“We rise and we fall and then we rise once more. 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.”

UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR is a queer love story between a ferryman to the afterlife and a ghost who refuses to cross over, and a powerful novel about death, grief, and the meaning we give life. I loved so much of this book but also had mixed feelings about a few aspects. There are many rich and beautiful themes explored here: accepting death, your own and others’; understanding what makes a life good and well-lived; the value of actually being there for someone, giving them time to process and heal, not rushing them; allowing yourself space to grieve what has been lost and what can never be undone; acknowledging the ways you’ve failed but allowing that to push you into being better, instead of into despair. The story plays out in an absolutely magical quirky tea shop setting, where healing happens over a toasty scone and the perfect blend of leaves and conversations with an attentive listener. The idea of the afterlife as a bureaucracy with a by-the-book mid-level manager enforcing not strictly necessary rules is kind of brilliant, and the dynamic of a good-hearted person trying to do their best to care for others in a system that is at best indifferent is very resonant. The main characters form a lovely little found family, teasing each other while showing their care deeply. Nelson and Hugo are both fantastic characters, and I’m obsessed with Mei’s sarcasm and propensity for knives. While I’m generally a sucker for stories about prickly repressed people learning to be free and open themselves up to love, Wallace’s character didn’t really do it for me. The whole bit is that he’s a selfish jerk who redeems himself, but I’m not sure he does. I still don’t really understand why Hugo falls for Wallace - that could have been better motivated in the text. It doesn’t help that it’s three people of color helping to rehabilitate this privileged white guy, which, yeah. Also, this is kinda minor, but there’s a moment where Wallace changes his outfit and accidentally puts on a bikini (it’ll make more sense if you read that part), which then becomes a recurring joke. I don’t like when men wearing traditionally femme clothing is used as a point of humor; it’s on the fringes of transphobic and it’s also just low-hanging fruit. I went into this book a bit skeptical of Klune and that may have impacted how deeply it resonated with me. Overall it is a really beautiful and impactful queer story about life and death, regret and redemption, grief and love, from a writer who knows how to pack a punch and keep his delightful characters at the heart. Thank you to Tor Books for the eARC and to Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

“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.”

Content warnings: death of a loved one, anxiety (including panic attacks) and depression, suicide

In the familiar trope of the curmudgeon turned good guy, we find this adorable tale by TJ Klune. Wallace, our protagonist/grump finds himself dead. In order for him to make his way to the other side, he needs the help of a ferryman named Hugo. Wallace and Hugo form an unlikely bond and it turns out Wallace isn't such a bad guy after all. The writing is fun and quirky and even though there are parts that are predictable, it is a wonderful book. The characters are incredibly likeable (the grandfather is by far the best) and there are definitely laugh out loud moments.
If you like Fredrik Backman or other charming, offbeat stories; you will like this.

5 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
I would definitely be recommending this book to readers on my Instagram bookstagram account.

I was smitten with this authors work when I read The House on the Cerulean Sea so I have been patiently waiting for TJ Klune to write his next book. I love audiobooks so when NetGalley offered me a copy I was excited. I'm not sure if I had high expectations or maybe it was the cute factor that won me over with the first book, but I was disappointed with this book. I didn't dislike it, I'm not a huge reader of Sci-fi/fantasy and this book met both of those requirements. Wallace was a likeable character and the writing is good, but it just wasn't my type of read. I have friends who love Fantasy and they really enjoyed it, so their opinion would be much more accurate them mine.

TJ Klune has done it again! I loved this book. The author's ability create these amazing, complex characters make the stories so good. This one had some darker topics, but in the end it all wrapped up quite nicely. I really enjoyed the journey of Wallace, and I would highly recommend this book to others. The narration was also well done, and if you love audiobooks, this is a great one to listen to!

Another emotional hit from TJ Klune. While I did not enjoy this one as much as The House in the Curlean Sea, it still had a beautiful message with some interesting characters.

I found that these characters where a bit harder to be invested in. I never found myself directly rooting for them or needing any resolution. Ironic, considering the topic of the book.

The narrator was intriguing, but I felt the need for a bigger dynamic between the voices of each character. Some of them sounded the same in both tone and inflection, to the point that there were a few times I zoned out of the story.

