thank you to netgalley for the e-arc. instant DNF because of no punctuation for dialogue. also hard no for sex scenes and the like between elderly people. just literally not for me.

This story was a lovely second chance romance between two people with 40 years between their last kiss and the one that reunited them.
Honestly, it took me a minute to connect to these characters. But I think that it is because of how well the characters are written- hear me out.
I was unsure and distrustful of Charlie and that he’d really grown and his intentions are coming from the right place. When I did believe it I was in and waiting for our FMC to get there too.
This was a great story about second chances, found family, unlikely friendships, the power of trust and love, and how empathy and wisdom grow over time. It’s a lesson to look back and reevaluate earlier to give yourself time and not make the mistake of losing time with who and what actually matter to you.

Have you ever read a book that just gets what it means to be human? That’s A Forty Year Kiss by Nickolas Butler. It’s one of those stories that sneaks up on you—gentle at first, then suddenly, you’re completely wrapped up in it, thinking about your own past, your own regrets, and the people who slipped away over the years.

The premise is simple: Charlie and Vivian were married once, young and full of hope, but life had other plans. Now, forty years later, they find themselves back in each other’s lives. And honestly? It’s messy. There’s baggage, there’s hesitation, there’s that terrifying question of whether you can—or should—try again with someone who once broke your heart.

this book simply feels “real.” Butler doesn’t sugarcoat anything. Charlie is flawed in ways that make you want to shake him and hug him at the same time. Vivian is holding onto a secret that makes everything even more complicated. Their history isn’t neatly wrapped up—it’s raw, full of love and pain and missteps. Just like real life.

if you’ve ever lived in a small town, you’ll relate to this book. The local bars where everybody knows your business. The chill of an early autumn night. The weight of memories hanging in places that haven’t changed much, even though you have. Butler nails that nostalgic, almost haunting atmosphere. Butler also handles the subject of Down’s Syndrome with a gentleness, that will warm your heart.

For full disclosure, the pacing slows a bit in the middle. It lingers on emotions and inner struggles more than big dramatic moments, which worked for me, but might not for everyone. Also, the dialogue doesn’t have quotation marks, which can be a little jarring at first, but I promise—you get used to it.

This is a book about love, but not the shiny, fairytale kind. It’s about love that’s been through the wringer. Love that’s bruised, hesitant, and still—somehow—worth fighting for.

This is the love story of Charlie and Vivian. Years earlier, they married, and after 4 years, they divorced. Since then, they both remarried, but now are single. Charlie has never stopped thinking about Vivian and wants to rekindle their relationship. However, Vivian is hesitant, as Charlie's past as an angry alcoholic has her concerned. Charlie works to prove to Vivian that he has changed, and will work to gain her trust.
This is a slow build love story, one with tenderness and mistakes and forgiveness.
Lovely.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC copy for review 💕

Something about the plot kept me invested, although it wasn’t the easiest reading style since this author does not use quotations. Not the first author I’ve read who favors this style but the first I’ve been able to finish, ultimately. It isn’t good for my ADHD brain so I really avoid this but again, I was intrigued by the premise.

Sadly the characters fell flat for me, no actual chemistry coming to me as I read.

I guessed at least one of the twists very quickly.

I like the idea of regrets and wanting to right decisions later in life. Not thinking twice once your mind is made up.

I really wanted to love this story so much more than I did. It will be recommended to those I know love the style and plot line. Just wasn’t for me, and that happens sometimes.

Vivian and Charlie married young forty years ago and divorced four years later due to Charlie's excessive drinking. Now Charlie is retired, having moved back to Wisconsin to his parents' farm, he wants to try to reconnect with Vivian. Over the years he has made a lot of money, due to some successful investments. He's still drinking but seems to think it's under control. Vivian has struggled financially all her life, now sharing a home with her daughter and two granddaughters, they live from paycheck to paycheck.
Charlie and Vivian go out on a few dates. He's interested, she foresees a lot of unpleasant issues and can't forget the unpleasantness of the past. Besides, she's keeping a secret from Charlie and doesn't know how to tell him about it.
Will they be able to overcome forty years of separation? Will they be able to connect their lives in a meaningful way? Or will they each go their separate ways? The story moves slowly, pretty appropriate for a couple in their sixties, who are re-learning each other.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark, in exchange for a review.

A beautiful story tucked inside a beautiful cover. Another first-time author for me (thank you, NetGalley!), and I will be back for more!

A Forty Year Kiss is a late-in-life, second-chance romance between Charlie and Vivian. While I appreciated the idea, I struggled to maintain interest with the story and characters. It could be a personal thing, I just couldn’t quite connect as much as I’d hoped.

Richard Poe did a decent job narrating the audiobook.

Thank you Nickolas Butler, Sourcebooks Landmark, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I really wanted to enjoy it based on the blurb, but I just couldn’t connect with the characters. At first, I saw Vivian as the voice of reason, but that quickly changed when she seemed willing to forgive Charlie for actions that were problematic from the start of their relationship. Behaviors that had led her to leave him in the first place, resulting in some serious consequences.
As for Charlie, I found him to be an extremely untrustworthy narrator. I’m not sure if it’s because he’s selfish, a heavy drinker, or just tends to talk more than listen, but I found it frustrating every time the story was told from his perspective. He repeatedly contradicted himself, and I often found myself questioning whether he was truly in love with Vivian or just the idea of who he wanted her to be.
While I understand that, at a certain point in life, people might be willing to overlook certain flaws, I felt that both of them were ultimately lying to themselves. These characters, just like most people, still have a lot of healing to do before they can have a healthy relationship together. That said, if you enjoy romance stories dealing with second chances and flawed characters, this book may be a good read for you.
*Thank you to Nickolas Butler, Sourcebooks Landmark and Netgalley for the ARC copy. I am freely leaving my honest review.

DNF. This was not for me. It was just too sappy to finish. I do n0t think I am the market for this type of book.

A Forty Year Kiss reminds me of The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks in all the best ways. Raw, emotional, melancholy, and realistic. So many romance books focus on couples when they are young, and depict how those couples first meet and fall in love. A Forty Year Kiss flips the classic narrative on its head by presenting a romantic story about ex-spouses falling back into love forty years after their divorce.

It touches on a variety of real-life situations, challenges, and life lessons, while simultaneously pulling at your heartstrings and depicting a cast of characters you’re sure to love. I really appreciated these unique story.

Huge thank you to Nickolas Butler, RB Media, Sourcebooks, & NetGalley for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

A Forty Year Kiss by Nickolas Butler ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Sourcebooks Landmark
Pub Date: 2-4-25

Thank you @netgalley, @bookmarked, and @wiscobutler for the opportunity to read this eARC.

This story definitely caught me by surprise - a sweet story of love, family, secrets, challenges, and redemption. From the very beginning, I found myself rooting for Charlie and Vivian as they reunited after forty years apart, facing the complexities that come with recollections of the past and a lifetime of living separate lives.

"You live long enough, you understand the value of a second chance. A new beginning. If you’d told me two, three years ago I could sit down at a bar and talk to you, be this close to you… how much money would I have paid for that chance, that time? I would have paid anything."

"He did not feel like a man over sixty-years old. He did not feel any age. All he felt was love. Promise. He tried to tamp down his emotions, but it was almost impossible."

"#bookstagram #booksofinstagram #bookishlife #bookcommunity #whatimreading #currentlyreading #dailyreading #jamiesreading #bookreview #bookrecommendation #advancereadercopy #netgalleyarc #netgalleyreader #netgalley #afortyyearkiss #nickolasbutler #sourcebookslandmark

I didn’t like the conversation layout—for example: “Same thing? The bartender asked. Leinie’s? Yeah, he said.”—There are no quotations or anything; just a bunch of they said, he said, and she said, but I got past it pretty quickly. On top of that though, the conversions could be a little off in my opinion—like there wasn’t enough depth. It felt too rushed sometimes.

The romance is super hurried and to the point, which I didn’t favor too much, but I moved past it because they’re old and gray now; time is dwindling for them, so I understood why it was written that way.

The writing, though, was pretty darn good! It evoked such raw emotion from me that I couldn’t help but admire it. The only problem I have with the writing is that at times, there was too much filler, and some things came off as a bit odd to me, and the grammar was here and there, but overall it was truly lovely.

Despite those small issues I had, this book was beautifully written and I liked it! I don’t read—or find—many romance books by male authors, so this was such a good experience!

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙉𝙚𝙩𝙂𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙍𝘾.

A Forty Year Kiss by Nickolas Butler is a family drama/older adult second-chance romance. Vivian and Tom were married for four years. Tom was an alcholic and their marriage ended in an abrupt divorce. Now it's been 40 years and Tom is moving back to Wisconsin. He's determined to find Viv and see if he can reconnect with her. But he's unsure if Viv will give him another chance because 40 years is a long time.

I'm all for a low drama love story, but this was not it (for me). I was so surprised at how quickly Vivian just rekindled things with Tom. There was not really any development of past behavior and no conflict really, just acceptance and moving on. And the whole secret other child situation was just weird.

I think if you enjoy character driven stories of second chances then you might enjoy Viv and Tom's story. It just wasn't for me.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Many books about long marriage, and complicated decades long love stories came out this fall. Butler’s novel, with its beautiful sprayed edges and clever dialogue, stood out from this pack. Can’t wait to see what he does next!

I didn't realize this was a romance when I picked it up. I thought the older characters were well written. I was waiting for the other shoe to drop for most of the novel (because I didn't know it was a romance) so that left me hanging a bit.

I really really wanted to like this book, but unfortunately the lack of proper punctuation prevented me from being able to get into this book. I did like the premise but the writing style was too stilted and confusing. Sadly, this was a DNF for me.

This was not the book for me. I was so bored throughout the entire thing. The details were all so mundane.

I don't understand why the author didn't use quotation marks to specify conversations. It drove me bonkers!!! I truly hope in the finished, published version they are there.

I would not recommend this book.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Forty years ago, Charlie was handsome, hot-headed, selfish, and an alcoholic.
Forty years ago, Vivian was beautiful, tired, in love, and drawing the line.
Forty years ago, Charlie and Vivian were married for just four years.
Four years they never got over, even forty years later.

“A literary valentine that promises to be a love story for the ages” is a good description of this story of second chances. Now in their sixties, Charlie and Vivian meet again. Told from alternating perspectives, this novel explores the way two people grow, mature, and love. What can be forgiven? What can be rebuilt?

If you enjoy character-driven stories, second chances, and exploring the faults and forgiveness of real people, you should check this one out.

It is a slow burn. I struggled with the first half of the book, it seemed we revisited the same mistakes too many times. I also wasn’t a huge fan of the lack of dialogue punctuation; it was often confusing as to what was actually being said vs thought. That said, I’m glad I stuck with it.

Thank you to Sourcebooks, NetGalley, and author Nikolas Butler for the complimentary copy. It was my pleasure to write this candid review.

Nickolas Butler understands the Midwest and those who inhabit it. Always a comforting read for this Midwestern gal.

Thanks to NetGalley for putting this on my radar. The audiobook narration was superb.