Welcome to Litsy!

I took a while to warm up to both Shiloh and Carey, but as I got to know them I couldn‘t believe what complex and lovely characters they turned out to be.

Shiloh and Cary were best friends in high school but drifted away from each other through misunderstandings and hurt feelings. This felt so believable and raw, I had such empathy for the two of them. (Cont)

My plans for the day.

I absolutely love how Rowell writes as she manages to create fun characters that have depth and layers. She gets me every time with the slow burn romance but more than that her male characters are just fantastic. She gives them a lot of lead time to express their thoughts and opinions which I love more than her female characters and this book was no exception.

Not to mention Rebecca Lowman is amazing as ever. I can listen to her for hours.

Perfectly named; a story of 2 unique people living their lives the best they can. It takes them nearly 20 years to discover just how important the other is to them and how they function.

This truly was slow, but worth it to get to the HEA 🩷

I had a rocky start with this audiobook. The narrator was excellent, but I struggled to connect with the story & characters. I almost DNFed this but I ended up pushing through—while it wasn‘t a standout for me, I did end up liking it. It's a soft pick. 3/5⭐️
(May 31, 2025)

It seems like everyone raves about this author, but I found this one to be pretty repetitive and kinda boring. There were also too many chick lit tropes, but maybe it‘s just me. 🤷🏽‍♀️

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Every so often I try to read something recommended to me as a “popcorn book,” but they never suck me in. This is no exception. If you love lighthearted, contemporary romance, this is probably great.

This is so not my kind of book but Meg convinced me with her review and I spent a lovely day with it. Shiloh and Carey were best friends in high school but love was always in the air - except that Shiloh didn‘t dare believing it. Years later they reconnect and pick up where they left it in their teens. A very convincing lovestory and great dialogues. For who wants a break from reality ❤️

I‘m in awe of how Rainbow Rowell writes such singular characters-authentic, complicated, and quirky. She manages to make you forget you are reading fiction and makes you feel more like you are remembering the story of close friends. I loved this on #audio, didn‘t want to stop listening, and I can‘t wait to read it again. It is a romance, but different. It is a novel of patient friendship, and enduring love. So good!

Cute read. Shiloh and Carey. From high school best friends to hopefully more. Shiloh made me nervous! Just say yes sometimes and stop thinking!:). Love this author for thoughtful nostalgic heartfelt readings.

I basically read this in one sitting so I can‘t say I didn‘t love it. But Shiloh… oof. I‘m going to call her the Queen of Self Sabotage because wow. The back and forth was a tad frustrating. Unlike the ‘no communication‘ trope, these two almost talked too much, without saying anything.

That being said, it was light, heart-felt and the fluff I needed after reading some heavy books. I love Rowell.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Early Saturday morning recharge.

Enjoyed this one!

#jumpstart2025

I knew I was saving this for a reason. It was the perfect Christmas Day book. Her characters are so real. She is one of the best dialogue writers I‘ve ever read. Nothing felt forced or artificial about this friends-to-lovers contemporary fiction.

Shiloh and Cary were best friends in high school but grew apart after graduation. Brought together years later at a friend‘s wedding, divorced mom Shiloh and Naval officer Cary reconnect.

#Two4Tuesday

1. Snuggles with my pup
2. Hmmm… not really loving my current read, the tagged book, or the mc. She‘s annoying!

I‘ve loved so many of Rowell‘s earlier novels that I had especially high hopes for her latest…but unfortunately this one just isn‘t one of my favorites. The past sections shine in capturing the unrequited love common in high school, but I just had a hard time warming up to the characters. Shiloh‘s negativity couched as pragmatism is wearying & I hated how dismissive she was of Cary‘s goals to escape their rougher part of Omaha. Just disappointing!

#WondrousWednesday

1. Any scenario is great but a quiet comfy space is always good.

2. I just borrowed a nice stack from the library with two books I‘ve been looking forward to. All the Colors of the Dark and the tagged title.

Sorry I‘m late but thanks for the tag! @Sace

"Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree." - - Emily Brontë

Autumn in the Pacific Northwest is a technicolor thing of beauty.

Got to enjoy the colors earlier this morning while my husband very sweetly picked up some breakfast bagel sandwiches for us (and I got to stay in the truck, reading.)

