Thank you to Macmillan for the audio ARC!

The narrator was great - I liked the voices for the various robot characters :)

This was an interesting book. I liked the sci-fi aspect and found this heartwarming. The humor made me giggle more than once even though it was juvenile. The characters were wonderful - Rambo was my favorite.

The progression of the story had slow and draggy segments, but outside of that I had a really good time. I liked Victor as a character and I liked the details in the worldbuilding. I wish certain aspects had been resolved more fully.

Klune is wonderful at writing found families. I really love that.

This story had my heart - in a kind of reverse Pinocchio a humanoid robot, Gio, assisted by a robotic nurse and a cute and harmless vacuum who doubles as a friend raise a human child, Victor, far away from other sentient lifeforms. They live in their happy little bubble until this bubble is ruptured by their finding a lifeform that shakes things up that Victor repairs. This sets events in motion that lead to Gio‘s abduction and complete reset as well as setting Victor and his friends on a quest to find Gio and bring him home. This book tells a beautiful story, heartwarming and hopeful. It can also be seen as a wonderful parable on the development of AI and the human potential for self destruction alongside the hopeful qualities of a heart, family and the inspirations the frailty of human life offers.
I had access to both an advance audio copy and an eARC, and the audio was extra special - Daniel Henning does a one man - full cast production and imbued all the different characters with life !

What a magical, wholesome book full of wonderful characters and positive messages for readers, this is a book I would reread with my daughter and reccomend to everyone

This is a heartwarming story that mixes fantasy, science fiction, romance, and a retelling of "Pinocchio".

In a quirky house in the middle of the woods live three robots; fatherly inventor Giovanni Lawson, a self proclaimed "sociopathic" nurse machine called Nurse Ratched, and an anxious little vacuum known as Rambo. A human, Victor Lawson, also lives in the house. They are a happy if somewhat unusual little family. One day, Victor finds and salvages an android named HAP. Unknown to the little family, this android will completely change their quiet little lives in a way no one could have predicted. As Victor learns of Giovanni & HAP's past, he will have to deal with unexpected betrayal and decide how far he would go to save his family.

I absolutely love T.J. Klune and his writing. He has such a unique talent of creating characters that tug at your heartstrings, that make you love them, and I always miss his characters after I'm finished with one of his books. This story is no exception - I fell in love with Gio, HAP, Nurse Ratched, Rambo, and of course, Victor. Klune also creates the most atmospheric scenes, I could picture myself in the house in the forest with the characters.

This story was so lovely. It evoked all kinds of emotions from me, these robots may not have been human but they sure showed their humanity!! This story was sweet, wholesome, and most of all it is human. It makes you think about what it means to be human, and what a family means to you.

This wasn't my absolute favorite of Klune's novels simply because of the ending, but this is still a sold 4.5 star book for me!

The audio narration was *incredible*!! It was truly a performance, and it is one of the best audiobook narrations I have ever heard. Daniel Henning is an artist!

Thank you to NetGalley, MacMillan Audio, T.J. Klune, and Daniel Henning for the audio ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

This was a miss for me. I was wondering at 5% if I should DNF because I was bored, didn't care about the story, and found the too-quirky characters to be incredibly annoying (especially the middle-school bathroom humor that undercut every interaction). I was wondering the same thing at 12%. At 35% I realized I still felt exactly the same about it and decided to cut my losses and say that this book isn't for me.

Part if it may have been the narrator, as the voices he chose for each character tended toward the whiny and irritating. He also tended to overdo the drama. He also voices Vic very young, and he is written very young, and I have to keep reminding myself that it says in the text he's 21 because he seems about 14.

It's disappointing because I think I *could* have loved Rambo and Nurse Ratched if there hadn't been quite so much middle-school bathroom humor in their every scene. And they had a lot of scenes. I actually still don't have a very good sense of Vic, and he's the main character. But his extremely quirky robot companions get most of the lines and page time which is weird.

I read through the big twist / reveal and I think it was supposed to be heartbreaking, but I didn't really feel anything? I didn't feel Gio was there enough as a character to make me care about what happened to him. Which is the same thing I feel about Vic, now that I'm thinking about it.

Since my feelings about the story haven't changed from 5% to 35% I think I can safely say that they aren't going to and it's just not for me.

*Thanks to NetGalley, Tor/Forge, and Macmillan Audio for providing an early copy for review.

Can it get better than the fantastic narration from Daniel Henning for Klune's In the Lives of Puppets? I just wanted to keep hearing his Nurse Ratched and be immersed in the fantastical journey this book creates. This really worked for me as an audiobook as the narration brought to life the complete whimsical humanity is what it is (but it can be better) vibes that Klune evokes. I am so glad I could read this earlier this year and return again via the delight of this audiobook. Thank you MacMillan for this treat!

