Under the Whispering Door
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- Create Date：2021-09-19 07:51:12
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：T.J. Klune
- ISBN：1529087988
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Summary
Under the Whispering Door is a contemporary fantasy about a ghost who refuses to cross over and the ferryman he falls in love with。
When a reaper comes to collect Wallace Price from his own funeral， Wallace suspects he really might be dead。
Instead of leading him directly to the afterlife， the reaper takes him to a small village。 On the outskirts， off the path through the woods， tucked between mountains， is a particular tea shop， run by a man named Hugo。 Hugo is the tea shop's owner to locals and the ferryman to souls who need to cross over。
But Wallace isn't ready to abandon the life he barely lived。 With Hugo's help he finally starts to learn about all the things he missed in life。
When the Manager， a curious and powerful being， arrives at the tea shop and gives Wallace one week to cross over， Wallace sets about living a lifetime in seven days。
When a reaper comes to collect Wallace Price from his own funeral， Wallace suspects he really might be dead。
Instead of leading him directly to the afterlife， the reaper takes him to a small village。 On the outskirts， off the path through the woods， tucked between mountains， is a particular tea shop， run by a man named Hugo。 Hugo is the tea shop's owner to locals and the ferryman to souls who need to cross over。
But Wallace isn't ready to abandon the life he barely lived。 With Hugo's help he finally starts to learn about all the things he missed in life。
When the Manager， a curious and powerful being， arrives at the tea shop and gives Wallace one week to cross over， Wallace sets about living a lifetime in seven days。
Reviews
Starr Waddell
，
Get ready to laugh out loud， and then get ready to weep。 My emotions were all over the place with this book。 I LOVE MM romance， and this is an excellent， fun story。 It reminded me of the way Becky Chambers tells stories。 More character-driven than plot-driven。 And a really feel-good kind of story。 It's not sci-fi like Becky Chambers， but it's just that feeling you get when you read her work， same thing here。 I will definitely be reading the rest of Klune's books。 The audiobook narrator did a gre Get ready to laugh out loud， and then get ready to weep。 My emotions were all over the place with this book。 I LOVE MM romance， and this is an excellent， fun story。 It reminded me of the way Becky Chambers tells stories。 More character-driven than plot-driven。 And a really feel-good kind of story。 It's not sci-fi like Becky Chambers， but it's just that feeling you get when you read her work， same thing here。 I will definitely be reading the rest of Klune's books。 The audiobook narrator did a great job as well。 I'm really thankful to the author， the publisher， and netgalley for a copy of the audiobook ARC。 。。。more
Elizabeth
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I am not okay。 I need an adult。 At least my dog gave me cuddles at the end of this book after a while。 A wonderfully written book and no， I am not okay with that ending。 It was a perfect ending and one the book needed but I ugly cried at it。By my count， I had 5 ugly cries in this book。 It was so good that the crying was worth it。 Wallace was a beautiful character of multitudes and Hugo was this bright beacon of light。 Mei is the best Reaper ever and we will never tell her （or tell her differentl I am not okay。 I need an adult。 At least my dog gave me cuddles at the end of this book after a while。 A wonderfully written book and no， I am not okay with that ending。 It was a perfect ending and one the book needed but I ugly cried at it。By my count， I had 5 ugly cries in this book。 It was so good that the crying was worth it。 Wallace was a beautiful character of multitudes and Hugo was this bright beacon of light。 Mei is the best Reaper ever and we will never tell her （or tell her differently）。 I love how everything got tied up， even with the ugly crying， and the little Easter eggs to HITCS。 There's two！ :） If you're a fan of the author， you'll love this book。 If you're me and this is the second book of his you've read and it's after HITCS， you'll need Kleenex。 Lots and lots of Kleenex。 Hell， the first group will need it too。 Just remember that it's a beautiful book and you'll be grateful for the journey。 Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for an advanced copy of this book。 。。。more
Maria F。
