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Another Shot
An ordinary morning. An eye-catching customer. One cup of coffee can change everything.
It’s a stroke of luck when handsome customer from the café is the same the stranger Cal meets at the hotel bar. As their evening together draws to an end, Cal’s relieved this chance meeting won’t change his normal routine of early mornings and solitary nights. But with his phone ringing with another invitation to meet up, Cal’s carefully cultivated routine starts to crumble. Can he keep his life on track or is he going to be forced to take a chance on someone new?
It’s a stroke of luck when handsome customer from the café is the same the stranger Cal meets at the hotel bar. As their evening together draws to an end, Cal’s relieved this chance meeting won’t change his normal routine of early mornings and solitary nights. But with his phone ringing with another invitation to meet up, Cal’s carefully cultivated routine starts to crumble. Can he keep his life on track or is he going to be forced to take a chance on someone new?
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First published January 1, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
August 21, 2022
I really liked another book by this author, The Place Between, but this one was just ok for me.
Not sure if I liked the writing style in this one or not. It kind of goes well with this short story, but at the same time it made me feel detached from it. I felt the same way about the characters. Not sure if I'm supposed to like them, or not. I didn't at first, but I got used to them later on.
At least now I know the difference between a coffee shop and a café, according to Cal. 😅
Not sure if I liked the writing style in this one or not. It kind of goes well with this short story, but at the same time it made me feel detached from it. I felt the same way about the characters. Not sure if I'm supposed to like them, or not. I didn't at first, but I got used to them later on.
At least now I know the difference between a coffee shop and a café, according to Cal. 😅
July 21, 2021
dnf @ 40%. i am bored
November 2, 2020
after reading The Place Between, I was quite desperate to get my hands on anything else Kit had written, and lucky for me, this was given away for free through Kit's newsletter. you know, I had a feeling I was going to enjoy Kit's other work after being so thoroughly impressed with her debut, and this reading just cemented it for me: I am a Kit Oliver stan. freebies just don’t get an better, honestly.
August 12, 2022
3.5 ⭐️ I don’t think I was supposed to like Cal or Tim - and I didn’t, in the beginning - but then I did, just like they weren’t supposed to like each other but then they did.
October 4, 2022
cute ig<3
July 24, 2023
3.5 stars
Slice of café life (no, it's not a coffee shop, or a restaurant either)
I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this one. It was a realistic and relatable read; I think the author did a good job of capturing a believable sequence of days and coincidences but I never quite connected with the characters.
Objectively, I'd say it's well written and I didn't really get the impression I was supposed to like the characters much so I don't feel like I've been had or anything. I think it's that I wanted to get a bit more emotion out of them when both MCs were very closed off. Again, though, this is the point and there is a slow but definite breaking down of their respective walls. And they had me grinning with their little cheeky morning and streetside goodbye.
I liked the ending, it was abrupt but hopeful and realistic. The kind of ending that gives you a clear idea of where it will go without feeling the need to tie things up too neatly. Life isn't neat, and that's partly what this story is about so it worked well.
This might not have been my favourite, but it does encourage me to go read Cattle Stop which I've had on the TBR for ages so I'm calling it a win.
Side note: ugh, present tense, but at least it wasn't first person.
Slice of café life (no, it's not a coffee shop, or a restaurant either)
I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this one. It was a realistic and relatable read; I think the author did a good job of capturing a believable sequence of days and coincidences but I never quite connected with the characters.
Objectively, I'd say it's well written and I didn't really get the impression I was supposed to like the characters much so I don't feel like I've been had or anything. I think it's that I wanted to get a bit more emotion out of them when both MCs were very closed off. Again, though, this is the point and there is a slow but definite breaking down of their respective walls. And they had me grinning with their little cheeky morning and streetside goodbye.
I liked the ending, it was abrupt but hopeful and realistic. The kind of ending that gives you a clear idea of where it will go without feeling the need to tie things up too neatly. Life isn't neat, and that's partly what this story is about so it worked well.
This might not have been my favourite, but it does encourage me to go read Cattle Stop which I've had on the TBR for ages so I'm calling it a win.
Side note: ugh, present tense, but at least it wasn't first person.
September 1, 2024
Novella. It has the lovely rhythmic writing I expect from Oliver. Bit too much time spent on sex for my taste. If there's a real critique though, it's that as good as the characterization is, there's not enough of it. I don't really get what Cal's damage is supposed to be. Just grief?
