"Heaven. I'm in Heaven."

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune takes Pinocchio, Terminator, and Wall-E and creates a unique story about found family in the time of the apocalypse and makes it whimsical in only the way Klune can.

Klune is already an auto-buy author for me, and Puppets has really reminded me why. He paints such a wonderful picture with his storytelling and his characters. He truly is one of the best out there as far as creating spectacular characters who you only grow to love as the book progresses.

Puppets is the story of Gio, a lonely an living in a forest sanctuary that would make the Swiss Family Robinson envious, as he raises his son, Victor. Victor's best friends are a Roomba named Rambo, and a robot nurse aptly named Nurse Ratched. The four of them live happily until Victor finds a decommissioned android, Hap, in the scrap yard. That's when the plot really gets started, and never stops.

Rambo and Nurse Ratched are easily my favorite characters in the book, which I never thought I would consider a Roomba to be one of the best, most hilarious, characters I've encountered all year, but that's what Klune does. He makes you fall in love with the most unlikely of "people." I laughed out loud several times, and I highlighted so many passages.

In addition to his trademark humor, there are also the moments that make you cry. There is a scene near the end where I found myself crying, and had to stop myself and shake my head over what I was crying over. That's all I'll say. I don't want to spoil anything.

If you enjoyed any of Klune's previous books, I highly recommend you pick this one up. If you've never read any of his books before, you might as well start with this one, and then read his back list. If there's a long wait at your library, go read the back list first.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor Books for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first TJ Klune book and I loved it. I’ve always wanted to read this author and with a never ending TBR this eARC was exactly what I needed to start. In the Lives of Puppets, Victor is the only human in a world of robots. This book had me laughing from beginning to end and the characters were wonderful. I will admit it took a while for me to get into but the journey ended up being fantastical and heartwarming.

I love all things TJ Klune. He is my auto buy author and this book has been perfectly added next to his others on my bookshelf. His descriptive writing, his settings and the love his characters have are truly amazing.

From start to finish, I loved every second. This is actually my second robot story i have read this year with the idea of humanity being destroyed after we keep making robots. It is a fascinating concept. TJ Klume wrote this beautiful laugh out loud story that I will hold in my heart forever.

TJ Klune has become an instant-buy, favorite author for me. His characters, whether man or anti-christ, spirit guide or machine, are so alive, so nuanced, so flawed and lovely. In the Lives of Puppets does it again, giving even the setting such lovely character, you know right where you are, how the air feels, what it smells like, from the crisp forest of Oregon to the stale desert of Las Vegas. This book gives the reader a take on what it means to be human, in a world that is violently opposed to humanity. We meet machines that are so life-like they seem 100% human, but are they capable of the greatest of human emotions? What will it take for harmony, love and forgiveness to reign over order?

Overall loved this book, but it did feel less original than his other work and more pieced together from Disney works, I know some was intentional but others felt lazy. Still an enjoyable reading experience and will continue to read what he puts out!

Such a fun and interesting take on robots. I am not a Pinocchio fan so having that be part of the marketing was something that almost stopped me from requesting this book, but glad I did.

Oh, to live in TJ Klune’s mind for just one day…

If I told you to read a book that at times felt like a cross between Pinocchio and The Wizard of Oz, but with queer love and robots— would you read it? What if I told you to just trust me?! 🤣

Y’all. This book is so relevant with all the advancements in AI technology happening right now. We’ve all seen the movies, but Klune writes up a world post-robot takeover that is unlike anything we’ve ever seen or heard before. It’s terrifying, but also gentler and more hopeful. It will make you feel the feels, and it will open your heart.

If you’ve read and loved his books before, I know this will be no exception. If you’ve never ventured into Klune’s imagination before, I couldn’t think of a better place to start. I highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the ARC of In the Lives of Puppets!

Robot Giovanni Lawson builds what is the most beautifully described treehouse in a remote forest (like I want to pack up and move there) and lives there until he eventually realizes that he is lonely and then a human couple come running through the trees and give him their baby to keep safe.

Gio is a creative robot and rehabilitates a Nurse Ratched robot and a robot vacuum named Rambo. Nurse Ratched and Rambo steal the show in this book. Their characters are hilarious.

Gio raises the human baby and names him Victor. The story takes place when Victor is 22. Vic, Nurse Ratched, and Rambo discover another android robot in the nearby scrapyards setting of a chain of events that lead to a quest to the City of Electric Dreams.

This story has such an interesting premise as a reverse Pinocchio retelling. The writing is beautiful and the characters are heartbreaking. This was such a great read.

Another great TJ Klune book. A great retelling that is heartwarming in a way that only Klune can do. This is a bit of a slow burn at the beginning but picks up about 30% in and makes it hard to put down

As always with T.J. Klune, this story is super original and creative with beautiful meaning tucked in as well as some great humor. It had great banter between the very lovable characters that had me laughing and smiling. While I did enjoy the book, it didn’t pull me in quite like the authors other books.

