This is one of those books where you just want to grab the main character, shake her and ask what's she's doing.

Shiloh and Carey were always best friends in school. Nothing could separate them, but life pulled them in separate directions and now years later they re at a wedding. It's a will they won't they story, with all the real life messy stuff, honesty and fear.

I loved reading this book but the name Shiloh frustrated me. I just couldn't pronounce it in my head!

I love Rainbow Rowell, she could have written anything and I’d have been keen to read it! The story was predictable but it almost made it extra enjoyable to be able to sink into the feelings and storytelling of it all. The author is so good at conveying the complexities of life, the characters were so well written and the pace was great. I’d love a sequel!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6516570110

A well written, thoughtful, insightful book which is nominally a romance but touches on some bigger themes as well - dating post-divorce, dating with kids and dating with anxiety being a few that resonated with me. My only gripe with it (and maybe this should have been clear from the title!), is that it is quite slow paced. While I enjoyed it, and enjoyed getting to know the characters, there were a few places where I got a little impatient with the gentle trajectory, and wanted things to move forward more quicky - and perhaps less repetitively. So probably a 3.5 overall for me. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

You can’t help but fall in love with Rainbow Rowell’s writing. Her characters are sublimely likeable and whole, and her descriptions of emotions are spot on. I lost myself in this book at times - it felt so very….real. Beautifully written and well executed.

Having said that, it was perhaps a bit TOO slow for me (although I appreciate that it’s meant to be slow!). I did find myself losing interest in some places. However, all in all a good book.

Slow Dance is a slow burn romance of the “will they, won’t they” variety. Cary and Shiloh have had an intense relationship since high school when they were very close friends, extremely comfortable in other’s company, then an absence of contact for many years when they missed each other intensely. Their eventual reunion at a friend’s wedding would surely be their chance to begin again.
The timeline flips back and forth between then and now with “now” driving the plot whilst the flashbacks filled out the backstory. Wasted time due to missed opportunities and missed signals perfectly captures the bold assumptions of youth – that there will be other people, there will be other chances so there’s no need to hold on to this one.
The pacing is slow at the start and it took me a while to connect with the characters and become invested in the outcome but it was well worth reading to the end.
Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC

This is the story of Shiloh and Cary, best friends back in high school who reconnect at their other friends wedding 15 years after not seeing each other. There's a lot of history between these two and issues to work out, it's at times sweet, frustrating, hopeful and possibly the least sexy sex scene I've ever read but overall a cute read and I'm glad Rainbow Rowell is back writing non fake fanfic stories!

Wow wow wow, I loved this so much!
How your person you're meant to be with is right under your nose. Even if things seem hard. If it's the right person then they are worth fighting for

Aching with romance this is a beautiful love story with a quirky and swoon worthy couple who you can’t help but wish to be together. Some of the old references dated the book somewhat and made it feel like a dusted-off re-release instead of something fresh and exciting but I still enjoyed.

I have absolutely loved all of Rainbow Rowell's other novels, but this just didn't do it for me at all. I had no sense that Shiloh and Cary were in love as teenagers, the pacing felt slow and Shiloh's inability to let people in just didn't feel properly characterised to me. I ended up not really caring about either of the main characters, and felt bogged down in the book.

Beautifully pitched with protagonists that make you want to give them a good talking to. Quite claustrophobic in the intensity of the relationship over the now and before sections. These shifts in time helped to provide a breather from the now story. Great supporting characters of all ages.
Enjoyable read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this title.

2* disappointing

Slow Dance wasn't for me, I found it slow and depressing and had no empathy with the main characters. Shiloh was unpleasant as a teenager, as an adult she oozed negativity. Cary was inadequately described resulting in his lack of depth and little personality – pity, because he had potential.

An author’s aim is to grab the attention of their reader, preferable during the first chapter, I managed 10% before reluctantly deleting.

eARC generously supplied by Penguin Random House and NetGalley, this review is my personal, unbiased opinion

When I saw this book it sounded like something I was really in the mood for so as soon as I got the book, I read it.

The story is filled with the ups and downs of Cary and Shiloh’s friendship. Everyone thought the relationship they’d had in school was more than it was but it had only ever been friendship.

The story flips between timelines so you are pulled into the friendship from the very beginning and all that went with it. It’s a really sweet story and it was just what I wanted in a book.

A book that was easy to get into, easy to read and hard to put down. My first book by this author but certainly not the last.

I wasn't prepared for how much this book would move me, reading it in as close to one sitting as possible. Cary and Shiloh should be together, they should have always been together - everyone thought they were together as teenagers. But life, and particularly Shiloh's low self-esteem, didn't allow it to happen. Now older, and somewhat wiser, can they finally get it together? A beautiful love story that felt more real than most, with characters who were complicated shades of grey rather than clear-cut black & white.

I feel bad that I didn't enjoy this book, but I just could not get along with the main characters.
A disjointed start to the story, with the timeline constantly jumping around meant that I struggled to pick the book up even at the beginning, which never bodes well for the rest of the book.

I never really found anything to like about our two main characters. They were just so unlikeable that it killed any relatability that they may have had. Especially Shiloh, who in both past and present seems to hate and find fault with everything and everyone and it was never endearing.

