CW: Death, grief, suicide, death of a child/animal/parent, murder, ghost-dog (character but my soft cinnamon heart can’t deal), panic attacks.

Actual rating: ~4.5~

Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’m just sitting here sobbing, because it’s just so beautiful. TJ knows how to create characters that bury themselves in your heart. Under The Whispering Door is an exploration of life after death and the different paths in which humans experience both life and death. Obviously strong content warnings for death and dealing with grief. There is also dealing with suicide. I’m struggling to articulate all my thoughts because I’m a ball of emotion instead. It was a rollercoaster of laughing so hard I cried, to actually bawling my eyes out.

As with House in the Cerulean Sea I fell in love with these characters and I know Apollo and Nelson are going to be with my heart for a long time. (The dog and the grandpa!) Wallace is a dickhead and I appreciate the Scrooge-ness and moral standing behind it. I still loved seeing them all grow and deal with grief in their own unique ways. Some areas of the characters did feel stereotypical and I’m still unsure how I feel about Mei’s character (i love her but) some comments surrounding her character made me raise an eyebrow or two; definitely want to see some OwnVoices reviews regarding this.

The plot was condensed in the fact we meander through getting to fall in love with the characters and the climax of the book taking part at 75% of the way through. I love narratives like this but I understand this writing style isn’t for everyone. The cottage core vibes, LGBT and anxiety rep were beautiful and the description of panic attacks hit very close to home. AND TEA! I fucking love tea and seeing the descriptions of tea and the connections gave me Tea Dragon Society vibes and ooft.

Overall, I loved this, my only hesitation in giving it 5 stars is Mei’s character.

I loved the setting, the vibes and I adore these characters.

I knew within the first 2-3 chapters that this book was going to be a 5 star read, as well as one of my all time favorites. The kind of book I recommend to most readers in my life. The fact that I "inhaled" it in the span of 24 hours speaks for itself. It was one of those bittersweet reading love affairs, when you get swept up in the moment but you also do not want it to end. You'll need two things for the complete enjoyment of this book: uninterrupted reading time and if you are anything like me, a box of kleenex (tissues). Full disclosure, I own but haven't yet read T.J. Klune's breakthrough book The House in the Cerulean Sea but now I understand what all the fuss was about. (and it means I'll be saving that book for a "special occasion").

The main protagonist of this book is Wallace Price, a very unlikable, workaholic lawyer suddenly dies of a heart attack. His highly organized, rigid existence is thrown for a loop not just by death but also by the appearance of a Reaper called Mei who disclosed that in order to cross to the "Other side" she will have to take him to a ferryman called Hugo. And that's where Wallace's story truly begins...at the end.

I saw this book described as "A Man Called Ove" meets "The Good Place" and I couldn't agree more. If you love offbeat characters Fredrik Backman brings to life, you will love this book. If you appreciate good storytelling, you will love this book. If you like your books to masterfully combine drama, humor, quirkiness, unforgettable characters and thoughtful explorations of "heavy" topics such as death, loss and grief; you will love this book. And if you are drawn to a touch of fantasy, carefully constructed imaginings of the afterlife combined with such a tender love story that will steal your heart, you will love this book. Wallace, Mei, Hugo, Nelson & Apollo will stay with you long after you have closed the pages of this book.

I am incredibly grateful to NetGalley & the publishers Macmillan-Tor/Forge for bringing this book into my life and giving me an early access copy in exchange for my honest review. This book will definitely find itself on the Goodreads Choice Award lists at the end of this year.

Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune

Wallace is told he has one week to cross over to the afterlife, so now he decides he must try living an entire lifetime in just seven days. He meets Hugo, the owner of a tea shop, Charon's Crossing, who promises to help him cross over. This is an uplifting and, at times, heartbreaking story about a life spent barely living at the office and a death spent building a home.

This is a standalone LGBTQIA+ paranormal fantasy novel. I have not any other novels by this author.

Check out Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune and be sure to get this standalone wherever you buy books!

