Thank you @torbooks @macmillan.audio for a copy of this sweet story. It's a retelling of Pinocchio told in the form of Victor, the only human on earth who is raised by robots. The robots in this story are so fun and the sarcasms of Nurse Ratched was such a hoot. The narration was so amazing with the different voices for each character. With the increase usage of AI and machine learning, it scary that maybe one day robots will take over.

I have adored TJ Klune's books that I have read so far and while I did enjoy this one, it felt a little off his usual writing for me. The sexual tension between the main character and the robot didn't quite feel right at first, but I did love the humour that Rambo and Nurse Ratched bring!
I recommend this book, but I do urge everyone to read some of Klune's other works as well!

(Thanks to NetGalley for this ebook in exchange for an honest review.)

4 ⭐️

The first 30-40% moved a little slow for me, but after this we hit peak Klune adorableness and by the end I was so happy I went on this journey with our friends. This book had much more adult humor than the other two books by him I’ve read, which mixed with the eternally optimistic and adorable tone could rub some people the wrong way. But if you want to follow an asexual main character and his budding adorable relationship, and his adventure with his obsessive robot vacuum and sociopathic robot nurse…you’ll be in for a treat. While this is billed as a Pinocchio retelling, and there certainly are elements of that, it’s much more about humans and interactions with AI and what even makes someone human. Would highly recommend if you’re in need of an adorable wholesome adventure with some random raunchy jokes thrown in.

This story was a charming examination of humanity. It is a Pinnchio re-telling. I enjoyed the premise and the writing but didn’t always reach for this story over other options.

The last human on the planet is being raised by a robot with a motley crew of patched up decommissioned bots. When he tries to bring a new robot into the family everything goes horribly wrong and they must risk life and limb to rescue one of their own.

I absolutely LOVED this crazy cast of characters. The banter between Rambo and Nurse RATCHED made me cackle and the trio's relationship was so sweet and heart-warming. The pacing of this book was great, pitching questions and answering them in due time. This wasn't too complex of a storyline, but there were some "revealing" times that kept it interesting. This post-apocalyptic robot world was crafted well. The concept of robots coming into their own and being able to go against their programming was nice and gave the reader something to root for. This was such an enjoyable read!

Another amazing book from TJ! He’s an author that I will read every piece of work he releases. Such good characters, setting, and writing style. Can’t recommend this one enough!!!

What a journey! I didn’t actually read the synopsis prior to starting this book so the sci-fi futuristic AI plot sort of surprised me but was alarming and really well done. Like all of Klunes work, it made me feel, and it made me think. This very much is a found family, against all odds story, of man and machines working together. There were nods to Pinnochio which I also loved, and all of the characters were endearing (except I did find Rambo annoying haha). Also loved the MM lovestory subplot with the main character being asexual.

3.5 stars rounded up because some parts felt a little long and fell flat for me, but that being said were probably necessary to build the journey and story of hardship to get to the end. Thank you NetGalley, TJ Klune, and Tor publishers for the arc copy. All thoughts are my own.


“What are the rules?”
“Stick together!” Rambo said.
“Run if we have to,” Nurse Ratched said as the map disappeared.
“No dallying!”
“No drilling,” Nurse Ratched said, sounding extraordinarily put out.
“And above all else, be brave!” Rambo finished.

At 432 pages this came in second place for longest vaca read thanks to long flights and equally long layovers. The third in his “kindness trilogy” as he coined his last 3 novels when we chatted with him about The House In The Cerulean Sea, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever read and far different from book 2; Under The Whispering Door, as well.

This book felt like Pinocchio meets Wizard of Oz meets Terminator and is written with such creativity and that TJK panache. It’s a queer-adventure-fantasy-sci-fi-dystopia mash up. At its heart are endearing messages of love, memory, courage, heartache, life, mortality, purpose, friendship, conscience, grief, family, sin, selfishness, and so much more, brought to you through the lens of TJ Klune’s wild imagination and world building. It’s a bit like buckling up for a Tim Burton adventure as you navigate a futuristic world in which humanity has been eradicated by machines, and only a few good ones remain. If you don’t think this kind of story could give you all the feels, think again.

