Klune always makes me cry. ALWAYS. Another cozy, emotional, lovely hit. and a pinnochio retelling at that! The characterization was such a delight, everyone was so endearing and clear, I can't believe this is over and I don't get to read it for the first time again.

This was my second book by TJ Klune and it has cemented that Klune is an author I definitely want to follow. The story was interesting, the characters were all unique and compelling, and I was super happy to see asexuality representation. I desperately wanted everything to work out for the characters.

I wanted to like this one a whole lot more than I did. Unfortunately, there was just too much going on for me to enjoy it all that much. If this were my first Klune book, I might have enjoyed it more. His overly saccharine tone and quirky characters can be charming, but it just didn't work for me here. It's certainly not terrible, but overall it didn't live up to my expectations.

Much darker than I am used to but dang he has done it again! I can’t stop reading through my fingers.

I've been grappling with the precise reason behind the special allure of T.J. Klune's narratives, and I've finally pinpointed it: It's the way reading them transports me back to a childlike sense of wonder, where you step into a fantastical realm and passionately root for the heroes as they conquer the forces of darkness.

In this journey, you develop an affection for the characters and their universe, feeling fully immersed in the enchantment of it all.

As a reader, this is the exact experience I hope for every time I delve into a book.

To have a story seep into your consciousness, envelop your heart, and leave you feeling a bit disoriented afterward—there truly is no other sensation like it in the world.

So I have to be honest. I really struggled with getting into this book. It just wasn’t hitting the spot. I really enjoyed this authors other book. But this one just couldn’t get me invested.

The storyline had a creative spin but for me I didn’t snuggle into it. So I decided to DNF it. Though there are so many that will love and adore it for me it was a miss.

TJ Klune books are always a win for me. Since I got this ARC I've read and re-read the book. It just gives such a theme of hope and acceptance to read this story. Especially a story that features ace representation, which is so rare in media today. I loved all of the quirky side characters and the themes of the book just hit so hard. Absolutely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review!

As far as retellings go, I think this one was quite creative. The use of an end-times story where the world is filled with robots was interesting, and really made me think about the implications of a machine-based world. Victor and his robot family are unlike the robots in the City of Electric Dreams and provided him with a love that rivals what some humans have with each other.

Why do a majority of his books somethings bring me to tears but this one made me smile. I didn't love it as much as I loved The House in the Cerulean Sea or Under the Whispering Door but I still enjoyed it.

It was comparably to the real version of "Pinocchio" (not the disney one with singing an all)

Thank you so much for the ARC!

📖 BOOK REVIEW

BOOK: In the Lives of Puppets
AUTHOR: TJ Klune
FORMAT: Physical/Audiobook
GENRE: Fantasy
DID I CRY: Yes
PUB DATE: 4/25/23
RATING: 9/10
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you @torbooks for my #gifted advanced copy of #InTheLivesOfPuppets 💚

MY THOUGHTS

I fell in love with this book and its characters very soon after starting it. I knew that regardless of what happened the rest of the book, the characters would make me want to keep going because they were SO wholesome and quirky and had such well-developed personalities. The plot I did also really enjoy from start to finish. It was really unique and original & I found it so fun to follow. It felt like sci fi x fantasy and that was absolutely my jam. The ending was also 🥺🥹🥺🥹 and had me fully in tears. It’s so well written and just felt so complete.

I found that the middle of the book, the pacing was a little slow for me and it ended up taking me a while to get through it. I didn’t dislike it but it just went a lot slower than the beginning and the end.

Overall tho i did love this book and definitely recommend it. I think the audio was really well done and the narration was perfect, but only do audio if you can give it your undivided attention because there’s a lot of detail you might miss listening to it.

I have enjoyed many TJ Kline books, and I was excited to start this one. But as it went on, I found it a real struggle, and ultimate it was a DNF for me after months. I do think people who prefer science fiction might love it. I even bought a copy for my husband. The world building is interesting, and I did like the robots. I just know I am not going to finish it anytime soon.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher.

DNF @ 25%

I've tried to finish this one as an ebook and as an audiobook, and I just don't think it's for me. I typically love Klune's characters, but I feel like the robots (Rambo and Nurse Ratched) were cartoony and difficult to connect with. I'm sure if I made it further, I would have really enjoyed certain aspects, but I'm going to move on and choose not to "hate read" this one.

Special thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of this book. This is a tricky one to write and review. I understood where the author was going with some of the ideas and feelings, but then the robot/human "interactions" were just plain weird. Had I not listened to this, I don't know if I could have finished it. The narrator was the best I have ever heard, the story not so much.

I really enjoyed this book, I'd love to add a finished copy to my collection. I love the characters so much as well. I will definitely be checking more out by this author.

I haven’t read a TJ Klune book that I haven’t absolutely loved. This story did take me a little longer to get into, but around the halfway point I just couldn’t put it down.

If you love other books by this author, you need to read this book!

How do you begin to describe the magic that is TJ Klue?

‘In The Lives Of Puppets’ is a work of art, a funny, heartwarming, and inclusive piece of literature I will never forget.

Klune has done it again! He has created a world of complex characters who must work together to save one another. Set in a society where humans have been eradicated after the machines rose up against them, we meet Giovanni Lawson. He is a tinkerer, an android, and a father. His son, Victor, however, is a human. Gio has been hiding Vic and himself in the forest for years, but their lives are turned upside down when Vic discovers HAP, a decommissioned android in the scrap yard. Along with Nurse Rachet, a nursing robot, and Rambo, the lovable robot vacuum, Vic works to repair Hap behind Gio's back. This sets into motion a chain of events that leads to Gio's capture by robots from the city. Vic, along with his robot friends, must travel to the City of Electric Dreams to save Gio and themselves.

Like Klune's other recent novels (The House in the Currulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door), this is a love story, but it's more than that. It's about the different kinds of love - love of family, love a life, and romantic love. A modern take on the PInnochio story, In the LIves of Puppets shows us what it means to be family, to be human, and to be loved.

✨Review: In the Lives of Puppets

I feel like only TJ Klune has the ability to teach readers about humanity in a book filled with robots and androids.
In the Lives of Puppets is a retelling of Pinocchio, centered around a father, his son, a group of robots and the adventure they go on together. Underneath that surface is a story of humanity, family, freedom to be who we want and love - all inside this strange little sci-fi world.
As someone who tends to stay away from sci-fi stories, TJ Klune pulls me in time and time again. His stories fill you with joy, worry, laughter and tears (so many tears every time)!

While I enjoyed The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door more, this was still a heartwarming and poignant story of found family, similar to the previously mentioned.🤍

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book will be a "favorite of the year" for me. The characters are unmatched and yet so beautiful. 5/5

This is one of those books where if you were to ask if any other author could have written this story, the answer here is a resounding No. In the Lives of Puppets is something that is intrinsically TJ Klune. It is something that could have only come from him and his mind, where you’re holding on to try and understand what is happening in this world, only to clutch the book to your chest and cry by the ending.

This story is based on Carlo Collodi's The Adventures of Pinocchio, but there is undoubtedly some Frankenstein in there too (Looking at you, inventor named Victor). But this is delightfully queer and romantic and heartwarming. You’ll never look at a Roomba the same way again without wanting to give one a hug.

Klune will have you laughing on one page and weeping by the next. He writes characters that are incredibly alive, whether they be robots or humans. I look forward to revisiting this one someday, with a better understanding of the story Klune is telling.

4 stars