I didn't think I could love a book as much as I love Klune's Cerulean Sea. But Puppets was just as wonderful, just as heart-warming, and just as beautiful. And it's about robots. Yes, a book that teaches about family and humanity is about robots. And it. is. perfect. I laughed. I cried. And I will hold this book deep in my soul, just as I continue to do with Cerulean Sea. TJ Klune can do no wrong.

3.5 stars

Okay so I loved so many parts of this book and found that others dragged on and I was reading with my eyes crossed. At its core it was a beautiful story of humanity. I loved the characters especially nurse ratched. If the book was a little shorter I think I would have enjoyed it more. I loved the parts in the woods and with Victor and his dad.

Thank you netgalley and Tor Publishing for the earc in exchange for an honest review.

TJ Klune never disappoints! He always creates such vivid characters in such a lush setting. I always find it hard to pick a favourite character in his books. It's not my favourite from his, but I still enjoyed reading this nevertheless.

“A real boy and his wooden heart. No strings attached.”

As with Klune’s previous novels, In the Lives of Puppets was also filled with charm, heart and wonder. Deep in the heart of a peculiar forest, we meet inventor and android, Giovanni Lawson and his human son, Vic. We also meet the hilarious robots Nurse Ratched and Rambo. They are all a family, hidden and safe.
Vic enjoys salvaging and repairing robots, much to his father’s chagrin. One day he repairs an android named HAP, not realizing that HAP shares a dark past with Giovanni—a past spent hunting humans. This alerts the authorities of Giovanni’s hiding place in the forest, and he is taken away to his old laboratory in the City of Electric Dreams. Now Vic, Nurse Ratched, Rambo and HAP have to save his father and embark on a grand and dangerous adventure.
The banter between the robots is just hilarious. Rambo has become one of my favorite book characters, and I could see this translating to such a great movie one day. I will say, Cerulean Sea remains my favorite Klune novel, and honestly I think it always will be. But this take on Pinocchio mixed with the Wizard of Oz, and a touch of Swiss Family Robinson is a delightful and heartwarming read. I look forward to anything Klune writes in the future.

Klune is the master of cozy. He writes relationships in the most beautiful and thought provoking way. I wasn't sure how I would feel about this one when I read the premise, but I shouldn't have doubted Klune's ability to take any scenario and make it heartwarming. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book about three-fourths of the time reading. I loved Rambo and Ratched (two robots of the main cast) and the relationship they had with Victor (the human main character). I also appreciated the inclusion of an asexual main character and the consistent way the book addresses sexuality as a spectrum. I also felt that Victor’s asexuality was handled well, including the fact that he was not aromantic. The beginning half of the book, which takes place in the forest as shown on the cover, was my favorite part. It focuses on interesting characters and relationships and still managed to discuss some deeper aspects.

For me, everything went downhill in Part 3 (once they reached the City of Electric Dreams.) I liked the Blue Fairy’s presentation as a non-gendered being and a proponent of free will – but it didn’t make sense to me that they’d oversee a robot brothel. Or that a robot brothel would even exist. It just felt like an odd choice. The romance between Victor and HAP likewise felt ratcheted up in this section, but in a way that felt weird compared to the slower, gentler movements earlier in the book.

The longer they were in the city and away from the isolated forest, the less I was invested. I think I missed the character depth and intimacy. The action in the city was predictable and didn’t have as much focus on the characters’ growth. I did like the last fourth of the book and the resolution, which were more like the first half of the book.

I’m struggling writing a review for this one because I’m honestly not sure how I feel about it. I thought it was a very creative and imaginative story. There were times when I was loving the story and then there were times, I was so bored I didn’t want to pick it up. I loved the characters, their banter, and I thought Rambo was hilarious. I also enjoyed the overall themes of love and friendship, but there was just something missing with this book. Maybe because I LOVED The House in the Cerulean Sea so much that I had high expectations for this one, but overall I felt the book was just okay and the ending fell flat.