Gio lives in the forest and after years of loneliness builds himself a heart without understanding the complexities having one will create, and then takes in a child. His son Victor grows up visiting the Scrap Yards and fixes up some discarded robots who become his best friends; Nurse Ratched the snarky medical attendant and Rambo the ditsy and anxious but lovable vacuum cleaner. For years they live tucked away in the treetops safe from Gio’s past, adding an android Hap to the family, until one day Gio is captured and the 4 take off on a mission to save him.

Klune explores many topics through these often humorous relationships, and as the sexual and asexual androids and characters evolve, his desire to create love in all its colors is highlighted in both innuendo and reality.

Pub Day is around the corner on 4/25! Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

When I was granted access to the ARC of In the Lives of Puppets, I was so excited I literally squealed! The House in the Cerulean Sea is my favorite book ever, and I also loved Under the Whispering Door. I'm struggling with a star rating on this one, though, as there were parts of it I absolutely loved, yet it did not have the pull on my heartstrings that the author's last two books have had.

I loved the characters, which is one of TJ Klune's strengths. Rambo, the Roomba, is adorable and quirky, and Nurse Ratched is charmingly sociopathic. I found myself laughing out loud at some of their conversations. Hap rounds out Victor's crew as a slightly over-protective bodyguard who also serves as a bit of romantic interest. The book's theme of found family is a strength, as well, as Victor, Rambo, Nurse Ratched and Hap team up to find and save Gio, Victor's father.

I felt like the book dragged quite a bit, and the romance angle did not work for me as it has in previous books. Overall, I enjoyed the book for what it was, but it did not live up to my very high expectations.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Books for the digital ARC of In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune. The opinions in this review are my own.

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune
Narrated by: Daniel Henning
Rating: 5 stars
Pub Date: 4/25

I don’t think five stars is enough to give this heartwarming retelling of Pinocchio. Every time I pick up something by TJ Klune, I think that it can’t possibly be as good as his last book. And every time, I’m wrong.

This book is not only an emotional tale of love and forgiveness, but it’s snarky, sweet, and oh-so funny. Victor is a human surrounded by robots who have become his family. Nurse Ratched is sociopathic, loyal, and hysterical without meaning to be. Rambo is an anxiety-ridden vacuum whose dialogue reminded me a lot of a robotic Olaf. When they find Hap (Hysterically Angry Puppet) buried in a pile of scrap, they bring him home to fix him up, and their lives are forever changed.

If you’ve read one of Klune’s books before, you know what I mean when I say there are no characters in literature quite like his. I loved the complexity of the relationships in the story and the idea that family doesn’t always mean that you’re related by blood. The love and loyalty they have for one another is heartwarming and something I will think about for a long time.

As amazing as all of his books have been, I think this is his best one yet. It’s compelling and unique and will make you think about what it truly means to be human. I laughed, I cried, and I fell completely in love with these characters.

I requested the audio after reading because I NEEDED to hear Nurse Ratched and Rambo’s banter. It was even better than I could have hoped! Daniel Henning does SUCH an amazing job with the different voices of each character that I was walking around the grocery store laughing out loud. If you’re an audiobook lover, I highly recommend grabbing this one when it comes out.

I am a huge fan of TJ Klune, and I think you should read this book! Read if you like:

*Dystopian themes
*Robots
*Robots making sex jokes
*Found family
*Asexual rep
*Road trip adventures

Thank you so much to Tor Publishing for my physical copy of this book. I will treasure it forever! Also, big thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my ARC and ALC.

So so sad about this. I normally love TJ Klune’s books, but this was one was just not for me at all. The puppets were cute and the narration was so well done, but the storyline was just a snoozefest for me. I was so bored.

Oh, my heart!

I had both the kindle and audio version of this book and I have to say that the narrator of the audiobook knocked it out of the ballpark with his narration! So well done!

