Everybody thought Shiloh and Cary would end up together after high school except from them. They were best friends doing everything together, and they promised that no matter what, nothing would change between them when they went off to pursue their dreams. Now it's been fourteen years since Shiloh and Cary have seen each other, Carys still serving in the navy, and Shilohs now divorced with two young children living back at her mums. When she's invited to an old friends wedding and she sees Cary again, she starts to wonder if maybe they were always more than friends.

I really enjoyed this. I haven't read a Rainbow Rowell book in such a long time, and I need to read more of her work. This was a slow burn, full of angst and longing, with neither of them really wanting to admit their feelings to themselves or each other because of fear of losing their friendship. This was told over years flitting between their school days to them meeting again as adults and then navigating a relationship with so many other familial dramas going on, too. Shilohs children were a great addition to the story, and seeing how she dealt with moving on as a single mother was admirable. I was rooting for these two to make it from the beginning. I also liked that this was really low spice and that the scene was done really well as it's something that Shiloh has always struggled with. I highly recommend if you're a fan of slow burn romance.

I love Rainbow Rowell books and the style of writing and this one ticked all my boxes. I loved Shiloh and Cary and the fact that nobody is perfect and their imperfections make them so relatable and real life, and loved reading about their found friendship in the past and how fast forward 14 years after going in opposite directions they end up back together again showing if it is meant to be it will be. I loved the banter, the serious side, and the highs and lows and emotions. As an 80s girl I really enjoyed the flashbacks which made me think of my childhood!

Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell


Shiloh and Cary were best friends in high school before losing touch. 14 years later they are back in each other's lives and their connection is still strong. This book has been compared to One Day and it is a good comparison. I was totally drawn in to the story, invested in the story and desperate to know what would happen to them. A gorgeous, warm love story that is well worth a read.


Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was lovely. A young couple separated for over a decade meet back up. The story goes back and forwards between now - their reunion - and their past. The story and characters were all so fully-fleshed out and real and I was utterly captivated by the entire thing.
I adored this book and will now go back and read everything by Rainbow Rowell.

Rainbow Rowell is a trusted author. I will read anything that she writes and that was why I was so excited to read Slow Dance. Then all the praise came and I was like, yes, this will be a bit of me and it was.

Slow Dance is the second chance romance told over two time periods with a multi-perspective narrative and focuses on the rekindled friendship between Shiloh and Cary. They were each other’s person when they were younger but when real life hits and they both become grown ups they hopes that they had as teenagers dwindle. However, when a second chance presents itself both Shiloh and Cary refuse to miss this opportunity.

Rainbow Rowell’s strength is making you really care for your characters. You completely root for them from the very first page. Slow Dance is no different. Shiloh and Carey were meant to be together and you will shake this book in frustration at the fact they can’t seem to get their sh*t together.
Slow Dance is a lovely slice of nostalgia that we all need in our lives.

Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell is available now.

Absolutely beautiful - my favourite Rainbow Rowell yet. This is a proper slow dance of a book (perfect title!) and a second chance love story for grown ups, which is so lovely to read. It's hopeful, bittersweet, nostalgic, just gorgeous.

Omg, what a book! I loved every word. This is a love story like no other and it touched my soul. Cary and Shiloh met in high school and they both were in love with each other without even knowing. Or maybe Cary knew... They reconnect at a friend's wedding after years apart and find their way back to each other. It's such a beautiful, romantic, kind, and real novel. Don't forget to add it to your TBR pile!

Slow Dance follows Shiloh and Cary, two best friends from Omaha who lost touch for 14 years and are now trying to reconnect. It’s all about navigating how people change and what it means to rebuild something when the past feels so close.

I really enjoyed how authentic the characters felt, I was invested in their stories and the book developed as a heartfelt romance about friendship, missed chances, and finding your way back to each other. It's not a fast moving book but I do sometimes prefer a slow burn , especially when it comes to romance. I feel it’s one of those books that encouraged me to think about my own relationships and how people evolve and change over time.

