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A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK

Discover the big, beaming power ballad of a novel about a love so true it refuses to be forgotten . . .
‘Sexy, sweet, wise and nostalgic – Jane Austen’s Persuasion for our times’ Gabrielle Zevin

‘A gorgeous book . . . a beautiful, believable love story between two slightly broken people. So sweet, but never sentimental. I yearned for them to be happy and I miss it now it’s over’ Marian Keyes

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Back in high school, everybody thought Shiloh and Cary would end up together . . . everybody but Shiloh and Cary.

They were just friends. Best friends. They spent entire summers sitting on Shiloh’s porch steps, dreaming about the future. Shiloh was going to become an actress, and Cary was going to join the Navy. And nothing was ever going to change between them – Shiloh made him promise.

Well, Shiloh did go to college, and Cary did join the Navy. But, somehow, everything changed.

Now it’s been fourteen years since Shiloh last spoke to Cary. She’s been married and divorced. She has two kids. And she’s back in north Omaha living in the same house she grew up in. Her life is nothing like she planned.

When Shiloh gets invited to an old friend’s wedding, all she can think about is whether Cary will be there – and whether she hopes he will be.

Slow Dance is the story of two kids who fell in love before they knew enough about love to recognize it. And what will happen when they try to make their way back to each other.

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‘Deeply human, profoundly romantic. Rowell will break your heart and you’ll thank her for it’ Leigh Bardugo

‘Who can deny the absolute, dizzy pleasure of loving a novel so much . . . I loved every page of Slow Dance, a book that is romantic to its core, and as funny and smart as its wonderful characters’ Emma Straub

‘If you adored One Day, make this your next read’ Fabulous Magazine (The Sun)

‘Rainbow Rowell returns with a gorgeous, slow-burn second-chance love story . . . Raw, real and romantic, this got me right in the feels’ Red

‘A beautiful ‘will they, won’t they’ love story . . . I loved these characters and the realness of their story’ Prima

‘I couldn’t be more excited to dive in . . . Rainbow Rowell has an incredible ability to hide an emotional wallop in the middle of a light and romantic story ‘ Cosmopolitan

‘Rowell’s signature warmth and authenticity shine through, with its heartfelt narrative and relatable characters . . . brimming with hope’ Glamour, Best New Books August
‘I loved this for its realism and flawed complicated characters’ Good Housekeeping

Reeses’ Book Club Pick, August 2024

Publisher Review

If you, like me, think thirty-somethings methodically working through their issues is very hot, Slow Dance is the book for you. The people in it feel like people you know or maybe even people you’ve been. Slow Dance is sexy, sweet, wise, and nostalgic-Jane Austen’s Persuasion for our times * Gabrielle Zevin * Who can deny the absolute, dizzy pleasure of loving a novel so much that you cannot bear to put it down, that you want to do nothing but keep flipping pages, that you want to immerse yourself fully and not come up for air until you are finished. I read Slow Dance in just that way, breathless and weeping. There is no one better than Rainbow at creating flawed, deeply human people. I loved every page of Slow Dance, a book that is romantic to its core, and as funny and smart as its wonderful characters. I will miss being in this world. * Emma Straub * Deeply human, profoundly romantic. Rowell tackles the challenges of love lost and rediscovered with nuance and candor. She will break your heart and you’ll thank her for it * Leigh Bardugo * ‘A will-they, won’t-they second chance romance for the ages, this one is poised to be one of summer’s breakout hits’ * People * ‘A powerful and poignant tale of first love . . . Rich, real, and emotionally raw, this satisfying contemporary is sure to impress’ * Publishers Weekly * Praise for Rainbow Rowell * – * Rowell is talented enough to be uncategorizable * New York Times * Cracking, laugh-out-loud dialogue, characters that feel painfully real — Jodi Picoult * – * Reminded me not just what it’s like to be young and in love with a girl, but also what it’s like to be young and in love with a book — John Green * – * A breathless, achingly good read about love and outsiders — Stephanie Perkins * – * This sexy, smart, tender romance thrums with punk rock and true love. Teen readers–not to mention their Gen X parents–will swoon — Gayle Foreman * – * Sweet, gritty and affecting…an unforgettable story about two misfits in love — Courtney Summers * – * Rowell shows us the beauty in the broken — Stewart Lewis * – * Reading [Rainbow Rowell’s] work feels like listening to your hilariously insightful best friend tell her best stories * Library Journal * Rowell is, as always, a fluent and enjoyable writer–the pages whip by * Publishers Weekly * Keen psychological insight and irrepressible humor * Time * The dialogue flows naturally; it’s zippy, funny, and fresh * Boston Globe * A joy from sentence to sentence, and on that intimate level there’s absolutely nothing unoriginal or cliched in the way Rowell thinks. Her work is dense with moments of sharp observation…and humor * Chicago Tribune *