#BlogBlitz One Last Shot by Stephen Anthony Brotherton

Today it's my turn on the Blog Blitz One Last Shot by Stephen Anthony Brotherton.

About the Author
I was born in Walsall, grew up in the West Midlands and now live in Telford with my two cats, Boris and Tai.

After working in the health and social care sector for over thirty years, I have now written the trilogy that has been rooted in my head for most of my life.

The Shots trilogy is based on a first love relationship I had as a teenager. It tells the story of Freddie and Jo-Jo, who are reunited in a coffee shop three decades after the end of their teenage romance. How they originally met, why they parted, what happens in their lives apart, and what happens when they reunite is all told through a series of first person vignettes.

Getting these stories down on paper has been a cathartic process. I hope you enjoy them.

Follow @FreddieJoJo1 on Twitter, on Instagram, on Amazon, Buy One Last Shot

About the book
Can first love ever be reignited?
One Last Shot concludes the trilogy of Freddie and Jo-Jo, which has moved through time in a series of flashbacks, showing how the couple fell in love as teenagers, why they drifted apart, what happened in their lives away from each other, and what happens when they meet up again over three decades later. At the end of the second book, An Extra Shot, Jo-Jo tells Freddie about her dark secret. Confused, vulnerable and in a state of shock, he says he needs time to think about what to do next. Jo-Jo’s right to be worried. Freddie doesn’t react well...

Review

This is the last book in the trilogy - the story of Freddie and Jo-Jo. I wouldn't say it's necessary to read the others per se, because this can be read as a standalone novella, but if you want the entire gist of their story I would advise reading Another Shot and An Extra Shot too.

In the account of their relationship this book deals with the fallout of a dark secret Jo-Jo decides to reveal to Freddie, which has unexpected consequences for both of them.

Taking into account that the author says this is semi-autobiographical I hope the reactions to Freddie and his attempt to deal with his pain aren't based on real conversations, because they are uninformed, insensitive and ignorant.

Lack of understanding is the last thing Freddie needs when his emotional turmoil drives him to most extreme thing he can think of. Pull yourself together - get over it - it will be fine - those just aren't the right things to say or the best way to deal with him. Find more informed help, and if you read this and are in a similar situation or are having thoughts like Freddie this absolutely isn't the response you should expect or deserve.

I found the bouncing back and forth into different timelines and experiencing the memories of Freddie and Jo-Jo a little disjointed in a sense that it was often difficult to comprehend the connection the author was trying to make from one memory or experience to the other, and how it related to the present.

It's very much as Brotherton says himself, a cathartic process. A rush or waterfall of emotions being pushed forth into the atmosphere.

Buy One Last Shot at Amazon Uk. Publisher: Book Guild Publishing Ltd; pub date 28 Feb. 2020. Buy at Amazon com. At Waterstones. At Blackwells.