This book was full of heart and soul. In a grove of trees lives a family made up of fatherly inventor android Giovanni (Gio) Lawson, Nurse Rached, a sadistic nurse machine, Rambo, and a small vacuum desperate for love. A human, Victor (VIC) Lawson, lives there as well. They live in safety until the day Vic salvages HAP, an unfamiliar android. Unfortunately, HAP and Gio share a history of hunting humans.

The family is in danger when HAP alerts robots Gio's whereabouts and he is taken to a factory in the City of Electric Dreams. Gio's small family decides to risk all and go looking for him to save him from decommissioning and/or reprogramming. What ensues is a journey full of risk, sacrifice, heart, and family.

They may be robots, but they are a family who want to stay together, they care and show their humanity. This book and the audio version were simply brilliant. I loved the characters, their distinct personalities, their struggles, their discussions, and their journey.

T.J. Klune has such a creative mind. This book had me thinking of The wizard of Oz and Pinocchio. The characters were off on a journey, one who is timid gains courage, there is a father/son relationship, and there is one who is tough but has a heart.

The banter was adorable and had me smiling. This book evoked emotions and was thought provoking. It's about family, community, humanity, and love. I am not a big fantasy or Science fiction reader, but I love T.J. Klune's writing. I enjoyed being on this adventure with his characters. I also loved the diverse representation in this book. For me Nurse Ratched and sweet Rambo stole the show!

As a mega fan of TJ Klune’s two other recent works, this one is a departure, and thus for me, it was a bit disappointing, although the book itself was enjoyable. While the diverse characters had the author’s signature oddball charm, the plot was lacking the *magic* i have come to expect from this author.

Victor lives with his father and robot companions in the heart of a secluded forest in a post-human world, where robots (with varying degrees of ai) have taken over. when victor uses his human blood, which allows robots to move beyond their programming and ai, to restore a humanoid robot, it brings his father’s past crashing into the present. his father is abducted and the family goes on an adventure to find and rescue him, not knowing if he will be the same man they know and love.

I enjoyed the first half of this book much more than the latter half. Puzzling out the politics of the world the characters were living in and getting to experience the quirky robot characters the author created was a closer match to my expectations for this book. There was nothing much going on, but that is what I expected, so it felt right in the moment to have chapters with limited plot advancement. It gave the characters space to shine. I appreciated the grumpy-sunshine vibe between Victor and Hap, and the father-son dynamic between Victor and Gio was really heartwarming. The second half of the book however, really dragged for me--ironic since it was the “adventure-y, heist part--but the sequence of events felt formulaic, like the author was just checking the boxes for the source material. This rushed parade of events definitely took away from the reading experience, for me.

Overall, this was a good read, and will resonate with readers who are interested in reading something darker from TJK. He’s done something different with this book, leaning sci/fi as opposed to speculative fiction, and embracing a Pinocchio/Wizard of Oz retelling.

I personally love any dystopian world, but TJ Klune’s “IN THE LIVES OF PUPPETS” takes the cake. In a queer retelling of PINOCCHIO, Klune created characters that will forever stick with me in my heart, in what I believe to be his best work yet. If you’re a sucker for character development and banter that makes you smile, then this work is for you.

In a world that’s fully ran by androids and machines, hides one last human survivor. I refuse to say anymore, because I truly believe that the rest of the story’s details deserves to be uncovered by the reader, but I happily gave it 5 stars. It will remain a book that will stick with me. I never thought I’d fall in love with a Hysterically Angry Puppet, an anxiety ridden roomba, and a sadistic Nurse machine. This sci-fi fantasy romance made me giggle, smile, hunch over in heartache, and kick my feet. It’s a wholesome, cozy read with asexual representation and I recommend it to anyone who loves memorable world building and genuine characters.

