TJ Klune always has such great characters. In the Lives of Puppets is a new take on a Pinnochio type story but is also so much more. It was just a lot of good fun to meet all of the characters.

There aren’t enough glowing words to express how much I love this story! Part sci-if, part family drama with such great world building and strong characters. There’s nothing negative I can say about this one. The audiobook narrator was phenomenal as well.
Gio Lawson builds a house in the middle of the woods and invents a sarcastic nurse machine called Nurse Ratched and a small people pleasing vacuum called Rambo. One day a couple appears out of nowhere and leaves a baby with Gio, never to be seen or heard from again. Geo thinks it is a gift from the universe for his years of loneliness and raises him as his son, Victor.
Gio is an inventor and Victor, now aged 22, enjoys going to the dump and finding parts of abandoned robots and rebuilding them. He rebuilds an android they name HAP, without realizing the dark past that HAP shares with Gio.
Vic and the Gang have to save his father, who has been taken to his old laboratory in the City of Electric Dreams to be reprogrammed and in the process, Vic has to deal with his feelings for HAP.
I loved the found family and the fun banter between the characters was a treasure to enjoy. TJ Klune knows how to get to my heart and he has done it again.
Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this audiobook arc in exchange for my review.

Going into this book all I expected was a story of unique characters I couldn’t help but love and that’s exactly what I got. I went into it blind but really enjoyed the journey. At times I felt a bit bogged down by the story but overall it was really enjoyable and the characters were fantastic. Klune’s story telling is whimsical and heartwarming but he also pulls on the heart strings.

It also makes you stop and think about all the AI technology we are implementing…

This made for a fantastic audiobook. The narrator did a fantastic job, especially with different voices for the characters.

Thank you for early access NetGalley and Tor

Title: In the Lives of Puppets
Author: TJ Klune
Pub Date: April 25, 2023
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

📚Review:
To say this book is a masterpiece would be selling it short. TJ Klune has the ability to tap into every emotion through his words. And through those words, he takes his readers on the most glorious and vivid adventures. Readers will be transported into the pages and feel as though they are walking alongside the characters.
Readers can connect with the many themes and symbols used throughout, especially those surrounding the families we create, who we become through space and time, who we are in the face of challenges, and what we’re willing to endure to help loved ones in need.
This novel made me laugh out loud, it made me champion for the underdog, it made me evaluate who I choose to call “family,” and it made me analyze what it means to love and allow others to love me.
If you enjoy fantasy, science fiction, adventure, and the overall quest for acceptance, friendship, and love then you’ll appreciate this incredible and amazing piece of art.
While I gave this 5 out of 5 stars, it deserves all the stars in the universe as does the narrator who brought the characters to life in the most delicious way! The individual voices and personalities inserted into the characters made this audiobook one that I would treasure for all time! It was truly excellent!
✨Thank you NetGalley and Tor Books for the opportunity to listen to the Audiobook ahead of the release in exchange for an honest review.

I was fully entertained, loved meeting all the unique and magical characters, and loved the message of found family, loyalty, and resilience. It would make a great animated movie!

If you plan to read it, I strongly recommend the audio version. Daniel Henning gives each character an entire WARDROBE of personality with each voice.

I had a digital review copy of this e-book but waited with crossed fingers, hoping to snag an advanced listening copy of the audiobook. Success! Narrator Henning is BRILLIANT (as he was in THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA). Each character is hilariously voiced and drawn like the funniest cartoon.

In a flipped script of Pinnochio, we have one human (Victor) surrounded by puppets (robots and androids). There’s lots of love and acceptance, loads of witty banter, and a sprinkling of surprising sexual innuendo. (They feel like an inside joke for the parents watching a cartoon if that makes sense.)

I was utterly entertained, loved meeting all the unique and magical characters, and appreciated the message of found family, loyalty, and resilience. It would make a fantastic animated movie! Someone should call Pixar.

If you plan to read it, I strongly recommend the audio version. Daniel Henning gives each character an entire WARDROBE of personality with each voice.

Thanks, NetGalley, MacMillan Audio, and Tor Books, for the ALC and DRC.

Absolutely beautiful read. It remind me of a mixture of Pinocchio, the wizard of oz, and Robots the movie.
A truly captivating read with likable characters and an intriguing story line.
The narrator did a knockout job with all of the voices.

Thank you again netgalley!

The narrator of this audiobook is excellent. Character voices are incredible and add so much to the content of the story. In the Lives of Puppets is a Pinocchio-retelling for science fiction fans and it is worth every second that I spent reading it. While this is a story full of a special little found family adventuring after the robot apocalypse, it it also an exploration into identity and what the human experience is at its very core. Some of the silly little machines in this book feel more human than some humans I know, and the only human character's wrestling with his humanity and what it means is so poignant.
The novel follows the same formula as Klune's other incredibly popular novels, and it is a great formula. The novel takes characters on adventures while simultaneously being so incredibly cozy and heartwarming. I think this may actually be my favorite of the books Klune has published recently, and I am already considering reading this again.
I especially recommend this to those who enjoyed the Monk and Robot books by Becky Chambers, as the feeling is quite similar.

This audiobook is absolute perfection. I adored this story and it’s my favorite yet by Klune. It’s so hilarious, heartwarming, sensitive and makes you really think about humanity. Nurse Ratched and Rambo were some of my favorite characters ever and listening to them and their banter on audio I laughed so hard I cried at times.

This book came to me at a time that I desperately needed a good, happy, uplifting and funny story and I’m so grateful for getting a chance to listen as an early release. TJ Klune can do no wrong in my eyes. This is my favorite book so far this year.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an ALC of this beautiful story.

Why is TJ Klune so darn good?! He can make even the coldest heart melt with his endearing storytelling. This book, a sort of queer re-telling of Pinocchio, is just plain wonderful. He embodied robots (flipping robots!) with emotions and enough human behavior for you to really get to know them. And they're androids!
Giovanni Lawson, human-adjacent robot inventor, created this strange little home that looks straight out of the Swiss Family Robinson. He lives there with Nurse Ratchet, a sadistic medical machine, Rambo, a neurotic vacuum and his human son, Victor. Things start to go a bit sideways when Victor salvages HAP (hysterically angry puppet) from a salvage yard. Then the adventure really begins and Victor finds out the awful past that exists between his father, Gio and HAP.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this audio e-arc.*

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune
5/5 Stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

•••Spoiler free review below•••

Two words: Murderbot Pinnochio

I had no idea what to expect with this one but from chapter 1 was completely hooked. Set in a futuristic world of robots and scientific advancements, Victor has only ever known the solitude of his home in the forest, his android father, and the workshop he spends his days tinkering in. When Victor has the opportunity to save a robot from the local junkyard and bring it back to life, he finds something he didn't know he was looking for.

I highly recommend the audio version of this one. The voices for each character are perfect - I never thought robots could have such personality! It is one of the best audiobooks I have ever listened to and I am more than a bit obsessed with Daniel Henning now.

Read this book if you like:
- funny sidekicks
- robots
- found family on an adventure
- cozy fantasy with a dark scifi twist
- The Brave Little Toaster (1987) (I can't explain this. The plots are not the same but ITLOP has the same vibes and Blanky and Rambo are the same characters, different font. Just trust me.)

In the Lives of Puppets will be released April 25th and if it's not already on your tbr, it should be!
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Special thanks to Macmillan Audio for sharing a free copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

I cannot express how much I loved this book. TJ Klune combines fantasy and science fiction better than most and creates such a beautiful and heartfelt story. While drawing from Sci-Fi legends like Asimov and Dick, Klune takes his characters on a journey akin to that of Frank L. Baum's story through the land of Oz. Even though he takes inspiration from such legends of genre fiction Klune creates his own futuristic tale of robots and humanity.

I could not put this book down and I enjoyed every page of this often funny, other times heart wrenching, journey that Klune has so masterfully written

I received an advance digital copy in exchange for
an honest review. Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley.com.

What a strange, beautiful, and touching book. I really didn't know quite what to expect going in, and really wondered what I was in store for me within the frenetic and strange opening minutes of the first chapter. However, I'm glad I gave this book a chance to grow on me.

While the book is described as an updating and retelling of Pinocchio, in my opinion, that is such an underselling and disservice to the originality and unique perspective of this story. Sure, there are obvious allusions and parallels, but this book is richer and more layered than that description suggests.

The book has an adventure quest tale, but at its heart is a story of reinvention and redemption, love, and having faith in one's chosen family. I appreciated that it centers an asexual character and treats his intimate connections with nuance, respect, and sensitivity.

The book gave me a chuckle and brought a tear to my eye. It's one that I won't soon forget.

Yes. Just yes. This book was nothing like I thought it would be and yet so much more than I could’ve wanted in a book with this premise. The audiobook was wonderful because it really helped differentiate the different characters (specifically the robots and androids), and the narrator was fantastic. This queer reimagined sci-fi Pinocchio was great, and I highly recommend it.

I honestly hate to give a less-than-shining review of a TJ Klune book after absolutely loving The House In the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door and anxiously awaiting this new one. The two aforementioned novels are among my favorites and I love the queer and magical worlds you get to dive into with Klune. However, this one just fell short for me. It took me a while to get into it and I feel like it could have been a lot shorter. I am glad I requested both the audio and digital ARC of this one because I really needed the audio to push through the beginning. Retellings are fun and I did enjoy the story, but this one felt more YA (and I do love a lot of YA, but sometimes the YA is a little too YA when you are approaching 30, if that makes sense) than the other books I have read by Klune and I was not expecting that. While I do not regret reading this one, I will definitely be recommending other works by this author over this one in the future. Thank you to NetGalley for the audio and digital ARCs!