Rainbow Rowell never misses and this is one is such a treat - a very romantic, will-they-wont-they second chance romance that's filled with yearning. This has been my go-to this year for anyone asking for romance that pulls on the heart strings or who wants a truly satisfying slow burn. She depicts that 'romantic friendship' between teenage Shiloh and Cary so well and I was rooting through them the whole way through.

Been a huge fan of Rainbow Rowell since reading Fangirl year ago but haven’t read any of her adult stuff before and I’m not usually a fan of adult romances but I thought I’d give this a whirl. I absolutely bloody loved it. She just writes the most wonderfully complex, flawed, relatable characters and I was fully invested in this quirky love story.

What a fabulous book! It has all the charm I have come to expect from a Rainbow Rowell novel and it was impossible not to root for the characters who were extremely well rounded.

This book was such a searing, bittersweet journey across time, towards a second chance at love.

I really adored the layers of time, and the exploration of Shiloh and Carey's relationship across the years. Rowell perfectly captures the angst of young, unrecognised love - and creates a beautiful path for the couple to find their way back into each other's lives.

I really also enjoyed the grit, and the stark realities that they both face - and how they overcome the challenges thrown their way through their adult lives.

Reading this book totally pulled on my heart strings and I would highly recommend it!

A big thank you to Rainbow Rowell, Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for my review.

Personally, I found this book slow to start and put it down a couple of times to read something else. However, when I stuck at it and started to understand the switches from yesteryear to present it got better.

Slow Dance is a very sweet novel full of both heart and angst. A believable story of what might have been between two friends who failed to appreciate what life as a couple might have been like. Shiloh and Cary, held back by personal trauma and misplaced feelings of 'unworthiness', gradually in middle age allow themselves to experience acceptance and letting go.

What could be a routine romance is dealt with deftly by Rowell as she builds believable neurotic characters too afraid to be vulnerable, but too attached to let go. A perfect hug of a book.

Headlines:
Angsty slow burn
Relationship baggage
Friendship foundations

I didn't expect to get as swept up into this story as I did. At first, I wasn't sure I would like these messy characters but I really came to love the chaos that was Shiloh and the steadfastness that was Cary.

This story was told over decades, mostly in the present but with some chapters that went to the 'before' across the previous timeline. All the pieces slowly fit together about how this close friendship went astray, how they connected romantically at times and how they met again in the present. This couple had 'meant to be' stamped all over them but it was an angsty ride. What I did appreciate about the angst was that as we got over that in the last quarter, there was plenty of time to enjoy them without that sense of stress.

Both Shiloh and Cary had family baggage. How Shiloh navigated the world as a single mother but also giving herself a chance to love again was admirable. Her kids were a quirky and a fun part of this read. Cary showed his good guy card when it came to her family. That said, Cary had a shed-load of family baggage too.

This was a story of messy relationships that found their neater end...and I loved the ride.

Thank you to the publisher for the eARC through netgalley.

I’m so sorry but my goodness they weren’t joking when they said slow! Nothing overly exciting and rather generic. I struggled to finish this one as it didn’t grip my interest. It’ll be someone’s cup of tea absolutely but it just didn’t hit for me 😔 always feel super guilty for not loving a book 💜

Given the comparison with One Day, I had high hopes for this story. Sadly, however, I was completely unable to engage with the characters of Cary and Shiloh and their chronic inability to communicate with one another for the whole length of the book. This was a rare DNF for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this story.

I’m so sorry but my goodness they weren’t joking when they said slow! Nothing overly exciting and rather generic. I struggled to finish this one as it didn’t grip my interest. It’ll be someone’s cup of tea absolutely but it just didn’t hit for me 😔 always feel super guilty for not loving a book 💜

Shiloh and Cary are best friends and to those around them they are destined to be together. However, life keeps getting in the way!

We follow the couple as they are drawn close and then pulled apart, as opportunities are missed and they become more distant.

A beautiful and often frustrating love story! I really liked the main characters and was willing them along all the way. A real rollercoaster of emotions!

This book may be entitled 'Slow dance' but to me it was more like 'slow death'! It was very inevitable what was going to happen and sometimes getting to the end can be enjoyable but this time it wasn't and I found myself very much skipping through large chunks of the book to see if it would get better.