Great chemistry and yearning with Nellie and Noah. I enjoyed their flashbacks as well. A fast paced read that hooked me fast. Enjoyed their chemistry and tension.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really enjoyed The Pick-Up and was excited to grab this one on Netgalley. Nellie and Noah were each other’s first love until they end up as each other’s first hate. Now 20 years later, the two meet up at their mutual friends’ vowal renewal ceremony. Forced to share a guest house, the two must strive to get along for the sake of their friends. But there’s a lot of hurt and unresolved issues between the pair. As the story weaves between two timelines, we get to discover the path that takes them where they are and where they could potentially go.

As a millennial, I loved the sense of nostalgia Ms. Dahlia invokes in the past timeline. It was so fun to walk down memory lane and remember what it was like to be a teen growing up in the late 90s. Nellie and Noah have a complicated history. They fell in love when they were 16, but when a difficult situation comes up it causes them to break apart. After learning what Noah does, it’s easy to see why Nellie would feel so betrayed and let down. While I get that they were kids and kids do stupid things and that 20 years have passed and people change, I don’t think I would have forgiven Noah. Because of that it was hard for me to root for him.

Enemies to lovers can be tricky. I don’t think this hit quite the right note. It seemed they went from hating each other to suddenly on good terms without the emotional journey that would’ve earned it. I did appreciate that it was a dual POV as it gave a lot of insight to both the characters. I guess I wish he would’ve groveled more given the level of his betrayal. While filled with nostalgia, this didn’t quite land for me.

Be still my millennial heart!
I was worried about this one at the beginning for two reasons: one, I normally despise time jumps, but the switch between first and third person ended up working so well, and they were rare enough to feel like a genuine memory and not a schtick. Second, the FMC was a real brat at first.

I told myself to wait and see if whatever he did deserved this energy, and when I got there, I felt like her reaction completely made sense. But, and this is a controversial opinion, so did the forgiveness. I can see other readers might not be so forgiving of young Noah.

Nevertheless: this hit a bunch of my favorite tropes: vacation love, enemies to lovers, he (re)falls first, banter/roasting (is there a better name for this?). The side antagonists were so frustrating (in an accurate, well-written, plot-driving way). I swear I could’ve swapped in a few names from my own high school class. And the 2000s nostalgia?? Doc Martens, awkward teenage eye contact, Limp Bizkit references! Youth is wasted on the young!

The spa banter was hilarious, and I appreciated that the characters seemed realistic. They drank and/or consumed, they did dumb stuff, they felt like actual people in their 30s who have lived a little. I also really loved the ending. Both characters had growth and needed to mature a bit. So many romance novels rush the HEA, but this one took its time.

As someone who fell head over heels for Nora Dahlia's Pick Up, I practically squealed when I got my hands on Backslide. Enemies-to-lovers? Second chance romance? Forced proximity at a gorgeous vineyard? Sign me up! While there were moments that made my romance-loving heart flutter, I found myself wrestling with some frustrations that kept me from fully surrendering to the story.

Let's start with what worked: the delicious tension between Nellie and Noah absolutely sizzled in those flashback scenes. Dahlia perfectly captures that intoxicating, all-consuming rush of first love - the stolen glances, the whispered secrets, the way every touch feels electric. I could practically smell the subway grime and hear the mixtapes clicking in their '90s New York romance. These chapters were so vivid and emotionally raw that I found myself craving even more of their youthful passion.

In the present timeline, though, their reunion felt a bit like watching someone try to rekindle a campfire with damp wood - there were sparks, but they never quite caught into a sustainable flame. Nellie's lingering resentment was understandable (we've all been burned by first loves), but after twenty years, her complete refusal to even discuss what happened - even with her best friend - started to feel less like self-preservation and more like emotional immaturity. Noah, bless him, clearly never moved on, but his grand gestures sometimes tipped into questionable territory rather than swoon-worthy romance.