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“The first time you share tea， you are a stranger。 The second time you share tea， you are an honored guest。 And the third time you share tea， you become family” TJ Klune is a master storyteller who can weave the beautiful with the ugly and make for an emotional and gripping story about life and loss。 Wow。 Just wow。 This book was absolutely beautiful。 It’s a book about love， life， death， grief， hope。 It is a book about what comes next and what came before。 It is a book about life and what it mean “The first time you share tea， you are a stranger。 The second time you share tea， you are an honored guest。 And the third time you share tea， you become family” TJ Klune is a master storyteller who can weave the beautiful with the ugly and make for an emotional and gripping story about life and loss。 Wow。 Just wow。 This book was absolutely beautiful。 It’s a book about love， life， death， grief， hope。 It is a book about what comes next and what came before。 It is a book about life and what it means to live。 It is a book so full of soul and color。 This is a story that will make you cry and then two pages later make you laugh。 It has the sweetest found family trope。 I loved every character so so much。 I felt like I was a part of their own little group。 The character development was fantastic and every individual story of grief had me in a puddle of emotions。 I cannot recommend this book enough- this is a life changer for sure！！！ I was approved for the audiobook （my first netgalley audio ever！） and I loved it！ The narrator is fantastic- I highly recommend the audio！ *Thank you so much to netgalley & the publisher for allowing me to listen to the audiobook in exchange for an honest review* 。。。more
Autumn
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I was lucky enough to receive an e-arc of this book from NetGalley。Under the Whispering Door was one of my most anticipated releases for this year and it did not disappoint。 This book took me a good 25-30% to get fully invested in but once I was I flew through the rest of it。 I love everything about this book and it has instantly been welcomed to my "favorites of all time" list， I also think T。J。 Klune has become a new favorite author of all time， even though I have only read 2 of his books so f I was lucky enough to receive an e-arc of this book from NetGalley。Under the Whispering Door was one of my most anticipated releases for this year and it did not disappoint。 This book took me a good 25-30% to get fully invested in but once I was I flew through the rest of it。 I love everything about this book and it has instantly been welcomed to my "favorites of all time" list， I also think T。J。 Klune has become a new favorite author of all time， even though I have only read 2 of his books so far。There is so much representation in this book。 Granted I can not speak on most of the representation， but our main character Wallace is bisexual， another character， Mei， is Asian， and we have Hugo who is a gay， black man and he experiences panic attacks and anxiety。 I genuinely love this take on death and grief and I found it absolutely incredible。 Also， I cry a lot when reading， but I have never cried so hard reading a book as I did with this one！Lastly， please check trigger warnings before going into this book because it does deal with a very heavy subject and it also mentions suicide。 。。。more
Sonali Dabade
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4。25 stars！Review soon！
Jenn
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Wow！ I don't even know how to properly describe it but， I just went through something deep with this book。Death and grief and loss and angry and mournful loss and absolutely shining gentle souls that help in any way they can。。。 Under the Whispering Door was not what I had expected but it was beautiful。***Full Review to Come*** Wow！ I don't even know how to properly describe it but， I just went through something deep with this book。Death and grief and loss and angry and mournful loss and absolutely shining gentle souls that help in any way they can。。。 Under the Whispering Door was not what I had expected but it was beautiful。***Full Review to Come*** 。。。more
rish
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Thank you Macmillan-Tor/Forge for sending me an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review！omg i rly hafta read this fast then ah
Regina
，
TJ Klune smashed it again！！ After reading The House in the Cerulean Sea， I could not wait to get my hands on this one！ Words can't even begin to express how much I loved this book！ I laughed， I cried and I fell in love with all of the characters。 So， a HUGE thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for allowing me access to this ARC！ I'm sure we've all experienced moments of wonder about life after death。 Where do we go from here？ What happens next？ Is there a Heaven and/or Hell？ Will I see TJ Klune smashed it again！！ After reading The House in the Cerulean Sea， I could not wait to get my hands on this one！ Words can't even begin to express how much I loved this book！ I laughed， I cried and I fell in love with all of the characters。 So， a HUGE thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for allowing me access to this ARC！ I'm sure we've all experienced moments of wonder about life after death。 Where do we go from here？ What happens next？ Is there a Heaven and/or Hell？ Will I see my lost loved ones？ Is there an after life？ Under the Whispering Door is a beautiful， imaginative story of a life cut short， death， what comes after and everything in between。 Wallace Price is a cold， cutthroat lawyer who is a first class a-hole！ He is rude， selfish and arrogant。 His wife divorced him， he has no friends and his work is his life。 One day， he suddenly drops dead and life as he knew it was over。 When confronted by his reaper， Mei， at his own funeral， he has no choice but to follow her to meet with the Ferryman who will help him to cross over。 He finds himself at an interesting tea shop in an oddly built house in the middle of the woods where he is introduced to Hugo （the Ferryman）， granddad Nelson and ghost dog Apollo。 This emotional tale is one filled with grief， acceptance， second chances， righting wrongs， learning how to live again and what truly matters most。 Oh， I almost forgot！！ It is also about friendship， love and sacrifice。 I highly recommend everyone read this book at least once in your lifetime。 。。。more
