Book Review - The Smiling Dog Cafe by Neil Plakcy

The Smiling Dog Cafe by Neil Plakcy

This book features two novellas based on different characters.

Code of Silence:

Jeff's mother would often say that bad news always comes in threes. It turns prophetic when Jeff's girlfriend dumps him, he loses his job and the building where his house used to be, gets damaged and he needs to relocate instantly.

Caught in the trauma of his past and the failures of the present, Jeff finds himself being led to a cafe named The Smiling Dog Cafe, by none other than a dog that seems to communicate to him that he needs to visit the cafe as soon as possible. Jeff visits the cafe one fateful day and faces everything that he didn't even know he had been avoiding.

A Mother's Heart

'We inherit a lot from our mothers and not everything is good.' - Betty, the owner of The Smiling Dog Cafe.

Having seen her mother suffer from a heart ailment which is genetic, Sophia has only managed to accept her own heart condition and learn to live with it. But realising that her daughter too has the same throws her into extreme panic and fear.

Until, a three-legged dog gestures her to visit The Smiling Cafe. And when Sophia does visit, she meets the past and gets reminded of all the lessons imparted to her by all the ladies who stood in as a substitute to her mother and helped her in their own unique way.

The stories aren't inter-related but revolve around The Smiling Dog Cafe. Each story has its own trauma and healing. The characters are relatable with all their flaws, guilt and regret that come with the package of being human.

The narrative is slow-paced and brings every scene to life with its gentle description and vivid imagery. The characters break your heart and heal as well. Some scenes are beautiful as well as heartbreaking in their sheer beauty and emotional quotient.

There are four books in The Smiling Dog Cafe series. This is the first that I read but going by the blurb of the other books, I presume that they can be read as stand-alones since every story has a different character and story line that gradually ends up at the cafe.

I loved this book and I highly recommend it for everyone looking for emotional and poignant reads. This is one to read and remember!