This is my first outing with TJ Klune, and after hearing SO much buzz about The House in the Cerulean Sea I jumped at the chance to read an early copy of his new novel.

His writing is everything people say it is; it is cosy, it is whimsical, it is easy to fall into and be absorbed by.

In this one we follow the recently deceased Wallace Price and his coming to terms with his own passing. The characters are at utter delight, especially each of the side-characters, and I will admit to sobbing more than once; this author really knows how to tug at the heart-strings!

That being said, I do also have some issues with this one; predominantly with the pacing. It wasn't at all 'even' to read; in places this is the slowest of slow, and in others things are rushed and crammed in. Overall it felt a little drawn out in terms of plot, but just right in terms of character development. The time we spent with them is what makes me love them so much, I just wish the plot had lived up to expectations too.

3.5 heart-warming stars.

I don’t know if there is a way to describe the utter beauty and calm of this book. It has you laughing and crying with joy one moment, and contemplating the complexities of grief in the next. I shed tears for almost every character, I giggled, I loved every moment. There is something profoundly calming about the whole book despite it coving topics such as grief, death, murder and suicide (to which the author has included a trigger warning for in the authors note).

The worldbuilding is just gorgeous, I could imagine every inch of Hugo’s Tea shop to me it was a haze of well worn pastel painted furniture that seems to fit no mater the season. It also elegantly sidesteps the questions of the afterlife, allowing for both religious and non-religious beliefs to co-exist and discusses all these possibilities in a respectful and peaceful manor. It sets no definitive leaving the reader to keep there questions open or their beliefs as to what is after. Instead it gives a beautiful rest stop in which to explore the meaning of both life and death. To think about what grief means to people and what life means to people. The whole thing is just packed with emotion that it radiates out and you can’t help but feel it all too.

Wallace the main character is just amazing, he has a very obvious character arc but it works perfectly. He is a dick, completely and utterly and therefore as a reader you don’t feel so awful witnessing his death in the first few pages of the book. TJ Klune masterfully makes you despise Wallace and yet twists it so you fall in love with Wallace in such a short space of time. The other characters are just such cinnamon rolls, they are witty and wistful and just so much fun to read about as they help Wallace on his journey. There are real moments of sadness and reflection brought on by some of the interactions, where others had me sniggering with laughter.

While the plot is the redemption tale we have probably encountered before TJ Klune’s writing, characterization and worldbuilding make this just a magical read. It is one of those warm blanket of a reads where you feel safe and secure and can loose yourself in the thoughts it provokes and the quiet calm it instils. Its just a beautiful book.

This book has a really unique premise, and started really strong for me. But somewhere towards the middle, it just lost it's way a bit.

At its heart, this is a book that contemplates what it means to be alive and how to come to terms with death. But while this should have been the focus, the story often got sidetracked with long descriptions of how a ghost changes clothes for example.

The humour was great, I just wish this book had a slightly more focused plot.

I'd recommend it to anyone who likes more character focused books, but if you aren't invested in the characters you may struggle with UTWD.

A whimsical, charming and soft exploration of death, loss and grief

Mean, cold and angry lawyer, Wallace price is shocked when he realises at his own funeral that he has in fact died. He then meets his reaper, who has come to take him to a ferryman, who will help his soul cross over. Wallace is appalled that he is dead, he can't be, he has so much work to do! Set in a cosy teashop in the mountains, Wallace soon realises that there is more to life than work, and as his new acquaintances get under his skin, he has to face up to the things he has missed out on in life

I adored The House in the Cerulean Sea, so jumped at this one with both feet when I heard about it! The cover is gorgeous too! Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this one as much. I liked it, but didn't love it, and that was for a few reasons. Firstly it just felt too similar to Cerulean. Wallace was Linus, Hugo was Arthur and they have their band of merry and adorable side characters living in a remote house. For the first part of the book, I kept hearing the narrator's voices for Linus and Arthur, which annoyed me! It was just too samey. Had I read this first, maybe I would have enjoyed it more, but I couldn't stop noticing the familiar characters, setting and tone.
I found the book predictable, and reminiscent of other stories, and do not get me started on that disappointing and frustrating ending, which I felt negated all the progress, and the message in the book?!
It was also hugely heavy handed in it's message, which I guess Cerulean was also, but I didn't mind it there because I was so charmed by everything else! This felt overly preachy, and grated on me with it's constant hammering home about the value of life, coming to terms with death, and being a better person. It felt repetitive and a bit cliché if I'm honest!

However, it was heart-warming, quirky and cute. Like a cosy blanket, it gave me warm, fuzzy feels and felt comforting. It was humorous, and I applaud T.J. Klune for being able to write about death, and make it emotional and uplifting, rather than depressing. It had a good balance in that respect.

