Slow Dance is a new novel by Rainbow Rowell that follows one relationship over the years as it evolves from a high school friendship into an adult romance. Set in Omaha, Nebraska, the novel begins with Shiloh getting ready for her friend Mikey’s wedding. She’s a little excited and a little nervous, and it’s obvious she’s hoping to reconnect with someone tonight. Back in high school, Shiloh and Mikey were inseparable, along with Cary—it was always the three of them—but as a divorced mom of two, she doesn’t really have time to keep in touch with old friends. Plus, Cary has been in the Navy since graduation, so it’s practically impossible to contact him anyways. Then, at the reception, Shiloh and Cary spot each other from across the room, and in an instant, a long history of longing is unlocked. As the two of them slowly try to figure out how they fit into each other’s lives, the novel oscillates between the “before” years and the “after” years, between Shiloh and Cary’s high school memories and their present day. A love story that takes years to unfold, Slow Dance is deeply romantic, movingly human, and well worth the journey.

I absolutely loved this novel. From the cover art, I was expecting more of a fun romantic comedy, but instead I discovered this deep, emotional romance. There’s still humor, because Rowell is so good at capturing the funny ways we communicate with each other, but the heart of the novel is unmistakably romance, and it’s so beautifully done. Rowell offers both Shiloh’s and Cary’s perspectives throughout the novel, and the way she depicts these two flawed people trying to work through their personal hang-ups in order to love each other feels real and raw (and highly gratifying when they find their way through to each other). After finishing the novel, I saw that Gabrielle Zevin—author of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow—had compared Slow Dance to Jane Austen’s Persuasion, and was struck by the comparison; both are brilliant later-in-life romances that make you ache for the characters to grab their second chance at love before it passes them by again. There’s also a strong element of nostalgia to the novel that gives it extra shimmer—present day for Shiloh and Cary is 2006—and I loved walking around a world that felt a little slower than today. Slow Dance is one to remember.

I’d recommend this book to…

• Anyone who loves when a love story incorporates all the messy details of real life… it’s similar in theme to Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan
• Anyone looking for something bittersweet, piercing, and nostalgic… it’s similar in tone to Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
• Anyone who wants some wise revelations about life mixed with humor and tenderness… it’s similar in style to This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub