figure out their deep attraction while dealing with their families.

This book is like a lovely, winding slow dance in and of itself. The back and forth with different perspectives and timelines is so incredibly engaging and interesting, and while it doesn't always unfold chronologically, there's a clear path through the narrative. I absolutely loved this book - it made me want to go back and read Fan Girl or Eleanor and Park, or really any of Rainbow Rowell's previous novels; she just has such a magical way with words. I'll be thinking about this book for a long time... the ending was satisfying, but my brain gets to toy with what I think the characters would do next.

I love when Rowell sticks with pure realistic fiction. Slow Dance has characters who were misfits/quirky in high school who are now in their 30's. I was fully invested in the story line and it brought back memories of some of the things I did in high school.

A lot of times when I'm in the middle of reading a book, I try to figure out the meaning of the title. Sometimes I find that the title NEVER actually fits the story. This title definitely fits! This is a love story about Casey and Shiloh who started out as best friends who are too young to realize what love is. They reconnect 14 years later and realize that they have both always had more than platonic feelings for one another. They "slow dance" their way back into each other's lives and fall in love.

After high school, Shiloh went to college for theater, met her future husband and then came home to Omaha, Nebraska. She is divorced with two children and living with her mother when she reconnects with Carey at their other best friend Mikey's wedding. Carey went into the Navy right after high school and becomes career military advancing in the ranks. He's never been married and appears to be a confirmed bachelor. He's got his own issues as he tries to help his ailing mother and deal with his other family members. They've both got a lot of baggage and issues with relationships but that's what gives the story substance. Mikey and Shiloh's mother and her kids and Carey's mother were my favorite characters because Casey and Shiloh were actually both a little annoying at times. All Shiloh's poking and prodding and pinching of Carey was super annoying and, in my opinion, verged on being abusive. Carey's obsession with Shiloh's lower teeth was just plain weird! However, I couldn't help rooting for them to end up together which is ultimately what makes for a good romance.

Many thanks to William Morrow, Rainbow Rowell and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. The publication date is set for July 23, 2024. Happy reading!

Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell--this new book releases on July 23. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance digital copy. Shiloh and Cary were high school best friends. The kind of best friends that caused everyone to think they were dating. Then they graduated, drifted apart, and eventually reconnected at another friend's wedding. This is a romance novel about 2 people who fell in love when they were too young and scared to know it or admit it to themselves. It is about 2 adults finding their way back to each other in spite of circumstances and fears. It felt realistic to me where many romance novels do not.

*Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for an ARC and to LibroFM for the gifted ALC*

It's in the title - this book is SLOW. You get the slowest of burns as Shiloh and Cary yo-yo between friendship, love, and complete isolation. It was interesting seeing the flashbacks, especially since they have such chemistry in the present. While not exactly a romance by modern standards, it is definitely a love story. This is one of those kinds of love that transcends time and space, where you can truly press pause on your feelings for 10 years and then be right back in the thick of it. Rainbow Rowell is one of my favorite authors of this type of story.

This is a friends to lovers saga that really makes you wait for it again and again, but it's so worthwhile at the end. I ship it, I ship it so hard.

Sometimes when it's the right person, the wrong time, you have to make it the right time despite all odds. This is a story about Shiloh and Cary and how they've always loved each other, but there have always been obstacles. After reconnecting in their 30s, they finally decide to fight the challenges and be together. Watching these two characters realize that while there are hurdles, they aren't insurmountable was very sweet. Their lives are messy and realistic and it feels like watching two friends realize that life will never have the perfect time to do something, you have to be willing to take the leap and make it perfect yourself.

This book was kind of depressing? I think it was supposed to be depressing, but while I felt a connection to the characters to some extent, I never really cared what happened to any of them.

Rowell's latest harnesses the power of nostalgia as Shiloh and Cary find each other again after 14 years. The characters are deftly written and Omaha serves a lovingly crafted backdrop to this exploration of learning who someone is again after you last knew them in your youth. A must-read for fans of Rowell's work and those who have seen time pass for themselves as well.

Slow Dance is a childhood friends-to-lovers, second chance love story, which is usually my vibe, but I just couldn’t get into it as I had hoped. There were several issues I had with the book. Part of the problem was that Rowell chose to constantly switch timelines, in no particular chronological order, which was made worse by the fact that she didn’t date the chapters, but rather used the word “before” for anytime prior to the present (which was randomly set in 2006). So, it could be when Shiloh and Cary were pre-teens or high schoolers or young adults or even just a month or so earlier than the previous chapter. Another problem was when they’d email each other, there was no clear indication (using different fonts or their names) whose words were whose. There were also a number of short, random chapters that gave some insight into their childhoods or the lives during the fourteen years they were apart, but they disrupted the flow of the narrative. I also didn’t feel there was much chemistry between Shiloh and Cary. I got the sense she is demisexual, and never had an interest in the act with her ex-husband but did with Cary. Even so, the intimate scenes were awkward to read.