Under the Whispering Door is the story of Wallace Price and what happens after his death. Everyone goes to a ferryman when they die to help them prepare for crossing over. But it is not as simple as that, especially if you are Wallace. Usually the five stages of death are for the people one leaves behind but not in this case. Death seems to be the one thing that helps Wallace Price live.

This is such a fun book. It is a story of different/special people who through what they are meant to do find each other and their callings. This is a book for any reader. I think everyone could enjoy this one.

Is not a secret that I absolutely loved The House in the Cerulean Sea. It made me a fan of T.J. Klune. So of course I was going to read his next book.

Under the Whispering Door had me at Apollo. Who doesn't like a ghost dog that is always happy to see you and lick you to death? (no pun intended)

Ok, maybe it had me at more. Quirky characters, a tea shop, a love story, and learning the lesson to be a better person and to enjoy life while you can. These are all things I took away from the story.

Wallace Price is a ruthless lawyer. When the book begins he is firing an employee who is already in an economic bind. For Wallace, the only thing that matters is his job. He spends enough hours to know this is what gives him satisfaction. His marriage failed because his priority was his job. So when Wallace suffers a heart attack and dies, no one is more shocked than him. Shocked and angry that is.

Wallace meets his reaper first, Mei at his own funeral. She is there to take him to the Ferryman who would help Wallace understand what is happening to him and then guide him to the next step. When they arrived at Charon's Crossing Tea and Treats, Wallace meets Hugo, the Ferryman, the ghost of Hugo's grandfather, Nelson, and Hugo's ghost dog, Apollo.

As the days progress, Wallace goes through similar stages of grief and he begins to understand and assimilate that he is dead. Then, the Manager shows up and gives him 7 more days before crossing and Wallace sets himself to right some wrongs before it's too late.

I listened to the audio which was fantastic. The narrator Kirt Graves does an amazing job at separating all the characters and making them fun to listen to. It made it so smooth and clear. Never doubting which "voice" was talking.

As I said earlier, Under the Whispering Door was charming and quirky in the most endearing way!


Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Tor Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

When I started this book I honestly didn't think that I would like it, but the more I read the more I loved it. It was a beautifully written wholesole but heartbreaking novel exploring grief, death, what comes after, love, friendship, and family.

The characters were fantastic. ALSO THERE IS A GHOST DOG.
I highly recommend reading Under the Whispering Door.

I read both the kindle arc of this book and I reread it by listening to the audiobook after it was released. I thought the narrator did a great job! I am looking forward to reading more from TJ Klune!

Thank You Netgalley and publisher for allowing me the chance to read this novel.

This was a charming tale about life and death. In the opening pages Wallace Price drops dead of a heart attack. Mei, Wallace's reaper, brings Wallace to a tea shop in the woods where he meets Hugo, the ferryman, as well as Hugo's grandfather, Nelson, and Hugo's dog, Apollo.

While at the tea shop Wallace learns about what it means to love, to live, and what it means to die. Klune was able to write about death, a topic often taboo in society, was refreshing and thoughtful. Death is final. A river only moves forward.

The thing that bothered me about this book is that through the entire book, everyone is telling Wallace that death is final, he is dead, he can only move forward, onto the next life, and then the Manager comes in the end to give him his life back. Don't get me wrong, I loved that Hugo and Wallace could finally be together and love each other, but that was the picture perfect ending we all wanted. In reality, we die and we must move on. So part of me wanted to see Wallace move through the entire process. For me, the ending missed the point of the entire book.

In the end, this was a very sweet tale of love, life, and death, told in a uplifting way. This was a fresh perspective on a sensitive topic. I will be recommending this book!

I absolutely loved The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune, so I had very high expectations of Under the Whispering Door! THe audiobook delivered!

I'll be honest, I had a hard time getting into the ebook version, however, the audiobook had be falling in love! There are parts that are a bit slow as characters and story develop, so the ebook didn't move quickly enough for me but the audiobook moved at a clip that kept me totally engrossed.

This story and the characters are so incredibly lovable. You will want to jump into this world and meet them, hug them and sit down for a cup of tea with them! The atmosphere is soothing and welcoming as well. This may be an odd thing to describe a book environment as, but I mean it! The tea shop is simply serene.

