"Slow Dance" is a touching second-chance romance about Shiloh and Cary reconnecting years after high school. Shiloh, now a single mother, and Cary, a Navy officer, meet again at a wedding and explore their old feelings and life choices.

The book shines with relatable, well-developed characters. Rowell’s use of flashbacks adds a nostalgic touch, enriching the story. However, some cultural references were confusing for me—at least, I assume they were cultural references, and being not American, I didn't fully grasp them. The themes of unrequited love and personal growth are well-handled, but some parts of the book drag and feel repetitive. Shiloh’s indecisiveness can be frustrating, even if it reminds me a little too much of myself, and Cary’s character lacks depth.

Overall, "Slow Dance" is heartfelt and engaging with strong emotional depth, but it has pacing issues and some underdeveloped characters.

There was a lot love about Rainbow Rowell’s newest adult romance, Slow Dance. The characters felt genuine, and the dialogue was compelling and clever, as it always is with Rowell. The setting felt lived in and real (which makes sense, given the autobiographical nature of the location and timeframe), and the structure of the book itself was great (I’ve seen some complaints about the non-linear narrative from other reviewers, but I personally loved it and found it worked beautifully).

Unfortunately, there were some things that didn’t work as well. Cary was weak, as characters go, not as well fleshed out as I would have hoped from the counterpart to Shiloh. Shiloh herself is hard to love in many ways, though whether that is a deal breaker or not will depend entirely upon the reader — personally, I don’t mind reading books about people I dislike, but your mileage may vary.

Fundamentally, I had a hard time supporting the decisions the characters were making throughout the book. Again, not a deal breaker (I feel the same about another Rowell adult novel, Landline), but something that might turn some readers off.

I ended up enjoying this book much more than I think it really deserved, simply by virtue of it being new Rainbow Rowell prose I haven’t read to death. Without the fact that her writing style works very well for my brain, the characters and plot would likely have made this more of a 3 star book for me. Fans of Rowell will likely enjoy it, but if you’ve never read anything of hers before, I wouldn’t start here.

So happy to be able to jump back into the world of Rainbow Rowell. I’ve been patiently waiting for a new adult novel from her and Slow Dance had all the classic Rainbow Rowell charm. It was a bit difficult to follow the Now and Then timeline on audio, but I felt like I comprehended most of what was going on. The adult love story felt a bit rushed but I guess when you meet your soul mate as a kid why waste any more time? Cute.

I really love Rainbow Rowell's writing and that she sets so many of her books in the Omaha area. I went to school in Lincoln and spent some time in Omaha during my grad and undergrad years so I'm familiar with some of the areas in her books. Unfortunately, Slow Dance didn't jive for me like her other books did.

I enjoyed the second-chance and friends-to-lovers tropes that were present in this novel. The butt-headed nature of Cary regarding Shiloh and her actions got on my nerve really quickly. It seemed that his character saw her for so long as the girl she was not the woman she is. I did want Shiloh also to grow up some on her end as well. While we see them come together as a couple, I really wish we would have seen more of them together. I know a lot of it was spent apart, but it was so fast-tracked at the end that I missed that element. Unlike other books of hers that I could easily re-read, Slow Dance will not fit in that category.

Thank you to William Morrow and Netgalley for a copy in exchange for review consideration.

If Rainbow Rowell has one fan, it's me. If Rainbow Rowell has no fans, then it's only because I clearly keeled over from the feels from reading yet another one of her beautiful, heart-wrenching books. I love her, I love this book, and I love just how angsty I am after finishing Slow Dance. Cary and Shiloh are estranged high school besties who never quite had their moment when they were young; Slow Dance tells their story as they come together and reflect back on their fraught past while (maybe) falling back in love with each other.

I'll start by saying that I loved, loved this book. No surprise. It was a phenomenal slow burn/friends to lovers/second chance romance, and I stayed up way past my self-imposed bedtime to finish this, because once the feels started hitting, I couldn't put it down. But I do understand that some of the choices Rowell made while writing might not feel right for other readers. Like some other reviewers have mentioned, Cary and Shiloh are not the most likable characters. But that's just one of the things I love about Rainbow Rowell's books! She takes these deeply flawed, vaguely frustrating people, and she shows how well they fit together and how well they can love each other. They're not everyone's cup of tea, but they're the exact right person for their frustrating counterpart. It's a really nice change of pace from so many romance books where the biggest flaws characters deign have are being messy, brooding, or awkward. Give me these broken, messy characters, and give them some love!