On the plus side, I did enjoy their friendship and Shiloh’s precocious children. It was also interesting to read a romance where the main characters weren’t gorgeous human specimens. Shiloh is a hirsute Amazon and Cary, although he grew into his looks, is covered in moles and suffers with eczema. Overall, this is a romance that’s very realistic and not the kind that sweeps you away with swoon-worthy characters, steamy scenes, and grand gestures. It was enough to keep my attention but not a book I’d read again.

I have always been a Rainbow Rowell girl. I grew up reading (and rereading) 'Fangirl' like my life depended on it. I connected with 'Eleanor and Park' on a molecular level, I will never not love Rainbow Rowell. But it has been YEARS since I have read one of her stories. I am so grateful to have found my way back.

There is something about this story that has me reminiscent for a life I've never lived, missing people I have never met (and who do not exist). This story is beautiful and perfect and everything I needed it to be.

After 14 years a part, high school best friends Cary and Shiloh are reunited during the wedding of the third part of their high school 'spit sworn' trio, Mikey. This story follows the two of them (and Mikey) while they navigate getting to re-know each other after 14 long years of not speaking.

If you need a happy ending this story is for you. I spent the entire book waiting for something bad to happen, for the boot to drop and something monumental happen, but spoiler - this story has a happy ending. I truly feel like I know Shiloh and and Cary (and Juniper and Gus and Mikey), like I was there with them, growing up along side them.

I cannot recommend this story enough, this book has shot its way to the top of my 'favorite books' shelf and will remain there until the end of time.

Tropes Include but are not limited to: second chance romance, friends to lovers, single mother, Military man (Navy).

As someone who loved Fangirl when I was in college, I was really looking forward to reading this new adult release from Rowell. Unfortunately, the experience fell a bit flat for me.

The main characters felt so flat to me and, throughout most of their conversations, the way they talked to one another seemed forced. It really took me out of the concept that they were supposed to have romantic feelings toward one another.

Unfortunately, this one just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Slow by Rainbow Rowell. Oops, I mean Slow Dance. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Let me start by telling you how much I adore Rainbow Rowell. I’ve LOVED so many of her books that I jumped for joy when I got this arc. Like I still think about Eleanor and Park and their mixed tapes and the time travel phone calls in Landline. Its pub day is 7/30 so I was super exited to read it and shout it out. Then I read it.

Something’s missing. It didn’t work. The premise was cute; Shiloh and Cary were best friends throughout high school, went separate ways, reunite, then awkwardly figure out if they can be more than friends. But they were both poor communicators and that trope got boring. Flipping back in time between the early 90s and 2006 Rowell missed all opportunities for sprinkling in nostalgia and the chapters just became windows to view how Cary always had feelings for Shiloh.

Neither was attractive as both were repeatedly described to have moles and awful teeth, and I just didn’t get it. In real life we all have moles and crooked teeth, but if you want to put this out there as romance then the stretch marks, sallow skin, crooked eyes and gangly limbs shouldn’t be repeatedly described. Ad nauseum. I get that she wanted them to be insecure and weird but so were the sex scenes and their lack of chemistry. They are now in their 30s and she wants to poke and bite him and tug his hair like she did when she was 17. Yeah no. Slow Dance was painfully slow and disjointed and will be a book I’ve forgotten about by next week which made me want to cry. Paso Doble right by this when you spot it on the shelves.

Slow Dance is a second chance romance where we follow Shiloh and Cary, two best friends in a high school trio, the third being Mikey, come together for the first time in over a decade at Mikey's second wedding. Shiloh finds herself fresh out of a divorce with two young children and Cary is fifteen years deep into a career in the Navy. What follows is a back and forth through time reviewing Shiloh and Cary's situationship as it progressed throughout high school and college and in the present.

I struggled with this book and did not really understand why Shiloh and Carey even liked each other. The two consistently had terrible communication, which I recognize is a trope that some people really enjoy, but I found very frustrating. Additionally, the jumping back and forth in the timeline was challenging to follow follow without some sort of year indicator because it’s not always clear to me how far back in time you go. Sometimes it was back to high school, sometimes college, sometimes back to the wedding.

I will say, I really enjoyed when Shiloh and Carey started exchanging emails, I love a little epistolary moment and that was very fun.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the advanced copy.