The story tackles tough subject matter delicately and portrays an all inclusive group of characters.

TJ Klune does it again! I can’t Express enough how much this book touched my heart and left an impression that will not be long forgotten. This book is in wonderful exploration on grief, finding yourself, making connections, and ensuring that we live the life we are meant to live holding those we love most close. I simply can not wait for the next book that arrives from TJ Klune. Well done and keep em coming!

Wallace Price is a 40 year old bi-sexual, hugely successful lawyer, but with no human connection – he’s divorced, and ruthless in all his dealings with opponents, clients, and staff. Then one day he dies of a massive heart attack, alone in his office. Wallace is confused about what’s going on until he finds himself at his own funeral, where there’s no one to mourn him. He’s surprised to find one woman he doesn’t recognize at his funeral who apparently can see and hear him … Mei, a reaper on her first solo job. That job being to take him to a ferryman, who will ease his transition to the next world. Wallace is even more surprised to find that where she takes him is a tea shop named Charon’s Crossing, run by the ferryman, Hugo, who is gay, black, and 30 – and very much alive.
There is a quote hanging on the wall of the tea shop: “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.” Over the time Wallace spends at the tea shop, he will learn a lot about himself, his feelings, putting others before yourself, and ultimately becoming family.
The book is a wonderful exploration of various stories of death and grief, but although it will bring you to tears at times, it’s ultimately uplifting, and hopeful. By turns heartwarming, heartbreaking, humourous, and even hilarious (there’s a part where the ghosts at the tea shop band together to chase out a fake psychic that had me laughing out loud in the car!). I picked it up based on the cover and description, but was surprised to love it quite as much as I did! An enthusiastic 5 stars.

TJ Klune does not disappoint. Under the whispering door is the queer paranormal romance novel we didn't know we needed. When Wallace was alive, he was not a nice man. As a ghost, he has a lot to learn about himself before he can cross over. Hugo is the ferryman who is there to help. Wallace is a tough character to like, but Hugo is exceedingly patient. Klune gives a new cast of characters to love.

This is truly a beautiful book. Under the Whispering Door is the story of Wallace, a curmudgeonly middle-aged lawyer who dies unexpectedly of a heart attack. He is sent to a purgatory of sorts, in the form of a tea shop run by Hugo, a ferryman who helps those who have died cross over to the other side. When it is deemed by The Manager that Wallace has overstayed his welcome, he is given one week to make his journey to the other side. Will Wallace manage to change now that he's dead? Or will he stay the same selfish curmudgeon that he was when he died? This book is for anyone who has experienced grief, will experience grief, or is experiencing grief right now. TJ Klune manages to take a hard topic and make it relatable. He doesn't speak down to the reader or make the story trite in any sort of way; he just tells a beautiful story that is sure to squeeze your heart and touch your feelings deeply.

I received an audio version from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. Honestly, if this had been a paper or e book, I wouldn't have finished it. I also didn't like the narrator's rather unusual voice for Wallace and as the narrator though his voices for the other characters were fine. Since it was an audiobook and was stored on my tablet, it was just easy to start when I got back in the car and to carry while walking to work. Essentially, sheer laziness got me to finish it. The occasional pause followed by the rare amusing comment kept me going. It reminded me of the tv show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sometimes the the little, almost after thought "bon mots" at the end (usually said by Spike) were better than the entire episode.

The book was slow and rather boring with familiar tropes retold in a slightly different way in an unusual tea shop setting. Truthfully, the setting could have been anywhere for all the teashop added to the story. Basically, like A Christmas Carol, an unpleasant person realizes what a jerk they'd been and changes for the better. The last 20% did move a long better and there was nice resolution for all the characters.

I read Cerulean Sea and saw a lot of similarities. Wondering if all the author's works have the same basic set up with a main male LGBTQ character that lives a less than ideal life, is forced to be around others and comes to realize what he's been missing and decides to make a change.

So, I felt the book was OK when I finished it due to the occasional use of humor to liven things up, the extra segments which made the story more involved than A Christmas Story and the satisfactory wrap up, but I don't know of anyone I'd say, "Read this, you'll enjoy it."

