The House in the Cerulean Sea was one of my favorite books last year so I was a bit worried that I wouldn't love this book as much. But I ended up loving this book too!

When a reaper comes to collect Wallace from his own funeral, Wallace begins to suspect he might be dead.
And when Hugo, the owner of a peculiar tea shop, promises to help him cross over, Wallace decides he’s definitely dead. But even in death he’s not ready to abandon the life he barely lived, so when Wallace is given one week to cross over, he sets about living a lifetime in seven days.

It's an uplifting and wonderful story- even though it's about death and redemption..... :) I love the characters and how kind and funny they can be. Made me sad and laugh at the same time........ What a great book to read during such depressing times as now.

Thank you to the publisher for providing an ARC for me.

**Under the Whispering Door**
What happens when a ghost falls for the ferryman of death?

Wallace Price is dead, and he doesn’t want to believe it. But when a reaper shows up to collect him while he’s staring over his casket, he starts to think that it just may be true. The reaper takes him to a way-station of sorts, housed in a tea house run by the ferryman of death and his dead grandpa. Hugo, the ferryman, must get Wallace to realize that life is over and move on- but what will Wallace do when Hugo becomes the reason that he doesn’t want to pass on?

This book focuses heavily on the topic of death, grief, and life after. But instead of it being a depressing story with no life (literally)- Klune paints a beautiful picture of life after death and the people that are effected by it.

Wallace was a mean man, hated by many and loved by none. He refuses to accept that he’s dead and that, for once, there’s nothing he can do about it. He simmers in his anger until things slowly start to become more clear for him.
His character growth is TREMENDOUS!
Along with that, Hugo is the kind soul just trying to help everyone get by. {Picture young Morgan Freeman playing God in Evan Almighty} this man OOZES peace and clarity.
Then throw in feisty Mei and humorous Nelson- you’ve got the perfect group of people for a beautiful storyline.

If you’re wanting a touching story that makes you sob and laugh at the same time, then this is the perfect book for you!

TWs: death, panic attacks, grief, depression, mentions of su*cide

{Big thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange of an honest review

Received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

This was beautiful. I loved Nelson and his humor, I loved Mei and her love for knives, Hugo and his understanding. But most of all i loved the growth Wallace had from the asshole in the first chapter to a person who piece by piece became alive and found his humanity.
Its a beautiful story and I quite liked the idea that we end up in a way station before we cross over. There's something soothing about that.

5 BEAUTIFUL stars

After reading a few of his other books, TJ Klune became a new favorite author of mine. So when he announced Under the Whispering Door, I knew I needed it as soon as possible. Luckily, those over at Tor heard my pleas.

Right from the very beginning, I knew that this book was going to break my heart. You can't write a story about a ghost and a ferryman falling in love and not anticipate some tears. Wallace Price is a jerk, and it was hard to like him at all. But the more he grows as a person, the more likable he becomes. Hugo was perfection, and I loved him from the start. This book is full of amazing characters, but I will let you discover the rest on your own.

I don't know how Klune does it, but he always manages to make me fall more in love with his stories. These stories are always about a difficult subject, but with Klunes writing and humor, you can see a glimpse of light in the dark. I took away valuable lessons, and this one might be the most important of them all. This book left me with so much hope, and I hope it makes you feel the same.

Klune's books are must-reads, and you should all read them. If you haven't yet, go do it.

<b>TW: </b> death; heart attack, suicide, murder by stabbing, child death through illness, elder death through illness, death of an animal

<b>REP: </b> m/m relationship, side m/m relationships

Thank you so much to Tor Books and NetGalley for approving me for an eARC of my most anticipated book of the year. All views and opinions discussed here are my own.

This review is going to be absolutely incoherent because i've just spent the last three hours sobbing whilst finishing this book and i'm honestly not sure that my eyes will ever recover from the tears.

Klune is an absolutely amazing and beautiful writer. I fell in love with The House in the Cerulean Sea for the charming characters, plot, and world and this was no different. This book however, is very different to Under the Whispering Door and I wholeheartedly recommend going into this one with no thoughts or views that it'll be the same. It was just as much and so much more.