Holly
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I am absolutly amazed by Under the Whispering door。 Wallace thinks he may be dead when he's standing over his body at his own funeral。 Then when he ends up at a tea shop， talking to Hugo， a very attractive ferryman， he starts to really belive he is dead。TJ Klune explores the ridiculous nature of Bureaucracy like no one else。 It is monotonous， and even if something doesn't make sense， it continues on。 It's so entertaining This book made me laugh so much， the dry humor is perfect。 It was serious i I am absolutly amazed by Under the Whispering door。 Wallace thinks he may be dead when he's standing over his body at his own funeral。 Then when he ends up at a tea shop， talking to Hugo， a very attractive ferryman， he starts to really belive he is dead。TJ Klune explores the ridiculous nature of Bureaucracy like no one else。 It is monotonous， and even if something doesn't make sense， it continues on。 It's so entertaining This book made me laugh so much， the dry humor is perfect。 It was serious in some moments - as serious as a heart attack。 And in some moments it was so heart breakingly sad， I just wanted to hug the characters。 I love the bisexual representation as well！ No bi-erasure in this book 😎 I love the character growth for everyone in this book！ Ugh， it was well done。 There were little changes throughout the book， leading to the final result。 There was no immediate change in personality Totally recommend！ 。。。more
Kelli （what_kel_reads）
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I was given a review copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review。What can I say about this book that hasn't already been said？ I have loved every single book TJ Klune has written， and this one was no different。 I laughed， I cried （multiple times） and I truly loved feeling all of the feelings while I read about Mei， Wallace， and Hugo。 Can we talk about Apollo for a minute。。。。THE BEST BOY。 I finished this book and immediately wanted to start it again。 It was such a nice break I was given a review copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review。What can I say about this book that hasn't already been said？ I have loved every single book TJ Klune has written， and this one was no different。 I laughed， I cried （multiple times） and I truly loved feeling all of the feelings while I read about Mei， Wallace， and Hugo。 Can we talk about Apollo for a minute。。。。THE BEST BOY。 I finished this book and immediately wanted to start it again。 It was such a nice break from the real world， even though the story does deal with real life issues like suicide， death， and loss。 All the stars。 。。。more
Megan
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You guys…。 This book。 Solid 4。75。 Yes I said it。 So close to 5 stars。 The level of humor felt on par with Cerulean Sea， but the subject matter is much heavier so it might be triggering for some。 It might help others who are grieving。 Just know that death， child death， afterlife， etc are some of the big points of this book so don’t walk in with a light heart。 All that being said， I LOVED IT SO MUCH。
TAB2
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3。5 stars。 I absolutely loved 。。。 Cerulean Sea so was thrilled to receive an ARC from Netgalley。 But while this was charming and uplifting and sad， it felt like a slightly insubstantial shadow of the former book。 I enjoyed it， and possibly would have done more so if i hadn't read the similar-but-better precursor 3。5 stars。 I absolutely loved 。。。 Cerulean Sea so was thrilled to receive an ARC from Netgalley。 But while this was charming and uplifting and sad， it felt like a slightly insubstantial shadow of the former book。 I enjoyed it， and possibly would have done more so if i hadn't read the similar-but-better precursor 。。。more
Jaime
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I loved this book！ It managed to be really funny， even as it worked through serious themes。 I loved seeing the evolution of Wallace after his death。 It had a great cast of characters and I cared about each one。 A great book！
David Gibson