I get that it's an implied beginning, but... we're given nothing beyond physical attraction and sexual compatibility to base our expectations on, and that seems a bit thin? Not that I think Tim being around wouldn't be good for Cal in the short term, but... are they compatible in other ways? Is it enough for one of them to uproot their life and move to the opposite end of the country?
It's compact. Intense. Might be a bit too much if sustained for the length of a full novel. But definitely much stronger and more readable than While the Sun Shines. Guess I'll keep them on the list. ;)
I get that it's an implied beginning, but... we're given nothing beyond physical attraction and sexual compatibility to base our expectations on, and that seems a bit thin? Not that I think Tim being around wouldn't be good for Cal in the short term, but... are they compatible in other ways? Is it enough for one of them to uproot their life and move to the opposite end of the country?
It's compact. Intense. Might be a bit too much if sustained for the length of a full novel. But definitely much stronger and more readable than While the Sun Shines. Guess I'll keep them on the list. ;)
June 7, 2023
I didn’t like either main character. I love coffee shop settings in books but this novella was not a win for me. I’ll continue to read this authors works because I absolutely loved their book Light Up The Lamp.
May 12, 2021
Cal likes his sexual encounters short and anonymous, but then Tim blunders into town—and the hookup app—and Cal finds himself breaking all his own rules, including the one about never fucking the same guy twice.
This novella starts off with a big heaping scoop of social anxiety leading directly into a sex scene between strangers, and I was like, "Uhhhhhhh, no thanks?" But they muddle through the awkwardness and get to the sex and have a good time and then the real work of dealing with the encroaching feelings begins, which is where I live.
While the characters are barely developed—it's not even clear how old they are—you get a broad, gestural understanding of them as people, and though I was curious about the family trauma in Cal's past, I knew enough to know he would rather be alone than suffer the mortifying ordeal of being known and that all these new feelings were incredibly unwelcome. Cal's pretty anxious, in a super calm repressed way, and Tim's grumpy and probably a little befuddled about his new circumstances, but they have chemistry and a definite interest in each other that's fun to read, and I enjoyed putting together the clues Tim kept dropping, even if Cal didn't pick them up. The sex is varied and well written and I was into it.
Not entirely a romance, more of the beginnings of one, but I liked that. It's got a happy beginning instead of a happy ending, and I found it sexy, satisfying, and good-hearted.
Another Shot is available for free on the author's website.
Contains: explicit m/m sex; social awkwardness or at least a fear of it.
This novella starts off with a big heaping scoop of social anxiety leading directly into a sex scene between strangers, and I was like, "Uhhhhhhh, no thanks?" But they muddle through the awkwardness and get to the sex and have a good time and then the real work of dealing with the encroaching feelings begins, which is where I live.
While the characters are barely developed—it's not even clear how old they are—you get a broad, gestural understanding of them as people, and though I was curious about the family trauma in Cal's past, I knew enough to know he would rather be alone than suffer the mortifying ordeal of being known and that all these new feelings were incredibly unwelcome. Cal's pretty anxious, in a super calm repressed way, and Tim's grumpy and probably a little befuddled about his new circumstances, but they have chemistry and a definite interest in each other that's fun to read, and I enjoyed putting together the clues Tim kept dropping, even if Cal didn't pick them up. The sex is varied and well written and I was into it.
Not entirely a romance, more of the beginnings of one, but I liked that. It's got a happy beginning instead of a happy ending, and I found it sexy, satisfying, and good-hearted.
Another Shot is available for free on the author's website.
Contains: explicit m/m sex; social awkwardness or at least a fear of it.
May 13, 2022
I don't think this author is for me. All the characters (except Tim) were too young and immature for my taste and Cal's neurotic woe-is-me behavior irritated me from beginning to end. The presentation of how Cal and his co-workers acted at work and how they treated their customers also rubbed me the wrong way. That's probably a generational thing, but it added to my belief that this author and I aren't on the same page. Not to mention that I was incredibly bored from start to finish because there was too little plot to maintain my interest.
July 27, 2021
It's a novella.
Not my fave medium. But
Oliver did well.
Not my fave medium. But
Oliver did well.
November 6, 2022
If you’ve already read The place between: this was verrry similar. The characters and their lives were basically equal.
