3.5 Stars. When Wallace Price, a compassionless workaholic, suddenly dies from a heart attack, he is met by a reaper, Meiying, at his funeral. Mei takes Wallace to a small village to meet Hugo, a tea shop owner and ferryman to souls crossing over to the afterlife. However, Wallace is not ready to cross over quite yet, and has the opportunity to see all that he missed out on while living his life.

Wallace initially gave me an Ebenezer Scrooge from “A Christmas Carol” vibe, but he was a unique character in his own, as were the rest of characters in the novel. I enjoy the way Klune writes, tackling serious topics interspersed with bits of wit and humor, making for a book that is deep and meaningful, yet also light-hearted. While this book took a thought-provoking look at death and the afterlife, I did feel like it was drawn out and somewhat slow for a large portion of the novel. The concept of the story had so much potential, but it just did not seem like a ton happened throughout the middle of the book. Nevertheless, it was a well-written story with a wonderful ending, and I will continue to look forward to the author’s future novels.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

TJ Klune never fails to deliver! The book Under the Whispering Door is another great and quirky read for all ages. I’ve read books about death and about life after it, and this book is different because it is funny and a light read. It keeps the reader interested and its philosophical angle is portrayed in a language every one can understand and appreciate. The plot is carefully and beautifully woven right from the beginning to the end. The book also shows different perspectives about various issues and concerns in life and in the society in general but it is not offending in any way, particularly when religion, culture, and beliefs are concerned. I enjoyed a lot reading the book and I am sure many readers in different walks of life and backgrounds will enjoy it too!

TJ Klune has done it again. The character work that Klune does in each book masterfully combines happiness, loss, melancholy, and hope to create the powerful characters who worm their way into your heart. And as someone who loves character-focused stories, Klune has become a go to author over the last year. And Klune's ability to mix humor and sadness is a perfect combination.

I honestly had no idea what to expect when I started Under the Whispering Door but I am sososo happy that I picked this one up when I picked it up when I did.

This book follows the story of Wallace, an incredibly unlikable lawyer. Wallace goes through life completely arrogantly and selfishly, not caring who he's hurting in the process. Not long after firing an employee at his firm, Wallace finds himself suddenly at his own funeral and he is appalled that hardly anyone has even bothered to show up. After his initial shock and confusion, he realizes there is one person in the gathering that he does not recognize - Mei. After introducing herself and explaining the situation to Wallace, Mei whisks him away to a halfway house for the dead and introduces him to his ferryman, Hugo.

A love story at it's heart, Under the Whispering Door is a touching story about humanity as well as a homage to living life to the fullest.

I am thankful for the chance to review this title through NetGalley. I first learned of the author from reading The House in the Cerulean Sea. Despite the similar cover artwork, these books weren't very much alike. I enjoyed the character transformation and the whimsical setting. Under the Whispering Door focuses on death so it's obviously a bit darker but it doesn't feel like that while reading. For most of the book, I would have rated 4.5 (rare for me) but the ending/epilogue dropped it to a 4 for me (still an excellent book that I'm glad I read). I think I prefer this genre to include kids. Magic and kids just feel more possible. Despite different from my usual genre, I'd still recommend this to other TJ Klune fans (who I consider myself among!), those looking to read books with more LGBTQIAA+ characters, and those open to pondering life's deepest questions through a fantasy lens. This one will be read and enjoyed by many.

TJ Klune knows how to write a found family novel. This book is more character driven than plot, which is why I did not give it a 5 star. Just a personal preference. Wallace and Hugo have such a kind, loving relationship. Mei adds a level of friendship, a bond that is so strong, and Nelson is such a proud, loving, fatherly figure it is inspirational. Klune knows how to create wholesome, LGBT relationships that all can fall in love with.

This book is dark, lovely, gentle, and whimsical. A whole lot of emotions all rolled into one. That's the way you'll feel after finishing this.

It's an amazing, amazing story that deals with what happens after death. It's dealt with very respectfully, but tread carefully.

Just like The House in the Cerulean Sea, this novel comes with a whole host of colorful, unforgettable characters, including a sassy elderly man and a ghost dog. I loved all of the main characters, and I'm sure you will too.

It was an honor to read this exquisite story. Thank you, Netgalley, for my arc.

"And the one thing I've learned about being human is that we can't do this alone."

I'm not going to lie. I was really nervous about this book. I loved Cerulean Sea so much, and just couldn't bear if this book was a letdown.

If you're like me and worried that nothing can measure up, let me just assure you that although this book is much different in its subject material, the warm hug feels are still here in mass quantities.

