I featured this book in a new release video prior to publication and was very excited to read a new book by THE Rainbow Rowell!! I love a love story revolving around a huge time jump, and knowing this author's writing, it promises beautiful writing, lots of yearning, and a little [or a lot] of wit. Will update when final review posts, but I'm expecting 5 stars!

Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell is a story about two high school best friends, Shiloh and Cary. They were the couple that everyone thought would end up together forever. But that wasn't meant to be. Cary joined the Navy and Shiloh went off to college and the two haven't spoken in 15 years. But now the former it couple of high school reconnects at a mutual friends wedding. Told in alternating past and present timelines, Slow Dance is a slow burn. This is my first Rowell novel and I wasn't sure what to expect, but I found that I didn't connect with any character and wasn't even interested in whether or not they got back together. I really hate miscommunication between love interests and this was a prominant part of the story. Overall, this one was a miss for me but does have a lot of high ratings and good reviews, so I encourage you to give it a try.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Shiloh and Cary were best friends as teens in Omaha, both desperate to get out of their town and start their real lives. When Shiloh left for college, Cary joined the Navy. Now in their thirties, the two haven’t seen each other in years. When a high school friend invites Shiloh to his wedding, she’s less than thrilled, but the possibility (and worry) about seeing Cary again makes her decide to go - and confront the fact that she might have really loved him.

Readers who love slow-burn and angst will not want this one to end. They will want to stretch out their time with Rowell’s characters and her wonderful, realistic world-building. No one does longing the way Rowell does, and that’s on full display here, as readers flip back and forth in time between when Carey and Shiloh were in high school and when they are in their thirties. Rowell’s characters are funny and self-deprecating and misanthropic and feel so real and so lived in that it's impossible to not feel like you know these people in real life. The stakes feel so much realer and plausible than what is often seen in romance novels. Richly drawn, emotionally resonant, and an utter delight of a novel. Highly recommended - fans of Rowell's adult novels should not miss this one.

I enjoyed Rowell’s other adult romances, Attachments and Landline, but Slow Dance is easily my least favorite of the three. Slow is right there in the title, and boy, is it. It takes forever for this story to get going, and it’s not helped by the typically boring flashbacks on Shiloh and Cary’s teenage years. While it helps to build a picture of their relationship–and how very long it’s been going on, both platonically and romantically–nothing interesting ever happens there.

There are points when the current timeline is little better. For readers looking for a depressingly realistic look at the difficulties of adult relationships, this is the book for you. There’s drama on multiple levels: family, divorce, single mom, aging parent, long distance, and it’s all drearily apt to real life. There are always a thousand reasons why a relationship won’t work in the real world, and Shiloh goes through all of them multiple times. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more reluctant leading lady in a romance. Cary is steadfast and solid but bad at communicating his feelings, which is part of the reason this romance takes literal decades. They’re a good balance for each other, however, and the reader is able to see all the reasons the relationship will work long before the characters do.

In general, I adore Rowell’s writing voice, and that was pretty much the only thing that kept me going here. That also isn’t her best though. It’s a very dialogue-heavy book, including one chapter of literally nothing but, which felt extremely sloppy. While I was mostly glad to be done with it, I was happy with how things turned out for the characters. I received a free e-ARC through NetGalley from the publishers at William Morrow.

I review regularly at brightbeautifulthings.tumblr.com.

I think I would have really struggled to get into this story if I were trying to eyeball read it. It jumps all over the place between "before" and now and the before is not told in chronological order. It feels like the story is very disjointed at the beginning, but by the end of the story it becomes apparent why it was told this way and ended up being really beautiful.

This story is a great depiction of right person wrong time. It seems Shiloh and Cary have a difficult time speaking to each other about their feelings and just assume that the other person knows how they feel (spoiler alert THEY DO NOT). There was one point where Cary said something and my jaw dropped and remained frozen because I couldn't believe what he had said!

Overall really enjoyed this listen and will be checking out more from this author soon.

Thank you so much to the publisher for a gifted ARC. All thoughts are my own.

