This is perhaps the most beautiful books I have ever read, and I know it will stay with me for a long time. I never thought a book about death could be so funny and heartwarming. I was nervous to read it as I was worried it could be depressing, but I had faith TJ Klune would deliver and he did. This is a beautifully written book full of heart, soul and grace in a way I wasn't expecting.

I wish more than anything that Hugo, Nelson, Mei, Apollo and Wallace were real. I loved each of them so dearly, as distinct and characterful as they all were. They were such a lovely group to follow and I adored seeing their relationships blossom and Wallace learn to be a better person in death. I could read this book over and over just to watch Wallace and Hugo grow together.

TJ Klune doing it again! I was so excited to read this book after loving The House in The Cerulean Sea. He truly brings all of his characters to life when you are reading/listening along to the story.

Wallace is a grumpy lawyer who died unexpectedly and is taken in by Mei, a reaper from the afterlife. Mei helped Wallace transition into the afterlife with the help of a dear friend Hugo. The story is mainly based in a shop called Charon's Crossing, which is a midway point for the dead. Mei is such a quirky character that it helped with the fact that Wallace was not a great man. They give Wallace seven days before his final crossing and he needs to live life to the fullest.

This book hit me with all the feels. Bring on the tears(in a good way)
"It’s never enough, is it? Time. We always think we have so much of it, but when it really counts, we don’t have enough at all.”

4.5 rounded to 5

I love the fact that I didn't know how this book was going to work when I was going into it, and yet it did. I mean, this is a book that basically starts after our main character dies. And it's supposed to be heartwarming.

Let me tell you. It was exactly that!

I fell in love with all the characters that were at Charon's Crossing. And that is a testament to TJ Klune's characters and character growth. Because if you asked me when I started reading, I would say that I hated our main character of Wallace. How he started to how he ended up is a complete 180 and I loved that.

I haven't read a TJ Klune that I haven't loved yet.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was purely a delight and it was an unexpected one. A new forever favourite for sure.

It is a book that deals with grief and death but at it heart is so much more than that. It follows our protagonist Wallace as he dies unexpectedly and is escorted to begin his journey to what is next in life.

As he discovers that there is much more to life when you have people to share it with. The supporting characters are wonderful, especially the dog Apollo. I should add that the setting of the tea shop is delightful and I loved every second of this wonderful book.

Big fan of this author and his wonderful imagination. I loved this one.

ARC provided by Tor Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review..

I loved House in The Cerulean Sea so I wanted to read Under The Whispering Door, naturally. I will say yes this is wholesome but in a sad way. This book is about death and grief, and how life still continues beyond death. I liked the discussion about death and grief however, I wanted more of a plot like House. I also wasn't as attached to the characters as I was in House. This felt very surface-level in terms of characters and plot so I couldn't love it as much as I do House. I did think the m/m romance in this was very precious but again I wasn't very invested. If there was more of a plot and more depth to these characters I would have loved this but alas. I would still recommend this to someone who wants a melancholic read.

I enjoyed this book but it wasn't what I thought it was going to be.
I was hoping it was going to be a sequel to The House in the Cerulean Sea.
It was not but it was still a good book and recommended for fans of the above mentioned title.

Thanks to the publisher for the advance review copy.

I got this book for review nearly two years ago (over two years ago?). I try to get through every single book I get for review, so for the past 18-24 months, I have repeatedly picked up this book and tried to plow on through it. Each time, I've never gotten further than chapter 3.

A lighthearted, funny book about a lawyer who dies seemed right up my alley. Unfortunately, I just couldn't stand the writing style, and the characters and dialogue seemed juvenile, like they belonged in a YA novel. There also just wasn't enough propelling this book forward. Almost as soon as I read the first page, I felt like I knew what the outcome would be: that the lawyer, who was an unfeeling workaholic in life to the detriment of all his personal relationships, will ultimately realize that friendship and love are the most important things in the world by the end of the novel. Of course, I didn't get far enough in to find out — but really, what other endings could there be?

I'm not leaving a rating on Goodreads because I don't rate books that I did not finish.

Wow. Another stunning book by TJ Klune. Hopeful and heartbreaking, with moments that were hard to read. Most of all, a book about life and love.

Read with care.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

I absolutely adored TJ Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea and had to read Under the Whispering Door and it did not disappoint! I love the interesting story of Wallace, a recently deceased man, living his best life at an in-between life and death tea shop. Like Klune's other book, you laugh at the same time as learn an important message about life. It's a great read for everyone.