Blog:
This is a loving and detailed send-up to Pinocchio. I hadn’t seen the movie in years, and it still stirred up memories for me. When I went to look up the original book version’s plot to compare to this retelling, I found even more details I hadn’t realized or remembered. It’s obvious the author loves Pinocchio, and if you do too, I’m expecting you’ll likely love this retelling. For me, the problem is, I was so excited about a new T.J. Klune book that I sort of…forgot I don’t like Pinocchio. (“Don’t like” is a gentle remembrance. In fact, the movie absolutely terrified me as a child.) Even so, I found myself able to appreciate this loving rendition of the story.

I absolutely adored the character of Rambo – the tiny robot vacuum who’s clearly supposed to be a later generation of roombas. As always, I liked the narrative style the author uses – it reads as sing-songy in my head and feels like someone telling me a fairy tale, which is perfect for this book. I liked the wide variety of robots inhabiting the world, and I really enjoyed the robot substitute for the traveling circus character. I also appreciated that this isn’t an exact retelling of Pinocchio. The story is sometimes restrained, with simple allusions to the original. For example, Victor is never turned into a donkey, but he does stay the night in a hotel like room that is decorated with donkeys at about the right point in the story.

I appreciated the flipping of Pinocchio (Victor in this telling) as being human with his father being a “puppet” (a robot). But I felt like the ending really lets that inversion down, not taking it to its full and complete conclusion. I think there’s supposed to be humor in this book, but it wasn’t funny to me. You will know within the first few chapters if it’s tickling your funny bone or not.

I also found myself unable to root for anyone in this book, save for the small, innocent Rambo. Everyone else has something so wrong with them that it soured me to like them. The one I can talk about without spoilers, as the episode happens in the first chapter, is Nurse Ratched. She is a robot companion of Victor’s who was designed to nurse humans. She’s described as sociopathic, in a way that I think is supposed to read as comedic. As in, she acts like she enjoys inflicting pain but doesn’t really. Yet in the first chapter she chases down a squirrel (off-screen) and kills it by rolling over it again and again. I almost stopped reading the book, I was so horrified. But it was an advanced copy, so I decided to give it another chance. She never does anything like this ever again, but it is actually not uncommon for characters in this book to have something they have done in the past that is truly horrific that is brushed off as their programming. I’m all for plots where characters have to overcome their own tendency toward being bad, and redemption and forgiveness are both very important. But I need for that not to be the plot for almost every single character. It, at the very least, is distressing to read about.

The romance did not move me, which was surprising given what strong feelings I had for the couple in The House in the Cerulean Sea! I also have complicated feelings about how the book depicts what freedom means, how robots pursue freedom, the offerings of the “freedom fighter” character, etc… This, in fact, is a reflection of how I feel the overarching messages tended to get muddled. The only message that I felt was clear and consistent was “be brave!” but no clear reason as to why was ever given. To borrow from an American fairy tale – the overarching story needed a heart. I think, perhaps, the romance was supposed to be the heart, but it didn’t work as one for me.

This is also an incredibly sad book. It’s not uplifting in the slightest. There’s nothing wrong with sad books, but it is a departure from the author’s other books, and so I think the warning is warranted.

Overall, this is an imaginative and loving retelling of Pinocchio that should appeal to fans of that fairy tale. Readers should be aware that the darkness of the original story remains in this retelling.

GoodReads:
I found myself unable to root for anyone in this except for Rambo, the small robot vacuum.

I really think you need two things for this book to work for you: 1) enjoy the original Pinocchio 2) the sense of humor in the book works for you. I could tell when I was reading that I was supposed to find this funny within the first few pages, but I never did. You'll know right away if the humor is working for you or not and don't expect it to change.

This is a loving and detailed send-up to Pinocchio. I appreciated how much care went into the original story. The problem is that I don't actually like the story of Pinocchio, something I forgot when I picked this up because I was so excited for a new Klune book. Pinocchio is dire, sad, and disturbing. This is dire, sad, and disturbing. Don't expect uplifting like previous Klune books!

Check out my full review.

*I received a free copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.*

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In the Lives of Puppets is a science fantasy retelling of Pinocchio where Pinocchio is a “real boy” surrounded by robots (puppets) with a m/m (or rather male, male robot) romance. Full review on my blog opinionsofawolf.
*I received a free copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.*
#bookalicious #sciencefantasy #pinocchio #fairytaleretelling #queerbookstagram

TJ Klune books are always a delight, and this one doesn't disappoint. The stories are always so imaginative and the characters jump off the page. In a world where so many authors recycle ideas, TJ Klune creates unique and endearing characters and unforgettable tales. Don't miss this one!

