“It used to make me feel special, the fact that they knew me, knew what I wanted, but it had soured with repetition. I’d become my drink order – that’s what it felt like. But it was okay. People watching in this place made me feel part of the world, got me away from the house for a few hours. And it was here she came back to me. I hadn’t seen her for three decades and suddenly there she was, standing next to my table.
‘Hello, Freddie’.”
Another Shot tells the story of Freddie and Jo-Jo, who are reunited in a coffee shop thirty-five years after the end of their teenage romance. Jo-Jo finds Freddie through a mutual friend, and tells him that she is emigrating following the death of her husband. She gives him a photograph of the two of them on their first weekend away, a trip to Blackpool.
How they originally met, why they parted, what happens in their lives apart is all told through a series of flashbacks. These memories feed into events when they meet up again and explain why, despite the passage of time and the intensity of their still simmering love, there is no future for their relationship.
This is Jo-Jo reflecting on her Dad and his love of Shelley. Jo-Jo is angry about her dad’s affair and what she sees as a betrayal of her mum, but she can’t help admiring the strength of her dad’s love and the difficult decision he has to make. ‘Jo-Jo – Dad learned his moonbeams and kisses poem off by heart, reciting it at every opportunity. I’d close my eyes and listen, entranced with the thought that you could love someone that much. I used to dream about Dad flying across a starry night sky on a magic carpet, searching for Mum, risking everything for a single kiss. I wanted to find my own Shelley. Dad met his woman in the park, but he stayed with Mum, sacrificed everything to look after her. Moonbeams and kisses versus loyalty and commitment. What a choice.’
Purchase Link
UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Another-Shot-Stephen-Anthony-Brotherton-ebook/dp/B077S1ZHPC
US - https://www.amazon.com/Another-Shot-Stephen-Anthony-Brotherton-ebook/dp/B077S1ZHPC
‘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 taken early retirement to write the trilogy that has been rooted in my head for most of my life.
Another Shot is the first book in the Shots trilogy, which 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. The second book, An Extra Shot, will be published in July 2019. I am currently working on the final instalment.
Getting these stories down on paper has been a cathartic process. I hope you enjoy them. ‘
Social Media Links – Instagram @freddiejojoreunited
Twitter - https://twitter.com/FreddieJoJo1
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