I started to read this and it didn't grab my attention within the first 50 pages. I stopped reading at that point. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Honestly, I don’t know what to say. I really enjoyed reading this book! It’s definitely got a similar, if slightly less cozy, vibe to Cerulean. The characters are very different, though, and while it took a little to warm up to them all, I did enjoy my time with them. It was hopeful and heartfelt in the best way.

I really enjoyed Cerulean Sea so had high hopes for this one. I enjoyed it but did not fall in love with the characters as much as the other. Still worth a read, though!

I attempted to read the ARC of one of my most anticipated 2021 books and after 40% I couldn't make myself care about this boring and dull story so I quickly dnfd and never looked back. The most interesting thing about this book is the cover, which is a bummer because it promised so much! But alas....it seems only house in the cerulean sea was a good book from this author for me.

I really tried to love this book, but it just wasn’t for me. The beginning was just too slow and I ended up DNFing

I absolutely loved this book. The dialogue was so quick and easy to read. I flew through it because the romance was just the perfect amount of slow burn. I cried for Wallace and Hugo. I cried when Apollo crossed. I just cannot say enough amazing things about this one. I will continue to read TJ Klune releases!

Under the Whispering Door was a beautiful story about family and queer love without making the queerness of it all the main plot point. I love TJ Klunes writing style and am always looking forward to new heartwarming and sometimes refreshing supernatural stories by him. He shows that it does not always have to be a steamy vampire or any other type of supernatural creature to give the world a little bit of romantic magic.

It is difficult for me to put into words how much I loved this book! I have loved all TJ Klune's books so far, and every time I am transported into fabulous worlds, with quirky and flawed characters, and such heartwarming relationships that it gets me every time!

Wallace Price is a lawyer, who doesn't have the time for his employees' complaints, relationships, or for the reaper that has come to take him away during his funeral... Wait, he died ?! He needs to speak to their manager about it!
He is transported into a small teashop in the middle of nowhere by Mei, his reaper, to meet with the ferryman, Hugo Freeman, and death takes on a new meaning, as he realizes that death is not the end of something, but also the beginning of something else.

This book is an exploration of grief, and death in different forms, so it can be difficult and triggering at times for some, but it is done in such a delicate and powerful way that gives an overtone of hope in this story.
Please read if you love a small dose of magic in your books, and a heavy dose of cute relationships and found family!

4/5 stars

Things I liked:
- found friends/family
- Hugo, Mei, Nelson, and Apollo were all fantastic
- this book deals with heavy topics such as grief, death, etc., but it is also full of a lot of funny and heartwarming moments that balanced out the heavier parts
- a variety of diverse main characters
- LGBTQIA+ rep, including a main M/M relationship
- positive mental health rep

Things I didn't like:
- Wallace - he had a ton of emotional growth, which was great, but I just struggled to like him as a character

4 Stars

I have to be completely honest whilst reviewing this, it took me so long to read through no fault of the book, mainly just me being super busy and only reading when I've had time which is so unfortunate.

I have to say with TJ Klune books I always seem to love the characters, they're all so different and wonderful in their own ways and you can't help but feel the feels and think that you're part of the family with them.

There's so much to unpack when reading this and it really does make you think. This is one that I hope to re-read and enjoy even more the second time around!

I had very high expectations for this book. Not only because I loved this author’s other book, the house in the cerulean sea, but because one the main themes of this book is death and grief, and when I received this ARC I was grieving my grandmother. it took me a long time to actually dive into this book because it hit so close to home and I often had to put it down even when I was loving the writing and story

Well, I finally finished it and it was wonderful.

The premise of this book does not do it justice because while it is a story about a person who dies and tries to live life in death to the fullest, It is above all else about forgiving yourself and learning everyone is a little bit sad all the time and that’s okay.

Wallace was a very frustrating character at first. He was harsh and selfish and had seemingly no humanity, but as the book progressed, we got to see Wallace come alive in death. He made connections, he found a purpose and he found love.

Klune’s writing evokes such strong emotions from me and this book was no different. He is a master at melancholic prose but still manages to be hopeful.

My only gripe with this book is that it was a little too long for the sort of “slice of life” story it was trying to tell, but other than that I loved it so much. I can’t wait their next work!

Thank you Tor and NetGalley for the eARC (electronic advanced readers copy) in exchange for an honest review.