Rainbow is a huge author but this is my first book from them. THIS is what romance is. I loved how realistic the characters felt and the storyline was touching and funny and heartwarming.

Slow Dance was the perfect description, not only for the book but also for how I read it. Slowly. It is very character driven, low plot. Which I don’t mind. So I don’t have specific issues with it to give it 3 stars. But it just felt real. Not the unrealistic beautiful people falling over each other. Or the unrealistic infuriating misunderstandings. Just real. Shiloh infuriated me often but in a way I have know girls to be. I could have done without the unnecessary LGBTQ situations thrown in that added nothing. But much of the book felt that way—things mentioned that may not have had a point in the story other than to show reality every day life of a real type person.

Romance is not my usual preferred genre; however, I enjoyed this story. It was a little spicy which was nice! It also took me down memory lane several times. Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow Publishers for the ARC opportunity.

I ended up listening to this one. Loved it, loved the connection between the characters. I was drawn in immediately.

Shiloh and Cary have been best friends since high school. Over the course of 15+ years, we see how their lives are intertwined & yet changed - from platonic prom to feelings in college and choosing their own paths in adulthood - Shiloh married & started a family while Cary pursued his career in the Navy. When reunited years later for a friend’s wedding, one slow dance together shows that their ties are just as strong as they were years before & while messy & complicated, this feels meant to be.
I enjoyed the reunion between these two and the realities that often come with adulthood (ie kids & custody, long distance, etc). However I did find the constant jumps in timeline to be confusing and hard to follow at times.
Thank you to William Morrow Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Slow Dance is an interesting romance that develops over time between two best friends. While Cary, Shiloh and Mikey have been friends since high school and were inseparable, time separated them. When Cary and Shiloh reunite years later at Mikey's second wedding, their feelings surface and things change. Told in time jumps and from slightly varying perspectives, it's an interesting take on meant to be.

Slow Dance is gorgeous. Rainbow Rowell’s writing is so readable. This was my first adult story by her, and I enjoyed it as much (or even more than) her young adult. The romance is swoony and dreamy, but realistic with nuanced characters.

The book is formatted into “then” and “now” chapters, which I usually find kind of annoying. However, here there was the perfect amount of “then” chapters to add to the current story without overtaking the plot.

From the first chapter I was invested in the romance. The friendship and relationship development feels so natural and well paced. It was angsty, yet realistic.

Shiloh and Cary have complications in their lives that have prevented them from being together. These complications didn’t feel thrown in for plot, they made sense. They work through emotional issues together.

The lead and side characters were fully formed people. I would believe that these people exist. Shiloh and Cary have complex familiar relationships. They both have mothers who are imperfect (in different ways) but loving. Anyone who has a complicated dynamic with a family member can relate to them.


This story succeeds at being emotional, grounded, and beautiful. The feelings this book evoked from me are what I’ve been missing in romance for a while.

Anyone who likes a character driven romance, beautiful writing, or emotional stories MUST read this. I have not heard enough hype around this!!!

I have mixed feelings about this book. It was easy to read and I read it quickly, but I kind of hated Shiloh. Especially teenage Shiloh. The way they said each other's names constantly was also annoying. I wonder how many times "Cary" and "Shiloh" were printed in the book. But despite my grumbling, I guess I enjoyed it? 😆

Rainbow Rowell continues to delight with a romance that involves a reality check for both protagonists who fell in love in high school but were unable to figure out what each meant to the other. Now in their 30s, one a divorcee with kids, the other climbing the ladder in the Navy, they find that the attraction still exists, but the way forward is both murkier and harder than it had been when their baggage was still heavy, but lighter than it is now. However, and unlike in a lot of romances where lack of communication rules the plot and metastasizes into the foil to true love, our two protagonists are interested in moving past the agony that they grew up with in order to find out what each means to the other.