As with all of the T.J. Klune books I have read this was a stunning 5 star read. In the Lives of Puppets is adorable, emotional, heartfelt, and heart wrenching. It made me feel so many emotions throughout the entire story, it kept me coming back for more because I knew I was in for a good time! The story was full of wit and sass and snappy one-liners which was SO entertaining. This was the first story I've read that had Pinocchio influences which I thought was so unique and kept me coming back for more. My only wish was that some parts of the story were longer! I felt the ending was ever so slightly rushed but it ultimately did not detract from my joy of this story.

TJ Klune does it again. I feel like his books always start slow, and I tell myself that this one might not be my favorite..and then it happens. The magic. The magic that only he can produce. He makes you fall in love with the characters, but never forces it. A book about best friends, found family and a whole lot of love.

"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."

You know that first drink of water, after working out? Or digging in the garden on a hot day? Or when you first wake up and your tongue is glued to the roof of your mouth?

Coming off a month-long book slump, this book is that first drink.

Was lost, now found.
Was parched, now fully hydrated.

I loved everything about it.

I loved the ridiculous side characters (A Roomba with GAD and an Angel of Death nurse-bot?).

I loved the setting (should I be able to SMELL the colour green?).

I loved Victor's Hero's Journey.

I loved that it was a weird mash-up of Pinocchio and Psalm for the Wild-Built and Futurama.

And the ending. THE ENDING.

My only red-light is with my own brain, that won't let me stay in the moment and ENJOY all the happiness.

If I hadn't already read everything from this author's back catalogue, I'd have them all in my cart right now.

9.5/10

Thanks to NetGalley, Tor Publishing Group, and Macmillan Audio for this not-so-Grimm Fairytale of an ARC.

Absolutely amazing! My friend and so many others have raved about TJ Klune and this is my first read of his work. I loved it. I adore his writing style and I love how he can talk about intense topics but does so in a way where I can still enjoy the book. I can't wait to read his others.

In the Lives of Puppets is a retelling of Pinocchio mixed with bits of The Wizard of OZ and The Terminator. Only this time the boy is human and everyone else is a pupp....err....robot.

This is a delightful book. There are complex emotions, social commentary, pop culture references, and a big huge dollop of humor layered into a love story between a human and the robot created to destroy humans. I enjoyed it immensely and was deeply moved by the ending.

Also, I would live for a series of picture books of Nurse Ratched and Rambo wandering in the forest getting into misadventures.

Filled with TJ Klune’s signature charming characters and heartwarming messages, this one follows a young man named Victor who lives in the woods with his inventor father and his robot friends. One day he discovers a half broken robot in the nearby scrapyards and suddenly, everything they’ve known gets turned on it’s head. This book is very much a Pinocchio retelling—more than I realized upon picking it up. It also is a bit quest-y which doesn’t often work for me. I liked parts of this story and it definitely has some laugh out loud moments, but it’s my least favorite of Klune’s recent books. It dragged at times and didn’t have too much of a plot beyond a rescue mission. It’s giving Pinocchio meets Brave Little Toaster with splashes of The Wizard of Oz, Frankenstein, and Walle.

I really enjoyed this book and the exploration of the connection between man and machine. The band of Victor, a human, and his merry misfits of androids are a chosen family who must work together throughout the book. I loved the characters whose personalities and banter ended up being hilarious together. Love Klune and his writing and this book is another masterpiece of theirs.

TJ Klune's In the Lives of Puppets is a Queer telling Pinocchio in a family of the "Robinsons" Robots plus a sprinkle of Howls Moving Castle atmosphere. The themes are Death, Forgiveness, Empathy and Found Family (TJ's Specialty). I have so many favorites quotes from this novel and to think the author was inspired to write this beautiful story from a ROOMBA VACUUM CLEANER! I didn't care for the setting mainly because the banter and ethics were the main priority when engrossed in this story! I think this book will be another bestseller and be great investment for readers from all ages and genres. These thoughts are my own and thank you for sending me this ARC via Netgalley!

If I wanted to explain all the reasons I loved this book, I really should just copy and paste the entire story into this review. I loved the House on the Cerulean Sea so much and was a little worried Klune wouldn't be able to top it, but this book is so incredible in its own unique way. Let's start with the characters. Rambo the Roomba is the cutest thing ever and I am in heaven (in heaven) every time he opens his tiny mouth. I realize Victor is the main character, but Rambo stole the whole book for me. Victor is such a compelling lead though and I loved having the story told from his perspective. His relationship with Giovanni was both touching and realistic, and the development of his relationship with HAP was just as complex and wonderful. I really loved the exploration of Victor's asexuality and it's continued reaffirmation throughout the story. T.J. Klune managed to work his magic yet again, and I am utterly swept away by this Pinocchio meets Frankenstein meets The Wizard of Oz retelling.