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The Short Version: TJ Kline does it again， weaving a beautiful modern fairy tale about life， death， and living， truly living。The Long Version: I got to listen to an arc of this audiobook thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio。 Disclaimer: I’m a huge TJ Klune fan， it’s routinely a battle Royale between him and Grady Hendrix as to who is my favorite modern author so I may be biased in his favor， but even so， Under the Whispering Door is so thoroughly enjoyable you’d be doing yourself a disservice The Short Version: TJ Kline does it again， weaving a beautiful modern fairy tale about life， death， and living， truly living。The Long Version: I got to listen to an arc of this audiobook thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio。 Disclaimer: I’m a huge TJ Klune fan， it’s routinely a battle Royale between him and Grady Hendrix as to who is my favorite modern author so I may be biased in his favor， but even so， Under the Whispering Door is so thoroughly enjoyable you’d be doing yourself a disservice not reading it。Warning: I’m doing my best not to spoil anything in this review and I think I’ve succeeded in avoiding spoilers， but this review is a little trickier than most to do so， so reader beware。Under The Whispering Door is a story about Wallace Price， a dedicated attorney who has time for little else in his life， that is， until he dies。 Suddenly Wallace is forced to face his mortality and the big questions of life and death。 To help him， Wallace meets an interesting cast of characters who try to help him understand what it’s all about and how to come to terms with his own mortality。TJ Klune is one of the best authors I’ve come across at blending effortless humor and ludicrous plot with weighty topics like the meaning of life。 He wields all of his skills in this story and each component is well executed for a highly enjoyable story。Each of the characters is fully fleshed out and while most of the character development is focused on Wallace， there are sufficient arcs for the other characters that they don’t feel stagnant or like window dressing。As usual， Klune doesn’t trip up on pacing， even momentarily， the events unfolding briskly， but not in a rushed way。 Another unique talent Klune has is the way he makes the fantastic elements of his stories feel realistic， like there may be magic in this world we just haven’t tapped into。 It really immerses you in the stories and gives you that sense of wonder that I personally had watching Disney movies as a child。 It’s so rare to see but what makes his books so enticing。The dialogue is whip smart without feeling unrealistic， and with the exception of one crutch phrase I’ll mention later， the prose is on point throughout as well。 The Narrator for this audiobook was very good， he succeeded in elevating the emotion of the narrative at every turn， and while the male voices occasionally muddled， there was a good amount of differentiation between each of the characters。I loved this book through and through， but that’s not to say there were no drawbacks and while they’re probably a touch on the nitpicky side， they’re real。First， having read House in the Cerulean Sea this year as well， I couldn’t help but see never ending similarity in the narrative construction， character composition， and romantic development。 Both stories are highly enjoyable， with Cerulean Sea edging out Whispering Door， but seeing so many similarities worries me Klune may be too formulaic and that further entries in his adult fantasy collection risk becoming tiresome because you know exactly how the theme will unfold before you begin。 This is only his second adult fantasy book so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt， but there were times this felt like a retelling of cerulean sea， just meditating on a different concept。Second， as in Cerulean Sea， the antagonistic forces in the novel are vague and there’s no clear antagonist， more a hodge lodge of momentary antagonists。 It doesn’t hurt the novels enjoyment， but without something definitive to root against， I feel the story fails to reach the heights it could。Lastly， and this is SUPER nitpicky， TJ Klune says swallowed thickly way too much。 I noticed it first in his extraordinaries series but he says it all the time and it’s gotten to the point it’s nails in a chalkboard for me。 Sorry for anyone I point this out to who then can’t ignore it， but as an emerging premier author of the time， I hope Klune continues to elevate his craft and not catching crutch phrases like that always make me fear the author isn’t working hard enough to elevate their craft。Overall， another stunning novel that will appeal to a variety of readers and send you ping ponging through a range of emotions in the most satisfying way possible。 A 4。5 rounded up and a huge recommendation to all。Component RatingsConcept/Idea: 5 out of 5Protagonist: 4。5 out of 5Supporting cast: 5 out of 5Character Development: 5 out of 5Plot: 4。5 out 5Pacing: 5 out of 5Humor: 5 out of 5Prose: 4。5 out of 5Dialogue: 5 out of 5Narrator Performance: 4。5 out of 5Ending: 4。5 out of 5 。。。more
Robyn
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RTC
Sarah
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This book tore my soul apart in the best way possible。 I loved Cerulean and was so worried about whether this one would stand up。 It does - it is different but gives the same vibes and same warm hug feeling。 I cried。 I laughed。 Mei and Nelson are perfectly perfect characters。 And Wallace and Hugo？ Oh there are so many reasons to love them， even though it might not always be easy。 Such a beautiful book of life， death， and love。
Kristina Chamberlain
，