I think this shortstory was how The place between came to live, so if you’ve read that beforehand maybe skip this?
It also wasn’t as good, this was very gripping if you love the writing style the same way I do, but one of the MCs was extremely horrible.
If you ever worked in customer service you know how much rude customers make your day…not giving any tip included.
Also the way he talked to the other MC…I would have got up and left, no matter how good looking he was.
I still liked the story, but falling in love after 3 times having sex and basically zero talking is still not very convincing for me.
I think this shortstory was how The place between came to live, so if you’ve read that beforehand maybe skip this?
It also wasn’t as good, this was very gripping if you love the writing style the same way I do, but one of the MCs was extremely horrible.
If you ever worked in customer service you know how much rude customers make your day…not giving any tip included.
Also the way he talked to the other MC…I would have got up and left, no matter how good looking he was.
I still liked the story, but falling in love after 3 times having sex and basically zero talking is still not very convincing for me.
December 8, 2024
This freebie left me with a lot of questions. Because the reason for Cal’s angst isn’t clear. Did he really shutdown for almost 4 years because of his mother’s death? And I don’t get Tim’s interest in Cal in that closed-off state. How do they continue from here? But I liked Oliver's writing again.
April 23, 2022
Kit Oliver’s style of writing just suits my tastes perfectly. I have no complaints about this, the length was absolutely perfect. And Kit Oliver not feeling the need to wrap things up in a neat little bow with an unnecessary epilogue is so my thing.
February 22, 2023
3.75 stars
Sharply written little romance. Lots of novella length CRs compensate for the short length by indulging in insta-love/lust. Kit Oliver opts for a subtly under-written relationship, and I am here for that, and (on the basis of this) anything else s/he writes.
Sharply written little romance. Lots of novella length CRs compensate for the short length by indulging in insta-love/lust. Kit Oliver opts for a subtly under-written relationship, and I am here for that, and (on the basis of this) anything else s/he writes.
July 29, 2022
this was cute! but the characters were a bit too underdeveloped for the extent of the backstory oliver tried to work in. the connections were the best part and i wish it had just focused on that. also, tim sucks.
still enjoyed reading it.
3.5/5
still enjoyed reading it.
3.5/5
June 23, 2022
Man. I adore Kit Oliver’s writing. They’ve got such a brilliantly quiet style… understated yet powerful. My one and only complaint here was length. I found myself so invested and would’ve been overjoyed to read a full length novel with this fantastic cast of characters. Fingers crossed we see more of them in the future!
May 27, 2022
Aww, this was really sweet. (I say that as a drinker of black coffee haha - basically I mean it was just the right amount of sweet for me.) I enjoyed the tone a lot - it was a good balance between archetypical and detailed, if that makes sense. It worked in general and I think it also made sense for where the main character was emotionally.
I also really liked the length, and where the story ended.
I also really liked the length, and where the story ended.
December 29, 2021
3.5 stars - Third person present, but I got over it pretty quickly. I feel like I’ve read versions of this before, but this was a bit more refined. I would have liked more of them after the point of deciding to be together properly, but it was a good novella.
June 26, 2023
Well, this was unexpected!
I bounced off The Place Between a while back -- at least, I think I did, although after I read Another Shot I took another look at TPB and if I did indeed bounce off it I sure don't know why -- and have been shying away from Kit Oliver because everybody and their mother recommends Cattle Stop and I am not about rural life but anyway I happened across a review of Another Shot that mentioned getting it as a freebie for signing up to KO's newsletter so because I am a Super Daring Person and there's nothing a Super Daring Person likes as much as not taking even a teensy risk I did the thing and then I wound up staying up till the small hours finishing this and ...
Well!
I love:
- Cal being sunk in grief
- finding out in little drips of information how smart he is
- latte art app called Colloid!
- unexpectedly engaging sex that begins to break down someone's walls
- Tim being a bit of an ass (normally undertipping would ruin a character for me but, though it's never stated outright, I can see why he might have been something of an oblivious mess just then)
- Tim's ridiculous nickname never getting an explanation
- cafe vs coffee shop
- the fact that KO has few technical faults as a writer, which enabled me to relax into the characters and the story
About Tim's nickname: it was one of a number of threads that projected Cal & Tim into the future, since they still had so much to learn about each other. A nifty writerly trick.