This story is about grief, loss, and everything that comes before and after. We get a beautiful found family including; Hugo, our wonderful ferryman; Mei, the charming reaper; Nelson, our kind and ghost; APOLLO, the pet dog everyone needs; and Wallace, our dead man who learns to be better once he's gone. Oh god I loved them all so much. I love how they grew together and how they changed each other and the impact they had on Wallace. My heart felt like it was going to burst with happiness on so many occasions reading these pages. Oh god I cannot even tell you how much I loved them all and how I will hold them in my heart so dearly. Nelson has to be my favourite because he was an absolute delight and so often it was his lines that made me cackle!

This book; god only Klune can make me laugh and cry at the same time and take me on such a rollercoaster of emotions that I feel like I need to take time off work and go to counselling - and I mean that in a good way. I don't want you think this was just a sad book because it really wasn't because so much of the sadness was also about hope and joy and how you can connect to other people and change for the better. I cried at so many happy moments and I cried at sad moments but I loved it all so dearly. There is so much love in this book; familial love, platonic love, and romantic love (and I will tell you that the romance absolutely destroyed me - the scene in the garden <i>but you</i> oh my tender fragile heart can't cope with this).

It wasn't all sadness though, there were so many moments of happiness and humour and terrible fashion (let's not talk about the bikini) and <i>"I've never been diving in my life" </i>will continue to make me cackle for years to come and honestly no matter how hard i'm crying I just need to think of this scene and I will laugh myself senseless.

I know that I could read this book over and over and never get bored and always find new bits to take joy with. I am immensely grateful that Klune shares his beautiful words and art with us and I for one, cannot wait to see where his next story takes us.

Out 21 September for you to devour yourselves!

Thank you to both #NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for providing me an advance copy of T.J. Klune’s latest fantasy novel, Under the Whispering Door, in exchange for an honest review.

You know when a book is that good because the review comes naturally. This is the second novel I have read by T.J. Klune—the first being, The House in the Cerulean Sea. Once again, I am continuously impressed by the author’s work and the emotion that his stories evoke.

Both the humor and some of the main themes of the novel are reminiscent of Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s, Good Omens; with a touch of Charles Dickens’s, A Christmas Carol. That is to say that #UndertheWhisperingDoor is witty and uproariously funny at times, as well as takes jabs at religion, death, and the afterlife.

The novel opens with a scene wherein readers are immediately exposed to the type of person the protagonist, Wallace Price, is through a blend of internal monologue and an uncomfortable conversation he is having with his paralegal of ten years. From the very first chapter, it is evident that Wallace Price is a ruthless, self-absorbed individual who exhibits an aloof attitude towards others. As one of the four named partners at a prestigious law firm in the city, he has no time for tact or semantics…Or so we are led to believe.

By chapter two, Wallace Price has died. While listening to the remarks of persons at his poorly attended funeral, he notices a stranger that he cannot seem to place. The stranger, an entity named Mei, ends up being his “reaper” who is tasked with helping Wallace transition from the real world to the next. The two arrive at Charon’s Crossing, a mystical tea shop, where Wallace meets Hugo the ferryman who assists in the remainder of the “crossing,” or in Greek mythology, carries them across the Rivers Styx and Acheron.

Most of the story is set in the tea shop. Surrounded by both ghosts and the living at Charon’s Crossing, it is there in death that Wallace realizes he has never fully lived. Wallace goes from a cold, uncaring individual to a selfless, courageous entity. He befriends Hugo’s grandad, Nelson, and their dog, Apollo. He watches over the tea shop and helps Mei with the daily chores. Each day he learns something new about himself and the world of the living.

This story is really about second chances and appreciating your loved ones before it is too late. It is about living life to the fullest and understanding that it is never too late to change for the better. Although parts of the novel dragged at times, the cast of characters are wonderfully crafted. You have Nelson, a crotchety old man and also Hugo’s grandfather who provides the comic relief. Apollo, the ghost dog, who is Nelson’s faithful sidekick. Then there is Mei, a scrappy, young reaper who is fiercely loyal to both Hugo and her calling. Finally, there is Hugo the ferryman who seems as if he is a hybrid of a therapist and the wise, old man on the hill, despite being only thirty. Hugo also eventually becomes Wallace’s love interest.

There are several noteworthy side characters as well. Some serve as additional comic relief, others as entities of grief. While I will not give away any details about the Manager, I will say that there is something about this character that reminds me of Edward from Lev Grossman’s, The Magicians.