TJ Klune has a gift for creating characters that you become hopelessly attached to。 In Under the Whispering Door， the cast of characters （and the setting） is very small， but the feelings the story evokes are very big。Walter is the ultimate grumpy corporate drone who has quite the journey of self-awareness and discovery after he dies。 The people tasked with helping him on that journey， Mei and Hugo， are amazingly well developed as very kind but snarky （Mei） and sunshine-y （Hugo） people who help t TJ Klune has a gift for creating characters that you become hopelessly attached to。 In Under the Whispering Door， the cast of characters （and the setting） is very small， but the feelings the story evokes are very big。Walter is the ultimate grumpy corporate drone who has quite the journey of self-awareness and discovery after he dies。 The people tasked with helping him on that journey， Mei and Hugo， are amazingly well developed as very kind but snarky （Mei） and sunshine-y （Hugo） people who help the dead along as a living。 Throw in two ghosts who chose to stick around （Nelson and the adorable dog Apollo） and you have an excellent core of characters。With a lot of warmth， compassion， and humor， this book explores death and grief very well （if occasionally a little on-the-nose with the messaging）。 It also tackles one of life's most unanswerable questions: what happens after you die？ While there is no way of knowing， I have to say that I like the author's approach in this book， which mixes some traditional myths and theology with a little corporate structure。Overall， I highly recommend this book。 It will absolutely give you some tears， but also a lot of heartwarming （and a few chuckleworthy） moments。 4。75 stars！Trigger warnings: death （obviously）， suicide， murder， grief， depressionThanks to the author， NetGalley， and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy of this book！ 。。。more
Whitney
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**Thank you to Netgalley and MacMillan-TOR/Forge for the eARC in exchange for an honest review。 This in no way changed my rating or opinions**I was honestly a little shocked I got approved for this title because it's such a big release and that makes what I'm about to say even harder。 I really liked The House in the Cerulean Sea。 I read it before I knew he was co-opting Indigenous Residential Schools to create his feel good found family story， so obviously， now knowing that， it is one I no longe **Thank you to Netgalley and MacMillan-TOR/Forge for the eARC in exchange for an honest review。 This in no way changed my rating or opinions**I was honestly a little shocked I got approved for this title because it's such a big release and that makes what I'm about to say even harder。 I really liked The House in the Cerulean Sea。 I read it before I knew he was co-opting Indigenous Residential Schools to create his feel good found family story， so obviously， now knowing that， it is one I no longer freely recommend to people。 Unfortunately， I think this one has also taken some aspects that were not Klune's to write and that he has relied on really lazy tropes with his POC characters to the point where it's offensive and I have made the decision to DNF the title。 Wallace， our main character， is the only white main character at the point where I am （33% of the way through）。 He is a complete jerk。 We know the trope。 He's the jerk who learns the error of his ways after he dies。 This isn't a new concept。 Wallace is brought to a tea shop run by Hugo， a Black man who is the ferryman to the afterlife， Mei， a reaper who is Chinese American， and Nelson， Hugo's grandfather。 My issues really pertain to Hugo and Mei。 I'm going to start with Mei because she's not the love interest。 Mei was my breaking point。 She discusses how she came to realize she has the ability to see dead people and that she was trained to be a reaper。 She tells Wallace that her mother left China to become an American and give her children a better life。 The direct quote is "China in the twentieth century was filled with war and famine， oppression and violence。。。My mom wanted to escape it all。 She wanted fireworks on the Fourth of July and picket fences。" This is some blatant American Exceptionalism if I've ever seen it。 She goes on to say that for all her mom wanted to be American， she retained some "ingrained" Chinese superstitions and that's what caused her to not let Mei seek help as she started realizing she had this power。 I really detest this。 First off， there are MANY American parents who would refuse help for their child depending on the need。 All you have to do is look at the stigma surrounding mental health to see that is a fact。 These are written off as "My mom had these silly cultural habits that are really harmful and if she was TRULY American， I would've gotten help earlier"， which is offensive and inaccurate。 There is still oppression and violence here for people of color and Americans have cultural habits that other cultures probably find "silly" or "harmful"， too。 I am incredibly taken aback that an editor or a sensitivity reader didn't question this characterization。Hugo， however， is my big issue and it's because his whole character is the "magical Negro" trope。 He and Mei keep reminding Hugo they're "there to help him" move on and figure things out。 They're there to help Wallace realize what a terrible person he was before he died。 Hugo is this charming， friendly， everyone loves him Black guy who only has eyes for our terrible， jerk "protagonist" （anti-hero feels more appropriate） and can ONLY open up to him。。。for reasons？ He has literal magical powers and is only there for Wallace's benefit。 Again， this is a lazy trope that wasn't necessary and I question how no one tried to correct this。 For these reasons， I have chosen to not finish this book。 I will not be recommending it to anyone。 I think the characterizations of every character but Wallace are rooted in harmful stereotypes。 I think Klune is using these characters， whether intentionally or not， for diversity "brownie" points without thinking deeper about how the words he's having these characters speak can affect real world POCs and how people outside of the POC community view us。 I am just really let down by this。 This could have and should have been handled better。 。。。more
