This was a good one! Really funny and the typical loveable quirky characters from TJ Klune. I found it interesting how many stories are blended in this one. I knew Pinocchio and Swiss Family Robinson were, but I also felt the Tin Man’s story from The Wizard of Oz was also tied in. The last chapter added another star to my review as it was really touching. At times I was a bit disconnected, but I think that was mostly me. While I don’t think it’s my favourite TJ Klune book, it was definitely another warm hug, with some smut jokes thrown in ;) Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest review!

Another TJ Klune story and Daniel Henning performance that make the reader care for a fantastical cast of characters, all of whom are impossible to forget!

I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher.
The story is a retelling of Pinocchio. I loved the cast of characters. Vic was wonderful and drew me in. The robotic friends, Nurse Ratched, Rambo, and Hap, were energetic and lively. I constantly found myself laughing out loud due to the dialogue, especially because I was listening to the audiobook and the narrator was doing a great job. Another thing I liked seeing was the Ace main character who also managed to have a relationship.
I definitely plan on rereading this book more than once.

Now, I’ve been scarred by Pinocchio since…well, since the first time I saw the Disney animated version. Reading the original book made it worse. But Klune’s family-forward, queer-romantic, post-apocalyptic retelling? I feel healed. Rejuvenated.

This time, we have a real boy living among puppets. Or, more accurately, among robots. Vic has never met another human (not since his parents left him with the robot he calls “father”), but he’s cared for by three wonderful and deeply neurotic robots. Life seems ideal. Until he meets his fourth robot, and the world soon comes crashing down. Now Vic, the vacuum Rambo, health-bot Nurse Ratched, and HAP, the hysterically angry puppet, but find Vic’s father, the inventor Gio, and discover the truth about the world outside their forest.

Also, there’s romance! A really slow-burn one, which had me VERY impatient. I did not know I needed a romance version of Pinocchio, but I’ll take it. Especially since this is an asexual romance!

Now, I’m going to tell you now, GET THE AUDIOBOOK. If you ever do audiobooks, this HAS to be heard. Narrator Daniel Henning leaned into this HARD. Wildly distinct voices and masterful acting. My favorite of the characters as portrayed is, of course, little vaccum-bot Rambo, who is a little ray of sunshine. And who has no filter beyond the one that keeps the dust in. Rambo and Henning had me laughing out loud and pausing the book while I recovered several times.

Fun, a bit risqué, and genuinely romantic. Another hit from Klune!

4.5 Stars
This book definitely pulled at my heartstrings and I would highly recommend picking it up in audio format as Daniel Henning did a fabulous job of bringing all the characters to life! My favorite was Nurse Ratched....there were moments when her dialogue had me laughing out loud. I haven't picked up any other books by this author (yet!) and I can clearly see that has been a mistake as I am told his books typically feature a found family - one of my favorites.

Thank you to NetGalley for offering this title to me! While I missed the chance to download the audiobook as the archive date had passed, I decided to pick it up at my local library to experience this book for myself. So glad that I did, as I am now a huge fan of TJ Klune and can't wait to go into his backlist to explore more titles.

Not to be missed!

This may be my favorite book of 2023 so far. TJ Klune blew me away with In the Lives of Puppets and it's right up there with The House in the Cerulean Sea. I love how he writes characters and makes us really feel what they're feeling and experience what they're going through. Vic, Rambo, Nurse Ratched, Hap and Gio will live in my mind forever. In the Lives of Puppets is a story of found family, love, staying true to yourself and saving the world. I alternated from e-book and audio and I have to say, the audio was absolutely fantastic. The narrator's voices gave such dimension to the characters and I felt like I was watching a movie. I absolutely loved this sweet book and recommend it to everyone!

Although I recieved a copy of this audiobook in exchange for my review, all opinions remain my own. Thank you Netgalley and Macmillian audio for the opportunity to listen to this one!

After reading a couple of Klune's other books, I read the description on this one and knew I would have to read it. Klune has a way of writing about the relationships between the characters that I am drawn to. I love it. This one was no different. A boy lives in the woods with his papa and two "robots." When one day he finds a new android to repair, their lives are forever changed. But is it a good thing? I really loved this one. Going on my "to buy" shelf for sure

TJ Klune can do no wrong if you’re wanting a fantasy you can read all at once that makes you immensely connected to each character whether you think you can be or not. Who would’ve thought I’d be as emotionally invested in a fictitious roomba?

I loved this science fiction book from TJ Klune! In The Loves of Puppets is inspired by Pinocchio but it also goes so far beyond with its creativity & characters. I feel like.it would be really easy to spoil certain elements that I really enjoyed learning about as I listened so I won't go into detail but I absolutely loved a) the characters...so well-drawn b) the inclusivity and I mean this in so many ways but what really stood out for me was the way this chosen family was there for each other no matter what. It's a sweet story. OH and I would be completely remiss if I didn't mention the stunning narration by Daniel Henning! It's hard to believe there is just one narrator creating all of these unique voices & never getting it wrong. I was completely swept up by this audiobook. Highly recommend listening to this if possible.

I have always loved how T.J. Klune writes characters and the world around his books, they're so colorful and full of life. In the Lives of Puppets is no exception.
This book was a fun adventure full of incredibly diverse characters and deep, emotional chemistry between robots and humankind.
Though, for me at least, it was a bit slow at times, the story overall will stick with me for a good while.

This falls somewhere between 3 and 3.5 stars.