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TAGS: fiction, LGBTQIA, paranormal, fantasy, death, dying, grief, loss, afterlife, cancer, suicide, suicidal thoughts, childhood death, adolescent death, depression, mental health

MY RATING: 4/5 stars

MY RATING SYSTEM:
1 star = I don't recommend the book
2 stars = I would not read the book again
3 stars = I enjoyed the book
4 stars = I liked the book and would recommend to others
5 stars = Everyone should read the book; I would read the book again & again

*Thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan-Tor/Forge, & TJ Klune for providing a free eARC in exchange for my honest review #UndertheWhisperingDoor #NetGalley @NetGalley #Macmillan #MacmillanTorForge @ForgeReads #TJKlune @tjklune @tjklunebooks

If you're expecting a sequel-like book to The House in the Cerulean Sea, reader beware because that is not what you'll get.

Thank you to Tor Books and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of Under the Whispering Door in exchange for my honest review.

Wallace Price is dead and no one really cares. In fact the only attendants at his funeral are his ex-wife, a couple partners from his law firm and one unknown women who turns out to be Mei, his Reaper. Mei has come to take Wallace to Hugo, his ferryman, who will help him navigate the beginning of his afterlife and helps Wallace to find peace to crossover. Hugo owns a tea shop where he knowns the perfect tea for anyone who enters, living or dead. Wallace isn't the only spirit at Hugo's tea shop as Hugo's deceased grandfather, Nelson, and long gone dog, Apollo. Through help from Hugo, Mei, Nelson, and Apollo, Wallace comes to term with the life he left and the legacy he could leave behind even if he's dead.

I knew going into this book that it would be quite a bit different from The House in the Cerulean Sea skimming other reviews. Even knowing that it took me until Chapter 11, a little over 45% into the book, to really get invested in the story. Once I hit the reading with Desdemona, the story really took off and I finished it in no time. Under the Whispering Door has a similar heartfelt feeling as Klune's other works but it deals with the heavy subject matter including death, suicide, death of a parent/child, and grief. Although I cared about what happened with the characters by the end, it took a lot longer to get invested in the story than I would like. I know I'm not alone with that feeling.

I enjoy his whimsy that he instills in a story even with one dealing with heavier subject matter as in this book. My rating is 3.5 stars (out of 5) more so because it took so long for me to get invested with the characters and the story. Parts of it, such as the romance, also felt very predictable and I wish it wasn't so. I'd like to see a continuation of this story with what happens at the end. There is definitely stories Klune could make within this universe if he chooses, at least in my opinion.

A huge thank you to NetGalley, McMillan- Tor/ Forge publishing, and of course TJ Klune for providing me with an eARC of this book. I am voluntarily leaving a review, all opinions are my own.

I was in the middle of Klune's other novel when I got the approval for this one, so I immediately dived into this one and was not disappointed by any means. Klune has such a way with words, this book was absolutely beautiful despite- and maybe a little because of- what it deals with: death.

This book had me crying more than once, it hit home in some big ways for me, and I honestly loved this book from beginning to end. I cannot wait to read anything else that Klune publishes and can't wait to own this book and read it again and again.

Sadly, this one missed the mark for me. I had such high hopes after the first chapter. I loved the tea shop setting and Klune’s trademark quirky characters, right down to their names. And that’s it. Those three things. I wanted The Midnight Library meets The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. Instead I got a story that passed slowly and tediously. Best paired with a sheet of homemade candy canes. XO, Tara

I love stories about reapers and the afterlife, so I knew I needed this book! I always find it so interesting the different variations cultures, religions, and imaginations have regarding what happens when someone passes. TJ Klune’s creative version did not disappoint. When Wallace dies, the reaper, Mei, a feisty, fun young woman new to the art soul collecting, leads him to the ferryman, Hugo. Hugo, an attractive and compassionate tea enthusiast, runs the tea shop and helps souls move to the next stage of afterlife through a mysterious attic door in the shop.

TJ Klune provides so much depth and connection to his characters and in such a gentle, subtle way. I loved seeing Wallace slowly open up from a closed off, work-obsessed businessman to a caring and selfless man through various trials and self-reflection. His and Hugo’s romance is slow building and brings all the feels. So many different elements, big and little, gave me smiles throughout the novel: the tea shop is called Charon’s Crossing (which I just thought was perfect:), Hugo’s grandfather is a hilarious prankster, there is a ghost dog who loves his owner too much to pass on, a quirky deity and so much more that held my interest while journeying thought this whimsical tale. This story has fantastical creatures, heart-warming moments, thought-provoking questions, lovable characters and valuable lessons that will stay with me.

