Any time author T.J. Klune releases a book, I am eager to read it. All of Klune's books have running themes about found family and acceptance. Under The Whispering Door, Klune's latest offering, explores similar topics. Like his other adult novel, The House in the Cerulean Sea, the main character questions valuing work above relationships. Of course, in this novel, it's too late for Wallace. He's already dead. Although this book is about death (and begins with a trigger warning about suicide), the story is full of whimsy, with wonderful characters, and a powerful message about what life should be all about. I loved it.

What I liked:

Themes:

I can't help but think the pandemic influenced the author's message. At a time when we all are re-evaluating what's important to us, the book illustrates how people, driven to achieve material success, lose sight of what is truly meaningful in life: kindness, forgiveness, and connecting with others. Wallace may have been a wealthy lawyer in life, but (as his sparsely attended funeral indicates), no one will miss him in death.

Characters:

Wallace is an extremely unlikable person at the beginning of the book. He is outraged that few people go to his funeral, where his ex-wife goes on and on about what a terrible husband he was! When he is taken to Hugo's tea shop (a way station between earth and the beyond), he is predictably angry and rude to everyone. But I loved that he changed. By seeing how Hugo and Mei show unwavering patience and compassion for everyone who's journey brings them to the tea shop, Wallace starts to understand and forgive himself for his selfishness.

Hugo and Mei are humans, but they work to help recently deceased people transition to the Door (where people will go to the next step in their journey). They know that people who have died are in denial, are angry and will lash out. So they don't take it personally. But Mei is not all sugar and sunshine with living people. She can be rude, especially when she sees others being deceitful or cruel. But her righteous anger is done with lots of humor, so the reader can't help but love her!

Two other characters that I adored were Nelson, Hugo's grandfather, and Apollo, Hugo's dog. Both are ghosts, but refuse to go through the door because they want to stay and support Hugo. This was really so beautiful, and made me think about relatives of mine who have died. How comforting to think that they might stick around to watch over me. Both Nelson and Apollo offer up lots of comic relief as well.

Trigger Warning for Suicide:

The most serious moments in the book have to do with a character who has died by suicide. If you are not triggered by that topic, I think you will find that thread in the story to be moving. The character in question killed himself after his boyfriend dies from an illness. He just can't handle the pain. He also has to dig out of his self-loathing, and find a way to heal in order for him to move on. His pain made me cry, but his healing gave me hope.

I choose this book because I (like pretty much everyone) was totally enthralled with The House in The Cerulean Sea and it's happy whimsical story. If you're coming to this story for that same reason, please know it is a story totally different than that. The story is pretty deep and existencial. it really left me thinking about death and 'the afterlife'. It was a pretty interesting concept.

For the most of the book, I really had trouble connecting with the characters. I get morally grey, but many if them were either unlikeable or bland. I did start to connect more and care towards the middle of the books though.

While I did eventually find the book to be interesting and charming, it took SO LONG to get into the story (again, didn't really like the characters equals I did not really care about the story).
BUT once I got into it, there was a dark and intriguing story, some laugh out loud funny moments, love and interesting stories all thing place in a small town tea shop--as a girl with a dead childhood dog named Apollo and a belief in the absolute magic of tea, those part of the story felt special and moving to me.

While I didn't LOVE the book, I liked the story, the ferryman Hugo is amazing, and the ending did make me shed a tear. Overall, a worthwhile read for me!!

**I was absolutely thrilled to get this as an ARC and would read anything by TJ Klune, at this rate!! **

Yes, he thought maybe he mattered after all, a lesson in the unexpected. Wasn’t that the point? Wasn’t that the great answer to the mystery of life? To make the most of what you have while you have it, the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly. In death, Wallace had never felt more alive.

This beautiful, heartfelt book made me feel all the emotions and it was such a pleasure to read it. After reading and falling in love with The House in the Cerulean Sea, I had to read this book. And while a completely different atmosphere from the other book, I love this book just as much. This book deals with heavy topics that readers should take into consideration; such as depression, suicide, death and loss and different forms of grief. It can be a lot understandably for some to read. I know this book was inspired by the loss of someone close to the author, and in a way this must have some form of a cathartic expression of grief.

