Thank you so much to Tor and Netgalley for providing an advanced copy of this. All thoughts and opinions are still my own.

I've attempted to read this book 3 times and I think it's finally time to admit that it's just not gonna happen for me. I'm just connecting to the story the way I had hoped, and after hearing reviews from friends I trust, this just isn't a book I think I'm going to fall in love with.

TJ Klune is an all time favorite author, but I just don't think this one is for me.

I think the humor was fantastic and I love the queer cast (including ace rep, yay!). But I prefer a more romance heavy story, and that just wasn't the cast for this one.

I absolutely can't wait to see what Klune does next though. He books are always so unique and inventive.

I'm a huge fan of TJ Klune. I own multiple copies of some of his books. For some reason, In The Lives of Puppets missed the mark for me. I didn't really feel a connection to the characters, and the story just fell flat. It is a retelling of Pinnochio, which I'm not really a fan of, so that may play into my feelings. But mostly, I just felt like it lacked the heart of his other books.

The beginning was interesting learning about characters. Very much like the brave little toaster vibes but just took weird turns.

Beautifly written and heartfelt. I ’s ultimately a story of found family and what you’ll do for those you love.
Warm and emotional.

I’m a huge fan of TJ Klune and he does it again with this book! He weaves storytelling with wonderful emotion building. I was really surprised by this book. It started slowly for me but by the end I was fully situated in the story!

Another one knocked out of the park for Klune! I will read anything he writes and this book is no different. I just love his ability to create found families and give us all the warm fuzzies even as he wrenches our hearts out. This one will stay with me for a long time.

In The Lives of Puppets is another thoroughly enjoyable TJ Klune novel. The characters were wonderfully unique and weird in a great way. Rambo reminds me of Chauncey from The House on the Cerulean Sea and Nurse Ratched reminded me of Lucy. Victor was like a mix of Arthur from The House on the Cerulean Sea and Hugo from Under The Whispering Door. TJ definitely reuses his character types, but he makes it feel fresh every time. This book was very heartfelt and didn't disappoint.

Book Hangover Loading 🫠

📖: In the Lives of Puppets
Author: TJ Klune
⭐️: 4.5/5

“‘It’s messy,’ he said quietly, honestly. ‘Complicated. Chaotic. One moment strong as steel, and the next fragile as glass.’”

Why do I love reading? Because I can read 400 pages of a fictional story over six weeks and enjoy it, and then finally find the time to finish it up and get absolutely destroyed in one page (sometimes one line). TJ Klune is a masterful author. While I still haven’t read one of his most popular books, I know this.

This book was inspired from the purchase of a home appliance, and that’s a story in itself reserved for the author’s note when you get there. It’s beautifully crafted in that way that fiction is, where it’s just so relatable but you know that if someone else read it, it would be relatable in a different way. Just the same, if you read that same book at a different time in your life, you will relate to it differently (or not at all 🤷🏻‍♀️). One thing is for sure, you will love the characters in this book. Nurse R deserves an award 🏆

I felt this was original in so many ways and I wanted to say that before I mentioned that it also reminded me of a combo of Pinocchio and the Wizard of Oz. A coming of age story, and a story of some of the most immense feelings of humanity, including grief. People often define nostalgia as remembering of the good times, which of course yes that’s true. But a friend once told me of the definition in a different language, with the emphasis on that longing and perhaps grief over what used to be but is no longer. I identify with that so much more. This book had me thinking about my grandparents and their current state of life as they have aged and continued to lose their memories. They have and will always be an important part of my life. I’ve always been a worrier, and to my own detriment, always dreaded the day they wouldn’t remember me or my kids. They haven’t forgotten me. 🥺 Being human is so tough. It’s the feelings 🥹

I will happily read any and everything TJ Klune writes. Though not my favorite of his, I super enjoyed this book. It was giving a lot of Brave Little Toaster vibes to me although I don't know why.... I think Rambo reminded me of the Blanket in the best way. This was like the Wizard of Oz of robots and machines, and I could (and would) GLADLY read a book of just Rambo and Nurse Ratched because in my opinion they were the best parts of this book. One day I might do the audio version of this just to hear those two be brought to life.

I will say I think this book was a bit longer than it needed to be and felt some parts a little drawn out but overall it was a sweet story of love and redemption and acceptance which is something Klune does so well. It's hard to read one of this books and not feel good afterwards.

I will continue to read whatever he puts on paper!
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

At its essence, In The Lives of Puppets is a post- apocalyptic retelling of Pinocchio minus the giant whale. Great world building and easily loveable characters including a minor psychotic nurse robot, a humanoid trying to figure out who he is, and an obsessively clean vacuum.