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillian-Tor/Forge for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a sweet heartwarming story with a small side of queer romance.
Wallace is a cut throat lawyer who gets an opportunity to redeem himself in the afterlife.
This was a very interesting modern and hopeful interpretation of what happens to us after we die. Is there a second chance? How far removed are we from the land of the living?

I was intrigued by TJ Klune’s imagination. This book did have a YA vibe to it though. The romance is very PG and the repercussions of death was quite mild. Even the scenes with ghost who were murdered or committed suicide were a tasteful surface level. This makes the book appealing to all others, but I found Wallace got off easier than Scrooge in A Christmas Carol.
This story is a feel good book with typical Klune humors. I enjoyed it!

This whimsical story focuses on expressions of grief, how to cope with loss in such a loving and gentle way. Both insightful and deep without being heavy, I was smiling ear to ear then shedding a few tears, this one has it all.

This was my first and not my last TJK book for sure, next up The House in the Cerulean Sea!

Thank you to NetGalley and TOR reading for my ARC

Wallace Price is an a-hole…and he’s dead.

A reaper, Mei, comes to collect him from his own funeral and take him to Charon’s Crossing Tea and Treats. The tea house is a transition point from this life to ‘what’s next’. Wallace refuses to cross over though, and the more time he spends at the tea house, with the rag-tag bunch of reaper / ferryman / ghosts, the more he actually learns about living and all the things he missed out on in life. Essentially, it took Wallace dying for him to find his humanity and work out what is truly important.

As always, the author has created such wonderful characters (both main and supporting) and I was getting some major Terry Pratchett vibes, which I’m always ok with.

There is some romance, but just like in The House in the Cerulean Sea, it isn’t the whole focus of the story. Parts of this one felt a tad bit slow, but overall I enjoyed it and while the point of the story really hits you over the head, it’s a good point so I think it’s ok that it isn’t very subtle.

“We’re all on different paths, but death doesn’t discriminate. It comes for everyone. It’s what you do with it that sets you apart.”

TJ Klune is a master storyteller and Under the Whispering Door is a work of outstanding artistry. When protagonist Wallace, an uptight lawyer and downright asshole dies suddenly of a heart attack he is given the opportunity to confront his life in a half way stop for the dead. This purgatory is disguised as a quirky tea shop filled with a cast of eccentric characters both alive and dead. During this enchanting journey Wallace learns about compassion, friendship, forgiveness, and love. Klune’s ability to create a hopeful fairy tale out of loss is astounding. His ability to illustrate charming and vibrant settings transports his readers to the magical tea shop and also invites them to join the family that Wallace learns to love. As Wallace grows so do we, asking ourselves what we want out of life and who we want to be. From beginning to end Under The Whispering Door will make you laugh and cry while questioning the point of it all, as Wallace affirms “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, the bad, the beautiful and the ugly.”

Thank you to @netgalley @torbooks and @tordotcompub for the advanced copy! This book come@to shelves on Tuesday!!! Run don’t walk!!!

A big city, high strung lawyer sent to a form of rural purgatory. I found the beginning to move a little slow, but as the main character comes to terms with his new situation, the story unfolds with a very heartwarming and thought-provoking tone.

This is a story about death, and about grief, and about how everything carries on despite those. Wallace starts out as this unsympathetic man who has dedicated his life to his job, at the expense of everything else. His marriage failed, he has no friends, no one at his place of work really likes him, and so on, and so forth. Then he suffers a heart attack, and comes to as a ghost at his own funeral. Barely anyone shows up, and while he's annoyed and upset, a Reaper shows up to hurry him along to a ferryman, who in turn will send him off to whatever comes next. The ferryman, Hugo, runs a little tea shop off the beaten path, and he assures Wallace that he can go when he's ready, and Wallace definitely doesn't feel ready.

