Under the Whispering Door

My absolute favorite of Klunes to date. Such a fun whimsical book about life and even death. Normally when books touch on death its morbid but this was so amazingly well done. I don't want to give any spoilers away but if you haven't picked this book up I highly recommend.

3.5

Did I finish the book or did it finish me? More to come at 9 (of sometime soon)

Too saccharine and sitcom-y for my taste, may have liked it more if i was in a different mood

tj klune's writing is so similiar in all of his books and i adore it. the plot and vibes of this book were honestly a little too similar to me to house in the cerulean sea for me. still enjoyed the book and i even cried but it was giving same book different fonts. i love house in the cerulean sea but i wish he changed it up a little. also some of the character growth wasn't smooth and slightly unbelievable for me. idk how tj klune has made me sob in all his books but he really did 

If I can give it a 0 I would!!!! His writing is not my style bc HOLY SHIT was it HORRIBLE!!!!

I would give it a 3.5 stars. The first half was slow and would have given it 3 stars for that reason. I almost didn't finish it. I'm glad I did. It picked up and ended up being a sweet story. This part of the book I would have given the 4 stars.

This might be the best book I ever read. I loved it!
But how do I explain it to others? Wallace dies. He is led to a tea shop, where he will try to find his way to his forever resting place. Crazy! Just be open to this version of after-life. So many funny & strange things happen while Wallace is at the tea shop. I only hope this is where I find myself when its my turn to go. Also an LGBT story, and it was fabulous!

Disappointing after the House in the cerulean sea. At 60% I am loosing all interest. It doesn't get lift off.

This is such a lovely, heartwarming book. Though it deals with a serious subject, death, it does so in a sensitive, compassionate, and sometimes humorous manner. The characters are endearing, the setting is quaint and quirky, the plot is engaging, and the overall aesthetic is perfect. My only very mild complaint is that the ending dragged on a bit. However, that does not detract from the enjoyment of this book.

Wallace Price finds himself in unexpected predicament at the start of the story. He is dead, but he is still present on earth. He meets his Reaper, Mei, who leads him to a tea shop where his Ferryman, Hugo, awaits to help him accept his death and assist in his crossing over. Wallace struggles to accept his situation, but the inhabitants of the tea shop are there to guide him.

The best things about this book is its characters. The occupants of the tea shop are charming, compassionate, funny, and supportive. They bring out the best in Wallace. I especially love Nelson, the ferryman's dead grandfather who teaches Wallace how to be a ghost. Nelson adds much humor to the story. Hugo is also a wonderful character who is kind and empathetic. It is impossible not to love all of these strange and fascinating characters with their unique abilities.

The plot of the book centers mostly around acceptance of death and growth as a person. The fact that it takes dying for the main character to learn how life should be lived is the books great irony. The climax of the plot is satisfying and adds a sense of hope to the storyline. The action after the climax is slightly drawn out more than necessary, which is why I gave the book 4.5 stars instead of 5 stars.

This truly is a wonderful read that will leave you feeling inspired and hopeful. It will also make you a little bit sad, but that is part of the book's beauty. I highly recommend this book to any reader.

I was very surprised how much I disliked this book, considering I generally really enjoy the category of warm and nice people doing things together.

for a group of people whose job it is to help people accept their death and move along on their journey, most of the group has no patience for people who don't immediately accept their death. If someone is scared, confused, and in pain BECAUSE THEY'RE DEAD, it's not a mark of a kickass woman to threaten and mock them. It's cruel. I was hoping for there to be some sort of growth from that character, but, nope, Mei's perfect and she's a badass because she refuses to show any patience towards people processing their emotions. So, if you're annoyed or confused by her dismissive behavior at the beginning, give up: it's not going to improve ever.

Can a book about death be funny and kitschy? Yes. But not this book. It's mostly just shallow. It lacks any emotional depth or growth. Character's just change into the character the author wants them to be.

- If you work a job that refuses you a life outside of it, but you ‘feel good' about it, does that make it better than working an all-consuming job that only gives you money? according to Klune: yes. but both are just exploiting you, honestly.

- if you are extremely lonely (because of your job), and you meet someone else who is equally lonely (because of their job), and you fall in love with them because their whole job is to pay attention to you, is that true love, or just a sad attachment syndrome? to Klune? true, pathetic love. to most others? well, it's a sign to not settle for the first person who has shown you attention.

3 1/2 stars upgraded to 4.

This is a sweet story with a unique premise. A ghost falls in love with a human man who ferries souls to the hereafter? I was so here for it. The romance takes a back seat to the plot, however. Not a single love scene either. My library had this categorized as Romance, so I assumed there would be. So just know that going in. But the storyline and the characters kept me interested even so.

Mr. Klune has again made me weep over one of his books. The last few chapters of this are rough but it ultimately has a happy ending so don't be deterred. This is an interesting take on death and the afterlife with some romance and a lot of mysticism/magical realism. It reminded me a lot of [b:Elsewhere 359410 Elsewhere Gabrielle Zevin https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1442686280l/359410.SX50.jpg 349532] with a bit of Dead Like Me thrown in; both of which are favourite things so I was hooked in easily. Warren Price, our main character, is an asshole lawyer who has everything and nothing and meets his ultimate end rather unexpectedly. What's even more unexpected is what happens next, and how a bit of purgatory and the people he meets there was the best thing to ever happen to him. It's just too bad he's already dead.

