Review's Resort: Tome Thursday: Every Dog Has His Day

Hello everyone!

I don't know about you guys, but the weather is definitely looking up on my end, which is SUCH a relief after all the insane dips back down below zero. It's April now, can it please start getting warmer?

Not that we can take full advantage of it yet - quarantine is still in effect, after all, and there will be a little something about it at the very tail end of this blog post, something fun, so stay tuned - but EVENTUALLY even this has to pass, right? And we'll be able to head out and actually soak up all the rays of sunshine, both real and the ones from our friends and family.

Until then, however, we have to keep entertained in different ways.

As you know, I tend to read pretty much anything and everything that I can get my hands on, with a couple notable exceptions that I won't be going into tonight. So if I get asked to come along on an exciting new adventure, you bet I'm going to say yes!

Serenity Woods being pretty much my favourite contemporary author of all time, it was a no-brainer to check out her new, witchy works.

Published under the name of 'Hermine Moon', these begin with Every Dog Has His Day.

Despite the fact this is the beginning novella for the rest of the series, I'll be linking some other of her more paranormal romances, shall we say, down below, which I've already read and reviewed, though those are all published under her actual name.

These are brand new.

So new they're SHINY.

Now Every Dog Has His Day is actually a very short novella you can get if you sign up for Hermione Moon's newsletter (link right here), and honestly it might probably take you the same amount of time to read this post as it would the novella.

But I feel it's an important piece because we get to understand just how everything actually begins, so here we go.

The novella is written from - wait for it - a dog's perspective.

That's right, although he's not ACTUALLY a dog.

See, the Cavoodle (this being a mix between a Cavalier and poodle) is actually just a different form for a bard, who happens to be one of King Arthur's best friends.

Oh yeah. THAT Arthur. You know, the one with Excalibur and the knights of the Round Table?

When the novella begins he kind of has no name - as a dog - but he's been watching this café owner for a little bit now, and this is important, because SHE is important.

Her name is Gwen. And she will be the protagonist for the actual story.

She also has no idea that her recently-deceased mother is sitting right there in ghost form, too.

This is where Sir Cavoodle comes in.

He was taught by Morgana (remember her, the sister of Arthur, erstwhile keeper of Avalon?) how to help souls pass to the other realm, and interestingly enough in this particular iteration of Arthur, the Holy Grail is actually a font of strength that allows portals between the spheres to open, and Sir Cavoodle draws on that when he does his little magic trick.

But first he goes to speak to Gwen's mother, who is reluctant to leave her daughter, especially since Gwen seems incredibly lonely and sad.

Sir Cavoodle promises that she has a bright future ahead - she won't be sad, or lonely, for much longer.

He also figures out where Gwen's mother's engagement ring traipsed off to, calling on the power of the Grail to bring forth Gwen's father and Alice's husband, John, who's come to help her cross to the other side.

The task complete with lovers reunited and passed on, Sir Cavoodle heads back over to Gwen, because he got a dinner of nicely cut sausages, and just cuddles up to her, thinking he's a very lucky dog, all in all, because not only does he get to spend time with the woman he's had a crush on for about 1500 years (and who Gwen is the reincarnation of), but his very best friend is here, too.

Because if you take a better look, you'll see a pair of blue eyes behind the visor of the suit of armour Gwen has on display right by the entrance to the café.

BFF is starting to wake up.

And Sir Cavoodle - named Merlin by Gwen - gets a new home with Gwen herself, which is fine by him.

There are worse names in the world for dogs, after all.

Short, sweet, and to the point, but quickly establishing everything we need to know about the magical rules in this particular setting, Every Dog Has His Day is a great build-up for the first novel, One Dark and Stormy Knight, which I will be reviewing next week. As you can tell, it will be dealing with Arthur, reincarnation, a sprinkle of magic, and more than a hint of romance.

Plus it takes place at the site where Arthur and Guinevere are supposedly buried, so what better way is there to travel over when we're all locked down than by book?

Until next week, keep your swords sharp and be ready to answer Arthur's call to arms!

*image not mine
**and just a little something to maybe cheer you up during quarantine: