betsyf 's review for:

Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell

2.0

emotional medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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The cover of this book describes it as Jane Austen’s Persuasion for our time. Persuasion is my favorite Austen novel, so I was excited about the idea. Sure, Slow Dance is a second chance romance and sure, the male protagonist is a naval officer and maybe unlikeable but that’s where the comparison stops for me. This book was well written but I just didn’t get the draw between the main characters. The plot jumps back and forth between present day and “before,” but the “before” jumps around in time and is not linear, making it jarring and difficult to follow at points. The main characters mostly argue during their conversations and their jump from a rekindled friendship right into an engagement. I guess we’re supposed to believe they’ve always loved each other but I didn’t feel like the backstory fully fleshed that out enough to warrant an engagement. The intimate scenes were awkward and too much for me. I found myself wanting to skip ahead. 

Shiloh (and maybe Carey too) feel neurodivergent, which is an interesting spin here, but their personalities and tendencies feel inconsistent and it’s never explicitly stated, so you’re left wondering. It would explain a lot of their relationship though - how Carey describes Shiloh, how Shiloh feels overwhelmed when processing the sensory input from intimacy, how stoic and serious and literal Carey is. If the author had fleshed this out more, I think it would have helped the audience more fully understand these characters. 

All in all; not my favorite read and probably wouldn’t recommend. I know this book has a lot of rave reviews, but it just wasn’t for me.