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.

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.

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, depression

Thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy of this book!

Have you ever wondered what comes after? TJ Klune’s latest book tells the story of Wallace, who comes to a “way station” after dying of a heart attack. Here he befriends Mei the Reaper, another ghost named Nelson, the ferryman Hugo, and the dog ghost Apollo.

TJ Klune once again had me laughing then sobbing then smiling from ear to ear all in the course of a few pages. This story is reflective, sweet, and surprisingly hopeful for a book where the main character dies in the first chapter. Klune is an expert at balancing emotions throughout the character development. I particularly enjoyed the way depression and anxiety were depicted throughout this story and the ways that the characters refuse to define others by their mental health.

The only critique I have is truly that I just wish there was more of this book. Particularly more of Wallace and Hugo towards the beginning. For the first half of the book Wallace almost exclusively spends time with Nelson or at times Mei, there’s not a lot of Wallace and Hugo scenes early on which could have established their relationship better in the early part of the book. While I thought their relationship was sweet and sincere, it was not shown as much as I would have liked throughout the course of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for this early reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

TW/CW: Suicide, depression, anxiety, death, death of a child, death of a parent.

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

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!

‘In death, Wallace never felt more alive’

This story takes place in a way station under the guise of a quirky teashop on the outskirts of a small town deep in the woods. Our main character, Wallace, finds himself unable to leave but not quite ready to move on to what comes next in his afterlife. He is afraid and angry and don't for a second think you won't be hearing about it!

This book's setting should have had a claustrophobic feel to it save for the fact that it had a constant flow of visitors contributed elements of the outside world to the narrative.

It wasn’t until the halfway mark that I started to feel emotionally invested, and don’t get me started on the ending that left me heartsick 😩

I couldn’t quite give it full stars because while I did eventually get hooked, it had such a slow start that it kept taking me out of the story and back to reality, making the plot way more confusing than it needed to be.

The dialogue between the characters was beautiful, although not always realistic, with some monologues carrying on for pages on end.

Finding peace, clarity and acceptance in the life we live was a message that really stuck with me. The cycle of grief was also explored really well, and I found the whole theme of the book so unique.
Yes— it’s a fictional story about a man who dies and the journey he sets off on, but it’s as much about our impact on those who share in our journey.

I love books that ask big questions, and felt this one had almost a Paul Coelho/Mitch Albom feel to it that happily surprised me.

Overall, I thought it was beautifully written, raw and heartbreaking. I wanted to spend hours in the tea shop and the side characters (Nelson & Apollo in particular) will likely stay with me forever 🥺🤍

B O O K R E V I E W
Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
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Thank you to @torbooks and @netgalley for this this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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 😍
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But this book was so slow. The first 15%- interesting. The rest was very drawn out until the main end, which then felt forced.
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I may have went into this with high expectations, but I did not “feel all the feels”.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic and audio copy to review.

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.

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!

**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.

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.

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.

Like The House in the Cerulean Sea before it finding the words to describe my adoration for Under the Whispering Door is beyond difficult. T.J. Klune's work hits me on a visceral, personal level and describing the warmth and comfort his writing brings me in words is inadequate. But for the sake of peddling this book to as many people as possible, I will attempt it.

In Under the Whispering Door, after passing souls find their way to a teashop between life and death. This teashop is run by the ferryman Hugo who guides people to whatever lies beyond. While most spend a day or so in the teashop our protagonist Wallace adamantly refuses to accept his fate. His moving on becomes protracted, as Hugo and all the residents of the teashop work to help him move on before the ominous Manager forces Wallace over one way or another.

Under the Whispering Door may be a harder sell than Klune's earlier work. One of the biggest potential hurdles is its protagonist Wallace. He's a scrooge type and honestly deeply, unlikeable at the start of the story. His cartoonish slavish devotion to work, cruel treatment of his employees and general outlook on life made the first ~20% of this book much more of a struggle than anticipated. However, the genuinely moving growth demonstrated by Wallace as the book progressed was phenomenal. His authentic development as a person felt completely earned and was incredibly emotionally satisfying to watch unfold. But if I were to criticize any element of this story it would be that Wallace's personality at the start of the story was a tad too mustache-twirling to take seriously.

Another potential hurdle for readers is the book's subject matter. As someone with death anxiety, my mortality isn't a subject I like to dwell on. Under the Whispering Door discusses grief, child death, and suicide in-depth, though outright depictions of the latter two are sidestepped. If you find these subjects or dwelling on your mortality in general uncomfortable this may not be the book for you.