Wow, this audiobook blew me away. The narrator did an excellent job portraying Klune's story and characters. I love the cozy fantasy vibes. The only issue I had was with the NetGalley Shelf app, where going over 1x speed causes background noise which makes it very hard to listen.

Another home run by TJ Klune! I listened to a portion of the audio book that I received thanks to Macmillan and was loving the story of Wallace, Mei, and Hugo until life intervened and put me off track for a bit. I then picked up a physical copy for a trip and read it way too fast because I can't go back and enjoy it again for the first time. Klune is masterful at great characters and I thoroughly enjoyed, and highly recommend, this book. I did appreciate the trigger warning on the audio and in the physical book so there is forewarning to us librarians in recommending this book, especially to teen readers.

"I'm dead," he said. "There's no going back from that. A river only moves in one direction."

TJ Klune's books have become a place where my heart can get a zap like a defibrillator pedal. Both Under a Whispering Door and Under the Cerulean Sea tread the line between sentimental and sweet, but Klune is such a skilled writer that I never drift to the wrong side of that line.

Instead, after I get done with his books, and for this review, I will be talking about the newly released Under the Whispering Door; I feel good about myself and good about the world. I hope that somewhere in the vastness of this universe, there are true stories like what you find in these books. In the infinite, anything is possible. But until I discover and am witness to real-life stories that are as sweet as these, I will have to go back and read Under the Whispering Door again and again.

Wallace whispered, "It's easy to let yourself spiral and fall."
"It is," Nelson agreed. "But it's what you do to pull yourself out of it that matters most."

The book follows Wallace Price Esq. A big-time lawyer and partner in a law firm. He is everything a someone who does not practice law expects lawyers to act. In that vein, Wallace is an immediately identifiable character, not one you can sympathize with, but absolutely one you understand. He is cold, calculating, ruthless, and utterly devoid of the ability to empathize.

These characteristics served him well. He is smartly dressed and expects the same of those around him. He is crushingly fastidious and again expects this of others. Any infraction on this is met with cold civility and a pink check. In other words, he is hated by his employees, has no friends, and his contemporaries are either terrified of him or believe him to be a cretin.

Then he dies. Alone. This starts the actual journey.

He wakes up from death at his funeral. There was no gnashing of teeth and wailing to the Heavens. Quite the contrary. "He was a real bastard." Everyone is ignoring him; no one can see him. He is dead, so it makes sense except for one woman. She keeps staring in his general direction. She introduces herself, her name is Mei, and she is a reaper. She has come to take Wallace onwards.

She takes him to a place, a shabby chic little tea house in the middle of the forest. A place that Wallace would never have visited in his life but is now staying at in his death. Mei introduces Wallace to Hugo, the ferryman. Hugo's job is to help Wallace get used to the idea that he is dead before he steps through the final door. A door where Wallace hear's whispers coming from underneath it.

The writing is lovely. Klune writes in a minimalistic style; he gets the ideas across in prose that is not overly embellished or wordy but still packs an emotional punch. "Because you're you, and that's who you're supposed to be." It is also hilarious, and there is one scene involving an ouija board that had me in tears.

Klune is so good, and his books keep having me come back for more because of the relationships he forges. There are many types of love in this life, or death as it were. There is familial love. The love of found family. The love of a dog. And the love between lovers. Klune explores them all. Because what can teach someone most about life more than love? Love spans the gamut from Blisteringly painful to joyous, and Wallace needs to learn to be a person.

Under the Whispering Door is a joyous book, a little slow at first, but things start to get rolling about midway, and I finished it all in one afternoon. It has passion, love, pain, and all the beautiful things life has to offer if you can recognize it and appreciate it. Thank you, TJ Klune, for another lovely book. I won't be forgetting Wallace's journey anytime soon.

I received this audiobook from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wallace Price is not a good man. When he dies Wallace isn’t ready to abandon his life that he worked so hard for. A reaper comes and takes Wallace to a tea shop where the mysterious Manager gives him a week to cross over.

This is such a sweet contemporary fantasy! Wallace dies and in doing so finds a reason for living and what living can truly mean.

I didn’t cry, like many other readers did, but I love this book just the same. It’s definitely one that I will reread in the future.