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When you can't go home again, sometimes you find yourself.
Shirlene Grant served her country as an Army nurse in Vietnam, and now she's finally back in her slow, quiet hometown. She's living with her parents, working at the local hospital. Nothing's changed except her, and she's slowly, quietly falling to pieces.
Twitch Robard has a hard time sleeping since he came back from the war, but he has his bike, his brothers, and a long shot plan. He's waiting on an angel, and when he finally finds her, he's not going to let anything--the past or the present--come between them.
Twitch is a 18,000-word novella set in the Steel Bones Motorcycle Club world. It's a prequel to the series, but it can be read as a standalone. This short read is intended for adult readers (18+) due to strong language, violence, possible triggers, and explicit intimate scenes.
Standalone. Safe. HEA.
Shirlene Grant served her country as an Army nurse in Vietnam, and now she's finally back in her slow, quiet hometown. She's living with her parents, working at the local hospital. Nothing's changed except her, and she's slowly, quietly falling to pieces.
Twitch Robard has a hard time sleeping since he came back from the war, but he has his bike, his brothers, and a long shot plan. He's waiting on an angel, and when he finally finds her, he's not going to let anything--the past or the present--come between them.
Twitch is a 18,000-word novella set in the Steel Bones Motorcycle Club world. It's a prequel to the series, but it can be read as a standalone. This short read is intended for adult readers (18+) due to strong language, violence, possible triggers, and explicit intimate scenes.
Standalone. Safe. HEA.
83 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 8, 2019
About the author
Cate C. Wells
32 books3,361 followersCATE C. WELLS writes gut-wrenching paranormal and contemporary romance. Whatever the world, readers can expect character-driven stories that are raw, real, and emotionally satisfying. Cate's into messy love, flaws, long roads to redemption, grace, and happy ever after, in fiction and in life.
As well as books, Cate has collected a husband, two daughters, and a cat along the way. She lives in Baltimore when she’s not out exploring with the family.
Want a heads up on new releases and bonus content? Sign up for Cate's newsletter at catecwells.com
Facebook: @catecwells
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As well as books, Cate has collected a husband, two daughters, and a cat along the way. She lives in Baltimore when she’s not out exploring with the family.
Want a heads up on new releases and bonus content? Sign up for Cate's newsletter at catecwells.com
Facebook: @catecwells
IG: @authorcatecwells
TT: @authorcatecwells
Threads: @authorcatecwells
Bookbub: @catecwells
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 128 reviews
December 29, 2025
Oh I loved to read how it all started. I know I should have started with this one but after getting glimpses of Shirlene in the other books it makes it more special.
May 7, 2022
Thanks to Cate C. Wells for the free novella!
I love Twitch and Shirlene - they meet during their time in Vietnam. He was in the military and she was a nurse. After the war was over, they both returned to their small town and got together. Shirlene is going through trauma and her parents want her to marry a nice doctor from where she works. But he is aggressive and condescending. One night, a group of bikers enters the hospital emergency room with injuries - Twitch is mumbling about how he finally found his Angel. Shirlene finally finds someone that understands her and helps her heal.
I would have liked the see more character development for Twitch.
I love Twitch and Shirlene - they meet during their time in Vietnam. He was in the military and she was a nurse. After the war was over, they both returned to their small town and got together. Shirlene is going through trauma and her parents want her to marry a nice doctor from where she works. But he is aggressive and condescending. One night, a group of bikers enters the hospital emergency room with injuries - Twitch is mumbling about how he finally found his Angel. Shirlene finally finds someone that understands her and helps her heal.
I would have liked the see more character development for Twitch.
August 20, 2021
I do not know how I missed this novella since I've devoured everything Steel Bones, but I'm glad I did, because reading it after reading all the series except the much anticipated Heavy, was like the best dessert.
Why am I crying? I swear this book is not sad, just a poignant reminder that time stands still for no one. I met Shirlene throughout the series and was thrilled to read the story of her and Twitch. Only Cate C Wells can find that perfect balance of sexy/sweet.
Seriously, read this one and trip down memory lane with Shirlene. ❤️
Why am I crying? I swear this book is not sad, just a poignant reminder that time stands still for no one. I met Shirlene throughout the series and was thrilled to read the story of her and Twitch. Only Cate C Wells can find that perfect balance of sexy/sweet.