When we meet Wallace Price, to say he is a jerk, is probably putting it mildly. He is so entirely focused on his career, that he has one failed marriage, no friends to speak of, and is basically an unfeeling human being. Having said that, it isn't super surprising that when he dies, hardly anyone attends his funeral. The one face he can't put a name to turns out to be a reaper, named Mei. She has come to take Wallace to meet the ferryman, Hugo. Hugo and Mei run a quaint little tea shop together while ushering people along in their journey through death. Hugo's job is to help Wallace process what has happened to him and prepare him to make the journey to his last stop; to what is behind the whispering door.

Klune has managed to write an amazing version of death and what awaits us after. Our journey with Wallace shows us that life is precious, and emphasizes that we should cherish the things that are important while we live;. While Wallace didn't do very much with his life up to his death, the opportunity for him to grow into a better person, and to live a better life after his death than he ever did while alive is touching, and charming, and at times just heartwrenching.

I loved this book every bit as much as I loved Cerulean Sea, and will recommend it just as highly to anyone who will listen! Another warm hug in book form!

Thank you so much to TJ Klune, and to Tor Books for providing me an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Under the Whispering Door took the word heart-warming to the extreme. After I adored House in the Cerulean Sea, I did not think that my very high expectations could be met; however, T.J. Klune took those expectations and raised them higher. True there is no baby Lucifer in this novel, but there are multiple characters that I loved. Even if I was not already drawn to the novel based on the cover and author, the concept sounds intriguing. I love the idea of a teashop acting as the waypoint where the living and dead come together as the dead come to terms with their circumstances in order to cross over. The read is first introduced to the main character, Wallace Price, as he is in the middle of listening to one of his staff members spill her personal life to him as she sits in his office. He is indifferent to her feelings as he is in the process of firing her. Right away, the reader has Wallace’s initial character established and his journey begins when he dies a few days later.

At his funeral, Wallace meets Mei, who is a reaper. Her job is to collect him and bring him to Charon’s Crossing Tea and Treats. This is a waypoint for the dead owned and operated by ferryman Hugo Freeman. His teashop not only exists for the dead, but also operates, as an actual teashop for the living, who are unaware of Hugo’s other “supernatural” profession. Naturally, Wallace is confused about everything around him, so Hugo steps in to try and help Wallace understand. Hugo and Mei are not the only ones in Wallace’s company as there is Hugo’s grandfather, Nelson, and Hugo’s dog, Apollo, who are both ghosts, like Wallace. The story follows Wallace as he interacts with this quirky cast of characters at the teashop as he tries to become ready to move on.

At first, I was unsure about Wallace as he was unlikable, however, I did not hate him. To him, he was working hard for his company and did not factor in others’ emotions in order to do the job. He is understandable as his company’s success means a lot to him and his law firm partners. He has an ex-wife, Naomi, that is present at the funeral and her relationship with Wallace is explored throughout the novel. The longer Wallace is at the teashop, the more he connects to its residents. I adored Nelson as he added a nice dash of humor and Apollo was an amazing furry companion. Mei is a little over the top at times, but she was still enjoyable. Finally, Hugo is initially very reserved, but his character slowly reveals itself over time. Wallace forms excellent connections with each character and they are all unique to the point that this group was an excellent family, for me. Normally, in almost all novels, I have a favorite character, or at least a character that is a hair above the rest, but I could not choose on in this novel.

The novel has a lot of humor and the reader goes on a roller coaster ride. Multiple moments in the story are humorous, which provided a nice balance to those heart-warming moments. The themes of life and death, love and loss, and everything in-between are explored in this novel, which I was not expecting. The familial relationships between blood relatives, Hugo and Nelson, and the friendships that are present between all of them was extremely well done; however, the icing on the cake is the romance forming between Hugo and Wallace. It builds very gradually as the two have daily conversations with each other. While they may or may not have an initial attraction, their connection was enjoyable to me based on the two connecting on a personal level. They do not have insta-love nor does their building attraction distract from the main story of Wallace trying to become better before moving on. I greatly admire the author for writing this type of romance as it becomes more meaningful and I, as a reader, become more invested if they will end up together or not. I hope that the author continues to include this style in all the future novels, as I love it.

