I’m still so surprised the Klune’s books can continue to be so amazing. This books was beautiful, from the writing to the plot and characters. There wasn’t a moment where I didn’t want to stop reading. There wasn’t a point where I didn’t care what happened next to these character. These characters will stick with me for a long time, I will always remember the queen Nurse Ratched. This book can not be recommended enough.

I liked the story, but not as much as I loved The House in the Cerulean Sea. I loved the banter and character of Nurse Ratched and Rambo. I found them to be both hysterical. I find myself to be a lot like Nurse Ratched. I liked the tree house and the detail the author gave in the description of it in comparison to the Swiss Family Robinson as I loved the movie and always wanted to live in a tree house. I found at times that the book and chapters dragged on and was long in parts. I feel though that a lot of readers will enjoy the story. It seemed to be resembled after Pinocchio. I also liked how the main character Victor never gave up, no matter how much he wanted to. I enjoyed the story, but I didn't get the same feeling as I did when I read The House in the Cerulean Sea. It is not to say that the book isn't good because it is. The feelings are different.

This definitely isn’t one of TJ Klunes’s best. I loved The House in the Cerulean Sea and it is one of my favorite books but his last two adult books have been a little underwhelming. I found the book cute and light and very funny at times but I just didnt feel any real love for the characters and I didn’t really care all that much about what was happening to them. It wasn’t a bad book but not that type of book that I would go out of my way to recommend.

Another fantastic novel from TJ Klune. I was so excited to get my hands on this and it did not disappoint. I couldn't put it down and also never wanted it to end. Just a joy to read as usual.

2.5 Stars

A modern day queer retelling of Pinocchio (with a little Wizard of Oz thrown in there?)

Vic has grown up in the forest with his father Gio and his robot best friends (and extended family) Rambo and Nurse Rached. He spends his days exploring the forest and the nearby dangerous scrapyard. He and his father love to invent things and have built a happy and content life, until visitors from a nearby city threaten to take it all away.

Cerulean Sea and Whispering Door were a couple of my absolute favorite recent reads. I was ecstatic when I received an ARC for In the Lives of Puppets. Unfortunately the book fell flat for me. I had a difficult time connecting with the characters and felt a lack of the warm and gushy sentimental feelings I'm used to getting from Klune's writing.. I wanted to love this book so much! I look forward to Klune's future writings, hopefully I'll feel that connection again.

TJ Klune's "In the Lives of Puppets" is AMAZING! Filled with his humor and wit and of course lots of heart, this is a book that will linger with you after you have finished the last page. I was laughing while I cheer the dynamic trio (plus 1) on their adventure and then crying tears of sorrow and joy moments later. I can see this being one of my top reads for 2023 and I can't wait to read Klune's next novel (whenever that may be).

When I first heard that this book was “A Swiss Family Robinson meets Wall-E retelling of Pinocchio” I was a little intrigued, but mostly worried that it wouldn’t be my cup of tea. That did not stop me, however, from literally shedding happy tears when I got approved for this ARC.

Klune, yet again, captured me from the very beginning with his amazing characters. The story begins with Gio, an android, building a solitary life for himself in the middle of a forest. After he becomes the father of a human son, Victor, he continues to create a wonderful life for the two of them. We skip forward to a grown Vic and meet his friends, Nurse Ratched & Rambo (an automated nurse machine and a robot vacuum) and they are amazing. The banter and beautiful familial bond between these characters was delightful from the first chapter. When they rescue and repair an outdated android named HAP everything changes. Hap joins their group and soon they must set out on an adventure to rescue Gio from the old life he was kidnapped back in to.

The story was beautiful, made me laugh out loud, and made the tears fall. The love this odd band of misfits has makes you wish you were part of their little family. Who wouldn’t want a snarky nurse robot that can tell you she loves and you threaten to drill out your insides all in the same sentence? Or a vacuum that loves old movies and isn’t a afraid to dream? Hap is the grump in the family and was probably my favorite character. I don’t want to say to much about him, for fear of spoiling anything, but just know I love him. ♥️

This book is definitely 5/5 ⭐️ and I already can’t wait to reread it!

If you're looking for the TJ Klune type characters who are lovable, quirky, and are a found family - this one will not disappoint! It has similar feel good vibes as his other books.