This is my first TJ Klune and I absolutely loved it. She is a master. The story is about freedom to be yourself, love and humanity. The story is a crossover of Pinocchio and Swiss Family Robinson. I would love to see this in Studio Ghibli aesthetic.

Thank you Netgalley and Tor Publishing for the ARC copy in exchange for a review.

Thank you for allowing me to read this book. It took a bunch of machines to properly tell the story of humanity. My favorite characters were Rambo and Nurse Ratched.

This one didn't do it for me. There was something missing. It felt like a mash up of his previous books.

The story was good and the robots were fun. Nurse Ratchet and Rambo were hilarious.

While Klune knows how to tell a great story, I didn't love this one.

Thank you to Net Galley and Tor Publishing Group for the ARC.

So... sadly this one wasn´t for me. I really enjoyed Klune´s two previous books, but this one completely missed the spot for me.
For one, the cosy atmosphere didn´t really mesh with the plot where all humans (apart from one) have been executed. The humour was okay in parts, but at some point the jokes got repetitive. They also focussed a lot of sex and bodily functions, in a way that make me feel quite icky. I didn't care for most of the characters, and quite a few really annoyed me.
I ended up not caring about any of it. There were moments that were supposed to make me emotional, and it is really easy to make me cry. But no, didn't care. I guess the retelling was incorporated cleverly into the plot (I am a sucker for retellings), but that was not nearly enough for me to make this book enjoyable. I took this book with me on two 12hr flights, so I guess it helped that I didn't have anything else to do... because even 85% through I was considering DNF'ing it.
Sorry not sorry... I am sure there will be loads of people who do love this book. But it really just wasn't for me.

Having previously loved The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under The Whispering Door, I was so excited to check out this new release. I am not a huge Pinocchio fan, but as a fan of Klune’s writing and storytelling, I was still really excited for this one.

As expected, I loved most of the characters. Vic was a fascinating character and I fell for, Gio, and Hap quickly. While I liked the idea of the robots, Nurse Ratched and Rambo, I mostly found myself frustrated with them and their dialogue. I think they had some great scenes especially later in the book, but unlike others who were huge fans, I found them to be irritating (and it hurts my heart to ever write that about these poor fictional robots).

I really wanted to like this story but I found myself daydreaming/not focusing. Even with having characters I enjoyed, I just did not enjoy the journey. The setting in the woods was so fun and beautiful. Once the story left that, I found myself losing more interest.

I took a risk with this book because I wanted Klune to rip my heart out again, but even with loving Vic and Gio as much as I did, this one just did not work for me.

Deep in the forest live Victor Lawson, the last human on earth. He lives with his father, the android Giovanni Lawson, their vacuum Rambo and nursing machine Nurse Ratched. Life in their tree house is peaceful- tinkering in their workshop by day and watching old movies by night. Though Giovanni warns Victor not to stray too far from the tree house. Victor can’t help but explore the Scarp Yard, looking for spare parts. One day he finds more than he bargained for—an android thrown out like trash. Victor brings the android home and repairs him, not knowing that the android’s presence will change his life forever.

In the Lives of Puppets is a queer retelling of Pinocchio that explores what it means to be human and the measures we will go to for the ones we love.

In the Lives of Puppets follows Vic, a human living in a world full of robots. His father made him and together with two of the coolest robots around, they lived in the woods in their self made joke. They found happiness together but one day everything takes a turn for the worst. The robots find traces of a human and track down Vic’s home where they take his father. As readers we follow Vic and his trusty robots as they try to get his father back home.

This book was so good. Klune is the master at cozy fantasy and pulling at your heartstrings. This book was tender, full of heart, and amazingly written. I like to say Klune’s books feel like someone holding you while you cry and this one did not disappoint. Do yourself a favor and pick up this book!

I sadly wasn't able to finish reading this book in time, but from what I did I read, I can say this is TJ Klune at his best.
The relationships between the characters are fragile and beautiful, with just the right dabs of sci fi description and social reflection, and I will be eager to finish this read once our library has a copy.