Little by little, we get to follow Wallace as he starts to make sense of the things he missed in life, and how he is slowly starting to do and experience those things in his undeath. And this really is the bulk of the story. The event on the back (he only has a week before he has to pass on) happens fairly late into the story, but it was no less an emotional roller coaster.

As Wallace finds an unlikely place in the little house, we get to meet and follow along several people and their ways of handling grief, surviving the loss of loved ones, or finding peace in their own loss, and all of it is heartbreaking and beautiful. While so many of their stories are incredibly sad (losing a child, being murdered, losing their partner, taking their own life, losing family in an accident), the book vibrates with a sense of hope. Yes, death happens. Loss is terrible. But there is also hope for something better, for making your own peace with that loss, for finding a way to carry on.

I have lost many people in my life to age, to illness, to accidents, to suicide. In the past year and a half alone, I've lost over a handful of people, both close and not. And this book was just exactly what I needed to read. I had several hard but good cries while reading this, and I am making sure to pick up a physical copy for future occasions when I may need this little reminder that after grief, there can be hope.

Thanks to NetGalley, Mac Millan,/Tor to send me a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own

This book was a delight to read; when I started, I didn't want to stop.

Some of the characters are despicable, but they have something in them that makes them likeable. I love to see them evolve even in death and I become attached to them. I wasn't prepared to have that many characters and so many stories. Yes, we have the past of who they are/were, and those passages were so exciting and so real.

In this book, you also have some hints of his previous book, The House on the Cerulean Sea. Those elements mess a little with me as I wanted to know why they were here.

The ending was so beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. I was surprised by the epilogue; I didn't see this coming, and I'm still not okay with it.

Even if the theme of this book is hard as it talks about death, it's done beautifully, and it's not as sad as we think it would be. In fact, you sometimes have funny scenes. And especially one where I needed a break as I was laughing out loud.

There is a certain magic that I liked in his previous book and that I found here again.

“Under the Whispering Door” by T.J. Klune
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: 9/21
Genre: Fantasy
Ebook 📱

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC! It was wonderfully amazing! This is my second Klune book and I’m in love with the writing. This book captures so many emotions!
Life is many things; short, complicated, unexpected, but most of all what you make it.

Wallace is a truly unlikeable character. He slowly begins to redeem himself throughout the book. Wallaces only care in life was his work. Eat, sleep, breath, law, repeat. He has zero friends and he didn’t want it any other way. His expensive suits and fancy home was telling enough. One Sunday while getting some last minute work done he had a sudden heart attack and died. When a reaper named Mei comes to collect him he cannot fathom being dead. He is taken to a small village Tea shop where the ferryman Hugo was waiting to help him cross over. Wallace can take his time coming to terms with his death as long as he stay on the tea shop grounds. Throughout his stay Wallace learns things about himself. He also begins to realize what he has been missing. How will the story end for Wallace?

Thank you NetGalley for this highly anticipated ARC!! I have no words and many words regarding this novel all at the same time. I LOVED IT! I think I can finally say TJ Klune is one of my top authors. This novel didn't quite crack #1 against Cerulean Sea for me, but it was still enjoying as all his books are. This book makes you feel all the emotions throughout the journey that TJ takes the reader on. I highly enjoy how one moment I can be laughing out loud to the point where my husband is concerned to the next moment I can feel great sadness for the characters. This book is heavier than his others and I am glad TJ put a warning at the beginning of the book. Everyone deals with loss in one way or another and the different aspects and means of death that were covered were really good. Certain characters will hit readers differently and I think that's what helps make this book all the more special for readers as everyone will take something different from it. I believe that I am not the only one who, after reading this book, will be sad that they cannot spend their days drinking tea and reading books at Charon's Crossing. Thank you again to NetGalley for this ARC!

Now time to wait for Heat Wave as I cannot get enough of TJ's books!!

A beautiful mix between The Good Place and A Christmas Story (think Ebenezer Scrooge), Under the Whispering Door is a sweet story of redemption and what it means to love in life and beyond. The characters are lovable and fully fleshed out. I loved this story from start to finish and I’m so sad that it’s over. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC.