Funnily enough, my death anxiety made this book all the more meaningful to me. Under the Whispering Door confronts the reality of death head-on. The way Klune explored grief and processing death while occasionally hard to read gave me a framework for conceptualizing dying that, for once, didn't lead me down an existential panic spiral. As someone who has frequently lost sleep over the idea of ceasing to exist, I can't undersell how helpful having this space to think about death has been. The space Hugo, in particular, as a ferryman gave Wallace and other spirits to process their deaths especially moved me.

This book was also so comforting because of the amazing found family at the centre of the story Found families are one of my favourite tropes in speculative fiction ad T.J. Klune is a master at crafting them. The supporting cast of Under the Wisper Door was absolutely stunning. Mei the spitfire reaper and Hugo's grandfather Nelson were wonderful additions to the story. These side characters were endlessly charming and added levity to a story that frequently delved into the sombre. Despite being side-characters these two seemed to have full lives outside of our protagonists and felt like fully realized elements of this world.

The story's delightful slow-burn romance also added a charm to the narrative. While it takes time for Hugo and Wallace to get together their romance is worth the wait. The genuine chemistry and quiet connection between these two made my heart swell. Klune perfectly illustrated why these two fit together so well and the romance was especially satisfying because of the growth Wallace went through across the novel.

I adored Under the Whispering Door. T.J. Klune is a mastful storyteller and writes stories that I can't help but fall in love with.

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.

What can I say, but Klune did it again! A definite must read, I can’t wait to get a hard copy of this book too. It was such a unique idea, and to watch the progress of the story, it hit me in the feels! A look on how people handle life (and to see how you react differently) it was a good one.

TJ Klune knows how to write an interesting story. His characters are funny and share some great banter. Additionally, there are so much heartwarming conversations that feel like a literary hug. This story was unique and uplifting. The characters were likable and well developed. I really enjoyed getting to know all of the characters and seeing where the story would take me. I would definitely recommend this one to friends.

Wallace Price is a no-nonsense man who has lived a life with little more than his work. And then he dies, and realizes at his sparsely attended funeral that maybe he hadn't impacted anyone in a positive way. Then a Reaper named Mei comes to collect him, albeit not without answering a few of his questions, and brings him to a way-station between life and the afterlife. Off a path through the woods, in a little village Wallace has never visited, they arrive at a rather peculiar tea shop, Charon's Crossing, run by a man named Hugo. Loved by the locals, Hugo is more than just a master of tea - he is a ferryman, tending to the souls of the dead until they are ready to cross over. While Wallace does not want to accept his fate at first, the more time spent at the shop, and with Hugo, the more he realizes just how much he's missed out on. And when the Manager, a curious and powerful being, makes an unexpected appearance, time for Wallace to cross over may be running out.</p>

Under the Whispering Door explores, life, love, death, and grief in such an intimate and personal way that I found myself speechless after many passages throughout. It takes Wallace's death for his bubble to pop and for him to realize that the life he once lived was not fulfilling, and that those he had surrounded himself with pale in comparison to the companions and, eventually, family he finds for himself at Hugo's tea shop. As he comes to acknowledge his flaws, shortcomings, and regrets, and begins to make any amends he can after death, Wallace finally finds himself in a place where he belongs, where those around understand him in a way no one has before. In terms of the relationship between Wallace and Hugo that develops, I felt the exact same way about Linus and Arthur in Cerulean - at first, Wallace is stubborn and set in his ways, and Hugo is amused and fascinated by his stubborness, and what develops is a mutual appreciation for each others' company while they both can learn new things from each other, where everyone else seems to realize what's happening before they do. It was absolutely lovely to see. The pacing at the beginning seemed a bit slow, as the reader is being introduced to the idea of Reapers and ferrymen, and I found that sometimes phrases and/or actions were being repeated to/by Wallace multiple times. While some may find that off-putting, and I can see why, I thought it worked in Klune's favor as he captured an individual experience of grief - repetition can be connected to a person in denial, as they try to carry on as if nothing is amiss and when realization hits, the cycle continues. I'm not sure if anything will be changed in the finished copy, but I still stand by my thoughts that the repetitive nature was purposeful and suited the story quite nicely.

I'm truly interested to hear what other people will think of this story. Everyone's life and experiences with grief will shape what message truly shines through for them. It's what I love most about reading - hundreds of people can read the same text and interpret it hundreds of different ways, and those interpretations will always make for great discussion. While some may expect another Cerulean, I hope they can appreciate "Under the Whispering Door" on its own and all it has to offer.

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!

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.