For me, I do feel like I struggled a bit in the beginning with pacing being a little slow. And because of the characters, sometimes the dialogue is a bit hectic in conversations.

Overall this was cute and a really unique story!

3.5 / 4 ish

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC!

Thank you to Tor and Netgalley for approving my most anticipated book of the year.
While I was looking forward to the Pinocchio storyline and loved the Frankenstein element, the pacing was a problem.
30 % in and you still don't really know what is going on in that world. While the characters were funny at first, it was too much and over the top and started to annoy me as the characters have witty banter on every page, and there are way too many pages for this story. Also, dick jokes are not my cup of tea and I find it weird how many there are in this book. After 44% the story finally seemed to start and go somewhere. In this case, the characters decided to go to the city of electric dreams. From here on I liked it way better and basically couldn't put it down till the end. The Wizard of Oz element becomes quite clear. While I personally liked the inspiration from all the fairytales, I can understand the thinking of this not being that original.

Okay, so the first thing you need to know: I actually dislike Pinocchio. Both the Disney version and the original work by Carlo Collodi. It’s just not my cup of tea. So, when I heard that this was a retelling of the latter, I was nervous. I LOVE Klune’s other books, but when the basis is something I’m not a fan of, even I had my reservations.

The second thing you need to know: I ADORED This Book. And it’s capitalized, so you know it’s true.

Trust T.J. Klune to take a story that I dislike and spin one inspired by it, and somehow make it etch itself into my heart. And somehow, I even enjoyed the references, enjoyed spotting them and seeing how they factored into this new plot.

In typical Klune fashion, the characters are the heart of this story. Victor and Hap and Rambo and Nurse Ratched and Giovanni… all of them are well-done, in a way that breaks me and puts me back together. The vast majority of them may be robots, but at their heart they are so very human.

I laughed, I cried, I wanted to throw the book across the room as I read. All in the best ways. Similar to Under the Whispering Door, this one explores slightly darker themes and I loved that. His quirky, laugh-out-loud writing just pairs so well with a little angst.

If you enjoyed The House in the Cerulean Sea or Under the Whispering Door, I highly recommend picking this one up. This was easily one of my most anticipated reads of the year, and it did not disappoint. Klune has, yet again, delivered all that he promised and more.

Release Date: April 25, 2023
I was given an ARC by NetGalley and Tor Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:
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?

Inspired by Carlo Collodi's The Adventures of Pinocchio, and like Swiss Family Robinson meets Wall-E, In the Lives of Puppets is a masterful stand-alone fantasy adventure from the beloved author who brought you The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door.

I am completely obsessed with this! TJ Klune is a superb writer and story teller. I fell in love with this story. It has compassion, love, kindness, a little adventure, humor and some unfortunate hard truths. I will be thinking of this book for a long time. It was so good and so perfect! Wish I could give it more than 5 stars.
I just reviewed In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune. #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

I received an ARC of this from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have loved every TJ Klune book that I’ve managed to read so far and this was no exception. This novel has the same flow and writing style which makes it so easy to read. I can understand why people say it has a Pinocchio esque feeling to it but for some reason it also reminded me of the Wizard of Oz.

Anyways, without getting into the story itself, the characters were amazing. Nurse Ratchet had me laughing out loud and cute little Rambo just made me want to hug him, despite being a vacuum cleaner. They definitely stole the show.

The final thing about this novel, is that it left m3 with more questions than answers. Usually I’m very satisfied with the endings but this one, not so much. Too many big things happened and the reader was left with several dangling carrots. Who knows, maybe there will be a second book?

THIS BOOK. In the Lives of Puppets is potentially the most important book I've ever read, solely because it is everything I have ever wanted from a robot romance book. TJ Kline opened up my brain and took all my desires out and made this book. Somehow, he took Pinocchio (my least favorite thing) and robots (my favorite thing) and turned it into an all time favorite book. I cannot wait to own this myself in a physical copy so that I can cradle it close to my chest and love it fiercely.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book. A tik tok will likely be coming soon to promote it.

I am shocked to say I am struggling to get into Klune’s upcoming book. This was my most anticipated read of the year, but as I keep reading I am struggling to want to reach for the book. It doesn’t help I don’t love Pinocchio or robots, but I thought with Klune’s writing style I wouldn’t care. Disappointing. I am sure other people will love this book. It is just not my cup of tea like his other two books.