Review posted to StoryGraph and @thebookandcover on Instagram

Read if you like: dark, morbid fantasy, discussions around living life to the fullest.
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Wallace has died and he has to come to terms with that. He is taken to a tea shop where he meets Hugo, a ferryman who helps spirits cross over.
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I loved Wallace's journey in this book and how he figured out how to be a better person. Hugo was also lovely. He was compassionate and empathetic and truly just wanted to help as many as he could. The sense of humour in this book was also written in an amazing way.
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CW: death, heart attack, murder, loss of a loved one.

I’m forever fascinated by the myriad ways in which humans explore conceptualizations of the afterlife. By its very nature, we will never have concrete answers about death, and I find the endless well of speculation about death as a concept one worth returning to. Via main character Wallace’s journey after he dies suddenly and wakes up as a ghost at his own funeral, Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune explores themes of grief, loss, trauma, love, and what it means to live at all.

First off, those who loved The House in the Cerulean Sea should expect a significant tone shift, even if elements such as humor and lovable secondary characters remain consistent. This shift worked well for me; compared to other works by Klune I’ve read, where the drama veered straight into melodramatic, Under the Whispering Door offered much more consistency and believability in the serious moments. With one caveat I’ll explain later, I felt the emotional beats landed well in this novel and can see many folks being moved to tears by various sections of the novel. The serious moments are interspersed with humor and lighten the mood with varying degrees of success; if you enjoy humor that is often witty, sometimes slapstick, sometimes morbid, this book fits the bill.

As always, I appreciated how unapologetically queer this novel was, not only with central characters Wallace (bi) and Hugo (gay), but with other secondary characters you meet along the way. The secondary characters, in particular Hugo, Mei, Nelson, and Apollo were huge delights to me. The first half of this novel has a distinctly slice of life feel and approach; most scenes revolve around characters having conversations, and its through those conversations that you really get to know the supporting cast. I did find the first half slower for that reason, though not in a bad way, but readers who are looking for an plot-packed read from beginning to end may struggle. I also enjoyed the supernatural elements of ghosts, Reapers, and the enigma that is the Manager a great deal.

My main (and personal) issue with Under the Whispering Door, to be frank, is Wallace.

It’s hard to talk about the details without going into spoiler territory, but from the jump, we learn that Wallace is a privileged, rich, cis white man who treated everyone in his living life, from his ex-wife to one of the non-partner employees at his law firm, like absolute garbage. Even after he dies, he’s still an absolute asshole to everyone he can interact with around him for a considerable amount of time. I found it incredibly difficult to garner ANY sympathy in myself for Wallace, which made a lot of the book difficult to stomach as a result. While I recognize one of the bigger thematic goals of this novel is to explore the idea of redemption and healing—and I know some folks who have read the book will see this review and be like, ‘I think you’re missing the point!’—I was not sold on Wallace’s character arc, which means I didn’t buy into one of the biggest premises the novel operates on: that everyone, no matter how awful, no matter how much you think they’re beyond saving, is worth your care and compassion. Wallace was deeply, deeply unlikeable to me from start to finish, and though I tried to remain open to changing my opinion on him, it did not budge.

This subsequently meant the romance did not work quite as well for me as it may for some readers. I absolutely loved Hugo and appreciated how empathetic, sensitive, and caring he was. What I didn’t understand is why he would care about Wallace in particular beyond the compassion he shows to each and every spirit he guides to the afterlife. Pacing wise, there were also some issues to me; the novel goes from having them approach each other with extreme reservation to being super in love in a short amount of time, and (imo) with very little supporting action or evidence to justify this shift in their relationship. For the life of me, I could not see what Hugo would see in Wallace, which made the romance fall flat.

Overall, Under the Whispering Door will be a heartfelt, poignant, satisfying read for many. If you enjoy emotional reads that offer powerful reflection on death, grief, and what it means to be alive, and as long as you expect heavier, more serious themes than Klune’s last novel, you will likely enjoy this book more than I did.

Thank you to Tor Books and NetGalley for an advance review copy. All opinions are my own.

This book gave me all the feels. I loved the characters, the premise, the message, the dialogue, everything! So many times while reading, I caught myself with a big smile on my face. It was funny and touching.