This sits perfectly at 4.5 stars for me; I rounded down to 4, because that felt slightly less off than rounding up to 5, but really I could've gone either way.
I bounced off The Place Between a while back -- at least, I think I did, although after I read Another Shot I took another look at TPB and if I did indeed bounce off it I sure don't know why -- and have been shying away from Kit Oliver because everybody and their mother recommends Cattle Stop and I am not about rural life but anyway I happened across a review of Another Shot that mentioned getting it as a freebie for signing up to KO's newsletter so because I am a Super Daring Person and there's nothing a Super Daring Person likes as much as not taking even a teensy risk I did the thing and then I wound up staying up till the small hours finishing this and ...
Well!
I love:
- Cal being sunk in grief
- finding out in little drips of information how smart he is
- latte art app called Colloid!
- unexpectedly engaging sex that begins to break down someone's walls
- Tim being a bit of an ass (normally undertipping would ruin a character for me but, though it's never stated outright, I can see why he might have been something of an oblivious mess just then)
- Tim's ridiculous nickname never getting an explanation
- cafe vs coffee shop
- the fact that KO has few technical faults as a writer, which enabled me to relax into the characters and the story
About Tim's nickname: it was one of a number of threads that projected Cal & Tim into the future, since they still had so much to learn about each other. A nifty writerly trick.
This sits perfectly at 4.5 stars for me; I rounded down to 4, because that felt slightly less off than rounding up to 5, but really I could've gone either way.
December 8, 2023
Loved it. Kit has such a great grasp on important details and setting the scene, giving you just the right amount without 4 pages of description where you've lost the plot and need to reread to understand what the heck is happening. I absolutely love the flow between the right amount of dialogue and description. What Kit's characters are doing makes -sense-.
He knows something—too much of a something—of starting over again. That frustratingly nonlinear progression back to a different, unrecognizable version of normal.
“Great,” Billy says. He’s still looking at Cal, something soft and worried caught in his expression. He’s inexplicably cared about Cal since the day Cal first showed up here, staring at a help-wanted sign without seeing it.
He knows something—too much of a something—of starting over again. That frustratingly nonlinear progression back to a different, unrecognizable version of normal.
“Great,” Billy says. He’s still looking at Cal, something soft and worried caught in his expression. He’s inexplicably cared about Cal since the day Cal first showed up here, staring at a help-wanted sign without seeing it.
January 29, 2024
0-26% - felt…all over the place? Like we should know more about Cal than we do. Tim seems like a dick.
Maybe I was just tired?
40% - hold on…is Tim the doctor that Billy is friends with? Bad divorce…baby bi? Why don't these boys talk?!
50% - **Giant revelation**
68% - The book is doing the confusing thing again - Maybe I’m tired again…
100% - Kinda ambiguous HEA
I love Kit Oliver but this one fell a little short for me. More than once I felt like the book was confusing me...having to reread sections that still felt weird. I have no doubt that some people will love this, mistaken identity novella. I just don't think it was for me.
Maybe I was just tired?
40% - hold on…is Tim the doctor that Billy is friends with? Bad divorce…baby bi? Why don't these boys talk?!
50% - **Giant revelation**
68% - The book is doing the confusing thing again - Maybe I’m tired again…
100% - Kinda ambiguous HEA
I love Kit Oliver but this one fell a little short for me. More than once I felt like the book was confusing me...having to reread sections that still felt weird. I have no doubt that some people will love this, mistaken identity novella. I just don't think it was for me.
December 20, 2024
I loved everything about this, even down to the torturous ending. I knew it was a short story, I knew it would likely leave me unsatisfied, and yet I still loved it. I don’t even know why, I think it just felt like a scene from real life.
The ending leaves it up to your own imagination to fill, which clearly I filled with Tim coming back after signing his divorce papers and then the two living happily ever after 😂
I feel a bit short on words for it, but I just loved both characters even though we learned so little about them and I just liked the realistic aspect to it.
There are extra scenes on the authors website which gives you more insight into how it went for these two afterwards which are nice but also still make you want a full story for these two.
The ending leaves it up to your own imagination to fill, which clearly I filled with Tim coming back after signing his divorce papers and then the two living happily ever after 😂
I feel a bit short on words for it, but I just loved both characters even though we learned so little about them and I just liked the realistic aspect to it.