Rainbow Rowell has been an autobuy/autoread author for me for years. I was incredibly excited for the opportunity to read the ARC of this book. This book hit me in the feels, for sure. I really enjoyed the flashbacks that partnered so well with the present day story to give us a great picture of this couple and their history. While the pacing was a bit chaotic, I still really loved this story. Rainbow Rowell holds onto her title of an autobuy/ autoread author!!

Rainbow Rowell is an autobuy author for me, i was so excited to be selected as an arc reader for this book! Especially as this was her first adult romance novel!

Shiloh and Cary have been long time friends who have both always loved each other but timing has never been on their side. which just breaks my heart, like characters who are too scared they'll loose each other if they admit their feelings 😭

the pair reconnect 14 years later at a mural friends wedding, and their lives aren't exactly where they'd hoped for, but when they reconnect as adults. As they are reconnecting the story jumps back in time to give more context to their younger selves which i really liked the format of in this story. i found myself tearing up a few times.

the pacing did feel a little all over the place but overall i really loved this one.

4 1/2 stars

Shiloh and Cary were good friends through high school but they never dated. Then they had some moments when it seemed they would work things out and be together only to have things get between them. Before they know it, life has moved on and they've been swept away and apart from one another.

The book is told in multiple timelines - - it bounces from the present to different points in the past when Shiloh and Cary knew one another. They tend to be more pivotal times in their lives and/or relationship that will show an impact on the current situation. There are so many points in this book when I just wanted to reach into the pages and shake both of these characters and tell them to get it together and realize they both loved the other person. That they needed to stop denying it and ignoring it because it might not continue to be there. It was easy to become emotionally invested in these characters and their ultimate outcome.

I have to say this truly was a touching and emoitionally charged read. I thought about it for days afterward.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. I voluntarily chose to read and review it.

Short synopsis: Shiloh, Cary and Mike were best friends in high school. After being estranged for 14 years later Shiloh and Cary reconnect at Mike’s wedding.

My thoughts: There was so much of this that as nostalgic to me. Remembering my experiences in High School and how things felt so important then. I really enjoyed the messy relationship that Shiloh and Cary had. It felt real.

Their hardships were tangible, and while their communication sucked a lot of the time I liked how they still gave each other space to make mistakes and learn and grow.

Read if you love:
- Slow burn
- second chance romance
- Single mom
- Navy MMC
- Past/Present timelines

Rainbow Rowell’s Fangirl is one of my favorite books of all time and I’ve been waiting for her to return to her contemporary fiction roots. It took a long time, but Slow Dance was well worth the wait.

Slow Dance is a novel that you need to be patient with. It’s not flashy, but rather a very mundane, slice-of-life type romance story. The book opens with divorced mom Shiloh heading to the wedding reception of one of her childhood friends. While there, she runs into Cary, another friend she hasn’t seen in 14 years. What follows is an amazing exploration of friendship and love, as the story flashes between Shiloh and Cary’s teen years, taking a look at what pulled them apart, and the present, where we get to see what’s bringing them together again.

As I said, this is a story you need to be patient with as Slow Dance is 1000000% a slow burn. Fans of that trope will surely adore getting to spend so much time seeing Cary and Shiloh reconnect at a very realistic pace. I loved that aspect of the story because it gave me time as a reader to get really invested in Shiloh and Cary, and in an age where a lot of romances move quickly, it was nice to read one that took its time. I should also add that while romance plays a big role in the story, it reads more like contemporary fiction as many things other than romance are essential to the plot. And the ending…..I absolutely loved it and thought it was the perfect way to end Shiloh and Cary’s journey. The conclusion is definitive, but I would gladly read a sequel about their life together.

Slow Dance is out now. Thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The cover is the cutest and i loved it.

This is definitely a slow burn so make sure if you do not like slow burn novels to pass this book up. I thought it was cut and just very well written as this was the first book by this author.

This follows Shiloh and Cary and at first when you start reading about them the relationship and the build of the character can get on your nerves but as you read the book you understand why it was written as it was. The character build if you stick with this book is beautifully written.

I will read more by this author.

Thanks NetGalley for letting me read and review.