It was utterly frustrating to read about these two because they're morons and they needed to get their shit together. I could not believe that Shiloh is such a shitty character that it would take her 15 years to attempt to give Cary a go and let him in.

Character motivation was never very strong, I'm not sure why these people's stories got told. I guess it was just a second chance at love romance trope, but it was only their own stupidity and stubbornness (mostly Shiloh's) that they never got together when they were teenagers.

When I felt like the book should be heading towards a solution to the problems that the characters were throwing up in their pursuit of getting back together, I was only halfway through the book. It was such slow going. The pacing was awful and there's no real plot to keep the reader's interest, just two fucked up characters having minor drama and conflicted feelings about each other whilst not seeing each other for months and years at a time.

I feel like I've been trapped with these characters for far too long. What sort of adult human still resolves their pent up emotions by biting and poking and hair pulling another human being? Shiloh is awful. Cary was too much of a pushover of a character, willing to put up with any shit she throws at him.

Thank you to NetGalley UK and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC in exhange for a review.

4⭐

I loved this book. It has the anxiety of being young and flirting the line between friendship and something more, pining and heartbreak and pure nostalgia. Cary and Shiloh's relationship was not without its issues at ANY point of the story... but you really rooted for them to work through it and just BE. The flashbacks were really well done, placed perfectly to add to your understanding of the characters and their relationship. All the side characters were compelling too. Lived up to my hopes for this book for sure.

A slow romance brimming with melancholy and lost chances, Slow Dance didn't ready like a typical romance to me. It spends a lot of the novel building up this complex relationship between Shiloh and Cary, with the story bouncing between a wedding of one of their mutual friends and their past. We see the missed opportunities, the paths chosen that have led them to this moment and how things could have been. It's an emotional, very believable read and the sadness oozes off the page at times - especially from Shiloh. However I did find the pacing a bit all over the place. The first third is very slow, spent building up these characters, their history and backstory, yet there's not much movement in the 'present'. As such I really struggled to get through, however as their relationship picked up and feelings become more apparent I started to really enjoy this. It feels like a breath of fresh air at times, as the two take a metaphorical dance around each other regarding their deeper emotions.

Highly recommend if you like emotional romances.

NetGalley thanks for an amazing book by Rainbow Rowell free review incoming.
Well what can I say Rainbow catches your breathe again with deep bonds in relationships. She grasps your very life experiences by the heart and soul.

I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t love to see an old 🔥 flame when your down and slightly out of sorts see you again for everything you used to be . Back when everything was easy and you didn’t have adult responsibilities.

The character banter is too from the loves interest is so sweet I might need some dentistry.

Thanks again I would recommend this book to anyone who hasn’t read Rainbow Rowell other books no fantasy just real life stuff x

Shiloh and Cary were best friends at high school but there was always a spark between them that hinted at something more. After a brief fling in college, the two went their separate ways, despite everyone thinking that they would always eventually end up together. 14 years later and the two re-connect with each other at their friend Mikey’s wedding. Despite the long years apart, Shiloh can’t help but feel pulled towards Cary and the pair resume their friendship. After Cary’s mother has a fall and Shiloh comes to the rescue, Shiloh and Cary start to spend more time with each other and the spark between them is reignited. Maybe this friendship was always destined to be more…

Slow Dance is a masterfully told friends to lovers romance that is full of longing and hope. The writing is lyrical and poignant and the plot is beautifully paced. I was so invested in Shiloh and Cary's relationship and I was rooting for them to end up together. The pair are both very likeable characters, even if some of their decisions had me screaming at the page! They're both flawed humans who are trying their best and this makes them very relatable and realistic. I really love how Rainbow Rowell manages to write realistic flawed characters without it feeling heavy or dark.

Cary is a kind and caring boy-next-door with strong morals and a dedication to his career in the navy. Shiloh is an arty single mum with two kids who works for a theatre company. The two make a very natural couple and their chemistry is very wholesome and heart-warming.

Whilst I did enjoy the flashbacks to the early days of Shiloh and Cary’s relationship, both at high school and at college, I did sometimes find the timeline a bit confusing. However, this is my only criticism of the novel.

Overall, I give this novel 4 stars. It’s a touching romance about second chances that reminds you that it’s never too late to fall in love again and reconnect. I would recommend this read if you like the following tropes:
✨ Friends to lovers
✨ Slow burn romance
✨ Boy-next-door
✨ Second chance
✨ Military romance

Slow Dance will be released on 1st August 2024. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

The way I am absolutely obsessed with Shiloh and Cary. Not only is it a gorgeous love story, but it also deals with some very sensitive topics which are handled so carefully and sensitively. This is going to be one of my top reads for this year!

There was so much I loved about this, I want to dive deeper into Shiloh and Cary's world and find out more about them. My only issue is it took me a while to love them, there were points near the start where it was nearly a DNF and I'd have been gutted if I'd left it then. It took a while for me to love them, as it took a while for them to find each other and I'm so pleased all round! I was already a fan of Rainbow Rowell's writing and she does not disappoint.