One Bullet by Casey Wolfe
M/M romance
Published on March 27, 2017
NineStar Press
152 pages

Reviewed by Tracey

Blurb: When Ethan Brant was shot, he found himself dealing with severe PTSD and unable to do his job as a police officer any longer. With the aid of Detective Shawn Greyson, the man who saved his life, Ethan not only finds himself again but discovers love as well.

Shawn’s life growing up was less than ideal, however, he overcame that to become who he is today. That doesn’t mean he isn’t missing something in his life. What Shawn hadn’t realized, upon first meeting, was that Ethan could give him all that and more.

One bullet changed both their lives.

Ethan Brant is a cop who was shot accidentally while off duty. and he was shot by another cop. Shawn Greyson was a cop that was on the scene when the accidental shooting occurred, and he held Ethan and put pressure on the wound, saving his life. He visited Ethan in the hospital and they slowly become friends as he helps Ethan get back on his feet. Ethan is left with PTSD from the shooting, and it is triggered whenever he is confronted with cops in uniform. Thankfully, Shawn is a detective, and doesn’t wear the blue uniform. Ethan quits the force and starts working in private security. One morning as he walks to work, he is chased by the police and tasered until Shawn comes to the rescue. I’m still not really sure why the police started chasing him…that wasn’t made very clear in the book, and it kind of disappeared into the story leaving me a little confused about the events. But, that led to Ethan and Shawn reconnecting, because Shawn knew about Ethan’s PTSD and knows how to stop the panic attacks. It would have been nice to know why the police wanted to talk to Ethan so bad that they chased him and tased him, but…oh well…that is left to our imagination.

This book really surprised me in different ways. Going back through my notes, it was a little bit confusing…kinda like the book. This is a sweet little book, and my great-great grandmother could probably read it and not be shocked or offended by anything in it. I think I can remember one time the word fuck was used, she might have clenched a little at that, but overall…it is very low angst and almost no sex. I was at 27% in the book, and still didn’t know if we were going to have a m/m romance. Didn’t know at this point if anyone was gay or bisexual, so there was a little bit of frustration going on. From the blurb, I expected excitement, suspense and a little bit of danger. The title of the book is One Bullet, well, the bullet was kind of irrelevant.

The POV was written alternating between Ethan and Shawn, and it was a little abrupt at times. It would shift after a few paragraphs, and could be somewhat confusing about whose head you were in.

The characters were developed well, and the secondary characters were interesting and very well done. It was the story that was choppy. Shawn came from a wealthy family, other than his sister, who pretty much disowned him because of his sexuality, while Ethan’s family was loving and accepting. I really did like all the secondary characters. There was Davies, who was lead detective in Shawn’s office, Ethan’s best friend Sebastian who worked for the FBI, and all of Ethan’s family. They were interesting and I wish we had had more story about them.

Some of the dialogue structure and phrasing was unusual, and could be a little jarring in pulling you out of the book. The sex scenes were non-existent, and I mean totally closed door sex…almost to the point of closed door kissing. I knew this going into the book, but wanted to make sure potential readers are aware. When Shawn talks about almost losing control…he’s talking about losing control and almost kissing Ethan. And the kissing didn’t even start until waaaay past the 50% mark. Even the romantic scenes were a little awkward. The author had them lay on the beach…in the sand…in their dress…clothes and stare into each other’s eyes until a wave swept over their legs.

Pulling back enough for their eyes to meet, Shawn looked down into sparkling green orbs. There was no sense in denying his feeling for Ethan any long, nor did he want to. His free hand brushed across Ethan’s cheek…

Sweet. This book is really sweet and the romance builds slowly, but it almost seems to be on a high school level where they gaze soulfully at each other, and neither one wants to say goodnight.

The PTSD and injury from the shooting fell a little to the wayside in the story, until it’s conveniently pulled out for a plot point. There needed to be a little more cohesion in the story, plus more grit and angst. There were lighter moments, but they didn’t shine because there was no darkness to compare against. It was all so…sweet.

Sex wasn’t something they’d pushed for, each more than content to let it happen in its own time.

There is not one thing wrong with waiting to have sex. But these aren’t high school or college age kids…these are grown men who have been dating for months. It’s just not very believable to me.

Overall, it was a quick read and the characters were interesting, but the result fell flat for me. I think this author shows a lot of promise, the character development was good, it was just the storyline jumping around and lacking cohesion was a problem.

Grade: C-

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