I enjoyed the world building, and could really visualise the quirky teashop and all the characters. Perhaps it would make a good film?

The found family, as in Cerulean, were the best! They were my favourite part of this story! I loved sarcastic Mei, hilarious Nelson, and Apollo the ghost dog was adorable! Wallace I loved less, especially at the start, but I did begin to root for him as he started to show his vulnerability and true feelings. I didn't really buy the love story though, and didn't feel it was necessary.

Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy this, but it just wasn't as good as I was expecting. It didn't move me like I thought it would, but I liked the overall message and the characters were wonderful! If you are looking for a familiar tale, which reminds you of cerulean, or are reading this one first, then you might love it, many others certainly did!

Under the Whispering Door, by TJ Klune, is the story of Wallace Price, a big shot lawyer who suddenly dies and discovers that there is an afterlife of sorts. He attends his own funeral before meeting a reaper who leads him to a faraway tea shop in the woods where he has to meet Hugo, a ferryman who helps souls to cross over.

Naturally, this leads to many problems as even when dead there's still the stages of grief, starting with denial. Sure, he's attended his own funeral, but that doesn't mean that Wallace is ready to accept that he's actually dead. Wallace, with the help of Hugo, discovers that there was a lot more to life than he realised, that he didn't have to be an absolute cock and that he could have actually been happy in life.

The cast is pretty diverse, with white, black and Asian and queer representation and Wallace's reaper Mei is particularly great. Most of the funniest moments involve her and as a reaper, she has a particularly neat trick where she can switch between touching alive beings to being able to touch dead beings - something that Hugo cannot do in his job as a ferryman where he can see and interact with dead people but not physically touch. The humour is where this book really shines and as mentioned, a fair bit revolve around Mei's interactions either with Wallace or others. You wouldn't think a book about death could be quite so funny, but here we are. Mixed in with that though are some real heartfelt moments and parts that give you pause to think.

On top of all that, this is also a book about finding love, even when dead. This was one of the parts I was less keen on as it all seems to happen quite fast. Falling in love that quickly just left me thinking "damn, that was quick". Although there's a lot of soul searching, or therapy as Wallace calls it, so Wallace and Hugo got to know each other quite well in a short space of time. Still a bit quick though. Same with Wallace's change from complete asshole to trying to be good, although that could just be the effect of being dead...

One part I didn't like initially was Wallace acting like a child and threatening to haunt someone that Hugo and Mei didn't like. I say initially because when I thought about it later on during a break in reading I realised that it's exactly something that I'd do if given the chance, but it still felt out of character for Wallace given all that you know about him up until that point and even afterwards. Just a moment of silliness that didn't have any kind of action similar at any other point from him. It's a little thing though and the fact that it's exactly what I'd have done just for a laugh means that it didn't bother me for long.

UNDER THE WHISPERING DOOR is bizarre, unconventional, funny, heartfelt and well written. It surprised me, cracked me up and made me want more. It takes something horrible (death) and makes it into something that isn't heavy and depressing, into a new beginning where the dead can make peace with themselves and their life before moving on to whatever is waiting for them in the afterlife. Every character shines, particularly when interacting with others. The ending is a tad predictable when you get to it, which makes me wish TJ Klune went in the other direction for another tug at the heartstrings moment, but it's one of those books where that's not important. It's all about the journey to that moment and it's quite a ride - one that I'm glad I read as it was a nice change of pace from my usual reading.

Rating: 4.5/5

‘The first time you share tea, you are a stranger. The second time you share tea, you are an honoured guest. The third time you share tea, you become family’
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The House on the Cerulean Sea was one of my favourite books of last year and I went into this new instalment from T.J. Klune nervous it wouldn’t live up to how much I loved his last, and I was VERY much not let down, this has all the heart of Cerulean Sea and then some
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Welcome to Charon's Crossing.
The tea is hot, the scones are fresh, and the dead are just passing through.
When a reaper comes to collect Wallace from his own funeral, Wallace begins to suspect he might be dead.
And when Hugo, the owner of a peculiar tea shop, promises to help him cross over, Wallace decides he’s definitely dead.
But even in death he’s not ready to abandon the life he barely lived, so when Wallace is given one week to cross over, he sets about living a lifetime in seven days
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I truly couldn’t recommend this enough, and annoyingly won’t say too much as I went into it having just read the synopsis above and was happy to slowly learnt the story as I went. But this book has so much heart and charm! I found myself laughing and smiling throughout and then had a very tearful train journey as I read the last section. If you loved The House on the Cerulean Sea then I have NO DOUBT you will adore this too!!
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Thank you to Netgalley and Pan MacMillan for the ARC!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA is one of my favourite books, so when I heard TJ KLUNE had a new book coming out, I was pretty excited 🤩

Klune’s focus throughout the book is death, but he manages to cover the topic in such a way it doesn’t feel heavy and depressing, it kind of feels heartwarming and uplifting. A quote that is used early on in the book, is one I keep thinking about “An Ending. Leading to a new beginning.”