There are extra scenes on the authors website which gives you more insight into how it went for these two afterwards which are nice but also still make you want a full story for these two.
Read
November 6, 2025Kristoffer plockade upp min kindle mitt i en sexscen och sa "det här tycker jag verkligen inte om" och det enda jag dissar i hans läsning är ju Sagan om ringen (vilket är helt rimligt, se all interaktion mellan 2 kvinnor i hela skiten.
Jag gillar den här, Cal har issues men det är ett möte där i allt sexet och det är ett sätt folk blir kära i varandra på också. Författaren har en hel utläggning om hur Tim upplever allt respektive vad han tror händer efteråt på sin blogg och det hade varit kul som en hel bok. Men funkar som novell! Jag blev mer sugen på att läsa författarens två andra ändå. Heja!
Jag gillar den här, Cal har issues men det är ett möte där i allt sexet och det är ett sätt folk blir kära i varandra på också. Författaren har en hel utläggning om hur Tim upplever allt respektive vad han tror händer efteråt på sin blogg och det hade varit kul som en hel bok. Men funkar som novell! Jag blev mer sugen på att läsa författarens två andra ändå. Heja!
June 25, 2023
I think this novella had potential, and just missed the mark - and I think it has to do with the length.
In my opinion, neither Cal nor Tim immediately come across as likeable characters. It seems like each had a bigger backstory in mind, but with the length you never really get to hear much. It feels as if the characters abruptly jump to “unlikeable” to “likeable” in the span of a chapter, and it feels unnatural because you really don’t know much about them yet.
I really liked the concept of the story, but I think it would’ve been better suited with a full length novel.
3⭐️ 1.5🌶️
In my opinion, neither Cal nor Tim immediately come across as likeable characters. It seems like each had a bigger backstory in mind, but with the length you never really get to hear much. It feels as if the characters abruptly jump to “unlikeable” to “likeable” in the span of a chapter, and it feels unnatural because you really don’t know much about them yet.
I really liked the concept of the story, but I think it would’ve been better suited with a full length novel.
3⭐️ 1.5🌶️
September 29, 2023
This is a novella, so we get to discover characters on the go, not really in depth. Plenty of issues and situations are just ‘there’. Tim’s divorce, his late blooming queerness, his prickish character, Cal’s own painful memories/issues (his Mom’s death, his relationship with Billy), etc. It’s all good. Whatever their past baggage, Tim and Cal face life in the moment and make face value choices - no unending soul-searching, life is too short and who knows what lies ahead anyway. I enjoyed the novel’s clipped narrative, the characters’ honesty and awareness of their shortcomings. 4 good stars.
September 2, 2022
This would have made an interesting longer story. It's not bad as a short story though and I think everything the author wanted to do was handled.
It does feel a teeny bit classist though. Fancy doctor man was looking a little bit down on the lowly barista until he found out he was really smart, like "I built my own app and was going to go to grad school until grief derailed my life" smart. Can't someone just be a barista and that be ok?
It does feel a teeny bit classist though. Fancy doctor man was looking a little bit down on the lowly barista until he found out he was really smart, like "I built my own app and was going to go to grad school until grief derailed my life" smart. Can't someone just be a barista and that be ok?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 29, 2024
I was in the mood for a short read to break the reading slump I have been in for over a month now, and I guess this one kinda helped? It had nice characters, the plot was not very complicated- just a chill evening read.
I was actually invested, and this will sound weird, in which state exactly Tim was from, to get his accent locked down, and well it did not disappoint.
I was actually invested, and this will sound weird, in which state exactly Tim was from, to get his accent locked down, and well it did not disappoint.
May 21, 2023
This is available if you join Kit Oliver's email list.
I enjoyed this little novella. I didn't really find Tim super likeable (dude needs to learn how to tip people), but the book has the same trademark story telling as all of Kit Oliver's books, and it's a good little coffee shop romance.
I enjoyed this little novella. I didn't really find Tim super likeable (dude needs to learn how to tip people), but the book has the same trademark story telling as all of Kit Oliver's books, and it's a good little coffee shop romance.
April 24, 2024
it's so quirky and silly,.,.,,, quite fitting for a coffee shop setting. i really like the author's ability to write a compelling pov, it's as if i'm really in the character's head, and i enjoyed it both in light up the lamp and this novella right here!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews