My first TJ Klune book—and wow, what a wild ride! This story has everything: action, humor, drama, and just the right amount of slow-burn romance (with a little spice!). Sure, the tone is a bit more subdued, but don’t be fooled—there’s plenty of tension, danger, and high-stakes twists to keep you on your toes.

At its core, this is a story about three totally different people finding family and love in the most unexpected way, and Klune delivers it all with his signature mix of heart, wit, and suspense. If you love sci-fi with a side of feels, you need this book in your life. Safe to say, I’m officially a Klune fan now!

5 stars.

Who would have thought a sci-fi, government conspiracy, thriller book would make me cry? This book is beautiful. Weird, as TJ Klune himself puts it, but beautiful.

There's a theme of found family, of a found place, that runs through Klune's books, and it's the thing, I think, that resonates so strongly with readers. This one takes it to new dimensions, while also pairing it with action and intrigue that made the story utterly addicting. The way Klune writes love and connection is electrifying and soothing all at once, especially in this book.

Beyond the core themes of this book, I loved the pacing, the plot, and the characters of this story (Artemis Darth Vader has my heart forever), and, as a conspiracy theory dabbler, I loved all the nods to popular theories scattered throughout this book! It was as entertaining and amusing as it was emotional and tender.

While I'm not sure this book has quite beaten Under the Whispering Door as my top favorite TJ Klune book, it is certainly a contender, and, as much as I love his more tender, slower paced books, I am hopeful to see Klune write more books like this in the future!

Is this a sci-fi, thriller or romance? Perhaps it is all three and I loved it. While slow at some parts, it was well written and entertaining. The characters were likable and I was engaged in their story. This was my first book by this author and will not be my last.

🦴Book Review🦴
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Summary- There's nothing more human than a broken heart.

In the spring of 1995, Nate Cartwright has lost everything: his parents are dead, his only brother wants nothing to do with him, and he's been fired from his job as a journalist in Washington, DC.

With nothing left to lose, he returns to his family's summer cabin outside the small mountain town of Roseland, Oregon, to try and find some sense of direction. The cabin should be empty. It's not.

Inside is a man named Alex. And with him is an extraordinary ten-year-old girl who calls herself Artemis Darth Vader. Artemis, who isn't exactly as she appears.

Soon it becomes clear that Nate must make a choice: let himself drown in the memories of his past, or fight for a future he never thought possible. Because the girl is special. And forces are descending upon them who want nothing more than to control her.
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Rating- ⭐️⭐️⭐️
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My thoughts- thank you @torpublishing and @netgalley for the advanced copy of The Bones Beneath my Skin. This one was written quite a few years ago and only recently accepted and published by Tor. It’s VERY heavily inspired by Stranger Things, so if that’s your jam you’ll like this one. It was a really wonderful concept but I had a hard time connecting with our main character. It gets a little cheesy and slow towards the end but it really does start with a bang. Not my favorite Klune but I did enjoy it !
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QOTD- what are you reading this weekend ?! I’m working on all the colors of the dark and the meadowbrook murders

This was my introduction to T.J. Klune and I was not disappointed! This is a beautiful story of fighting for what you love against all odds. You can't help but fall in love with the three main characters (especially Artemis Darth Vader).
If you love books about found family with a whole heaping of Stranger Things vibes, this book is for you! I will definitely be checking out more of this author's works in the future.

Thank you, NetGalley and Tor Books, for sending me this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one was just okay. It was great in some parts and for most of the book I loved it, but it took a really weird turn and then it was not so great. Not my favorite book by him.

firstly, thank you to the publisher for an arc!

the best way that i can describe this recent tj klune novel is "ET but queer" — basically if you grew up loving the story of ET and the relationship he had with elliott, then you'll love the relationship between artemis darthvader, alex and nate. and instead of reese’s pieces, artemis loves bacon.

i also listened to the audio through botm and really enjoyed the narrator!

***Thank you to Tor Books for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. My review contains my honest thoughts about my reading experience.***

I'm a huge fan of Klune's work and have read so many of his books. No one writes found family quite the same as him. I always find myself falling in love with his characters and the heart-warming relationships they create. The Bones Beneath My Skin was no exception. If you enjoy the found family trope, I'm sure you will love the family of odd balls that Klune brought to life in this story.