Adriana
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TJ Klune breaks your heart， stomps on the pieces， sets them on fire， and then gives you a major， happy-tears dose of hope。 This is hands down one of the most beautiful and well-done books dealing with grief I've ever read。 Wallace is the epitome of the most unlikeable lawyer ever as the story begins and seeing him grow as a person as he develops his relationships with the inhabitants of Charon's Crossing Tea and Treats is charming and inspiring。 Klune makes it so that you can't help but love eve TJ Klune breaks your heart， stomps on the pieces， sets them on fire， and then gives you a major， happy-tears dose of hope。 This is hands down one of the most beautiful and well-done books dealing with grief I've ever read。 Wallace is the epitome of the most unlikeable lawyer ever as the story begins and seeing him grow as a person as he develops his relationships with the inhabitants of Charon's Crossing Tea and Treats is charming and inspiring。 Klune makes it so that you can't help but love every single one of the characters and feel as invested in what happens to them as if you actually knew them in real life。 It's a spectacular bit of writing that makes all the emotionally powerful moments hit deep， and it's also why this magical read is spectacularly phenomenal。 Extremely happy thanks to NetGalley and Tor Books for the early read！ 。。。more
Trevor
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I am definitely buying what TJ Klune is selling。 While not a perfect book， I can't help but love this book anyway。 This one especially came at a time when I needed it most。 In my opinion this one isn't quite as polished and as well crafted as The House in the Cerulean Sea but it is just as heartwarming and full of that wholesome atmosphere that worked so well in THitCS。 These books are just absolute comfort food that I can see myself coming back to whenever I need a pick-me-up。 I look forward to I am definitely buying what TJ Klune is selling。 While not a perfect book， I can't help but love this book anyway。 This one especially came at a time when I needed it most。 In my opinion this one isn't quite as polished and as well crafted as The House in the Cerulean Sea but it is just as heartwarming and full of that wholesome atmosphere that worked so well in THitCS。 These books are just absolute comfort food that I can see myself coming back to whenever I need a pick-me-up。 I look forward to seeing where Klune goes from here。 。。。more
Susanne Latour
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 2。5 ⭐️ Unpopular opinion from other early reviews I’ve read。The plot: A reaper comes to collect Wallace Price at his funeral but instead of taking him directly to the afterlife Mei takes him to a secluded tea shop on the outskirts of a small town。 Hugo the tea shop owner to the town folk is also the Ferryman to souls。 He helps the dead come to terms with being dead and when they’re ready helps them to crossover。 If you liked The House in the Cerulean Sea （THITCS） also by T。J。 Klune then you’ll p 2。5 ⭐️ Unpopular opinion from other early reviews I’ve read。The plot: A reaper comes to collect Wallace Price at his funeral but instead of taking him directly to the afterlife Mei takes him to a secluded tea shop on the outskirts of a small town。 Hugo the tea shop owner to the town folk is also the Ferryman to souls。 He helps the dead come to terms with being dead and when they’re ready helps them to crossover。 If you liked The House in the Cerulean Sea （THITCS） also by T。J。 Klune then you’ll probably like Under the Whispering Door （UTWD）。 Unfortunately for me I felt like I was reading the same book twice， this one dealing with grief instead of being excepting of others which was the lesson to be learned in THITCS。 The plot was just too similar for me to ignore ie: grumpy man set in his ways with no family or friends goes off to a house in the middle of nowhere and changes his thinking to become a better person and falls in love。 Both books also having an overriding higher power government （HITCS） vs ‘the manager’ （UTWD） that enforces the rules and punishes those that go against them but crumbles in the end。 You know a book is dragging on when every time you start a new chapter you look at your kindle to see how long it will take you to read it and sigh when it says 25 minutes。 For me this book could have used some more editing， it was about 100 longer then it needed to be。 There of course were some heartwarming moments but overall this book was just ok。 I didn’t appreciate the insta-love relationship in this book and found it almost inappropriate， like a patient， therapist relationship would be。 The ending also didn’t work for me， it was very predictable but also Wallace seemed to somehow know all these things after being at the tea shop for a month that Hugo didn’t know from years of experience as a Ferryman。 It didn’t make sense to me。 Thank you Macmillan -Tor/Forge and Netgalley for this ACR。 Publication date September 21st。 。。。more