T. J. Klune writes beautifully and I have enjoyed the story.
However, I've found the characters too similar with the ones from the “House of cerulean sea”, leaving me with a bit of a déjà vu.
Thinking about it, that was probably one of the reasons I've ended up enjoying the book so much, as it lended the characters some more depth.

For more of my reviews, check out my blog.I JUST finished Under the Whispering Door and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it. It's DEFINITELY not as lighthearted as TJ Klune's massively popular [b:The House in the Cerulean Sea 45047384 The House in the Cerulean Sea T.J. Klune https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1569514209l/45047384.SY75.jpg 62945242]. I really hoped it would be, as that book was such a breath of fresh air last year. Under the Whispering Door is not that. It's a reminder that nothing is permanent, and that everyone and everything has to move onwards and upwards.This is a book about death. Straight up. If you are at all triggered by death, mentions of suicide or grieving, then this book is not for you. I'm not triggered by those things, but I had a hard time reading this book. Am I still glad I read it? Yeah, I think so.I was not a fan of the main character for like....70% of the book. He's an asshole. He gets reformed, yes, but he's an asshole. I wasn't a huge fan of the romance in this one either, but that might be a personal thing. I didn't really see the chemistry until the very end of the novel, but again, might just be a me thing.I can see how this book might help someone move through the grieving process. But I can also see how it would make things worse. Final thoughts – tread carefully if you're interested in reading Under the Whispering Door.

I'm shocked by how much I did not like this book as a whole, since I adore “The House in the Cerulean Sea” and I like books that discuss death and grief (Klune has a handle-with-care warning at the beginning of the book and I really appreciated that). In many ways I found the two books similar, however to me this one is clunky and clumsy. For the first 2/3rds of the book, I had many problems with the character development, characterization, and plot. Yes I did tear a couple of times and ultimately I recommend for folks to decide for themselves.

A very soft and upbeat read

“I'm dead,” he said. “There's no going back from that. A river only moves in one direction.”

TJ Klune's books have become a place where my heart can get a zap like a defibrillator pedal. Both Under a Whispering Door and Under the Cerulean Sea tread the line between sentimental and sweet, but Klune is such a skilled writer that I never drift to the wrong side of that line.

Instead, after I get done with his books, and for this review, I will be talking about the newly released Under the Whispering Door; I feel good about myself and good about the world. I hope that somewhere in the vastness of this universe, there are true stories like what you find in these books. In the infinite, anything is possible. But until I discover and am witness to real-life stories that are as sweet as these, I will have to go back and read Under the Whispering Door again and again.

Wallace whispered, “It's easy to let yourself spiral and fall.”
“It is,” Nelson agreed. “But it's what you do to pull yourself out of it that matters most.”

The book follows Wallace Price Esq. A big-time lawyer and partner in a law firm. He is everything a someone who does not practice law expects lawyers to act. In that vein, Wallace is an immediately identifiable character, not one you can sympathize with, but absolutely one you understand. He is cold, calculating, ruthless, and utterly devoid of the ability to empathize.

These characteristics served him well. He is smartly dressed and expects the same of those around him. He is crushingly fastidious and again expects this of others. Any infraction on this is met with cold civility and a pink check. In other words, he is hated by his employees, has no friends, and his contemporaries are either terrified of him or believe him to be a cretin.

Then he dies. Alone. This starts the actual journey.

He wakes up from death at his funeral. There was no gnashing of teeth and wailing to the Heavens. Quite the contrary. “He was a real bastard.” Everyone is ignoring him; no one can see him. He is dead, so it makes sense except for one woman. She keeps staring in his general direction. She introduces herself, her name is Mei, and she is a reaper. She has come to take Wallace onwards.

She takes him to a place, a shabby chic little tea house in the middle of the forest. A place that Wallace would never have visited in his life but is now staying at in his death. Mei introduces Wallace to Hugo, the ferryman. Hugo's job is to help Wallace get used to the idea that he is dead before he steps through the final door. A door where Wallace hear's whispers coming from underneath it.

The writing is lovely. Klune writes in a minimalistic style; he gets the ideas across in prose that is not overly embellished or wordy but still packs an emotional punch. “Because you're you, and that's who you're supposed to be.” It is also hilarious, and there is one scene involving an ouija board that had me in tears.

Klune is so good, and his books keep having me come back for more because of the relationships he forges. There are many types of love in this life, or death as it were. There is familial love. The love of found family. The love of a dog. And the love between lovers. Klune explores them all. Because what can teach someone most about life more than love? Love spans the gamut from Blisteringly painful to joyous, and Wallace needs to learn to be a person.

Under the Whispering Door is a joyous book, a little slow at first, but things start to get rolling about midway, and I finished it all in one afternoon. It has passion, love, pain, and all the beautiful things life has to offer if you can recognize it and appreciate it. Thank you, TJ Klune, for another lovely book. I won't be forgetting Wallace's journey anytime soon.