Now, about those supporting characters... Oh dear. Look, I get that every friend group has That One Dramatic Person, but Lydia and Damien weren't just flawed - they were outright unbearable. Their constant meddling and petty behavior crossed the line from "fun antagonism" to "why would anyone tolerate this toxicity?" There were moments I wanted to reach into the book and shake the main characters for not calling them out more forcefully. A little conflict can spice up a story, but these two left a bitter aftertaste that lingered long after their scenes ended.

That said, there's no denying Dahlia's talent for crafting immersive settings and razor-sharp dialogue. The vineyard setting was so lush I could practically taste the wine, and the unwedding premise was refreshingly unique. When the focus stayed on Nellie and Noah's complicated history and undeniable chemistry, the story truly shone. I just wish their adult selves had shown the same depth and growth as their teenage counterparts, and that the supporting cast had been given more nuance.

Final Thoughts: Backslide delivers some genuinely beautiful moments of nostalgia and longing, but gets weighed down by frustrating character choices. Still, Dahlia's writing remains compulsively readable, and I'll absolutely be first in line for her next book - hopefully one where the side characters are as well-developed as the central romance!

Grateful thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read this ARC. My opinions are my own, but my enthusiasm for Nora Dahlia's work is 100% genuine! Here's to many more books from this talented author - I can't wait to see what she writes next!

This was a breezy, fun read. I enjoyed traveling to wine country with Nell and Noah. The dual timeline narrative (especially all of the 90s references!) was also a good way to learn more about the characters.

I love second chance romances, but this story left me underwhelmed. Nellie and Noah dated when they were teenagers, and they were each other's first loves. Nearly two decades later, they are forced to reunite at their mutual friends anniversary celebration. Nellie hates Noah because he betrayed her, but she won't even tell her best friends what he did all those years ago. As I was reading, I kept dreading what it was that caused their relationship to fall apart, and when it was finally revealed, I was disappointed. I don't want to give spoilers, but if I were Nellie, I would never forgive Noah for his actions.

For all of these years, Noah has kept tabs on Nellie, but she knows nothing about his life. Forced proximity causes them to spend lots of time together, and they realize that their attraction is still there. They fall back into each other's arms, but it doesn't feel realistic to me. They don't really know anything about each other anymore, and I don't think that they have enough time to develop feelings again.

Some of the side characters, like Lydia and Damien, were just awful people, and I don't know why anyone would be friends with them. I think that most people in the book were very childish.

I liked the dual timeline of going back to the '90s when they first met, but the past timeline was combined, third person pov while the present timeline was first person and separate for both main characters. It was very confusing.

“Backslide” was the first book I have read of Nora Dahlia. I liked the ending. I had trouble believing that someone that you met at that age and was only with a short time would leave that much impact on someone. I hardly remember long relationships I had in my twenties even. I thought Nell was too quick to assume the worst in Noah. They talked about their past as being so big but they broke up so many times when they were younger. I felt that the relationship was toxic.

Fine for what I needed it to be. The main character did get in my nerves a little bit but other than that it was decent.

I enjoyed visiting Wine Country and all it has to offer in Backslide by Nora Dahlia. The novel takes place in two timelines - present day at a vow renewal in California, and teenage romance/heartbreak days in NYC. The dual timeline and dual narrations were a nice touch. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Nellie is thrilled to attend her friends Cara and Ben’s unwedding in California, an entire country away from her life in NYC where she had broken up with her boyfriend and learned the magazine she works at is folding.m, leaving her unemployed. So she needs this week away with old friends and is determined to not make the trip all about her.

Unfortunately for Nellie, one of the guests on the trip is Noah, her first love who broke her heart. Can she survive a week being around him? She has no choice but to try.

A delightful read.

I wanted to love this book, but unfortunately I felt that Nell was too childish, and it took me out of reading multiple times. In fact, I think several of the characters need some revamping. Why would Cara be friends with someone like Lydia? It makes no sense. I think the book has the potential to be great, but please work on fixing some of the characters or I fear you will lose a lot of readers.