Seriously, read this one and trip down memory lane with Shirlene. ❤️
March 20, 2022
This was bittersweet. I enjoyed the story and how Twitch and Shirlene found each other. There is no angst between the characters and their relationship comes super easy. They both have PTSD from Vietnam. There were quite a few typos, which I wish had been caught because they were distracting and this novella wasn’t free. Knowing what happens to Twitch, this story made me tear up.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 1, 2022
Twitch and Shirlene's story was too emotional for me... I liked the writing style and I actually read it in one-go but still if I knew how it will make me feel, I wouldn't have read it. I'm not in the right place to read such emotional books at the moment...
November 19, 2022
2.5 stars ✿
thanks for ruining bananas for me, cate.
thanks for ruining bananas for me, cate.
January 15, 2023
Broke my heart and made me cry. Wish it was longer. Perfect little novella.
February 28, 2025
I just wish it was bit longer😩
July 17, 2022
Idk how to rate this. Maybe I’m not a novella girl. Started off strong with ptsd in nursing after serving in Vietnam. Just was wanting… more.
December 25, 2023
It was so cute and made me want to continue the rest of the series 💜
November 7, 2022
Perfect when also short - but it fits on all regards!
October 18, 2019
I really enjoyed this story of two combat veterans who find love and peace in the aftermath of war and personal sacrifice. Well-written, realistic, steamy at times, and also sweet - it was a great read. Loved both Twitch and Shirlene, strong characters that really added to the story. Loved this!
August 6, 2022
This was really sweet! I loved getting the lowdown on Shirlene's story.
May 2, 2024
“Twitch” by Cate C. Wells
4⭐️/5⭐️
2.5🌶/5🌶
“I am a goddamn Valkyrie. And maybe I don’t know what I’m doing, but I know where I belong. Here. With this man who gives me wings.”
-This is a short story readers can download for free if they sign up for the author’s newsletter. It’s roughly ~75 pages long, and really easy to tear through in one sitting.
-The story is a prequel for the Steel Bones Motorcycle Club series, taking place as the U.S. is withdrawing its troops from Vietnam. The FMC, Shirlene, was stationed overseas as a nurse and has some pretty major PTSD from everything she saw. She’s back in her hometown working at the hospital, and she meets the MMC during one of her shifts. Twitch, the MMC, is a Vietnam veteran. He ends up needing some medical care, and recognizes Shirlene from her time in the military.
-It’s a sweet story, but with so much great character development for Shirlene. My only complaint was that it was too short, I wanted to read more about her and Twitch!
-It’s been a hot minute since I read a book in the Steel Bones Motorcycle Club series, so for most of the story I couldn’t remember who the MCs were. I’ve since gone back and poked around “Charge” and “Scrap”, and learned that Twitch passes away at some point before the series begins. So that was a really bummer to find out. Still, I really enjoyed this short story, and if you’re a fan of the series you definitely need to check it out!
4⭐️/5⭐️
2.5🌶/5🌶
“I am a goddamn Valkyrie. And maybe I don’t know what I’m doing, but I know where I belong. Here. With this man who gives me wings.”
-This is a short story readers can download for free if they sign up for the author’s newsletter. It’s roughly ~75 pages long, and really easy to tear through in one sitting.
-The story is a prequel for the Steel Bones Motorcycle Club series, taking place as the U.S. is withdrawing its troops from Vietnam. The FMC, Shirlene, was stationed overseas as a nurse and has some pretty major PTSD from everything she saw. She’s back in her hometown working at the hospital, and she meets the MMC during one of her shifts. Twitch, the MMC, is a Vietnam veteran. He ends up needing some medical care, and recognizes Shirlene from her time in the military.
-It’s a sweet story, but with so much great character development for Shirlene. My only complaint was that it was too short, I wanted to read more about her and Twitch!
-It’s been a hot minute since I read a book in the Steel Bones Motorcycle Club series, so for most of the story I couldn’t remember who the MCs were. I’ve since gone back and poked around “Charge” and “Scrap”, and learned that Twitch passes away at some point before the series begins. So that was a really bummer to find out. Still, I really enjoyed this short story, and if you’re a fan of the series you definitely need to check it out!
December 27, 2022
Hot damn. How a 70 page novella packed so much emotion into it is beyond me.
A Vietnam Army nurse returns home to inner turmoil and confusion. The war left her damaged and with (what we’d now call) PTSD. Ya know who ends up being her knight in rusty armor? A big bad biker with a heart of gold.
Cate. Please give me more novellas about the OGs. I wish this was a full length novel, because I adored Twitch and Shirlene.
A Vietnam Army nurse returns home to inner turmoil and confusion. The war left her damaged and with (what we’d now call) PTSD. Ya know who ends up being her knight in rusty armor? A big bad biker with a heart of gold.