WTF did I just read?
Whatever it was, I loved it!
Snarky robots, the end of humanity, the love of dysfunctional family, and a soft, quietly conceived romance…all rolled into an excellent story that flows like sweet chocolate.
I had never read anything from this author, but I see, now, why his stories are so well received. He makes you care about his characters. They have heart…even the robots…and you want them to find a happy resolution by the end of the book.
Five stars all the way, and I’ll be keeping TJ Klune on my radar.

Star Rating: —> 5 Stars

I… have no words. My heart is so full right now, it feels like it’s bursting. My eyes are filled with tears & I…this... just was…

An absolute masterpiece, full of heart, adventure, found family, & love.

This is one of the most charming stories I’ve ever read in my life 🥺, full of whimsy & fantastical world building, characters, & one incredible quest!

While this is being pitched as Pinocchio meets Swiss Family Robinson meets Wall-E, and I saw all of those stories within this one, the story that kept popping into *MY* mind was The Wizard of Oz ! Which of course means though it was filled with trickery & bittersweet moments, yet it was also filled with endless amounts of adventure & our found family of MCs—
[ Vic — A curious, loving, & asexual (wooooot for the asexual rep!) human;
Nurse Ratched — a slightly sociopathic, sarcastic, yet well-meaning nurse bot;
Rambo — a charismatic, excitable, little vacuum robot; and last but certainly not least,
HAP — (Aka Hysterically Angry Puppet 😂) a recently rescued from the scrap yard, & then given a heart made by Vic, amazing, sweet, very attractive (*waggles eyebrows*), ex-killer robot— who has an attachment to Victor practically as soon as he awakens! Also, js, I probably loved HAP the most! ]—
experience many, many, strange, wonderful, & frightening new things as they travel to the City of Electric Dreams to save Vic’s tinkerer robot father, GIO ! Boy was this a ride! Truly, this was so filled to the brim with heart, bravery, & love, I can’t say that enough…

Klune always creates works of ART, that tug on your heartstrings, & this was no different— it was absolutely life changing! I hold it in extremely high regard & it’s right up there with The House in the Cerulean Sea for me.

I can’t even count how many times this book made me laugh, made me smile, made me cry… it certainly packs a wonderful punch!

You know a book is exceptional when it’s capable of making your heart hurt in the most wonderful way, all the way through!

A million times over recommend!

A massive thank you to Tor/ Forge for the e-arc via netgalley. All thoughts & opinions are my own.

I have adored everything this author has written. I loved the robots and the friendships in this book. He brought such personality to little robots. I really really wanted to love this but it kind of fell apart for my by the end. I’m not quite sure why. I will still buy it for our store because I’m sure people will love it, but for me it was just OK. Something happened when they met the Coachmen and things just sort of unraveled for me after that. Sorry. I will still read the next book he puts out because he’s hugely creative. Thanks for the book

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?

Inspired by Carlo Collodi's The Adventures of Pinocchio, and like Swiss Family Robinson meets Wall-E, In the Lives of Puppets is a masterful stand-alone fantasy adventure from the beloved author who brought you The House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door.

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune (ARC)

First of all, thank you to Netgalley and Tor Books for this ARC!

Anything TJ Klune publishes will be an auto-buy for me, so this was one of my most anticipated releases this year.

In the words of Klune himself, this novel is a queer retelling of Carlo Collodi’s The Adventures of Pinocchio starring a quirky cast of robots.

The robots themselves reminded me of one of the shorts in Netflix’s Love Death Robots series or even The Brave Little Toaster, and the existential vibes reminded me of the Monk and Robot series by Becky Chambers. Normally, books remind me of other media, but this one especially felt like a familiar mash-up (likely due to the classic retelling aspect.)

The quirky cast could be also considered reminiscent of either of Klune’s past two novels. In similar fashion, the world building and relationship development were phenomenal and I was quickly invested. It was a wild and humorous ride from start to finish.

In the Lives of Puppets publishes on April 25th! I highly recommend you check it out!

It was my first tj Klune book and it didn’t disappoint me at all! I absolute loved it ,it was addicted and fast paced


I will now read all the others book of the author ! I plan on binge read them