TJ Klune is the king of creative fiction. Each book is a world unto itself, fleshed out and fully realized, and that level of creativity is impressive. In the Lives of Puppets is set in a post-human world. The robots are in control. Humanity has been wiped out. Except for one special boy named Victor. This is a story about family. This is a story about growing into the person you're meant to be. This is a story about love and sacrifice and redemption. It takes found family to a new and literal level--Victor finds his family and builds them from spare parts.

Together with his AI inventor father Giovanni, Nurse Ratchet, and an overly anxious vacuum robot, Victor has grown up in a forest sanctuary, safe and hidden from the rest of the world. But the arrival of HAP, a robot Victor rescues from the junk yard, sets a life-altering chain of events into motion. Giovanni is captured and wiped--reset to his original programming--in order to save Victor from eradication. Victor and the rest set off toward the City of Electric Dreams to rescue Gio and bring him home.

This book is like if Pinocchio and Swiss Family Robinson had a dystopian baby. In a world where humanity is practically extinct, Klune manages to imbue each page with hope and all the things that make being human special. It's charming and bittersweet and hopeful and tender. Once again, Klune has written a book unlike anything else I've ever read.

Thank you so much to Tor and NetGalley for my advance review copy. The audiobook from MacMillan Audio is also FANTASTIC. The narrator does a fantastic job bringing the story to life.

Thank you to the publisher for this audio ARC.

This book was stunning and such an emotional book in a beautiful way. TJ Klune really has a gift for writing beautiful found families that will have you feeling all the emotions. I can't lie, I cried a few times throughout this book because his characters feel so real and you instantly connect with them. This might end up being my favorite.

This book is slightly darker then previous ones I've read by him and it really added to the story. It still felt very much like other Klune books and had the touch of whimsy you expect to see from his books.

As always the characters were delights to read. TJ Klune has a knack for writing and creating loveable personalities for all his characters. Honestly it is hard to choose because they all compliment each other so well and have an important part to the story. If I had to pick a favorite, then it would have to be the anxious little vacuum robot named Rambo. His love of the movie Top Hat was a delight to read.

1.5 stars, generously rounded up.

I was ready to give up on this book pretty early on. I felt like the characters and premise of the book felt so far from reality, and it took a long time for me to become engaged.

I also felt that moments in the story that were meant to be humorous just felt awkward to me. Like the weird uncle at family reunions telling sexual jokes that continually cross the line.

It wasn’t until around the 35% mark that it got a little more interesting. And even then, my dislike for the book didn’t really wane. I was just bored for a majority of it.

Whatever tiny bit of romance is in this book had the slowest burn of all time. And there wasn’t much to help support it either.

To sum it up, this book was so dull. And long. Put those two things together, and you get a reader who keeps looking to see how much is left, and then as a result, constantly falls into a state of disbelief that it’s not closer to the end.

I really wanted to like this book because it was written by TJ Klune, but it was simply not of the same caliber as “The House in the Cerulean Sea.” I’m honestly surprised at the number of high reviews, and it makes me question why my experience is so different.

Alas, not every book is for everyone, so it will just remain a fleeting thought. I do regret that I didn’t DNF it when I had the inkling that this book wasn’t going to be for me. I wasted a lot of time on this book, when I could have read something else.

“In the Lives of Puppets” was a slow burn. The first part of the book was definitely setting things up for the rest of the book and a slow burn. I’m thankful I pushed through that because as part 2 began I was engaged. The narration of this book is amazing to listen to. The hidden social commentary within it was great as well. The characters within the book, the world, the plot… all enthralling. I’m embarrassed to say this is the first book I’ve read by TJ Klune.

TJ Klune’s signature style is undoubtedly present in his latest novel. You’ll find all the sweetness that made you fall in love with this author, plenty of life lessons, and a cute, unconventional romance. It seems to have the perfect ingredients, but I think it was overbaked.

There were, as you might expect, many fun and interesting moments in this story. Unfortunately, I also felt great disinterest from time to time. Plus, the adolescent sexual jokes really fell flat for me. I found them annoying, not humorous, and they surfaced entirely too often.

Klune’s Under the Whispering Door was one of my top favorite reads last year, and I enjoyed the beloved House in the Cerulean Sea, as well. I went into this with fairly high expectations and expectations can be such misleading things! I can assure you that this is not a bad story. It just wasn’t a hit for me.

I am immensely grateful to Macmillan Audio for my copy. All opinions are my own.