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune

In the same vein of TJ Klune’s other more recent novels; The House in the Cerulean Sea, and Under the Whispering Door, In the Lives of Puppets is a very heartwarming, cozy fantasy story with loveable characters and some great queer representation. It differentiates itself from the two aforementioned books by following a more traditional quest storyline, in a loose retelling of Pinnochio. Now I’ll be honest, I’m not the most familiar with the story of Pinnochio, I’ve seen the original Disney version technically about 15 years ago but that’s the extent of my knowledge (and I barely remember that). So I can’t judge this book on how good of a retelling it is, so my review is solely based on how it stands as its own work.

In the Lives of Puppets follows Victor ‘Vic’, the son of an inventor named Gio who live in treehouses in the forest with two robots, the loveable yet sadistic Nurse Ratched and the adorable vacuum Rambo. One day while exploring the forest and foraging through the old junk piles they find a new robot in need of repairs named Hap, and their lives are then drastically changed for good. It is a very enjoyable, and as I said before, heartwarming story that I think will be enjoyed by TJ Klune fans and new readers alike. The characters are charming, the romance is sweet, the adventure is fun, and the book altogether will pull on your heartstrings (no pun intended).

In the Lives of Puppets definitely has much higher stakes than the previous two books (these are the only two books of his that I’ve yet to read and also his most popular which is why I am constantly comparing), however I found it surprisingly much slower to read than the others. It was only about 40% through that the actual plot, the quest, began, while I did actually enjoy the low stakes opening of the book, I just thought it went on way longer than it should have. Once the quest did begin, I actually found a lot of it to be very repetitive. Though it was following the Pinnochio story, I wish it had chosen to add some new ideas to it to make it more exciting because the story began to drag a bit for me. It wasn’t until the ending that I felt my attention being completely drawn again. The story became more intriguing by adding more stakes and I found myself not able to put the book down because I needed to find out what was going to happen next.

When it comes to its characters, I really loved them, they were charming and sweet and full of personality and I’m sure anyone else who has read In the Lives of Puppets would agree. Rambo is definitely my favourite, if you’ve seen Adventure Time the character is almost comparable to BMO (who I absolutely love). I do have one thing however, though it is a bit of a spoiler so if you don’t want to know skip this paragraph, although I do think going in this book you will likely guess that this is to come. Okay skip now, the human/robot romance, I’m not sure how I feel about it. I guess Hap is humanistic, but it just felt very weird to me. Maybe it was just me but every time Victor started describing him (in a way that was clear he had a bit of a crush) it was so strange to me, describing his flat wooden chest and stuff. Also, Hap has basically no memories of anything from before he met Vic so while he was actually very old and Vic was an adult it just was uncomfortable. Like I could get on board with a human/ghost relationship in Under the Whispering Door but I don’t know about this one it might be a step too far for me because at least the ghost was also once a human and not even that long ago lol, but if you’ve read this one please let me know what you thought!!

Overall, I enjoyed it for what it was, a heartwarming adventure story, and I think most readers will too, but it didn’t particularly stand out to me and had its issues, it was just a bit disappointing as a big fan of his other books. I’d still give it 4 stars though and definitely recommend checking it out.

This was nothing short of delightful! TJ Klune is now 3 for 3 on the found family o-meter hall of fame and he is now an auto read author for me.

This little family of a human and four robots was everything to me! Getting to know them and getting to see them get to know each other was so heartwarming. They seem so dysfunctional at a glance but they just fit together so well.

This may be a science fiction novel but it was so accessible and cozy and low key a romance???? I was LIVING for the romance. There was a small bit of action, lots of adventure and many robots but so much heart. This story tugged at my heart strings, made me laugh, made me cry, made me think and i am just so happy with the way this book ended.

Thank you Netgalley and Tor for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Oh my PUPPETS. I loved this book so so so much. Rambo and Hap and Nurse Ratched!! TJ Klune has always always done found family really well and this was definitely one of his best. There were so many profound moments that were so beautifully shared and so many moments where I laughed out loud. I finished the book in public and it took everything in me to not cry. Another winner!