Overall, this author has a gift for taking initially simplistic characters and stories and turning them into memorable elements. The synopsis does this novel a bit of disservice as it mentions that Wallace has a week to get everything in order. While this is a piece of the plot, it actually does not occur until the seventy-ish percent mark. Instead, there is a lot more character and world building that happens in the novel where this is a tiny piece of the larger plot. The beginning took a me a minute to get into more so than HITCS, but once I was in it I could not put it down. Even though I am not a very emotional reader, I did find my eyes watering at a point or two in the story. Since this is a rarity, I knew I was invested in the story and cannot wait to read the author’s next novel!

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Tor Books, for the opportunity to read this enjoyable novel. The opinions expressed are completely my own.**

Under the Whispering Door was beautiful paranormal LGBTQ romance that revolved around Wallace Price, a ghost, and his time at Tea shop (a way station after death) with ferryman that brought tremendous change in him. The story was about friendship, love, grief, loss, family, tea, and mostly death.

Writing was vivid, atmospheric, gripping and fast paced with third person narrative from Wallace’s perspective. The setting of Tea Shop and it being a way station as well for ghosts made story even more beautiful and atmospheric.

Plot looked simple but there was so much more to the story and it was highly unpredictable. I couldn’t say where the story was going and honestly there was beauty in going along with the story. That manager showing himself and giving ultimatum happened almost around climax but until that part it was all about character introduction, their back story, how Hugo and Mei got their job as ferryman and reaper, other characters and their story, and most importantly Wallace’s development. It was amazing to read Wallace’s time at Tea shop, everything he learned after his death, what he will do in those last seven days, and if he will cross the door or not.

Characters were fantastic. They were all realistic and relatable. I came to love all the characters by the end of the book, of course there were few exceptions but even the manager surprised me.

Wallace was 40 yrs old lawyer. He was selfish, obnoxious, ruthless shark. He definitely was not likable. At first I felt sad when no one showed up at his funeral. No matter how much he deserved it, I wouldn’t want that even for my enemy but for first 25% of the book he was very much petulant, insolent and ungrateful person. I swear a teenager would have made better ghost. Making all the chaos in tea shop, waking Mei up in middle of night, booing around the house… Damn that was hilarious but yes very childish. If someone would have told me you would love this guy by the end I would have hard time to believe that.

But once he started listening Hugo, grandad (Nelson) and Mei, his development was tremendous and gradual. He slowly understood himself and what life he lived, accepted what he did in life was wrong and made so many mistakes, experienced the fear and felt bad for using other people’s fear against them when he was alive. Step by step he came around, we see totally opposite side of him that came out during his time at tea shop and it was amazing he learned to make friends. This ruthless shark became humane. He managed to surprise me often and with each of those surprises I loved him more and more. His character was so very much human, all flawed and realistic and susceptible to change.

Hugo was lovely from the beginning. He was wise, honest, experienced ferryman, like Nelson said empathetic to a fault, and developed character. His love for tea was infectious throughout the book. I had no idea how he became ferryman and I had a theory but I was so wrong about it. I loved his story of becoming ferryman and why he chose to be one. It was sad and I really admired him for dealing with death day to day even after the loss. It was amazing that he missed outside world and still love his job knowing he wouldn’t be able to see places. I liked the way author showed his vulnerability. His guilt and regrets, panic attacks was touching to read, and loved the way he found Wallace to share it all.

Mei, Nelson – Hugo’s Grandad (ghost) and Apollo, Hugo’s dog (also ghost) made this story light and entertaining. They would make hell of a troublemaker team.

Mei was fiery, lively, fun, kind and was best reaper. There was her story too and after reading that I admired her more. I agreed with Hugo when he spoke about her with Wallace. She understood her work and no matter how fiery she was and she wasn’t reckless or acting without a thought. It was easy to love her and now I’m fan of her hugs.

Nelson was best grandad one can expect. His love for Hugo was enough to make me love him but I also loved him for his pranks and all the trouble he created for Hugo that made me laugh more than once. I want Apollo for myself. This lick loving, protective and lovely dog made me smile often. If I want ghost around me, I would choose him.

There were many other secondary characters in the story and enjoyed reading them all. Some had sad and touching story while some were pure entertainment and other were mysterious and interesting.

Romance was slow burn, a love that can’t be possible or happen and yet it was lovely. We don’t see anything happening between them until second half but I loved the way they became friends and how their feelings grew over the time. I enjoyed all moments between Hugo and Wallace.

Conversations between characters was flawless. And there were so many hilarious moments- my favourite was what they did to Desdemona and Wallace trying to change his clothes.