It’s not fair to compare, or go in with certain expectations, but I absolutely adored Cerulean Sea, and really liked Whispering Door. So I went in with expectations that I would thoroughly enjoy this. Unfortunately, I did not. It started out really slow (something mentioned in the synopsis doesn’t even happen until like 30% or more?) and throughout the whole book, the pacing just felt off. I had both the ebook and audio from netgalley, and I tend to follow along with the ebook while listening - and I felt like the narration was so slow, it was taking ages for me to be able to turn the page, and I had it on 2x speed! It just felt super slow, and I admit, I always speed audiobooks up, but 2 or 2.5 is normally my sweet spot. 2x on this still felt so slow, and I really struggled through it (user error on the app made me think that was the max speed, but I eventually got it to 3x speed and it was more enjoyable at that speed).

So on top of the narration and plot both feeling slow, I just didn’t love the story itself as much as I wanted to. One of the characters is super quirky and perhaps that comes across better in print but I wasn’t a fan of it in the audio, the character just kind of annoyed me or made me cringe. Maybe it was the specific humour, I don’t know. The humour felt a bit young, but what do I know. There were some things I liked, but I think the things I disliked overshadowed the good things. I felt a couple times like I was supposed to be feeling certain emotions based on the writing, but it fell flat or missed the mark for me. I do admire TJ Klune as a writer and I really enjoyed the other ones I’ve read, but this one just didn’t work for me.

Well, I loved this one! This novel was definitely the heartwarming escapism I needed. While this one is more sci-fi given the androids and murderous robots inhabiting the world, if you've read Klune's other books, you will immediately recognize the satirical tone and the tropes of found family. While there are nods to Pinocchio, so much of this story was very unique. I loved the way it explored the autonomy and free will and all the characters. I did feel like there could have been more to the plot, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

I had listened to audiobook of The House in the Cerulean Sea and the audiobook of this one is narrated by Daniel Henning as well. I thought he did an excellent job bringing the eccentric characters to life!

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for the ALC of this one!

TJ Klune is the master of dealing with heavy subjects in cozy fantasy worlds, this time he takes on a retelling of Pinocchio set in a dystopian world full of robots. Our featured found family this time consists of three robots and one human boy, Victor, separated from the greater world living in a small tree grove. Events lead to the greater world knocking down their door and taking away Gio, the only father figure Vic had ever had. To save Gio Vic, Rambo, and Nurse Ratched must leave the comfort of their grove and head into the world that Gio was shielding them from.
This was another home run from the team of Klune and narrator Daniel Henning. Creating a world overrun by robots but then telling a story full of emotion is no easy feat, add to that the wonderful vocal variety between characters and you get a wonderfully delightful read that hits you in the feels. Just Victor’s story arc will break your heart and put it back together several times. Although I will say that the humor supplied by Rambo and Nurse Ratched throughout help to balance out the heavy drama that Vic and Gio are going through, without them this story would have been too dark. Overall, another successful cozy fantasy from Klune.
Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for early access to this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Klune has the incredible ability to make the reader adore characters from start to finish. This cast is without a doubt my favorite! Not only are they hilarious, but they are an unlikely gang on an adventure as a lovely found family. Told in the spirit of Pinocchio, Swiss Family Robinson, and Wall-E, the reader gets transformed into a world run by robots. A world where it might not be favorable to have a heart.

All that said, I think I need a Roomba.

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and author T.J. Klune for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

TJ Klune writes books about love, and I love them. This is exactly what fans of his work will be hoping it is; a uniquely charming story with loveable characters, quirky humour, and very real emotion, wrapped up in something queer and genuine.

My favourite book of his is "The House in the Cerulean Sea," but the one criticism I had of it was that the beginning dragged, and it took a little too long for the story to get going and the characters to become loveable. "In The Lives of Puppets" solves that problem by hitting the ground running (or falling from a pile of robot parts) and never letting up. Watching Vic and Hap navigate what it means to be human together, with the dubious help of Nurse Ratched and Rambo (first of his name) is both hilarious and heartwarming. There's adventure and heart break (ha). There's every kind of love. And the reminder to, above all else, be brave.

Reading this book feels like being full of garbage in the best possible way.

I’m not a fantasy/sci-fi girl but I know my readers that are will love this, especially the ones who love Audio books! The reader was great, very animated.

Run time:15 hrs. 22 mins.
Narrator: Daniel Henning did such a great job on all the main characters. I loved Rambo and the coachman most-so expressive. It felt like I was listening to a play at times, each character very distinct.

If you've read any of Klune's standalones, you know the outliers of society will be front and center. We have robots big and small with plenty of personality. Gio is the older father figure, an inventor. His children are Rambo, Nurse Ratchet, and Vic. All come with sarcasm, sexual innuendoes, and fierce protection over each other. When another android (HAP) joins the family, their comfortable, hidden, home life is destroyed. There's a quest to rescue their patriarch, filled with larger-than-life characters and places. Evolution, human vs machine, and what it means to love unconditionally will resonate as well as a few pop culture movies and books i.e. Wall-e, Short Circuit (I'm dating myself) and of course The Adventures of Pinocchio. You will laugh, get the warm and fuzzies, and maybe question your own place in this world.