diana
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tj klune never fails to make me cry so good on him
Paige Armstrong
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TJ Klune's books are usually fine or outright fantastic。 This one was fantastic。 With a vibe similar to that of The House of the Cerulean Sea， with its whimsical setting and wonderfully warm characters， Under the Whispering Door is beautiful all on its own。 Wallace is engaging and Hugo is inspiring。 Their connection， and their relationships with the other characters， make the story so strong。 This is one of my favorite books。 Thank you， NetGalley。 TJ Klune's books are usually fine or outright fantastic。 This one was fantastic。 With a vibe similar to that of The House of the Cerulean Sea， with its whimsical setting and wonderfully warm characters， Under the Whispering Door is beautiful all on its own。 Wallace is engaging and Hugo is inspiring。 Their connection， and their relationships with the other characters， make the story so strong。 This is one of my favorite books。 Thank you， NetGalley。 。。。more
Abby Johnson
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THIS BOOK。 MY HEART。 AHHHHHH。 I'm equal parts grateful and disappointed that I read the last couple of chapters in a public place because OMG I might have never stopped crying （in all the ways， no spoilers）。 This one took me a little longer to get into than TJ Klune's last novel， but it's so， so worth the read。 It's charming and heartbreaking and I AM STILL FEELING ALL THE FEELS。 AHHHHH。 Push this into the hands of those who loved The House in the Cerulean Sea， but I would also try it on fans of THIS BOOK。 MY HEART。 AHHHHHH。 I'm equal parts grateful and disappointed that I read the last couple of chapters in a public place because OMG I might have never stopped crying （in all the ways， no spoilers）。 This one took me a little longer to get into than TJ Klune's last novel， but it's so， so worth the read。 It's charming and heartbreaking and I AM STILL FEELING ALL THE FEELS。 AHHHHH。 Push this into the hands of those who loved The House in the Cerulean Sea， but I would also try it on fans of heartwarming stories like A Man Called Ove if they would consider fantasy/supernatural at all。 。。。more
Kristen Smith
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3。5 stars The beginning of this book brought back all the feels from The House in the Cerulean Sea。 In fact， there was even a couple mentions of the Cerulean Sea in this book。 TJ Klune has a unique way of writing that feels very welcoming and homey to me。 He especially knows how to write characters you can fall in love with。 However， I felt the plot was lacking here。 It took over half of the book to even get to the main plot。 And I’m all for character driven novels。 I just didn’t feel like that 3。5 stars The beginning of this book brought back all the feels from The House in the Cerulean Sea。 In fact， there was even a couple mentions of the Cerulean Sea in this book。 TJ Klune has a unique way of writing that feels very welcoming and homey to me。 He especially knows how to write characters you can fall in love with。 However， I felt the plot was lacking here。 It took over half of the book to even get to the main plot。 And I’m all for character driven novels。 I just didn’t feel like that was the aim of this one。 Thank you to NetGalley for a digital ARC and MacMillan Audio for an ALC of this nook in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
Tashia Wright
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B O O K R E V I E WUnder the Whispering Door by T。J。 Klune⭐️⭐️⭐️/5。Thank you to @torbooks and @netgalley for this this ARC in exchange for an honest review！。First of all， I went into this book with a very open mind。 Klune’s other novel， The House in the Cerulean Sea is very harmful to indigenous individuals and I had to do a lot of research after reading it to better educate myself。。Under the Whispering Door， however， was a step in the right direction。 I am by no means an expert on diverse group B O O K R E V I E WUnder the Whispering Door by T。J。 Klune⭐️⭐️⭐️/5。Thank you to @torbooks and @netgalley for this this ARC in exchange for an honest review！。First of all， I went into this book with a very open mind。 Klune’s other novel， The House in the Cerulean Sea is very harmful to indigenous individuals and I had to do a lot of research after reading it to better educate myself。。Under the Whispering Door， however， was a step in the right direction。 I am by no means an expert on diverse groups， but this story was definitely more inclusive。 。However， this book is about death。 So if you are struggling with grief， I would not recommend this book for you。 This book tells the story of Wallace， a high strung attorney， who dies suddenly and is then taken to Charon’s Crossing by his reaper， Mei， to meet his ferryman， Hugo。。I loved the attention to detail in this book。 The setting， the dialogue， the chemistry between characters… was presented perfectly。 I loved the supporting characters， Nelson & Apollo 😍。But this book was so slow。 The first 15%- interesting。 The rest was very drawn out until the main end， which then felt forced。。I may have went into this with high expectations， but I did not “feel all the feels”。 。。。more