In sum, this is a story of redemption, resurrection, and believing in the concept of all hope is not lost. This novel is largely character driven, so if that is not your cup of tea (excuse the pun), then neither is this book. It is not as exciting as the author’s previous novel, The House in the Cerulean Sea, but it does make for an intriguing tale.

Thank you so much to the publisher and netgalley for my ARC. You all made my month with this one.

I laughed, I cried, I rolled my eyes and threw stuff around out of frustration. This was an incredible read.

With belly laugh narration that reminded me a lot of Terry Pratchett (just the humor part) and the soul of the story that cannot be matched - this book immediately became one of my top reads for the year.

I think TJ is a master of giving depth and soul to every single character. It is impossible not to love every single character. Even The Manager - you are set up to question their morals but at the same time there is something so home-y about them?

And Hugo! My god. What a true one.
Yes, at first I thought the ending (before the epilogue) was a tad cheesy but that didn’t spoil anything for me either.

I can’t wait for the world to read this one. It’s a warm hug of a book.

This book. This book just broke me and then healed me all in one. Where The House in the Cerulean Sea was mostly fun with wholesome found family, Under the Whispering Door is about grief and death and letting go and growth as a person and it was just utterly beautiful but also hit incredibly hard.

This is such a gentle, soft, at times heartbreaking, story about death. I loved it. I love Wallace and Hugo and Mei and Nelson and Apollo. I just...😭😭😭😭

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3640549413

4.5 Stars

Recommended Read!

“The first time you share tea, you are a stranger.
The second time you share tea, you are an honored guest.
The third time you share tea, you become family.”

I knew. I KNEW this book would wreck me and yet it did as if I hadn’t known. The book opens up with Wallace Price and I immediately thought, who let Sheldon Cooper loose into the world? Where is his Leonard? (Big Bang Theory reference here.) I’m going to be honest at first I thought I wasn’t going to like this book and Wallace felt like a generic version of a cold, heartless lawyer. As soon as we were introduced to Mei, a reaper who ushers the dead to Hugo the ferryman and his teashop, I started to fall for Wallace.

Wallace Price is a lawyer and cold business owner. He fires his loyal, hardworking employee for barely missing a deadline right after she confides in him about her difficult life situation. At his funeral almost no one attends and the ones that do aren’t exactly sad about his death. He wrestles with his sudden death and is addled with questions for Mei, the reaper, and Hugo the Ferryman. Hugo and his teashop offer Wallace solace to come to peace with his death before he crosses over. The question is what will Wallace do with his time he is given at the teashop, and with Hugo, and what will he learn about life and death?

This book is a masterpiece of sadness and joy of seriousness and silliness of life and death. Hugo was such a warm, patient, deep character–the counter to Wallace who is uptight, and suspicious. The journey Wallace goes through throughout this book is inspiring, hilarious, and sweet. Grab a cup of tea and cozy up with this one.

This was amazing! TJ Klune is now an auto author for me. The writing and depth to this book is profound. Wallace Price has a heart attack and dies. He ends up in a tea house with Mei and Hugo, in the in between. He hasn't passed to heaven or hell yet, and becomes a better person dead then he ever was alive through the lessons and interactions he has here. Brilliant! A heart warmer! A book you want to hug!!!

Tj Klune is truly magical! This book felt familiar, and heavy in the same breath. The nods to his other works were tasteful, and always brought a smile to my face. This book makes you laugh, cry, and most importantly question exactly what you are doing with your life. The first quarter-half of the book does seem to drag a bit. TJ Klune picks that up, and delivers in the latter half. Please do not think this book is The House in the Cerulean Sea, or even his Green River series. It is not. The TW/CW needs to be taken seriously. However, the feel good found family trope, and then that magical writing that Klune has across the board is all encompassing.
Bravo Mr. Klune! A SOLID 4.5/5 Stars!
Thank you for allowing me to pre-read such a wonderful book!

This book was so soft and sad and beautiful. If there was such a thing as a cozy fantasy subgenre, this would be first on the list.

I read and enjoyed “The House in the Cerulean Sea” and have been looking forward to [author: T.J. Klune] next story.
TJ Klune tells as at the very beginning in his ‘Author’s Note’ that this story explores
life and love as well as loss and grief.
Story starts with the relationship between Wallace Phineas Price and his employees. Typically they cower at the sound of his voice. When he says jump ~ they might answer How High? No one would describe him as having a warm and fuzzy personality. He believes he does not micromanage but the employees know they need to work as if their lives depended on it. He has an altercation with his paralegal and ends up firing. He decides he will not get into this situation with his new assistant.
But never gets the change, two days later Mr. Price dies.