The plot starts with Wallace Price, a not so nice man, who was a self absorbed lawyer focused only on his job and living without showing many emotions. After dying suddenly from a heart attack at work, he finds himself at his own funeral, where he’s met by a delightful reaper, Mei, who brings him to a tea shop to meet Hugo who owns the place but is also a ferryman, a person who helps people cross over. In addition to Hugo and Mei, Hugo’s deceased grandfather Nelson, and dog, Apollo live there as well.

Wallace is lost at first at the sudden change that comes with dying and goes through different stages of grief as he tries to make sense of what his life is now. Through the book he grows tremendously, and it’s such a delight to see. He learns quite simply, how to be a better person. To not be selfish and think of others. And it’s often bittersweet to see him look back at his life realizing all the time he wasted not truly living. It really makes one ponder how much are we making of the life we have. And that doesn’t mean necessarily expensive or flashy things. But more so personal relationships with others and are we genuinely feeling fulfilled. Wallace learns a lot from Hugo, Mei, and Nelson on what it is to exist when you are no longer alive.

Hugo, sweet, patient Hugo. He truly cares for other and is so incredibly empathetic. As part of his job as the ferryman, he can’t really stray to far from the tea shop because people will constantly be needing him, and despite not being able to see more of the world as he’d like to, he still focuses on what he has and remained a kind person. Despite Wallace being rude to him when he first came, Hugo never shows a sign of him taking anything personally and continues to show kindness, as he slowly breaks Wallace’s walls down. The two of them grow closer and close and it’s painful and sweet all at once, because of the gap of life and death between them.

This book has become close to my heart very quickly, and I hope others enjoy it the same way I did.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book. All opinions stated here are my own.

i am crying and can’t form a coherent review but just know that this book feels like a warm hug and will make you feel everything all at once

cw: death, grief, loss of a child, cancer, suicide

I felt all the feelings while reading this lovely, quirky story that managed to handle some very tough subjects like death and grief. In life, Wallace is a not very nice attorney who dies of a heart attack and is escorted by his reaper, Mei, to a teashop that is a waystation for the dead. There were so many comic moments that I laughed out loud more than once. For me, it was the cast of characters that truly made this story shine.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Is there anything more cozy than a teashop? In T.J. Klune's recent novel Under the Whispering Door, a quirky teashop also serves as the location between life and death where people go before they "cross over." At the shop, people are guided into accepting their demise before moving on with their afterlife. It is a feel-good title that also covers serious topics such as grief and suicide. I found this to be an easy and comforting read despite the heavy topics in its content. Like Klune's previous writing, Under the Whispering Door offers representation to gay, bi, nonbinary, and other LGBTQ+ characters. I would recommend this book to patrons, but found myself occasionally zoning out and feeling impatient with the plot around half way into the book. Therefore, I only gave it a three star rating for my personal enjoyment. It was certainly cozy, profound, and quirky, but I just didn't fall in love with it or feel especially engaged. 3.5 stars/5.

I really enjoyed the premise of this book and appreciated the humor the author brought to the topic. It's a unique telling of a story we've heard countless times. There were times that I loved this book. And then there were times I found myself rolling my eyes at the continuous and repetitive cliches and platitudes. Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed the story and the character development was fantastic. The repetitive nature of the moral lesson to be learned by the main character eventually became too much for me and I wished it had got to the point more quickly. The writing was excellent, the plot development and conclusion were well planned and it is getting great reviews. I will be reading more by this author in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

With TJ Klune’s creative worldbuilding, strong character writing, and trademark humor, Under the Whispering Door should have been a knockout of a book. Instead, what could have been a profound meditation on grief and mortality was burdened with heavy handed and often cliché choices which ultimately undermined the better aspects of the novel.