*"I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

“Simple, isn’t it? We were thinking too big, too grand. Sometimes, it’s the smallest things that can change everything when you least expect it.”

In a strange little home built into the branches of trees live three robots. Victor Lawson, a human, lives there too. Within this peculiar forest lives a family assembled from spare parts and, together, they embark on an incredible journey.

The audio of this one! 👏🏻😍 superb! So so good! I highly recommend. The voices for the robots are *chefs kiss*. I may have fallen in love a little bit.

This is being touted as a Pinocchio retelling and I can certainly see why. What an absolutely precious and heartfelt story. It almost reads like a children’s fairytale at times with the robots and fantasy elements. But there is also some very funny adult humor that had me laughing out loud. Case in point…

“‘Oh. My. Goodness. You’re a vacuum. Just like me! Hello, cousin!’ He waved his arms in front of the bigger vacuum. ‘My name is Rambo. I’m a vacuum too!…I’m pretty sure I’m the only vacuum in history too—wow. Look at the size of your brush. I’m feeling strangely inadequate at the moment.’” I can’t. Fabulous. 🤣🤣

Thank you to Netgalley, Tor Publishing, Macmillan Audio, and the author for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for sending me an early copy of this audiobook! All opinions are my own!

Once again, Klune gives us a story of life and love, of acceptance and finding your place in the world with people who make it all worthwhile. It's humorous yet deep, compelling, and thoughtful. And it will take you into a world that means nothing at first and everything by the end.

My main issue with this book was the pacing. It felt exceedingly slow with many parts that I thought were unnecessary by the end. There were several times that I felt like we were definitely at the end, and then we were nowhere near it.

I did love the characters and the way that the found family comes about. They're all so sweet and funny. But then the romance felt a bit flat and forced to me in the end.

If you're a fan of Klune, definitely check this out.

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune is my third novel by this author. Although it is not my favorite it was still an incredible story. Klune has a way of making his characters come to life. This is a Pinocchio retelling with a sci-fi twist as nearly all the characters are robots. As always he hits you right in the feels throughout this whole book and forces you to love all the characters. Klune is an auto-buy author for me. This story did not disappoint!

Gio, an inventor, lives in the forest. He raised his son Victor, who was abandoned on his doorstep in this remote location. The twist is that Gio is a sentient robot and Victor is a human. Victor is now a young adult and has become an inventor like his father. Victor regularly visits the scrapyard and finds useful material to use in creating and restoring all kinds of things, like his robot friends. The questions of how they got to the forest and why they must stay hidden are known to Gio but not Victor. It doesn’t really occur to Victor to ask until he accidentally bleeds at the scrapyard. Their idyllic, secret life is destroyed when other robots come for them. Gio hides Victor and surrenders. Victor and his robots then venture out of the forest for answers and to retrieve Gio.

So think Artificial Intelligence dystopian world meets Pinocchio meets Wizard of Oz. This book is as original as the other books I’ve read from this author. The book is timely with the increasing presence of AI in our lives and still manages to focus on what real connections between people are. It also emphasizes personal redemption and choosing a better way. I had zero idea where it was going at any point. It was a complete surprise the whole way through.

I went into this story wary, as the description did not appeal to me the same way Klune’s previous two books have. I trusted he would write a good story, and I am glad to have read this. This book was so delightful.

In a world with ChatGPT and Snapchat AI and new innovations daily, this book tells the story of a future that doesn’t feel so unlikely or far off.

The characters, as with all of Klune’s books, were all spectacular and loveable. Fans of Chauncey in The House in the Cerulean Sea (or Olaf from Frozen) will instantly fall in love with Rambo. Nurse Rached is witty and so entertaining. I would read a full book about her life before this book.

This is such a great story of family, adventure, and humanity. A must read, even if you think you won’t like it.

Big thanks to Tor Books, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
4.5/5

I can never get enough of the most unusual characters TJ Klune creates. I am also forever in love with his narrator, Daniel Henning, who makes TJ Klune’s stories come to love so fantastically. I have never read such an awesome reimagining. Hooked from cover to cover (if audiobooks can be that!)

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review! Happy Publication Day!!

In the Lives of Puppets was my first book by TJ Klune and my first fantasy adventure on audiobook! I really enjoyed the narrator, Daniel Hennings. His voice was very easy to listen to, and couldn't stop listening to this beautifully written story.

I was captivated by the characters and enjoyed getting to know each one of them. Rambo and Nurse Ratched were my favorites. This book was charming, heart-warming, and witty. I felt like I was on a unique adventure while listening.

I will definitely be reading more from TJ Klune! Highly recommend listening to this one!