Artemis Darth Vader stole my heart immediately. She was smart, kind, and incredibly funny. I didn't think the mystery surrounding her was really much of a mystery, but it was entertaining following along with the main character as he tried to wrap his head around the truth of her. The two other main characters, Nate and Alex, were also compelling and complex. I enjoyed seeing the story through Nate's eyes as he struggled to deal with his anger and grief over past trauma all while trying to understand Art and Alex. Alex was king of the grumps with a heart of gold, and I had fun watching Nate slowly crack him open.

The Bones Beneath My Skin explored so many great themes. I was particularly moved by how the story portrayed the complexity of grief. All of the characters had experienced immense loss, but each of them dealt with it in unique ways. Alex was wracked with guilt and shut himself off from his emotions. Nate was angry and adrift. Artemis distracted herself with books and shenanigans. Over the course of the book, the healing power of love and connection was on display in beautiful and profound ways.

The Bones Beneath My Skin also did a really good job of providing commentary on what it means to be human. Emotions are such an integral part of the human experience, and the story illustrated that concept beautifully. It showed that the difficult emotions are just as important as the positive ones in making us who we are and shaping how we interact with the world. Above all, this story was hopeful at its core. Despite all of the bad stuff that may happen to us, there is always still the potential for love, belonging, and a brighter tomorrow. That is an important message, especially in this moment.

Despite having strong thematic and character elements, the plot of The Bones Beneath My Skin was pretty simple. A man gets wrapped up in a fugitive's flight from the federal government after sort of being kidnapped. It was a bit more complicated than that. However, most of the story is just the three characters on the run. It provided plenty of space for beautiful character moments, but I do wish there'd been some plot developments that weren't quite so obvious.

All in all, The Bones Beneath My Skin was another compelling piece of work from TJ Klune. The found family stole my heart, and the story had a great message. I may have even shed a tear or two from time to time. The plot was interesting, if a bit simple. All things considered; I rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Truly, this is the point in my relationship with Klune's books that I'm very unlikely to give anything less than 4 stars. The way that Klune can capture the humanity in any character he creates is astounding.

T.J. Klune always delivers, and this is no exception. This is not quite a romance novel in the traditional sense, but anyone who has read Klune in the past knows that it is subtle with its romance and vibrant with love in general.

This book was just re-released by Tor after being indie published previously by the author himself in 2018. Thank you @torbooks for the free digital galley!

*ੈ✩‧₊˚.✩‧₊˚ The FMC is a 10-year-old girl named Artemis Darth Vader. Enough said.

‧̍̊·̊‧̥°̩̥˚̩̩̥͙°̩̥‧̥·̊‧̍̊ ♡ Art stole my heart. Who can resist a smart and sassy 10-year-old orphan who loves cowboy westerns as much as she loves bacon (with a side of bacon please).

TJ Klune is known as a master of the found family trope. However in this book, he blends and bends genres, mixing in a swirl of science fiction juxtaposed against high action shootouts, followed up by some humorous banter, and even one spicy scene to turn up the heat.

Yes, if I pick really hard at it, there were things that did not make sense to me about the sci-fi/powers, but I really don’t think the point of the book is to dissect those sections. I’ll just say I really enjoyed the journey as well as the destination.

·˚ ༘₊·꒰➳: ̗̀➛ An easy, feel-good read. This was the perfect choice for a buddy read with friends 💛🧡

Thank you to NetGalley, tor publishing and the author for an advanced copy of this book, which is out now!

4.5 stars

“𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕪 𝕨𝕖𝕣𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕟𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕙 𝕒 𝕦𝕟𝕚𝕧𝕖𝕣𝕤𝕖 𝕠𝕗 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕤, 𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕟 𝕙𝕖'𝕕 𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕤𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕓𝕖𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕖. 𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕪 𝕤𝕖𝕖𝕞𝕖𝕕 𝕥𝕠 𝕤𝕥𝕣𝕖𝕥𝕔𝕙 𝕠𝕟 𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕣, 𝕞𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕤𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕟 𝕙𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕕 𝕡𝕠𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕓𝕝𝕪 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕙𝕖𝕟𝕕. ℍ𝕖'𝕕 𝕟𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕗𝕖𝕝𝕥 𝕤𝕠 𝕤𝕞𝕒𝕝𝕝 𝕚𝕟 𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕚𝕣𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕗𝕖.”