I definitely picked up some WIZARD OF OZ vibes as well, and I cannot wait for this book to be published. “IN THE LIVES OF PUPPETS” comes out April 25, 2023. you can preorder now, or wait to snag it off the shelves!! I have strong confidence that this one will become a well known best-seller. thank you so much to TOR books and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

EMOJI SUMMARY:
🦋🤖🧹🫀🌲🧬🦾🕊️

I was all over the place with feelings about this book 😂.

TJ Klune does a lot really well in this book. The found family piece is here, which I always love. Great writing, natural dialogue, humor. I can always count on TJ Klune for laugh out loud humor. I thought the storyline was interesting, with a lot of hints to the Pinocchio story. I really loved Victor and Hap and watching that friendship evolve.

There were also a couple things that stuck out to me while I was reading.
- The banter between Nurse and Rambo was funny, but sometimes it was TOO much. A piece would carry on for too long and you’d lose your place in a scene.
- With Nurse, there was this whole thing around words showing up on her screen after she said something, and it WAS funny, but I feel like that was something more for visual, like a movie or TV? Again, it just sort of made these really funny moments go on for too long and the sentences were a little awkward to read.
- Sometimes the Pinocchio references in terms of the puppets felt like trying a little too hard to connect. Just in the dialogue in a few different areas.

Overall, once I got comfortable in the story, I did enjoy reading the novel. I always have a good time reading Klune’s books, I think this one just felt more sci-fi-ish to me than fantasy, with all the robots and machines? Nothing wrong with that at all. Just different! I think if you enjoyed House in the Cerulean Sea, and Under the Whispering Door, you’ll love this one as well.

Thank you TJ Klune, Netgalley, and Tor Publishing Group for an eARC of ‘In the Lives of Puppets’! Release date 4/25

TJ has given us yet another book that I think is going to change and save lives. This story was full of adventure and challenges your views on humanity. I found myself feeling fragile, but also under fully complicated. I laughed so hard flipping through these pages and also felt like my heart was going to beat out my chest. The plot is a resemblance to Pinocchio (also with some Wizard of Oz vibes) about a man & his son, love & memory, life & differences. TJ writes the found family trope like nobody else and I’ve somehow grown attached to a family of robots. Rambo, Hap, Vic, Gio, and Nurse Ratched will be with me for a long time to come. I realize none of this will make much sense until you read this book. So I hope you read this book. Bring your tissues.

I would like to thank Tor Publishing Group for providing a digital copy of this novel via NetGalley. In the Lives of Puppets is a reinvention of The Adventures of Pinocchio. Gio, robot, is the maker. His son Vic is a human. When Vic finds an Android labeled HAP, this sets off a series of events that finds Gio kidnapped and Vic on a journey to find him. Meanwhile accompanying him on his journey are two robots Rambo and nurse Ratchet. The story delves deeply into themes of sexual identity, family, and what it means to be alive. It's both a tribute to Pinocchio and its own unique story. I recommend it.

Yet another brilliant work from TJ Klune, and another of his work to make me sob! In the lives of Puppets is an endearing story filled with robots you can't help but love. I especially loved Rambo, the anxious vacuum. My favorite part of this story was the theme of forgiveness and acceptance, and the power of memories. These characters felt so human; this story had so much heart. With the balance of humor and heart, this was such a great read!

Thank you netgalley for the arc!

THANK YOU, thank you, thank you so much to Net Galley & TOR publishing for the eARC of TJ Klune's upcoming release. I requested this never thinking I would get an ARC of this because of his recent popularity and let me tell you, my jaw hit the floor when I got my approval email.

I plan to give this book a 4.5 star, I really enjoyed this book, it was so sweet and cozy through the majority of the book, but the ending really did it for me. It was bittersweet and had me in tears for sweet Vic and the journey he goes through. Nurse Ratched is hilarious, and Rambo is the vacuum version of a 6 year old.

No one can write a story with heart the way T.J. Klune can.

In the Lives of Puppets is another adventurous, emotional tale from the author of The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door. While this book doesn't top either of those for me, it is still a solid read for spring, and it is utterly unique. I recommend it for readers who enjoy light fantasy and stories with found families.