Cheryl DeFranceschi
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I loved The House in the Cerulean Sea so much。 I read it twice， I wept， I felt heart-punched in the best sense。 I sent it to hundreds of Page 1 subscribers so I could share its magic。 I approached Under the Whispering Door with the thought that I would like， maybe even love it， but that it wouldn’t be as magical as Cerulean Sea。 I love being wrong！ I laughed， I cried （ omg， did I cry！）， I was moved to a point that I never thought I would be。 How beautiful that was！ Just perfection。 Thank you， TJ I loved The House in the Cerulean Sea so much。 I read it twice， I wept， I felt heart-punched in the best sense。 I sent it to hundreds of Page 1 subscribers so I could share its magic。 I approached Under the Whispering Door with the thought that I would like， maybe even love it， but that it wouldn’t be as magical as Cerulean Sea。 I love being wrong！ I laughed， I cried （ omg， did I cry！）， I was moved to a point that I never thought I would be。 How beautiful that was！ Just perfection。 Thank you， TJ Klune， for an experience I don’t think I’ll ever forget。 Thank you TOR Books， for the e-arc， and for consistently publishing works that I love to be able to share with our subscribers。 I look forward to putting this book into as many hands as I possibly can。 Here， and all over the world。 💗 。。。more
Amber
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Thank you NetGalley for the ARC！ I didn't think any author could make me laugh as hard as Mhairi McFarlane。。 and I was wrong！ I laughed so hard sometimes I was almost crying。 I also cried（sad tears） too。。 so that should give you an idea of the emotional range of this book。 I love character driven stories and this checked all the boxes。 We have Wallace who is a very black and white analytical businessman who can't handle that he has been thrown into the biggest grey area he could imagine。。 the af Thank you NetGalley for the ARC！ I didn't think any author could make me laugh as hard as Mhairi McFarlane。。 and I was wrong！ I laughed so hard sometimes I was almost crying。 I also cried（sad tears） too。。 so that should give you an idea of the emotional range of this book。 I love character driven stories and this checked all the boxes。 We have Wallace who is a very black and white analytical businessman who can't handle that he has been thrown into the biggest grey area he could imagine。。 the afterlife！ This book is essentially about death and regrets， but is handled with so much humor and positivity。 The supporting characters added so much to it with Mei keeping Wallace in line and standing up to him in a way he isn't used too， and Hugo helping him loosen up and see things in a different way。 We also meet one of the most fun supporting characters I have read to date。。 Apollo the ghost dog！ I really enjoyed this one and read it so quickly！ There were a couple parts of the book that I think dragged a bit or could have even been cut out， but I was still happy to be with the characters I had grown to love！ There were parts that reminded me of the Midnight Library， a Christmas Carol and the show The Good Place。。 which are all right up my alley！ 4。5 stars！ 。。。more
Danielle
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This was a wonderful book with themes on life after death， survival and major change。 The take on life after death felt like a twist on reincarnation。 I truly enjoyed this story of what happens to people after they die and that we may all have a second chance before we go to the end of the road， so to speak。There are multiple trigger warnings， such as death， suicide， and grief。 I found myself crying at random times throughout the second half of the book。 There were parts that hit close to home。 This was a wonderful book with themes on life after death， survival and major change。 The take on life after death felt like a twist on reincarnation。 I truly enjoyed this story of what happens to people after they die and that we may all have a second chance before we go to the end of the road， so to speak。There are multiple trigger warnings， such as death， suicide， and grief。 I found myself crying at random times throughout the second half of the book。 There were parts that hit close to home。 I especially found the parts about Apollo sad。 My fur baby is a major part of my life， so this was so sad for me。 The idea that some of us could be able to see the dead and help them through。 Even potentially have our deceased loved ones there where we can see and talk to them still。 That is beautiful。 If only we could have a few more minutes/days/any time with them。 Especially with those gone too soon。I did feel that the timeline went a bit fast。 I was hoping for a little more of the development between Wallace and Hugo， but their ending was beautiful， so I can't complain too much :）I can't wait to read more by this author。 Thank you so much #Netgalley， #TJKlune and #TorBooks for this advanced copy。 。。。more
Erica Bumgardner
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