Wallace Price isn’t the nicest guy and he doesn’t care. There’s no time. After all, he’s a founding named partner at his law firm and that comes with long hours and a heavy work load. But when Wallace ends up meeting a Reaper at his own funeral, suddenly he’s faced with a situation he can’t argue himself out of. He may have been busy in life, but none of that matters now that he’s dead. When the Reaper takes him to meet his assigned ferryman Hugo, everything Wallace thought about his life and the world is about to get turned on it’s head. Hugo’s there to help him move on, but it’s a long road to acceptance and even in death one never knows what will happen along the way.

Under the Whispering Door starts strong. Not many books open by killing off their main character and then having him show up at his own funeral (even if no one else can see him). What unfolds is a story about processing grief, finding acceptance about the things you can’t change, and working on the things you can.

The first half the book frequently gets bogged down by characters essentially monologuing at each other. Klune seems to be using the novel as a way to process his own grief which gets in the way of progressing the story along. Readers who are dealing with recent bereavement, and are unfamiliar with the loss of those close to them, will likely find the book more helpful and comforting than those who are more familiar with the many ways that process works in reality. Grief is messy and difficult. It’s not a straight path and it’s different every time. Klune makes some gestures at recognizing that, but still trots out trite platitudes and continually falls back on the unhelpful and inaccurate stages of grief model that pop culture so adores. He also often falls into the trap of having one character explain the other character’s situation and emotions to them. This makes the first half of the books sometimes trying to get through despite light hearted scenes sprinkled throughout.

Once the book gets to the halfway mark, it picks up and the plot gets rolling. Even then, this is not a fast paced novel. It’s the story of one man learning to accept his death and learn from the mistakes he made in life. The progress of the plot is really the progress of Wallace on that journey. However, Klune makes a wildly fatal mistake at almost the very end of the novel that undermines everything he’d done up to that point. Normally I do not get into spoilers, especially major ones about the end of a novel. However, I cannot in good conscience not talk about the fundamental flaw in this book.

At the very end of Under the Whispering Door, Klune makes a profoundly unwise choice that fundamentally alters the entire plot and breaks the worldbuilding of this book. Throughout the book, particularly noticeable in the second half, there is flirting and unresolved sexual tension between Hugo and Wallace. This culminates in Wallace asking Hugo if he would have been interested if they’d met while Wallace was alive. Both characters recognize the reality of the situation and that they can never actually be together without this being discussed on the page. It’s a fundamental truth of the worldbuilding that has been gone over multiple times that once someone is dead they cannot come back to life and they must eventually move on.

Once Wallace is given an ultimatum to move on from this world, he comes to the realization that he is no longer part of the world and he needs to leave it for the living. In the text he professes a feeling of contentment and acceptance with his death that until this point has eluded him. It is a moving, sad situation where this character you have spent the entire novel following has to leave behind what could have been the love of his life because he found it too late. It’s upsetting, but getting to that point was the entire focus of Wallace’s story arc and the point of the entire novel.

At the very last minute, beyond the eleventh hour, Klune decides to deus ex machina Wallace back to life! While this obviously serves the function of a happily ever after ending (until one of them dies again) for the main pairing of the book, it fundamentally screws over everything that the rest of the novel is about. To take a book that has devoted a couple of hundred pages to often high handed monologues about the stages of grief and accepting death as an unalterable reality, and undead (or realive?) the main character who is supposed to have learned these lessons makes the book pointless.

I was willing to forgive the pages and pages of endless sometimes trite dialogue that could have come from any intro psychology course at your local college. I was willing to deal with the overly cliché ghost séance scene where Wallace moves a Ouija board planchette and writes on a chalk board like every bad ghost fiction work to ever exist. I was willing to overlook the plot not starting until literally halfway through the novel. There was great character building! Interesting world building! A UST filled main pairing! I don’t even like unhappy endings in romance novels, but this was not a romance novel. This novel for 98% of the length of the work is about grief and mourning and accepting death. You cannot at the very last minute decide to end with a romance novel cliché for a HEA ending and not destroy everything you just spent 200 plus pages creating. It was an utterly disastrous way to end and I will not even get into the epilogue where the rest of the ghost residents who have served as Hugo’s support system move on because now Hugo has a boyfriend so why would he need anything else.