Cate. Please give me more novellas about the OGs. I wish this was a full length novel, because I adored Twitch and Shirlene.
January 13, 2024
Spoilers ahead
Shirleen is a nurse who's been to Vietnam, struggling to fit back into a society, town and family she no longer recognises she finally finds peace when a biker comes into the hospital injured
Twitch meets his angel in the hospital and is instantly gone for her, later we find out they'd already met
This is a novella so it's a pretty basic and quick read, a set up for the other books in the series
No cheating
Epilogue many years in the future(no babies 😭)
Shirleen is a nurse who's been to Vietnam, struggling to fit back into a society, town and family she no longer recognises she finally finds peace when a biker comes into the hospital injured
Twitch meets his angel in the hospital and is instantly gone for her, later we find out they'd already met
This is a novella so it's a pretty basic and quick read, a set up for the other books in the series
No cheating
Epilogue many years in the future(no babies 😭)
June 26, 2022
I've read the rest of this series, Twitch is talked about a lot, looked up to and Shirleen...she seems to be there for everyone. So it was fun to read this when they were wild and crazy kids. It's easy to see why Twitch so appealed to Shirleen, stifled in her life after having done so much in Vietnam, it was hard for her to live life. I'm glad that the 2 of them had the connection from Vietnam and glad that they found each other, even if their time together wasn't long enough.
May 8, 2022
4.5 ⭐ I'm still amazed by this author. And this is a top-tier prequel for the book series. (Set in 1971)
October 23, 2022
Goddamn is Cate C Wells a freakin sorceress. What she’s able to pull off in an 83 page novella (minus the Charge sneak peak) is incredible. The emotional weight and commentary on post Vietnam War PTSD and reintegration… and then a microtrope I adore - romance (specifically when the MCs come) as home. Just amazing. Would’ve been 5 stars because I just wanted more romance and would’ve liked to have gotten Twitch’s perspective.
January 17, 2022
Hoping for more
This really should have been longer to develop the characters and their relationship. Honestly, this almost felt like a summary of a full-length novel. The bones are there, but the execution lacked.
This really should have been longer to develop the characters and their relationship. Honestly, this almost felt like a summary of a full-length novel. The bones are there, but the execution lacked.
July 15, 2020
Sweet story.
No intimate scenes other than the Hero and heroine.
HEA.
Epilogue.
No intimate scenes other than the Hero and heroine.
HEA.
Epilogue.
March 24, 2020
Twitch: A Steel Bones Motorcycle Club Novella by Cate C. Wells.
A brilliant read. I loved the story and the characters. Most of them. Bought tears to my eyes. 5*.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
A brilliant read. I loved the story and the characters. Most of them. Bought tears to my eyes. 5*.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
October 17, 2025
Short and sweet, a nice filler novel that provides more history on the Steel Bones MC and how many of them were veterans during the Vietnam war. We learn more about Shirlene from Book #1 and how she met her old man all those years ago. Some bittersweet moments but definitely a good read!
March 19, 2026
Sweet little novella about a young soldier and a young nurse who returned home from Vietnam, where they had met under tragic circumstances. She was his nurse when he was injured there and after he came home he remembered her talking about her hometown and he goes there hoping to find her. The book ends with them as an older and very happy couple.
May 21, 2022
An awesome little novella. Shirlene and Twitch finding each other after both serving in Vietnam was so satisfying. They deserved their HEA. I'm looking forward to beginning book 1 of the series!
April 2, 2024
I cried
March 21, 2026
This was so sweet. A quick, easy read, but in no way less memorable. 🫶
March 1, 2023
Oh, to have a love like Twitch and Shirlene's. 😌💕
January 4, 2020
I’m in love with the Steel Bones MC and this prequal novel was wonderful. So much heart and heat. I loved that it took place during the end is the Vietnam War - great time period that’s unique - highly recommend this one and the entire
March 21, 2022
The writing was great and I loved the premise, which is probably why I was so disappointed by the story itself.
The heroine and her struggles were described beautifully, but hero remains a mystery throughout the story. We never really get to know him. The blurb mentions his sleeping problems, but I don't remember reading anything about that. And even for a novella, the two of them spend very little time together before we get to an epilogue that takes place in the very distant future.
If the author ever decides to turn this into a full novel, I'd be so up for it.
The heroine and her struggles were described beautifully, but hero remains a mystery throughout the story. We never really get to know him. The blurb mentions his sleeping problems, but I don't remember reading anything about that. And even for a novella, the two of them spend very little time together before we get to an epilogue that takes place in the very distant future.
If the author ever decides to turn this into a full novel, I'd be so up for it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 128 reviews