Charlie and Vivian were married, and divorced after 4 years. Forty years later, Charlie returns to their small town and attempts to rekindle their relationship.

Charlie acknowledges that his drinking caused a problem before, and agrees that it may still be a problem. Vivian is lonely, but scared - she has a family to look after now, and she's not sure that Charlie has really changed.

The writing was lovely, and the characters were well drawn. This was a slow and sweet tale, but I kept waiting for something to happen, and it didn't really.

A Forty-Year Kiss is a heartfelt romance about second chances and rediscovering love. Charlie and Vivian married young but went their separate ways after four years together, each moving on to new marriages and lives, with no contact in between. Now, decades later Charlie feels compelled to reconnect with Vivian. Both carry the weight of their own struggles, but they decide to set those aside to explore whether love can bloom again. This isn't a whirlwind romance but a tender, deliberate journey to see if they can build something new from the ashes of their shared past.

This book is like taking a bite of something You're pretty sure you're going to like but, then it turns out you actually love it! Surprisingly delicious, overwhelmingly heartwarming, a beautiful full circle story for Charlie and Vivian, but also in some ways for Vivian's 2nd daughter, Melissa. If you're not a fan of romance, this book could change your mind ☺️

A love story told in narrative form about an alcoholic couple married for four years, divorced for forty who reconnect and.successfully manage to rekindle what each feared was lost committing to a new future as a family. Romantic, hopeful, and forgiving.

☆ALC & ARC REVIEW☆
Publication date: February 4, 2025


⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

'A Forty Year Kiss' was such a beautiful, unique story of second chances for love, parenthood, and all life's obstacles.

It dealt with some very real topics such as alcoholism, disabilities (specifically down syndrome), and the complicated dynamics of relationships, parenthood, and life in general.

I thought overall it was really cute, real, and to my surprise had some spice about 25% of the way in.

Thank you, NetGalley, Nickolas Butler, Sourcebooks, for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

A Forty Year Kiss by Nickolas Butler ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Charlie and Vivian, whom are the main characters, tell their views of their 4 years of marriage living in the Midwest. Having children then going their separate ways.
Now forty years later Charlie walks back into Vivian's world hoping to rekindle their romance.
Is he too late? Will she open her heart to him again? Has Charlie really changed his ways?
Find out all the answers as you read this heartbreaking book.

I love a good second chance Romance. These two characters take it up a notch, we have Charlie and Viv, they were married 40 years ago, and Charlie has come back to get her back, 40 years later……. This man has a lot of baggage, and he was not the best husband back in those days, but I love the fact that even after all these years he still loves her, he wants to make her happy, and he just wants to be with her. Viv has her own baggage as well and secrets. One of the things that makes it so much more interesting, is the fact that these characters are older, they are in their 60s trying to live life together and to love and enjoy the time that they have left with each other, but I will say this, I cried throughout this whole book, of course they are happy tears.

Charlie and Viv had a disastrous marriage of 4 years. Now forty years later they are reconnecting. This is a story of second chances and finding a family you never thought would be yours.
I really enjoyed this story of love in mid life. I would rate it 4.5 start. It was a heartfelt and moving story. The characters were leery of making the same mistakes they did the first time. What has life taught them that will influence this time around. It is nice to have a story where everyone is not young and real life has given them some knocks.
The only thing that bothered me was the lack of quotation marks. It was sometimes hard to discern if someone was speaking or just thinking. I don't know when this became a thing, but I am not in favor.
Otherwise this is a well done story.
Thank to #NetGalley, #SourcebooksLandmark, and #NicholasButler for a copy of this book.
#AFortyYearKiss

I'm honestly just a little disappointed the story was cute but overall just meh. it didn't really do anything for me. this story has absolutely no quotations so it kept throwing me off and having to go back reminding myself it was a conversation.

Sixty-somethings are not often the main characters in romantic novels, but in A Forty Year Kiss by Nickolas Butler coming out February 4, Charlie and Vivian get a second chance for love after 40 years apart.

Charlie left Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, 40 years ago after his four-year marriage to Vivian ended. He knew his drinking had played a big part in the breakup, but he could also admit to being too young and immature for marriage. The one thing that had not changed during their four decades apart was the love he had for Vivian. Might she still have feelings for him? He was about to find out as she agreed to meet him at the Tomahawk Room for a drink.