This was a comfortable read (almost like a cozy mystery without the mystery). It had romance (although very little 'spice'), great dialogue and characters and dealt with many real life problems. It did move slowly at times, but I did not mind that. Both main characters had family issues and I found the parenting issues to be very realistic. Thank to Edelweiss+ for the digital ARC. 4/5 stars!

I‘m sad to give this a mediocre review. I LOVE this author, so maybe my expectations were too high going in, but there wasn‘t much of a plot, there was a weirdly written sex scene, and it went on too long. Still, she‘s a beautiful writer and her characters are adorably human. Maybe I just like her YA books better?

Hard to rate. By far not my favorite R.R. and yet it's getting way more hype and with Reese Witherspoon's tag has likely already had filming rights sold. I would have liked this one better if it was closed door romance- the scenes felt tacky in the middle of such a mental and emotional lifelong friendship- if that makes any sense. Would rather any other of her titles get the accolades, hope readers that are enjoying it pick up her other work.

Rainbow Rowell writes the most vivid and authentic characters! Not my type of book usually, but if Rainbow is writing it, I‘m reading it!
Shiloh is 33, divorced with 2 kids and making things work. After 14 years she reconnects with Cary, her high school best friend and someone she‘s got history with. There‘s plenty of flashbacks to their high school days, but I much preferred the current day sections dealing with LIFE. I was charmed.

I LOVED THIS BOOK. My god was I invested in these two. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Rainbow always makes me want to move to Omaha and cook retro dessert‘s and casseroles, she makes me nostalgic for a life I never had. This is a wonderful book about friendship and love. Hope she writes more adult books

When your husband is getting a haircut, you take full advantage of the comfy couches in the barber's waiting area and read, read, read.

This book was good. I sometimes got annoyed with the way Shiloh behaved especially when she was younger. The storyline jumps between the past and the present. It was a good little romance book.

I like Rainbow Rowell. Her characters, and their lives, are always so real. And her romance isn‘t smarmy. Someone called it nostalgia romance and I think that‘s perfect. It‘s a slow burn, but it fits the narrative. It made me feel some things.

I usually love Rainbow Rowell, but I didn‘t love this one. An adult romance, about besties from high school reconnecting after years apart. One has a Navy career & the other has been married, had 2 kids, & divorced. It‘s realistic with the romance—including the kids & figuring out how to merge lives. I think the female MC was supposed to be a little autistic. But, the writing was too choppy for me & there was a lot of miscommunications. 👇

Happy read a book day 🤗🧡

This is the most realistic romance I‘ve read in a long time. Not at all what I was expecting with the romcom sounding premise, but it went emotionally deep quickly. Shiloh and Cary were best friends in high school & reconnect at a wedding, but the story is about so much more than that. It‘s about the middle, caring for parents & kids and all the complications life throws your way. It breaks your heart and makes you giddy with hope.

Rowell's YA novel Eleanor and Park is one of my all-time faves. The downsides: At first I found Shiloh annoying. The other oddity was the level of language Juniper used. She's a young girl yet talks like a grandma. On the plus side, Rowell's characters are realistic in that they are messy rather than being a fairy tale. Shiloh did grow and develop as a character which was redeeming. Not a lasting life-altering book, but a sweet quick read. 3.5/5

I do love Rainbow Rowell so much. I have to admit this wasn't my favourite story but I still enjoyed it. The plot jumps from the past to the present throughout the story. It can be a little confusing at times but I liked seeing their history that got them to this point. Its very real and not sugar coated like some stories can be. Shiloh's hesitation as a mother make sense and often get glossed over so i like that this felt much more realistic.

How would I rate Slow Dance if I were being objective? That‘s a great question. The world may never know. I may never know. Reading Rowell‘s words, I felt like a sunflower leaning towards the sun. I suppose Jackie isn‘t a very fleshed-out character. That‘s the only criticism I‘m willing to make (even if there are more critiques TO make). Truly so happy to be reimmersed in her dialogue & swooning over her lanky romantic leads again. What can I say?