Wallace Price is an uptight, corporate attorney who works all the time and has no relationships in his life. Then one day he dies unexpectedly. Then the journey of death begins--this is where it got interesting for me. I love the idea of interpreting what happens after death. He makes his way to a small tea shop and has time before he "crosses over" to the other side. Here, he makes real friends and real relationships--of which he was without in life. He starts to discover what life is really about. Death is also viewed and discussed and perhaps a bit better understood.

I absolutely love the humor that Klune intersperses in his novels. I genuinely chuckled throughout the book! I enjoyed the beginning the most, but then it really slowed down. It felt like not much happened in such a long remainder of the book. It all took place mostly in one location, perhaps that was part of the slowness. It was a study of life and relationships. All in all, it was entertaining and well handled.

Thank you to Net Galley, Tor Books, and TJ Klune for the electronic advanced copy for me to read and review.

I’d like to start out that I requested this arc after falling in love with House in the Cerulean Sea and I’m very grateful to be one of the few who received an ARC. That being said, it did not measure up to the extent of HITCS for me, but it did not take away from TJ Klune’s ablility to create a whimsical tale. I felt like I was being wrapped in a warm blanket the entire time I was reading. The character growth for our main character was astounding, and I really enjoyed watching the story unfold as the author tackles death and grief in a humorous and cozy way. Additionally, the subtle undertones of the romance did not overshadow the overall themes of the story. However, as heartfelt as it was, it may be heavy for some people. Regardless, it was an enjoyable read.

Like all TJ Klune books, this is an absolute masterpiece! The characters are captivating, and you will love getting to know them. This book definitely isn’t as warm and fuzzy as The House in the Cerulean Sea; grief is a major theme in Under the Whispering Door. Nevertheless, a story that will stick with you for years to come.

This was another hit from T.J. Klune. I’ve just finished this book last night and I was wrecked by the end of it! I don’t know what it is about his books, but they literally gut me by the end! I was full of all the emotions one could possibly go through, sadness, tears, happiness, laughter -- everything!

Wallace Price is a successful, but very arrogant attorney who only lives for his job. When he finds he is a ghost at his own funeral, being collected by a reaper, he starts to realize that he may actually be dead. He is taken on a journey to a funny-looking tea house where he meets the ferryman, Hugo. In this tea house, Wallace is guided through the meaning of life, acceptance of death, and moving on to the beyond.

Y’all, all I can say is that I’m an utter wreck after reading this one! Another wonderfully written This one started out slower for me, but once I really got into the meat and bones of the story I was breezing through it. Klune did a wonderful job of knitting humor and sorrow throughout this book. I was laughing at the jokes and I’m not going to lie, but I cried at multiple parts. I also loved the way in which Klune was able to write such quirky, loveable, flawed characters all while weaving queerness into it. As with HITCS, T.J. created a family bond with characters that are so different but just work so well together. I loved Hugo, Mei, Nelson, and Apollo -- they shaped Wallace so much and I just love them for who they were. This is one of the most beautiful stories I’ve read -- and the way in which Klune covered grief and loss in all of its different forms, I was captivated by it.

I just can’t fully put into words how much I loved this book! I’m so grateful to Netgalley, Tor Books for the ARC as well as all of our leaders with #mysterybookclub! Under the Whispering Door comes out today, so please go and buy it now!

This was my first book by TJ Klune and it was such an incredible adventure. His characters kept me so engaged and were so full of whimsy and personality that you can’t help but fall a little bit for each of them in one way or another. I love that Kline’s writing transports you to another world, allowing you to travel alongside his characters, find yourself lost in his story-telling and learn a valuable lesson by the end of your time with him. I truly cannot wait to read his other work!

Wow. I am lost for words. That was marvellous. The writing, the story, the humour, the grief, all the things. I laughed out loud and I sobbed so hard.

Getting myself a physical copy ASAP. So good.
Thank you to publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read an eArc. I’m so grateful.