Another (potentially controversial) choice that Rowell made was to switch timelines and switch perspectives with seemingly no set pattern throughout the book. But I actually really appreciated this because it only swapped when it was genuinely necessary for the plot or for the readers to understand what high school drama was impacting current Shiloh and Cary. Sometimes the patterned swapped perspectives can feel forced, and this just never felt that way.

Really, the only real complaint I have is that some of the sexy situations felt a little out of place. I know Rowell has touched on these in the past, and I do normally love some spice, but there were some wording choices that just felt awkward. Feelings are definitely Rowell's area of expertise - spice may not be. And that's ok!

TLDR: if you want a second chance romance about two very flawed characters who simply pine for each other, check this out! 4.5/5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley, William Morrown and Rainbow Rowell for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This novel tells the story of Shiloh and Cary, high school best friends who slowly find their way back into each other's lives as adults. This is a very character-driven story. There is not a great deal that happens in terms of plot; rather, it is primarily a detailed look into the lives, personalities, and relationships of these two characters. The chapters alternate between present day and various moments in Shiloh and Cary's pasts, slowly revealing more about each character through the flashback sections. I enjoyed learning about these characters and coming to understand how their relationship ebbed and flowed over the years. However, due to the primarily character-driven nature of the novel, I did feel that it was somewhat slow and a bit boring in places. Overall, I enjoy Rainbow Rowell's insights into relationships and her way of telling a story and look forward to reading future works by her. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Oof - this one has all the feels. It is most definitely a slowburn romance, following two childhood friends, Shiloh and Cary, who reconnect in their 30s. They were inseparable in high school; however Cary went off to join the Navy and Shiloh never left Omaha. They reconnect at their best friend, Mikey's, wedding and begin to navigate their complex emotions as adults, working through a lot of emotional baggage, miscommunication, and unacknowledged feelings. While there were many moments I wanted to throw the book across the room due to unnecessary miscommunication, I found the characters authentic, imperfect, and very much worth rooting for.

Sincere thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Rainbow Rowell does it again with another touching story that taps into one’s emotions. The portrayal of friendship and growing up and the challenges that are inherent.

i really wanted to love this, but it fell flat for me. i kept waiting for major events/ conflicts to happen, and i just don't feel like i got it. the overall book moved too slowly for me, i think. i wanted to be soooo wrapped up in this, but i honestly had to force myself to finish it.

Such a great read! Highly recommend this one.

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book but I didn't love it. I really liked how realistic the characters felt and I loved Shiloh's kids. But I couldn't stand Shiloh when she was in high school, I thought she was obnoxious especially during the prom chapter. I would have left her there. I was very curious to know how Shiloh and Cary became friends in the first place.

3.5 stars rounded up

I really loved this book! Shiloh and Cary have my heart. Shiloh's kids made me laugh out loud. Cary's family dynamics were interesting and endeared me even more to him. I feel like I learned a lot about the Navy and also Nebraska. Mikey is hilarious. I loved everything about this book, except for the ending. It felt a little abrupt, but it might've been that I just wasn't ready for the book to be over. I want a sequel already. I loved this so much. Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC!

I'm not a big fantasy reader so it has been a few years since I've slipped into the world of Rainbow Rowell's writing - and boy, was it good to be back. This wasn't my favorite book of hers (Fangirl holds that honor, it is my go-to comfort read), but it is definitely one that I'm looking forward to re-reading in the future.

Shiloh and Cary are both so real on page - they're flawed, they're messy, life is definitely not perfect - and I think that is why I found their story so compelling. The dual timelines added depth to this story, and I found it easy to follow along as the voices, like the character, had matured. I think we could have dug deeper into the characters' family trauma, but if we had the book wouldn't have been as enjoyable as it was.

I think Rainbow Rowell could rewrite a phone book and I would find it enjoyable, so I may be a bit biased - but this was a great read!