Vic, a human, has grown up as the only child of a Gio, an inventor android. After finding a unnamed humanoid robot in a dump and accidentally alerting the authorities, Vic and his companions are forced into hiding while his father is taken by the Authorities for reasons unknown. What unfolds over the rest of the book is a journey across the post-apocalyptic landscape for Vic and his robot friends to rescue his father and undercover just who his friend is, why his father was taken, and discover the world beyond the forest he has known his whole life.

I didn’t love this book as much as The House in the Cerulean Sea, but it was still beautiful.

Thanks for NetGalley and Tor Books for an advanced copy to read and review.

In the Lives of Puppets isn’t really about puppets….. so while that was a surprise I ended up enjoying this story. Our main character lives with his family of robots, and the story takes off when he repairs another android. The story has romance, adventure, and found family.

This story has asexual representation, which is something that I’m always looking for.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.

"In a strange little home built into the branches of a grove of trees, live three robots--fatherly inventor android Giovanni Lawson, a pleasantly sadistic nurse machine, and a small vacuum desperate for love and attention. Victor Lawson, a human, lives there too. They're a family, hidden and safe. The day Vic salvages and repairs an unfamiliar android labelled "HAP," he learns of a shared dark past between Hap and Gio-a past spent hunting humans.

When Hap unwittingly alerts robots from Gio's former life to their whereabouts, the family is no longer hidden and safe. Gio is captured and taken back to his old laboratory in the City of Electric Dreams. So together, the rest of Vic's assembled family must journey across an unforgiving and otherworldly country to rescue Gio from decommission, or worse, reprogramming. Along the way to save Gio, amid conflicted feelings of betrayal and affection for Hap, Vic must decide for himself: Can he accept love with strings attached?"

Thank you Netgalley for letting me listen to an audiobook of In the Lives of Puppets. It is one of my favorite reads of the year. I loved following the characters and learning about the world. The writing style is fun and I liked most of the jokes in here. Some of them were a bit too silly, but that's okay. I enjoyed being in this world Klune created and I can't wait to see what they create next. I love the theme of found family.

I was originally given an eArc from NetGalley, but I didn’t finish in time so I went out and bought a copy. I loved the story, the nods toward Pinocchio, Swiss Family Robinson and Wizard of Oz. I read a review recently that mentioned how this book is so very human-even though there is only 1 human… it’s true. I highly recommend In The Lives of Puppets! Go read it!

2.5 stars

These characters were so annoying. The robots were so two dimensional, the jokes fell so flat and the conversations were way too on the nose. I much prefer commentary to naturally flow through the story, but it tried so hard to be inclusive that it was brought up in conversation when it didn't make sense, taking you out of the story.

A lot of these characters were just copy/paste to Cerulean Sea, but with Cerulean Sea, you really cared about the characters. Their trauma made you care about them. I never cared about these robots.

2.5 stars

These characters were so annoying. The robots were so two dimensional, the jokes fell so flat and the conversations were way too on the nose. I much prefer commentary to naturally flow through the story, but it tried so hard to be inclusive that it was brought up in conversation when it didn't make sense, taking you out of the story.

A lot of these characters were just copy/paste to Cerulean Sea, but with Cerulean Sea, you really cared about the characters. Their trauma made you care about them. I never cared about these robots.

I am a huge fan of The House in the Cerulean Sea and have read others by the author. I really, really wanted to love this one too but sadly could not finish it. I couldn't get invested in the puppets and never felt invested in their stories or personalities.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for an advanced copy of this book!

I am a bit late with my review of this book. I wanted to finish Klune's previous work before I got into this. From the beginning, I was excited to read this. I enjoy Klune's stories as they always include tropes I enjoy like found family, slow-burn romance, etc. This novel had that and more as its set in a sci-fi backdrop. In the first half of this story, I was vibing with the wholesome moments between Victor, the robots, and Giovanni. Then we get to the latter half and that's when I started to fall off of the story. I wasn't invested in the journey and I felt like the pacing could have been better. Overall, I enjoyed the characters more than the overarching plot. The story is still worth the read if you are a fan of Klune's works like I am. At the time of this review, the book is out so I suggest checking it out and giving the audiobook a listen if possible.

Always a treasure reading TJ Klune.
This book was hilarious especially our little Rambo. And emotional!
It has this great family aspect and I loved it

The House in the Cerulean Sea is one of my favorite books. I also thoroughly enjoyed Under the Whispering Door. I was super excited about Klune's new one, In the Lives of Puppets - and it didn't disappoint! Another amazing, touching, feel good, charming story that was funny too. As per usual, each character was lovable, and unique.

Read if you enjoy:

• charming
• found family
• lovable characters
• queer retelling

"You are a hope. A dream of a forgotten world. Carry that in your soul...and may the burden never cause you to stumble."

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very TJ style with the heavy topics and sad plot line but the characters were likable and I was enchanted to read about them all!