Wallace Price wasn’t a nice man and certainly did not lead a great life. So when a reaper comes to take him to the afterlife, Wallace is just not having it. Once he realizes he is indeed dead he begins to see all that he missed out on, and bargains for more time to live the life he should have. Wallace is give 7 days to do all he can before he’s forced to cross over.

What can I say? T. J. Klune has done it again. If you are a fan of House in the Cerulean Sea like I am, you are sure to enjoy this one! This story hit me right in the feels, and once I cleared away my tears it wrapped me up in a warm squishy hug.

At its core this is a story about death- and coming to terms with death. While it is quite emotional at times, it’s also filled with humor, with a sweet love story tucked in. The love story snuck right up on me even though it’s there the entire time. It just wasn’t the focus.

Klune’s quirky and loveable characters remind us that it’s never too late to make positive changes in ourselves.

*Thank you to Macmillan/Tor-Forge and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC copy in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

TJ Klune has done it again. He has created such a beautiful story that you cannot help but fall in love with each and every character. I went through so many emotions reading this, many of which included tears streaming down my face. Klune remains king of the found family trope. Everyone would be better off as humans if they read this book. 5 stars. 10/10 would recommend to everyone. Tissues advised.

V.E. Schwab described TJ Klune's previous book, The House in the Cerulean Sea, as "like being wrapped up in a big gay blanket." I feel much the same way about Under the Whispering Door. Under the Whispering Door has the same coziness, humor, whimsy, and bittersweetness that I've come to expect from a TJ Klune book. I laughed, teared up, and came to adore the characters in this book. If you are looking for a comforting book about death, grief, and the afterlife that explores these themes in a kind and loving format, this is exactly the book for you. I personally am so happy to see a book that explores the death of a queer person in a way where the character's queerness is unrelated to their death. In fact, the main character's queerness is one of the most humanizing and uplifting parts of him.

I have rated this book four stars rather than five simply because I felt there were certain platitudes about death and grief included in the book that were too close to cliches for my taste.

Thank you to T.J. Klune, NetGalley, and Tor books for my ARC of “Under the Whispering Door” in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first read by Klune, although I had heard wonderful things about Klune’s “The House in the Cerulean Sea,” which I have on my TBR. However, I was more drawn to “Under the Whispering Door” because it appealed to my gothic-loving self (I love macabre, gothic, spooky).

As someone who has dealt with a lot of death in my young life, I found this book to be comforting. I think about death a lot, questioning the existential questions about “what is a good life?” and I think Klune successfully tackles that here.

I think for some, this book may be a heavier read than normal and people may need to take a breather or just time to sit with Klune is showing and asking us. I think he’s using Wallace as a mirror to hold up to the reader so we can evaluate our lives, decisions, and ask whether we’re going to end up like Wallace or if we are already Wallace and let it serve as a warning light. Life is so short, unexpected, and can be magical but many of us are riding the days, just struggling to get through to maybe have some time to enjoy this gift we have of being on this planet. And so many, including myself, squander it. It’s important to sit back and evaluate how we got to where we are, where we are likely to go, and how we can make changes for the better. And I think Klune really sets the reader to think about these things.

The setting was like a warm hug and oh my gosh do I wish Charon’s Crossing were a real place and I could be friends with these characters. After reading “Under the Whispering Door,” I am definitely adding more Klune to my TBR. I expect those who like Klune will absolutely enjoy this and I do sincerely hope that people take time to sit with what Klune has presented and do some serious life contemplation.

When I was filling in the stats on Storygraph for this book, one word stuck out greatly. And that was "reflective". I honestly don't think a better word could be used to describe yet another one of TJ Klune's incredibly heartfelt, queer-y, and just plain happy novels. It had the writing we're all used to from Klune and the dry humor that popped up sometimes truly had be dying. The book also took on character development to another level (more on that).