What I loved most was how author handled the theme of death. I’m sure it’s not easy to read for everyone specially someone who might have lost someone close and still this never felt heavy. In fact, it was insightful. I’m sure many can find this both touching and enlightening at the same time. There was so much positivity around this topic. The concept of a person who lived dead life even before death and learned to live after death shows that itself. I liked what Hugo said about Kubler-Ross model – five stages of grief that can be applied for both living and dead and both living and dead process it different way. It made so much sense here. I absolutely loved last seven days of Wallace which was after climax. Oh and tea! I haven’t read a book that describes so many varieties of Tea and honestly as someone who loves tea I wasn’t aware of many mentioned here.

Climax made things so much interesting. I was expecting the Manager to show up at some point now and when he did he rocked the world of characters. I didn’t know what Wallace would do with the ultimatum and how would he spend his days. If any one didn’t like Wallace by now, I bet you cannot not like him after what he did. It was amazing filled with so many heartful moments that made me shed happy tears. I loved how they dealt with end of the ultimatum. End was perfect, so hopeful and uplifting.

Overall, Under the Whispering Door was so original, refreshing, touching, heartfelt, and uplifting contemporary and paranormal M/M romance.

I highly recommend this if you like,
concept of afterlife
heavy sounding theme with positive representation
tremendous but gradual character development
unpredictable plot
Much more than just romance
clean adult M/M romance
tea

3.5 stars. So disappointed that this wasn’t nearly as good as The House in the Cerulean Sea. I was greatly looking forward to this book and so grateful to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. This was an interesting topic and entertaining enough but it lacked the endearing nature of the previous book.

Wallace Price was such a thoroughly unpleasant man the only person willing to speak at his funeral was his ex, who used the opportunity to vent. Fortunately for his soul, before he crosses over to the other side he is forced to spend some quality time with spunky Mei, a reaper, and empathetic Hugo, a ferryman. While confined to their quirky tea house (Wallace hates tea) alongside Hugo's deceased grandfather and dog (Wallace hates dogs), the dead man gets a crash course in living. A tender book, and a surprisingly funny one given the subject matter.

This book was FANTASTIC. It was equal parts hilarious and touching. I wasn't sure I was going to like it, because really, what could top The House in the Cerulean Sea? But I really think this one did. And also, if you don't tear up in the end, you have no soul. Five well-deserved stars!

Thank you to Netgalley & Macmillan - Tor/Forge for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!
Under the Whispering Door was my first book by TJ Klune and man did I want to love it so badly!! While his writing style is so unique and ingenious, unfortunately this book and possibly the fantasy/paranormal genre is just not for me. I sadly decided to not finish this one. However, I am going to go with 3 stars for my review because I think there will be plenty of readers that will fall in love with this book and its unique style and message!

Thank you Netgalley and Tor Books for the advanced arc in exchange for an honest review.

Under the Whispering Door follows Wallace Price, an unlikeable lawyer who passes away very suddenly, as he comes to grips with his death and how he spent his life. Mentored by his reaper and a ferryman named Hugo, Wallace begins to ponder that he may have wasted the one life he was given.

I first want to start by saying that The House in the Cerulean Sea was one of my favorite books of 2020 and I was over the moon to read Under the Whispering Door. I was expecting more of Klune’s quirky humor and fun, lovable characters. While there are hints of Cerulean Sea in this book, it felt like a chore to read. I had to force myself to continue reading because I was just bored which I was not expecting.

Although this was a miss for me, I look forward reading Klune’s next book.

Under the Whispering Door follows Wallace, a lawyer who lives only for his work. Wallace is a bit of an asshole who truly lacks empathy. Then he dies. This follows Wallace's experience in his first stage of his afterlife where he is taken by a reaper to a ferryman who will help him cross over, but only when he is ready.

This is another sweet and wholesome queer love story from TJ Klune. There is some pretty amazing character growth that I enjoyed reading. I also think this story is good for anyone grieving.

TJ Klune's Under the Whispering Door was an emotional exploration into the afterlife.

It follows Wallace, an asshole lawyer, who dies and winds up in a tea shop that operates as a waystation between life and death. As he embarks on his personal journey, the people that he meets there change him.

Giving this book a rating was incredibly hard. At the end, I was sobbing, going through tissue after tissue. I fell in love with the characters, and their growth was amazing. However, at around a third through the book, I was incredibly bored, and it was hard for me to pick it up. For that reason, I am giving this book four stars. It is amazing. I recommend people read it; it will really hit home. Yet, not all of it is as strong.

Let's talk about the characters. Wallace goes through the most development, and that's really interesting to experience. I thought he could be a pretty funny character too, particularly in the opening scene. Hugo was amazing; I loved him so much. The other characters were also pretty great. Overall, the characters and their development were the strong points of the book.