I'm not going to lie. I went into this expecting the peaks of Cerulean Sea and got some middling lows.

This one drags as a whole but character development for the protagonist are super fast. The ending is also pretty obvious and a crappy deus ex machina. There's tension but it lasts all of 3ish chapters.

Mei is the best character. Nelson is close second. Wallace and Hugo make me want to roll my eyes in utter disbelief.

This is not the happy tearjerker it seemed to be in the first few chapters. Easily this could have been 50 - 100 pages less.

It's a shame but I just did not connect with the book in the way the characters of Cerulean Sea endeared themselves to me.

UPDATE:
Originally I rated this very high, and stated I wanted to read more from this author. The after posting my review I found out that TJ Klune's other book THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA was actually based on how during the 50s and 60s in Canada Indigenous children were taken from their homes and put into government sanctioned orphanages/residential schools.

The fact that a cis white man turned that trauma into a fantasy story doesn't really sit well with me.
So I'll be passing on reading his other works. Deeply disappointed upon discovering this and the interview in which he discussed his reasoning behind it.

This is a quote from the interview:
“I came across something known as the Sixties Scoop, which was in Canada during the fifties and sixties, where indigenous children were taken from their homes and put into government sanctioned orphanages, for lack of a better word. It was something that I could not shake. And so when I stumbled upon this article about children being taken because they were different or they didn't adhere to what standards people thought should be at the time , it was something that I couldn't get out of my head and, but I didn't want to co-opt, you know, a history that wasn't mine. I'm a cis white dude, so I can't ever really go through something like what those children had to go through. So I sat down and I was like, I'm just going to write this as a fantasy.”

SOURCE: https://www.jeffandwill.com/biggayfictionpodcast/2020/03/16/episode-232-tj-klune-on-the-house-in-the-cerulean-sea-extraordinaries-and-greek-creek/


ORIGINAL REVIEW:
Pass the tissues and someone give me a giant Mei hug please.

A solid 4.5 read. The writing hooked me from the start. I loved the quirky style and got an immediate sense of who all the characters were. There are many recognizable troupes, but I enjoyed the journey and exploration of death and beyond. Wonderful world building and so many moments that tug at your heart strings, especially if you've experienced the loss of a loved.

This was my first time reading T.J. Klune, and will certainly be checking out HOUSE BY THE CERULEAN SEA as well as anything else to come.

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Kirt Graves' narration, and felt he distinguished between each character subtly, but distinctly so I always knew exactly who was speaking.

***Thank you to Macmillan Audio for providing me with the Audiobook for free via NetGalley for an unbiased review.

I wish I liked it more. It's just that the story is ... boring. Pretty disappointing when this is the type of story and storyline that I like.

I loved this book. As to be expected from a book written by T.J. Klune, it is a story told with humor. It's full of interesting characters telling a story about human relationships.

When Wallace dies unexpectedly and is taken by a reaper to a quirky tea shop to meet with Hugo, who she refers to as a ferryman, he is in shock. His life was full of success and money, but not so full of people who cared about him. He has a hard time grappling with the afterlife and everything Hugo has to offer him in terms of help and care. As Wallace finds himself starting to enjoy the company of the people in this tea shop, he realizes that maybe the way he lived his life wasn't the best, but it may be too late for him to do anything about it.

Guys, this book wrecked me. I was a puddle on the floor when I finished. I couldn't stop crying. This book is such a magical, lovely story. Klune does it again. The setting, the characters, the themes, everything help create the most fantastic, touching story. This tea shop is somewhere I would want to go to every day just to experience this cozy, perfect ambience. Characters are Klune's strong suit, and he doesn't disappoint here. Every character is so unique and fully realized. They each have very distinct personalities, as well as lovely relationships with each of the other characters. The family Wallace finds in this tea shop is so beautiful.

I was sobbing for the last 20 pages of this book. It definitely deals with some heavy themes. However, the story is so poignant and touching, and I would read 10 more books set in this tea shop with these characters just living their day-to-day lives. I recommend this book to anyone that loves a good love story. Check out the content warnings before hand, though. There is some dark content matter.

TW: animal death, anxiety, cancer (terminal), child death, death of a parent (past, mentioned), depression, heart attack, murder, outing (mentioned), self-harm

This is the heartwarming tale of Wallace Price.

Wallace is a jerk. Everyone hates him. Now he's dead and no one mourns him. He finds it quite rude.
Then a reaper comes to collect him so he can cross over. So why is he being taken to a tea shop in the middle of nowhere?

This is such a beautiful story! The characters are fantastic. I said it's heartwarming, but it is also heartbreaking and full of hope.

I need to read everything by this author.

Thank you to Net Galley for a copy of this.

You'll need tissues!

This book came highly recommended, and I can't recommend it highly enough.
I had no idea what to expect, and I was still blown away.
I have literally laughed out loud, been scared, and not only cried, but sobbed, wept and bawled my eyes out.
This book is such an Incredible tale of grief, loss, life wasted, and yet ultimately hope and love.
Read it and prepare to have your heart shattered and then rebuilt in stubborn impossible love.