Vivian hesitated in her car before meeting Charlie in her hometown telling herself that one drink together does not mean anything. After all, he is just a man she once knew a lifetime ago. She recalled how he broke her heart, but she also knew she held a life-changing secret from their marriage that she was not likely to share over a drink.

Turns out, Charlie was moving back to the area from Albuquerque where he had recently retired from the railroad. His uncle had left him a farm about an hour away in Spooner, but mostly he was meeting her because he wanted to find out if it was possible that the love they shared had not perished.

Charlie has taken the first step on a long road to try to win Vivian back into his life. Vivian has lots of reservations including the way Charlie treated her in their marriage and his drinking problem. Vivian’s life has been hard what with a second husband who became an invalid before passing away. She had endured lots of disappointments and hardships, having made mistakes and lived in sadness. Charlie was offering her the world, and she was just too afraid to accept.

Slowly the two become friends, but even in that kind of relationship, they suffered ups and downs. The mistakes of the past haunted them. However, Charlie was financially able to make Vivian’s life—and the lives of her daughter and granddaughters—easier although Vivian was sensitive to money issues. The guy even bought her a horse, a lifelong dream finally realized for Vivian.

The questions remain. Were they truly in love with one another or was their courtship just a stopgap to loneliness? How could Charlie give up alcohol after all these years? What might happen if Vivian reveals the secret she has kept from Charlie for 40 years? What had they done to deserve a second chance at love? What kind of challenges would they face if they restarted their relationship?

Nickolas Butler is the author of four other novels: Shotgun Lovesongs, The Hearts of Men, Little Faith, and Godspeed. Born in Pennsylvania, raised in Wisconsin, Butler lives in rural Wisconsin with his family.

My review will be posted on Goodreads starting January 22, 2025.

I would like to thank Sourcebooks Landmark, an imprint of Sourcebooks, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.

A sweet, slow and steady, second-chance love story.

Charlie and Vivian were married for 4 years in their twenties. After retiring, Charlie begins to look back in his life, realizing, now in his sixties, he doesn’t have a lot of life left to live, and decides to track down his ex-wife to make amends. When he and Vivian reconnect, she realizes just how much she still loves him, but she’s skeptical that he’s actually changed.

It was nice to read a love story about two mature characters, even if their struggles weren’t necessarily relatable to me personally. The characters were complex, well-developed, and likable. Despite Charlie’s behavior in the past, it’s easy to root for his redemption and his happily ever after.

I had a hard time getting into this one. The writing style, just did not work for me. It was too distracting with how it was written for me to feel fully immersed in the story.

The story premise itself, I did enjoy. I just feel I could not enjoy it to the fullest because it just was not my cup of tea.

if you enjoy second chance romances, this book is for you!!

while it did not turn out to be a 5 star read for me or even 4 because of a not so set plot line I loved that it about a couple in their 60s who were for few years in their 20s and now 40 years later they are rekindling their relationship and finding out things about each other along the way and working through them.

For me the story did not work out as I could not connect to the characters well which can be due to the age they were set at but back again that is more of a me problem than the book. I felt there was no actual love for them to get back together 4 decades later but only the fear of loosing which was morbid tbh!!

3.5 second chance mature romance stars

I took a chance on this one because I had liked an earlier book by this author. Set in the Midwest, our two main characters share their points of view throughout the book. Charlie and Vivian were married for four years, but forty years have passed. Charlie is at a junction in his life where he wants to see Vivian again to see if he can reignite the spark they once had.

Charlie spends a lot of time apologizing and trying to do the right thing with Vivian. He realizes that his drinking was a problem years ago and still is today. If he wants a second chance at love with Vivian, that will probably have to change.

Vivian is skeptical. Can someone really change? Now, she has an adult daughter and two grandchildren to take care of. But she is lonely, and it’s nice to have a man around again, especially when he’s as caring and generous as Charlie.

This is not a fast-paced thriller, but if you are in the mood for a different sort of love story, I enjoyed this one. I rooted for Charlie and Vivian, and I think they grew and changed throughout the book. Do you believe in second-chance love? Can people change? How much does alcohol influence our behavior?