I'm not sure how I feel about the plot. At times, it felt like nothing was happening (or nothing interesting was happening). Throughout most of the book, it felt like the author was reaching, forcing things to happen when they shouldn't or wouldn't. Some of the plot was great; there was definitely a 'fun and games' part of the book that had me laughing out loud. Overall, though, I don't think the plot was a strong spot. It just felt forced. Moreover, it was kind of easy to guess what was going to happen in the end from the beginning, even if I had no clue what the steps along the way were. Maybe that was why it felt kind of forced; the steps didn't seem to matter, only the beginning and the end.

I liked the setting of the tea shop and the role that tea played throughout the story. It definitely added some coziness to the book.

Finally, as I touched on earlier, this book made me sob. The relationships between the characters and their own journeys is what got me. For all of the constraints that the world put on the author, Klune still succeeded in creating relationships between the characters that tugged pretty hard on my heart. The romance that develops does this particularly well.

Overall, TJ Klune's Under the Whispering Door is an incredibly heart-felt and emotional read that I recommend to readers that enjoy character development and getting to know characters above all else. This book does that exceptionally well and will leave you in tears.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me this arc.

Under the Whispering Door is a story of grief. Grief for a loved one, grief for one’s self, grief for a life that could have been. It follows Wallace Price, an unfriendly, unkind, unliked man and his journey towards becoming a better human in death. With the help of the Reaper Mei, ferryman Hugo, and Hugo’s ghost grandfather Nelson and ghost dog Apollo, Wallace is able to understand the importance of life but also the importance of grief, death, and finding a purpose.

This book as the same charm, atmosphere, and humor as The House in the Cerulean Sea but contains heavier topics and a far stronger emotional impact. In this book we meet different characters with various backgrounds but also with different deaths. We see death by murder, death by suicide, death by illness, death of a child, death of an animal, and the varying ways those involved handle those deaths. Under the Whispering Door is heartbreaking in many ways but it is also hopeful. It shows us that life doesn’t simply end with death. It’s a truly beautiful story to read.

Advanced Reader’s Copies (I ended up with an egalley and the audiobook) that were provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The audiobook is from Macmillan Audio and the egalley is from Macmillan- Tor/Forge.

Content Warning: Talk of suicide and murder.

So back in 2020, after reading Klune's THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA, I kept talking about how it was as close to perfect as I've ever come across in a novel. It was easily my favorite book of the year (and I read over 100 books that year). Now here I am a year later, having just finished UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR and I'm struck by similar emotions. Once again Klune has written a near perfect novel, and I doubt that anything will be able to top this as my favorite book of 2021.

This is a book about a man who is kind of an ass that dies, and what happens when he meets his reaper and then his ferryman. Knowing the emotions Klune put me through the last time, I was prepared (I thought), but I wasn't. I found myself genuinely laughing out loud through most of the book (mainly thanks to Nelson). My heart thawed a bit as Wallace found his humanity and I can only hope to be so lucky as to encounter my own Mai and Hugo when my time comes. And Apollo.... oh Apollo. As an animal lover who has had to say goodbye to my own furry companions, I of course loved that Klune included a ghost dog.

Once I hit about 70% of the way through mark, I got emotional. I sobbed listening to Hugo talk about living-Apollo and how they got ghost-Apollo. And the end, the end will stick with me for a long time. I'm still all weepy as I type out this review just thinking about it.

I am so grateful for Klune's writing talent, so that readers have these stories and these characters. I wish Hugo's tea room was a real place because I would happily spend an afternoon there... and I wonder why tea he'd bring to me.

UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR is easily a novel that I will read again (and my rereads are few and far between), and it will be added alongside THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA as novels that I will try to get into as many hands as possible. I am convinced that the world would be a better place, the more people that read these books and take the lessons on kindness, humanity, friendship, and love to heart.

Kirt Graves does a solid job with the audiobook narration too. I was unsure how I felt about his performance at the start, but he grew on me and once the story got to the tea house, everything fell into place with Graves' narrative style.

A million five star reviews can't be wrong, but I was not the right reader for this book. I loved T.J. Klune's last novel The House in the Cerulean Sea but this was a little too touchy-feely, Goodness of Humanity for me.

That being said, I can agree that it is well written and evenly paced and has a lot of other good attributes! If you like slow building relationships and feel good stories or if you particularly like reading new interpretations of the afterlife, then this may be the book for you!