Diverse Reader: Release Day Review: Dog Days by TA Moore #Review #Giveaway

Friday, September 9, 2016

Release Day Review: Dog Days by TA Moore #Review #Giveaway

Author: TA Moore
Book: Dog Days
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Publication Date: September 9, 2016
Length: 202 pages

Reviewed by Morningstar

Synopsis

The world ends not with a bang, but with a downpour. Tornadoes spin through the heart of London, New York cooks in a heat wave that melts tarmac, and Russia freezes under an ever-thickening layer of permafrost. People rally at first—organizing aid drops and evacuating populations—but the weather is only getting worse.

In Durham, mild-mannered academic Danny Fennick has battened down to sit out the storm. He grew up in the Scottish Highlands, so he’s seen harsh winters before. Besides, he has an advantage. He’s a werewolf. Or, to be precise, a weredog. Less impressive, but still useful.

Except the other werewolves don’t believe this is any ordinary winter, and they’re coming down over the Wall to mark their new territory. Including Danny’s ex, Jack—the Crown Prince Pup of the Numitor’s pack—and the prince's brother, who wants to kill him.

A wolf winter isn’t white. It’s red as blood.

Buy Links

Dreamspinner Press

Amazon

Review

What I love when reading books, especially a new to me author? Surprise! Yes, I know most people don’t but when it’s a good surprise I am all about it. I went into this book with the expectation of it being a shifter book with an apocalyptic theme but what I got was so much more.

This wasn’t just the end of the world or just shifters this was a slow building of the world as it was being devastatingly altered by Mother Nature where the wolves and dogs that live “above the wall” are coming down unbeknownst to the humans who live in town. The author makes this story of wolves and dogs her own. The voice she gives the dog while Danny is shifted or the wolf while Jack is shifted was really truly like you were in the mind of an animal. Explaining through actions and thoughts how the two parts of these two characters were of two minds, the thoughts of the human do not push into the thoughts of the animal so letting go “of their skin” is a freer world with less worries and stress but not always the best for certain situations. TA Moore slowly gives us information about Fenrir, the Numitor, the pack, and each thing that makes of the world around Jack and Danny, whether human or animal. So yay for no information dump that can usually happen in the beginning of this type of story.

Danny doesn’t want to be in a pack which is why he left his less than loving mother and sisters behind and went to the human world, which is okay because dogs do well around humans. But Danny’s life isn’t full of love and happiness and he didn’t realize, or didn’t want to realize, how much he missed being part of a pack until Jack arrives to “save the day”. Jack is part of his past and Danny thinks he wants him to stay there mainly because he seems to remind Danny of the guilt he carries for his dead relationship with his ex Jenny who lives downstairs or that he is still a were-dog and maybe he can’t live in the human world.

Jack knows the wolf’s winter is coming and knows with it comes his brother, Gregor who will be the new Numitor, has plans to take over Durham with blood and claw. So he goes to Danny because he is pack whether he likes it or not. We are never truly sure most of the book his feelings towards Danny. We know of the scorching hot attraction and we know he thinks Danny being around humans is ridiculous but one thing Jack is not is a lovey flowery type of guy. Do not go into this expecting a grand romance between these two because you will not get it. They are true to their animal selves and the relationship that brews and how they handle it is true to who they are. Danny isn’t romantic type either but he eventually realizes his feelings and struggles with what he has to do because of that knowledge.

There is a great pace in this story where everything is handled at the right time and not a moment too soon. We’ve got bad guys who become worse guys, scary monsters we didn’t see coming (maybe it was all the snow), humans who saw stuff only the movies talked about, a were-dog who finally finds his place (mostly), and a wolf who never changes but learns to bend (a tiny we bit) for the were-dog who becomes his. I loved these characters although I do wish we had more time from Jack’s POV to get to know him as much as we got to know Danny. Maybe he isn’t as complex as Danny and that’s why the author played it out as she did either way I highly recommend this to all the shifter lovers out there.