I read this book in two days. I am from Wisconsin and around the same age so it felt very familiar. A Forty Year Kiss is a book of regrets but also of hope and second chances. The reflections that the characters experience are spot on.

I am giving it a 4 rather than a 5 as I felt there could have been a bit more substance to the book. Also, things went a bit too smoothly. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. There were some bumps along the way but probably should have been more given the history between Charles and Vivian. However, I did think the subject of alcoholism was well fleshed out and described both with honesty and grace.

I would recommend this book especially for anyone in the reflection stage of life.

I LOVED this book!! Nickolas Butler does such a great job weaving an intriguing story that readers will fall in love with like I did!! I would highly recommend this read to anyone who loves romance books with great depth!!

3.5 ⭐️

It isn't often I come across romance books with older characters. This book is about two people who are in their 60s that are looking for a second chance with each other. They were.married for a brief time 40 years ago and Charlie has decided he wants to see if he and Vivian can make a go of it a second time.

This book is a character driven book and readers are witness to the flaws and secrets these two have. While ai liked the characters well enough I didn't love them. At times I thought Charlie was a jerk and wondered what Vivian ever saw in him. But by the end of the book I had a better understanding of Charlie and didn't see him.as such a jerk.

This being a romance type book there are some bedroom scenes but they are written well enough and are respectful of the ages of the characters.

All in all this was a pretty quick read for me and I believe this book would be enjoyable for those looking for a romance between mature characters and stories about second chances.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book.

A Forty Year Kiss by Nikolas Butler is an enjoyable second chance romance.

Charlie is in his mid-sixties and retired from his railroad job. He is hoping to rekindle his relationship with his ex-wife, Vivian. Their four-year marriage ended in divorce but he has never forgotten his first love. While Charlie is self-confident, he is endearingly nervous about meeting Vivian again.

Charlie broke Vivian’s heart when they divorced. She lives with her daughter Melissa and takes care of her adorable granddaughters, Ainsley and Ashley. Vivian has not had an easy life so she is reticent about getting involved with Charlie again.

Of the two, Charlie is most changed except for the reason they divorced. Despite Vivian’s qualms, she sets aside her misgivings and allows Charlie back into her life. Melissa is rightfully suspicious of Charlie especially since her mother kept her first marriage secret. Will Charlie and Vivian be able to overcome their respective baggage and find a future together?

A Forty Year Kiss is a beautiful novel of love, forgiveness, and redemption. Charlie is a likable character who has worked hard to deal with his problems. But he still has one that will take work to get under control. Vivian is a giving woman who struggles to accept Charlie’s generosity. She is skeptical that Charlie is truly a changed man. Melissa finds herself turning to Charlie when faced with an unanticipated situation. Charlie and Vivian’s relationship is sweet but not without bumps and a few detours. The storyline is engaging but some of the inner monologues can be rambling. Nikolas Butler’s writing style takes a bit to get used to. However, it is well worth sticking with this compelling story of second chance love.

This is the ultimate second chance love story. Charlie & Vivian, once married, reconnecting after 40 years & finding their way back together. It was a beautiful story of resilience, growth and love. The book does not have quotation marks at all which really added to the feeling of almost urgency that the book had. Charlie & Vivian lost so much time while they were apart that once they found each other it all progressed smoothly and without pause. While the missing quotation marks were distracting at first I felt like it really added to the overall feeling of the story. I enjoyed watching these two people fall back together and figure out the rest of their lives together.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone!

I enjoyed this book. It's not one full of action that will knock your socks off. It has it's slow moments for sure, but the protagonists are in their sixties, so it kind of parallels that stage of their lives.

It is about Vivian and Charlie who were married in their twenties and divorced after a couple of years. His drinking is the main thing that drove them apart. Now forty years later, he has looked her up and wants a second chance to be with her (even if it's just as friends). Vivian's life has had a much different outcome than Charlie's. Some good points, some not so good. They each have their struggles, but can life be better if they are back together?

This is a very sweetly written book about love old and new and the impact it can have on your life. Very, very memorable.

Thanks to Sourcebooks and NetGalley for the copy. All thoughts are my own.