It pains me to say this, but overall the book was just "fine". I had no major problems with it, but I just couldn't connect to the story for some reason and I don't know why that is. I really liked the writing (I laughed a lot) and the characters (Nurse Ratched is hilarious!) and I liked the allusions to Frankenstein, Pinocchio, and Wizard of Oz, but once I put the book down I wasn't motivated to pick it back up. Overall, I liked the book but I didn't love it the way I loved Cerulean Sea or Whispering Door.

In the Lives of Puppets, is a very interesting retelling of the classic story of Pinocchio. We follow Victor Lawson as and his three companions, Rambo a naïve vacuum robot, Nurse Ratched (love the reference to One Flew Over the Cuckoos' Nest) a sociopathic nursing robot, and H.A.P. a.k.a Hysterically Angry Puppet a rebuilt and reprogramed android, journey to save his father Gio from the City of Electric Dreams.

We start the story in a very peaceful place with Vic searching a junkyard and finding a badly damaged android. Even though the android threatened and attacked Vic causing him to bleed in the junkyard, he decides to repair him with a heart he has been working on in case his father's heart breaks. Once HAP is up and functional Gio finds him and is very concerned but decided to help reprogram HAP. Eventually sensing Human blood the authority comes looking for Vic, Gio sacrifices himself to protect Vic and the others and is taken to the city of electric dreams.

As far as a retelling goes I think Klune did a decent job retelling Pinocchio in a Sci-Fi world. I had a wonderful time getting to know Vic, Rambo, Nurse Ratched and HAP, I greatly enjoy Klune's slightly off kilter found families and this one was no exception I really loved every member of the family and was rooting for everyone make it out okay. I also really adored the Asexual rep that we get to see through Vic's character. Overall i feel the book was very solid and I enjoyed my time in the world and with all the characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I had to sit on this review for quite some time. I'll be honest and start here... This was not my favorite of TJ Klune's novels. But to be fair, Pinocchio has never been a story I particularly enjoyed, so I started from that viewpoint.

The good: The side characters, as always in a Klune novel, absolutely steal the show. You fall in love with these little robots and their quirks. The setting is stunning and vivid. The asexual representation is refreshing. The father/son story is heartwarming and authentic.

The so-sos: The love story never quite got good for me. It just fell flat. I also never got quite as emotionally invested in this story as I did in other Klune novels.

The not-so-greats: Some sections honestly just dragged on leaving me in a serious reading slump afterwards.

Overall it was an enjoyable book, but I personally didn't feel it lived up to past works.

I loved this so much! I loved how vivid the details of this book were, and I loved how much emotion robots brought to me. There were even a few times I teared up. Chauncey and Lucy were my favorite characters from House in the Cerulean Sea, and I loved that Nurse Ratched and Rambo reminded me of them while staying their own unique characters. The romance in this book felt genuine and believable. I was rooting for them the whole time and felt that we got a very realistic ending. And the family aspect was spot on. TJ Klune is a master of writing families! Overall, this book was excellent, and I can't wait to see what TJ Klune writes next.

I always love TJ Klune’s books, this one was so unique! I loved the storyline and the characters. Definitely read the house in the cerulean sea and this one!

The book is set in a future where machines have taken over the world from humans. Now, mix in a a few themes from Pinnochio, some similarities to Wizard of Oz, and add an amazing cast of characters that include a sociopathic nurse robot, an anxiety-ridden Rumba vacuum cleaner, an inventor named G. I. O., and a real live human boy. What happens when their peaceful forest life is interrupted by human killing machines? Read on to find out!

I already knew I liked T.J. Klune from prior books such as Under the Whispering Door. What I learned is that Daniel Henning is an amazing audiobook narrator! I kept forgetting this was only one person narrating and not ... 10, 11 different people? It's quite the cast of characters, each with a unique voice.

When I read a T.J. Klune novel I know I'm going to laugh, cry, and feel all the feelings. This book did not disappoint.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for Tor Books for providing an audiobook in return for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced audio version of this book in return for an honest review.

This was my first TJ Kline book and I really wanted to like it. The writing was incredible with a well thought out story. However, the large amount of sci-fi and technology just truly was not for me.

The story was a cross between Wall-E, pinnochio, and the brave little toaster. As an LGBTQ member, I thoroughly enjoyed the asexual representations! Though this book wasn’t for me, I will try another TJ Kline novel because the writing was great!

The narrator was incredible and truly made the book better. If you choose to read this novel, I highly suggest the audio version.

Another great book by this author. The characters banter was amazing and had me laughing out loud a ton

I loved the storyline and the idea of this book. But it's so perverted. Sometimes my heart was warm and happy listening to this book, but a lot I felt disgusted. So much unnecessary content. So much doesn't make the story good. I'm going to be done with this author.

First of all, I want to say that if you enjoy audiobooks and this one is on your radar, LISTEN TO IT! The narration was off the charts and added SO much to this robot world. This was truly one of those stories that was brought to life in an audiobook. As a book that was driven forward by its loveable characters, hearing their individual voices added a whole new enjoyment level.

TJ Klune has a way of writing characters that is so unique. I’m not sure anyone else can do it quite like him. This ragtag robot group plus our human character, Vic, had my heart from the very beginning. Nurse Ratched and Rambo had me laughing out loud through the whole book. I could listen to a whole other tale of their back-and-forth banter. But also get ready for some rip your heart out moments that had me an emotional mess.

Here we have a story unlike any I have read before. The beginning had me enthralled and the ending was everything I hoped it would be. But to be honest, I struggled a bit in the middle, but I was so invested in these loveable characters that I had to see how this story ended.

If you are a TJ Klune fan absolutely pick this one up. Everything you love about his previous work is here. I’ve never wanted a talking Roomba vacuum more in my entire life.