Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell
Publication Date; July 23, 2024
Summary from NetGalley:
Back in high school, everybody thought Shiloh and Cary would end up together . . . everybody but Shiloh and Cary.
They were just friends. Best friends. Allies. They spent entire summers sitting on Shiloh’s porch steps, dreaming about the future. They were both going to get out of north Omaha—Shiloh would go to go to college and become an actress, and Cary would join the Navy. They promised each other that their friendship would never change.
Well, Shiloh did go to college, and Cary did join the Navy. And yet, somehow, everything changed.
Now Shiloh’s thirty-three, and it’s been fourteen years since she talked to Cary. She’s been married and divorced. She has two kids. And she’s back living in the same house she grew up in. Her life is nothing like she planned.
When she’s invited to an old friend’s wedding, all Shiloh can think about is whether Cary will be there—and whether she hopes he will be. Would Cary even want to talk to her? After everything?
The answer is yes. And yes. And yes.
Slow Dance is the story of two kids who fell in love before they knew enough about love to recognize it. Two friends who lost everything. Two adults who just feel lost.
It’s the story of Shiloh and Cary, who everyone thought would end up together, trying to find their way back to the start.
ARC provided by William Marrow via NetGalley for an honest review.
Confession:
I don’t usually enjoy character driven books with only a little bit of plot, but this book was so well done and so compelling that I found myself totally engaged and enjoying the book. Ms Rowell writes such compelling and realistic characters that you feel like you have known them forever and are rooting for them to find their happiness.
Shiloh was a very interesting character but also one I struggled to like. She was a little on the annoying side, especially the way she always wanted to be touching and poking Cary. But I could certainly relate to her and her issues. I found it very amusing that she was such an introvert, yet her career was in theater. I loved her relationship with her mom and her kids, they had great interactions. I also like her coworker, Tom, who was always there to support her when she needed it. By the end of the story I was rooting for her myself, even though I still found her a bit annoying.
Cary was my favorite of the two. He was such a great guy with such a good heart and he put up with a lot of Shiloh’s nonsense. He had a lot of childhood trauma, way more than Shiloh, but he still seemed to come out ok in the end. I would have liked to see a bit more about what his life in the Navy was like, but I get why that wasn’t a focus. His banter with his mom was great, and you could tell that he really cared for her. He cared so much for Shiloh, but he was willing to let her go because he knew that the navy life wasn’t for her. But he was also willing to fight for her once they reconnected and make the relationship work.
This was definitely a slow burn romance, but also included a friends to lovers and second chance romance storyline as well. All three of these blended together very well. I liked that the story was told in two timelines, the present (2006) and the past from their high school years and when they were young adults. The present was told in a pretty linear way, but the past chapters jumped around a bit, which made it a little bit harder to follow. Both timelines portray a history of misunderstandings between Shiloh and Cary, which they both struggle to overcome. It also underlines just how messed up both of their families were, especially Cary’s. As adults they are better at listening to each other, but the miscommunications still occur, which is very realistic in my view.
If you are familiar with this author’s work, then you know how beautifully she writes. Her characters are so realistic that you feel like you have known them your whole life and are invested in their lives and happiness. The dialogue between all of the characters is great, full of witty banter and one liners. This story is full of angst, yet is funny and has many a poignant moment embedded as well. I especially loved that we saw both a love scene from when they were nineteen and from the present day. The similarities and differences between those two times were significant and really helped to define their relationship.
While I didn’t fall in love with this book as much as I might have if Shiloh hadn’t annoyed me so much, I really did find it a compelling read. I especially loved how the story continued even after they admitted their feelings to each other, and got even messier until we get to the happy ending which I loved. Fans of Ms Rowell will be sure to enjoy this one. I also think new readers will become fans. This is one I think you should give a chance, especially if you like messy characters and a slow burn realistic romance.
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