Old high school pals Shiloh and Cary‘s achingly slow burn and poignantly realistic friends to lovers romance reminds us that some of the best love stories take the scenic route to their HEA and some of the greatest romances are ordinary, come with kids, aren‘t the first marriage, take time and talking through, and are transcendent and miraculous, worth fighting for and worth swooning over. Just enjoy every single step of this Slow Dance.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Slow Dance is a slow burn. Maybe too slow at times, but I get why Rowell chose to unfold the entire story in this way. It feels relatable on so many levels.

Shiloh and Cary were best friends in high school, the type that were always together and everyone assumed were more. Over the years they drifted apart but being reunited at a friend‘s wedding has shown them both the person sized holes in their lives that only they can fill. As they catch up and get to know their adult selves they are also presented with the chance to try for love. This definitely got me in the feels in the way only Rowell can.

A poignant adult romance from Rainbow Rowell. I loved her other adult book Attatchments, and this has similar traits—fleshed out characters, realistic life moments, deep friendships. Shiloh and Cary are high school best friends that have fallen out of touch over the years. They reconnect at a friend‘s wedding and the underlying longing they have for each other is reignited as they consider the possibility of taking that step beyond friendship.

It was such a pleasure to return to Rowell‘s writing. I zoomed through this in a handful of days, despite the reading slump I‘ve been in most of the year. She has such a good feel for writing characters that feel true to life, and are flawed, but likable and easy to root for. I hope the next book isn‘t so long in coming!

Don‘t have the book with me at the moment, so pic is a meadow blazing star in my garden with a little visitor!

I got to read this lovely book by one of my favorite authors while staying in a cabin on 29 acres in Michigan's glorious "up north". It's been a wonderful week and getting to spend it digging into this love story was a great bonus. This one is slightly melancholy, as Rowell's books can be, but gives us an honest, bittersweet picture of how people can weave in and out of our lives through the decades. Lots of heart, definitely recommend.

Rainbow Rowell is such an amazing writer, and I have loved everything she has ever written, but this one was another level of appreciation and adoration for me. I married my first love and my best friend, my high school sweetheart, after my first marriage ended. Because of this, Slow Dance hit very close to home. There were passages in this story that I felt with all my heart and soul, as if they were lifted from our own love story.

This book is so appropriately titled and just so real and lovely. The slowness is likely not everyone‘s cup-of-tea, but I felt like a fly on the wall of what is representative of several relationships I know. I didn‘t care if it ended in romance or lifelong bff status, I just wanted to sit a while with Shiloh and Cary. And I love that Nebraska, specifically Omaha, always makes its way to Rainbow‘s books.

Having some breakfast and book time while Emma decides how long she has to wait before she can start yelling at me for food.
I‘ve been having kind of perpetual low-key reading burnout for a few months, and it‘s been really hard to guess what I will stick with. What perfect timing for a new Rainbow Rowell book. Her writing is so smooth, you just jump in and let the current take you.

New in! I‘m excited for this, but saving it. (As one does.)

I preordered this from my neighborhood bookstore, and yesterday I went and picked it up. So excited to read it! 🥰 I also grabbed a hardcover copy of Midnight Feast, because I just listened to it on Audible and LOVED IT, so I decided that we need it for our permanent library. 📚#bookhaul #supportsmallbusiness

LOVEEEEEEEED it!!!! A look at the life of two people who should‘ve been together all along. In the same vein as Eleanor and Park (obvs) and Talking at Night. I need more of these books that are gritty and raw and full of emotion but not reliant on trauma to justify actions and emotions. This will be one of my faves of the year, no doubt.

Sooooo excited about this one. Takes me right back to the love I have for Eleanor and Park 🤩

Slow Dance is a slow burn romance between childhood friends who grew apart & reunite at a friend‘s wedding. Shiloh is a mess & Carey is too. It‘s not a glamorous take on relationships. It‘s more true to life though. People are messy & Rainbow is shining a light on it in a way most people wouldn‘t. I‘m so used to over the top grand gestures & larger than life plots. This feels like something that could really be happening somewhere in your town.

Devoured this book over the weekend…. It‘s not your typical romance… it honestly feels like there‘s more heart there. These are the kinds of characters that are so flawed it‘s hard to connect in small ways, but you are loudly cheering them on in every big meaningful way.