So, the book starts off with Wallace, top-tier asshole at this point in the book. We see him at his worst (?) when he fires a lady for one (?) incorrect action (that might not have even been her fault) and also revoked her daughter's scholarship. If that's not enough, Wallace truly felt there was nothing wrong with his actions. Fairly quickly though, our main character dies. Well, not actually. Ghost Wallace is at his funeral, where only the partners at his firm and his ex-wife are present (and a mysterious Asian lady he's never seen before). He questions why no one else is present and after some seriously heartfelt speeches (note sarcasm) from the guests at his funeral, Wallace is whisked off by Mei to see himself get buried and then ends up at Charon's Crossing.

Moving on, Wallace then meets Nelson, Apollo (the dog), and Hugo. That leads way to a paragraph about the characters (shocker). Nelson is the other resident (human) ghost at Charon's Crossing. He hasn't actually crossed through the door in the ceiling on the fourth floor of the house that clearly defies gravity (as evidenced by the cover) because he is staying there for his grandson, Hugo. Hugo is the ferryman who helps people cross through the door, he's the one who talks them through their death. Makes them accept it and not do anything completely rash (though he gives them all the freedom). There's Mei, the Reaper. She is the one who actually goes and gets the people's ghosts of those who died (like Wallace). And Apollo is just a super cute ghost dog.

The themes included in this novel were also so great. The way TJ Klune manages to weave heartbreak and love and death and life and grief and happiness altogether is so amazing. Death obviously being the most obvious considering the premise of the book, but somehow Klune was able to write that sometimes serious subject in a way that wasn't harsh or anything, and just showed how death was just a part of life. Simply that it was inevitable, but not final.

One thing, the thing that dropped my rating by half a star, that I disliked was the character development. I'm all for it don't get me wrong. I loved Wallace's development don't mistake that either. The only think I found lacking was the speed. I feel like though it was written out, it wasn't written enough. The book wasn't short, and any more might've made it tedious, but I feel like since it had a few chunky time skips we missed a lot of actual written progression of Wallace's personality.

Ultimately though, Under the Whispering Door is a near perfect novel that I absolutely loved almost every second of, that will get you cackling and half-crying, and truly will leave you thinking about it for at least a few days.

HUGE thank you to Tor Books, TJ Klune, and Netgalley for sharing this e-arc with me. The following review is my honest opinion and reflects my reading experience.

I fell in love with TJ Klune’s writing last year when I read The House in the Cerulean Sea. That book is so powerful and special. It has become one of my all time favorite books . . . easily in my top five. So when I heard that TJ was releasing a new book I was so excited. (Side note: I want to read his other series and I have a couple of his other books I just haven’t gotten to them yet). The cover and synopsis for Under the Whispering Door immediately captured my attention. I was THRILLED when I received the approval notification from Netgalley.

Under the Whispering Door is a really great book. Did it impact me as much as House did? No. But that does not take away from this story. Under the Whispering Door tells the story of Wallace, a man who recently died and is now being guided by his reaper and the ferryman. My absolute favorite part of Under the Whispering Door was the characters. TJ Klune truly has such an incredible gift of writing the most beautiful characters. Hugo, Mei, Norman, Apollo, and Wallace were all so special. I loved reading their day to day interactions in the tea shop. The relationships that develop between each of the characters are also so well done. I especially enjoyed Mei and Wallace’s friendship. When he first meets Mei, Wallace seemed determined to not like her. But he couldn’t resist her charm!! I grew attached to these characters and definitely shed a few tears.

Under the Whispering Door is primarily a character driven story. I like to read both character and plot driven stories, so I really enjoyed this one. However, I will say that the pacing was a bit off. Because of this I’m not sure I’m sold on the love story. My only other small qualm is that the big life lessons that Wallace learns throughout his time in the tea shop are fairly obvious. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it just wasn’t anything new.

Under the Whispering Door was a fantastic combination of heartbreaking and heartwarming. TJ Klune tells a beautiful story of grief, hope, and family complete with his signature warmth and humor. Reading TJ’s books feels like coming home. I am so glad that I discovered him!

UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR IS OUT SEPTEMBER 21ST, 2021.