I was waiting for the other shoe to drop with this one because hey, it IS Rainbow Rowell - and we never got it! It was genuinely just a chill, lax novel. Which is fine but it wasn't like heart-throbbing either. Meh.

Rowell does a great job of writing super annoying characters that spend way too much time overthinking things in their head instead of talking to anyone.

Slow Dance had some real highs and lows for me. The middle stretch, where Shiloh and Cary’s friendship turns into something more complicated, is genuinely compelling. Rowell does a great job with the emotional weight of their misunderstandings and repeated failures, making it a wrenching and vivid read. I appreciated the authentic Omaha setting and the portrayal of Shiloh’s life as a single mom—it felt real and grounded. However, the constant miscommunications and the characters' refusal to have important conversations got on my nerves. When the romance finally kicked into gear, it strangely lost its spark, making it feel like a letdown after all the buildup. Despite these issues, the book was a nice, fluffy read that offered a bit of escape when I needed it.

Rainbow Rowell books are always going to be a hit for me. I just can't imagine a day where I won't love them. Rainbow Rowell writes books for ME. She writes these messy fucked up characters with their messy fucked up families and lives and then she makes two of obsessed with each other and SCARED about it and I eat it up every single time!!!!!!

This book could be classified as friends-to-lovers and/or second-chance romance depending on how you look at it. It's about Shiloh and Cary, best friends in high school, almost more, and then lost to each other for 15 years. After all that time, where can they really go when they finally see each other again? Shiloh is divorced with two small children and living with her mom. Cary lives on the ocean half his life.

This novel switches back and forth between past and present which is another thing I LOVE. I love getting a present scene and then a correlating past scene that gives readers more context for the importance of the present scene. It makes everything hit so much harder and it allows the author to show us things and not tell us like lots of authors are doing lately.

I enjoyed this book, but I will say some of the lines in the adult scenes made me want to chop my head off. Rainbow always writes really intense romances and really intense sexual moments, but I think they're usually less overt and I think she just missed a couple times with this one and added some cringey shit. Which. All my favorite authors have done so not a huge deal.

That and the lives the characters are living in this book did make it a little harder for me to care about them. I loved them as individuals, but I personally do not like children or the military, so this one missed for me a little bit.

Otherwise, it was beautiful and stunning, and I could hardly put it down. I finished it in two days.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC!

Shiloh, Cary, and Mikey were the best of friends growing up, but there was something more between Shiloh and Cary. From the time they were in junior high, they were drawn to each other. But they never dated. Years later, Cary is in the Navy and Shiloh is a single mom. They reunite at a wedding. They are still drawn to each other, but there is a hesitation about getting together. Told through dual timelines, Cary and Shiloh’s relationship history unfolds. The dual timeline was an excellent way for the reader to get to know the characters and how their pasts shaped them as adults. Both grew up in difficult family situations in a poor neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska. As teens, they dreamed of leaving Omaha. Cary joined the Navy and has traveled the world. Shiloh went to college and had dreams of becoming an actress. After an unsuccessful marriage, she and her two young children move in with her mother – back into her childhood home. When they reunite, Shiloh and Cary come to realize that their relationship is more than friendship, but there are many obstacles in their way.

I am such a fan of Rainbow Rowell’s books for adults. She is a master of character development. Her stories draw me in. (One of my favorite books of all time is Rowell’s Eleanor and Park.) Slow Burn is a romance, but it has so much more! I loved it!

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for providing me with an advanced review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Shiloh & Cary were close in high school, and along with Mikey, they made a tight friend group, but Shiloh & Cary's friendship went deeper. They never dated. Later, they got together while Cary was on leave from the Navy and Shiloh was in college. For just one night and things imploded and damaged the friendship. It's 14 years later and they find each other at Mikey's wedding.

The story bounces back and forth from now to different influential periods of their lives growing up and growing their friendship. The poignancy is palpable, and I'm such a sucker for that.

I really loved this story.

‘Slow Dance’ shifts between the nostalgic high school days and perils of adulthood. After Cary and Shiloh are reunited at a friend’s wedding, they realize sometimes picking back up where they left off isn’t always as easy as they wish.