I saved my review for this one because I was waiting until I saw TJ Klune on his book tour. I truly think it is the most fun author event I have ever attended. I belly laughed, I cried, I witnessed a potential love connection and a kiss between two audience members. It was… amazing. I also got to meet some of the other KC Booksta girlies in real life!

TJ Klune writes characters that feel so full of life. They are multi-faced and special, and that carries through in The Bones Beneath My Skin. I love Art so much, and I don’t think I will soon forget her.

This book has it all— found family, adventure, romance, aliens, car chases, humor, grief, etc etc. In the mood to press pause on all of my TBR and read his entire backlist

TJ Klune is back with another book that will send you through his classic emotional rollercoaster as per usual. His work has brought such a comfort to me and I knew this one was going to join the feel-good crew of House in the Cerulean Sea, Under the Whispering Door and In The Lives of Puppets. I'm happy I wasn't wrong.

The Bones Beneath My Skin is another found family story with the on-the-go anxieties you'd be familiar with after reading In The Lives of Puppets. I adored it. Nat, Art and Alex had the perfect balance between the three of them and were the perfect puzzle. They complimented each other's personalities and made their journey even more special.

I truly just adore everything this man has to offer. I will never find a world where I don't emotionally attach myself to his stories. They're everything I always need when I pick them up.

T J. Klune is an a must read author for me. He writes the very best characters and stories. This book is no exception! I loved it! I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

First thanks so much to NetGalley and to Tor for the e-Arc of this book, I actually loved this book so much I also bought it as an audiobook on BOTM as well. This book is an instant classic just like all of Klune’s books. Genuinely obsessed with this trio and I wish that this could somehow become a series. I don’t want to create any spoilers but when I tell you that this book is so pure 90s sci fi coming of age tale, I mean it. Art is just adorable and Nate and Alex’s relationship slow burn is to die for. The audiobook is as charming and sweet as the book itself and I just love the way that Klune’s audiobooks always find the perfect voice to truly embody the character’s voice.

TJ Klune wrote 2 of my favorite cozy fantasy books - and I thought this one would be my next favorite. However, I unfortunately couldn't get into this one. I believe this may have been an early book in his career, and I can tell. The writing just seemed very juvenile - too many sentences in a paragraph, too many punctuation marks, which made it read very disjointed to me. It was a lot of "he walked to the couch. He picked up the remote. He turned on the tv" something like that, and I was just expecting more flowery prose like in the other ones I've read from him. I believe this is a case of "it's not you, it's me" - especially as I have seen other people really enjoying this one.

The bones beneath my skin, can you see them, feel them, understand them? Do you take your relationships for granted, or value each moment? What does "family" mean to you? TJ Klune captured my attention from the first page to the last. Be sure to read the author's note for insight into the creation of this novel.

There is never a moment where I turn down the opportunity to read a TJ Klune book. When this popped up as an ARC on NetGalley, I was thrilled to to be approved.

Once again, Klune brings us a heartwarming tale with so much emotion and heart. the characters are dynamic and well written and the story is unique and familiar at the same time. Nate Cartwright's world has been upturned after he is fired from his job. With no real familial attachments or reasons to stay in DC, he escapes to the woods where his family had a cabin. The cabin and an old beat up truck are his only inheritance after the death of his parents but they cut him off when they learned he was gay. It's a bit of a slap in the face for Nate, the cabin is his inheritance since it was the place where his parents discovered hi sexuality and the place where he was shunned.

Upon his arrival to the cabin, he is confronted by two squatters who are hiding out. However, Nate is not overly eager to kick them out as the man, Alex, has a firearm and Nate feels as though there is something strange about the little girl, Artemis.

I won't give any spoilers but this story is captivating and keeps you wondering where we are going with the story. It will keep you hooked until the last page.

I am so happy that this book got a traditional publishing deal. This book explored what it means to be human, how the government can cover up huge secrets, the treatment of LGBTQ people, and what extraterrestrial life might look like. It was action packed, but full of emotional moments as well. Artemis Darth Vader was such a wonderful character, and I absolutely loved getting to see her try to figure out the complexity of the human condition. I have yet to read anything by TJ Klune that isn't amazing, and this book was no exception.

Characters are easy to sympathize with and the story flows smoothly right from the start. It was enjoyable to slowly build the tension, TJ does a wonderful job with this story (as they always do).