He finds himself at his funeral and is soon taken by the grim reaper but not to an afterlife but to a tea shop whose owner Hugo is also the ferryman to souls who need to cross over.
This is just the beginning of a series of interesting events!

There is no doubt that TJ is a great writer ~ this is good but not at all like “The House in the Cerulean Sea’. I wasn’t sure it this was going to work for me but ~ Awww!!! It did! ⭐⭐⭐⭐Stars

Want to thank NetGalley and MacMillan~ Tor/Forge for this early uncorrected eGalley granted to me for my honest professional opinion.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for September 21, 2021

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, instead of a typical review, I'm going to make a list of non-spoilery things I loved about this book. Not everything, though, because we'd be here all day.

- emotionally unavailable bi MC/cinnamon roll with anxiety gay love interest
- found family <33333
- this book has the T.J. Klune humor that if you've read his other books you'll adore
- one of the pages had the tiniest references to some of his other books. the noise i made at that.
- profound discussions about life, death, and what it all means or might mean or doesn't mean
- a ghost dog
- tea
- cottagecore vibes tbh
- this book devastated me but, like, in a way i loved?

So, basically, please read this. It's so good.

I don't know how T.J. Klune manages to break my heart repeatedly and yet also makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside too...

He somehow blends such serious and thoughtful topics like death and grief with humour and coziness, so that the end result is something truly special. His characters are always fantastic and 'Under the Whispering Door' introduces us to a new set of messy, complicated humans(mostly) that will definetely leave you feeling a mixture of heartbroken and warm and fuzzy too.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review; many thanks to NetGalley and Tor Books for the opportunity.

This review will contain spoilers.

After one of the most iconic and villainous introductions to a main character that I've read in a good long while, the story flipped my expectations and took me on a journey that involved both laughter, tears, and staying up far past my bedtime.

There were so many things to love about this book. The characters were so all very flawed but vibrantly human (even when they were not); the relationships and found family aspect were very well done. I loved the world building and the entire book felt very cinematic. After the description of the tea shop I could not help but visualize the entire book as one Ghibli-esque romp through the afterlife.

This is one of those books that is just so beautifully written and includes such lovely characters, that I'll be thinking about for a long time.

I really liked this book; though it was definitely darker in tone and content than The House in the Cerulean Sea it was so thoughtfully approached and heartfelt that I'm glad I went a bit out of my comfort zone to read it. The book is a little bit of a spooky love story - so perfect for reading snuggled up under the covers during chilly weather with a cup of something warm and comforting.

I appreciated the provided content warning for discussions of violence and suicide, etc. I really liked how problems were solved with kindness and actually having conversations (instead of pointless drama). Some parts felt trope-y but were nicely balanced out by the nicely handled descriptions of existential crisis and grief management that were the main focus of the book.

I would definitely recommend this very charming book for fans of this author's other works. and those who want a heartwarming story about grief, and second (or more) chances.

I was thrilled to receive an advanced copy of Under the Whispering Door after reading and loving House in the Cerulean Sea last summer. It is important to note that these two books are different. House in the Cerulean Sea is soft and welcoming from the start, its protagonist Linus Baker a good man from the get go, the reader waiting for him to share his goodness with those on the island. Wallace Price is a completely different person from Linus Baker. A cutthroat, successful attorney, Wallace is used to things going his way so when he suddenly dies of a heart attack Wallace’s life, or afterlife, is completely overthrown. Wallace is taken to the way station between the land of the living and the land of the dead, a teashop called Charon’s Crossing, where Wallace learns the true value of life and how love can change someone for the better.
This book was an experience and may be upsetting for some readers who have recently lost someone. I appreciated the trigger warning for suicide at the beginning of the book.

Omg this was amazing ! I’m in love with this author since the house in the cerulean sea! I was so excited to get a copy of this new story and it was a wonderful story
Like different, refreshing and it’s rare that a book makes me cry and well I might’ve cry .. maybe :)
Thanks netgalley !

If you have been waiting for another warm hug of a book since reading "Cerulean Sea" pick up this new one. A lovely story that turns grief into hope