There are so many sweet moments throughout this book. I adored Victor, Nurse Ratchet, and Rocky. Their dynamic and banter was fantastic. I loved the addition of the Hysterically Angry Puppet. This book is so heavy yet so hopeful. The plot and story line were interesting but it really was the characters for me. TJ Klune does such a good job of writing characters that you continue to think about long after you finish the book.

Klune is unique in how they write about gender and sexuality. However, this one felt forced and wasn’t for me.

Stars: 5 out of 5.

I rarely read fairy tale retellings, because I think that retellings are rather pointless. I'd rather read the original and decide for myself what the morale of the story was, instead of reading about what the reteller thinks the story was about. So I'm really glad that I didn't know that this was a retelling of Pinocchio when I picked up the book, or I would never have given it a try. And I would have lost out on a wonderful story.

And honestly, you don't have to know anything about the original Pinocchio book to enjoy this story. Yes, there are parallels, but In the Life of Puppets stands on its own two feet pretty well and doesn't rely on knowledge of the original.

It's a story of Victor Lawson, the only human in a world of robots. And of his quest to save his father. And him and his friends have some adventures along the way. For a fairy tale this book has surprisingly a lot of heart.

Because the characters, human and robot alike, are fully realized individuals with their own quirks and dreams. And their interactions are hilarious at times, and at times very touching and heartfelt. Nurse Ratched is my favorite character. Yay for sociopathic nurse robots with a heart of gold. 

The world our group of misfits travels through is wonderous and terrible at the same time, like it should be in good fairy tales. And all of the characters grow and progress along the way, especially Victor, who has to come to terms with a lot of hard truths. Like the fact that his father was the engineer of the extinction of his whole race. Or that you can still love someone even if you can't forgive them for what they did, even if you aren't sure you have the right to forgive them.

Or that you can love someone even if they don't remember you from time to time. This last one hit particularly close to home, since I am dealing with a relative slowly loosing his battle with Alzheimer's. That is a truly horrible disease that transforms a loved one into a completely different person. A bit like what happened to Gio once he was taken back into the City of Electric Dreams.

And even though the situations our characters find themselves in are horrible at times, the overall message of this book is one of love and hope, which makes it a very heartwarming story. I would definitely recommend this to adults and young adults alike. It's rare that I read a book in one sitting and come out of it with a content and warm feeling.

PS: I received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting twist on the Pinocchio story. and told with the same level of inclusion that the author's previous works have shown. It seemed just a bit less fully realized as a story, but the characters were engaging.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC for my review. This is not my favorite Klune novel. I never really got into the story and struggled throughout. I have enjoyed Klune’s other works and found them fanciful and charming. This one both lagged and lacked for me. I do appreciate the wiring that went into it and will read Klune again in the future.

Enjoyed the prologue but the book itself just didn't have the spark I was expecting from Klune. I can't explain why it wasn't as engaging as previous books, but it wasn't.

3.5/5 stars!

I really enjoy TJ Klunes writing so although I didn’t enjoy this one nearly as much as of their other books, I’m still glad to have made the read! I found the idea of the book super interesting however just couldn’t connect to it fully. The plot didn’t hook me as much as I was expecting and it seemed to drag a tad. There are many great qualities to this book of course and I did found the characters quite enjoyable!! I just couldn’t connect to the story as much, hence the lower rating.

I didn’t love this one as much as The House in the Cerulean Sea. Premise was unique, loved the humor and the characters, but the story was a bit slow. Definitely could have been a bit shorter.

This new TJ Klune was laugh out loud funny, literally. I think it missed the mark for me in terms of plot but I adored these characters. Klune's ability to make you fall in love with a found family is certainly a strength

I ended up listening to the audiobook of this one and OMG I was in love!!!!! Just like with TJ Klune’s previous book, the supporting characters were the absolute best part. They had me wrapped around their little fingers and my heart was absolutely bursting with love for them. I loved the messaging of this story along with the end of days theme playing throughout. The audiobook was absolutely magical to listen to.

In the Lives of Puppets is Klune's third novel in the spotlight. It follows the found family of machines/robots and a human. They live in the forest and enjoy tinkering with parts left over in junk piles. It has a light correlation to the "Pinocchio" fairy tale. However, it is hard to explain much more of the plot without spoiling anything so I will leave it at that.

The main character, Victor, is the adopted son of the main tinkerer, Giovanni. When Victor finds a unique object in the junkyard a series of cascading events follow that upend the peaceful life of creativity that the two have shared.

While I love the ideas that Klune has and the interesting world that he creates, I could not bring myself to care as much about the characters in this story. I didn't connect with them, even though I thought the plot was interesting. I would recommend this book to people who enjoyed the writing style of Klune's other two bestsellers but aren't character-driven readers. If you are additionally okay with a slower moving plot, you may enjoy this one.

I do not believe I was a good audience for this, it was a bit too slow and uneventful. I found myself skimming and missing key passages. However others in my book club enjoyed what I disliked so I think take my thoughts with a grain of salt. The writing itself was beautiful

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for this DRC.
Human Victor, android and inventor Giovanni, a nurse machine and a sentient vacuum make an interesting family living in the middle of the woods. Victor doesn’t question why his life is so solitary but he does adventure to the dump against warnings from Gio. He restores an android he calls HAP, and downfall of his tiny family begins. The family must go on a quest to rescue Gio, while feelings for Hap grow and cause confusion.
I liked that this book stayed focused on the relationships and didn’t try to send some bigger message of robots are bad or humans must be saved. What was important was Victor and his self-discovery.

#IntheLivesof Puppets #NetGalley

TJ Klune’s writing style is so enjoyable, and this story is no exception to that! The way the story developed and how the characters interacted with each other was so interesting and fun to read, and I absolutely loved seeing the progression of Hap as the book progressed. There was a perfect balance of social commentary and humour, and I loved how the dynamics of the characters drove the plot, especially with the quippy dialogue and way they protected each other. I’m very excited to get my hands on Klune’s next book as I’m anticipating it’ll be good as this one (and all his previous books)!

I absolutely adore TJ Klune's writing and the heartwarming messages in these books and In The Lives Of Puppets was no different. Adored it!

As a fan of TJ Klune, I was so excited for him to try scifi. Unfortunately, this book was not my favorite.

Positively, Klune's prose were as beautiful as ever and his writing still drew me in.

I typically enjoy Klune's witty humor, but found it lacking in this book. Instead, the humor all felt very "middle school locker room". It felt very forced. I had a lot of trouble connecting with the characters as well. I just didn't care much what happened to them and, again, they felt forced. There were definitely some pacing issues.

Overall, it wasn't for me but I think some folks would enjoy it.

Rambo and Nurse Ratched might be the best characters T.J. Klune has ever written...and that's saying something, considering he's written some really good ones and also they're robots. I wasn't as into the plot of this one as I was with his other books, but the heart, humor, and humanity that this bunch of machines bring is unparalleled and well worth the read.

I loved The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door. I was excited to dive in but unfortunately, this was very nearly a DNF for me. I started and stopped several times. While I did finish it, I found it just ok overall. As with Klune's other books, it's full of heart and silly humor. I think there are those that will enjoy this one but it wasn't for me. I will still seek out his other books as I enjoy his unique stories and writing.

IN THE LIVES OF PUPPETS • T.J. Klune • Pub Date: April 25, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. Caveat: I opted to listen to the audiobook, post-publishing date.

Abridged Goodreads Synopsis: In a strange little home built into the forest trees lives a family: fatherly inventor android Giovanni ("Gio") Lawson, a pleasantly sadistic nurse machine, a small vacuum desperate for love and attention, and Victor ("Vic") Lawson, a human. The four of them are a family, hidden and safe from the rest of the world. That is, until the day Vic salvages and repairs an unfamiliar android labelled "HAP," who unwittingly alerts robots of the family's whereabouts and uncovers Gio's and Hap's intertwined secret past. Gio is subsequently captured and taken back to his old laboratory in the City of Electric Dreams. Together, the rest of the family must journey across an unforgiving and otherworldly country to rescue Gio. Along the way, amid conflicted feelings of betrayal and affection, Vic must decide for himself: Can he accept love with strings attached?

This book was certainly a fresh re-telling of The Adventures of Pinocchio, mixed with Swiss Family Robinson meets Wall-E vibes (exactly as marketed!). I was excited to dive in, and prepared for a slow-burn plot whose ending would most likely destroy me in the best way (as Klune's books tend to do). Unfortunately, this was very nearly a DNF for me.

I want to sugarcoat my experience with this book because Klune creates such rich, poignant novels. Klune's plots never cease to amaze me with their creativity and deeper meanings. This book was no exception. Yet the truth is, this book was a total miss for me. The story could not keep my interest. The dynamics between the characters did not fill me with the heart-warming fondness I expected. Instead, I felt a constant undercurrent of irritation. The immaturity of the characters certainly made sense given their seclusion, but the hyper-fixation on sex/masturbation for both Vic and the robots gave me the ick.

As I was grappling with whether to DNF, I reached out to one of my friends who LOVED this book (@kasey_loves_books). She explained that, for her, this book was about "the tenacity of the main character to carry on despite the constant obstacles he faces and the internal challenges he's fighting in realizing that he's different than every being that exists." I heartily recommend that everyone who picks up this book goes in focusing on my friend's perspective because I believe that if you go in with this mindset, the story will certainly deliver.

TL;DR: This book was just not for me. That does not mean that this book will not be for you though! As always, Klune creates a unique plot that will make you think and feel.

I'm a huge fan of TJ Klune, but this felt over the top. I loved House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door and was expecting a story similar to those. The kind that gives me warm feels. But this was a bit too much. The constant sex jokes and mention of different body parts turned me off to the story. I was not invested in any of the characters and struggled to find joy in this one. I believe my expectations were a bit too high. Still a fan of Klune and plan to continue reading his future books, as well as books that have already been published.