When the main character Wallace Price, a high flying unlovable douche of an attorney suddenly dies of a heart attack, we’re not exactly sad. We’re then taken on this charming adventure when Wallace’s ghosts refuses to cross over to the other side and is stuck in the Charon’s Crossing Tea shop in the forest with the quirky “ferryman” and his reaper, whilst there he starts to discover what living, appreciating life and love really means. I loved so much about this book 😭

💭 Is this one on your radar? (It should be!)

#UnderTheWhisperingDoor #FRC2021

This book follows Wallace, a lawyer, and straight-up asshole. He dies and is picked up by an Asian kid in a suit who loved metal music… yup that’s Mei. Then he’s taken to a wayward station and meets Hugo his dead granddad and dead support dog. It’s a weird family but a lovely one.

This book was lovely. It had a slow start for me. I wasn’t fully invested until 30-40% in but by then I was at least 159% invested 😂 I loved this book. As with other works by TJ Klune that I’ve read it was family-oriented and about love, not romance or anything superficial but deep love. It was a wholesome and heartwarming story that made me cry at least 3 different parts and I don’t usually cry at books. Also, the tea in here is amazing! So much and varied tea I loved it 🥰 the last point is the cuteness or the queerness in here. It was heartfelt and full of acceptance which I loved as well!

Because of the slow start, I ended up going it a strong 4 ⭐️ I look forward to seeing what the author does next!

I’m really loving the 30-40 years old main character in a fantasy novel. It’s such a rare thing unless I miss something. I struggle finding adult fantasies that I love and have an MC my own age.

Under the Whispering Door is a book about what happens to Wallace Price after he dies.

I really like T.J. Klune's writing. I find I am drawn into the story he is writing. I loved the characters within the story and particularly Wallace's growth from who he was when he was alive to who he becomes.

My reason for a three star rating is that this book is very character driven. Sometimes that works for me but on the whole I much prefer books that are plot driven.

I really did enjoy Klune's exploration of what happens after we die and look forward to where he takes us next.

This book was a truly beautiful roller coaster of emotions.

At first, I struggled to connect with the main character Wallace. But watching as he developed and grew as a person under the guidance of Hugo was wonderful to see.

There were parts that left me laughing out loud, and then some large chunks that left me sobbing.

Something I really appreciated was the character diversity in this book. I loved that the main character was bisexual, but that it wasn’t what drove the plot itself, he just was.

Every single one of these characters had something about them that I adored, and the way they interacted together left me very emotionally attached to them.

Also, Charon’s Crossing is a tea shop that I desperately wish to visit! It gave off the most warm and welcoming vibes, and I adored the way that Klune describes the setting and creates such strong cozy imagery.

As a whole, this book was incredibly thought provoking, especially regarding grief and the way we process our own grief in a variety of situations. This book honestly left me questioning myself as a person and the ways in which I could change for the better.

(Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.)

This book had everything – laughter & tears, joy & sadness. It was a quirky, fantasy read with a mixture of other genres blended together. There were even some parts that could have been lifted straight from a self-help book.

The story centres around newly deceased Walter Price – a rather unlikable person in life, who learns to be a better person in death. In death, Walter learns how to live and it’s the most magical transformation.

I highly recommend this title to readers of all genres – there’s something in here for everyone.

Many thanks to TJ Klune, Pan Macmillan Tor and NetGalley for the review copy.

Really enjoyed this charming little book. Poignant and interesting take on what happens once we die. Some great characterisation. Bit repetitive in places but otherwise lovely.

Having apparently died of a heart attack in his office, Wallace Price is more than a little surprised to find himself at his own funeral. Collected by a reaper who takes him to a tea shop in a small village miles away from the city, Wallace is introduced to Hugo the ferryman, whose job it is to help the souls of the dead cross over to the side. But Wallace quickly begins to realise that he never really lived his life and he isn’t ready to move on yet. With the help of Hugo, Mei, Nelson and Apollo the ghost dog, Wallace finally starts to learn the things he missed while he was alive.

While it doesn’t have a particularly exciting or eventful plot, Under the Whispering Door is a lovely and humorous exploration of grief and hope, though the eyes of a character who has died without living their best life. Wallace starts out as a really despicable character but quickly grows into someone sweet and caring – it’s just unfortunate that he’s dead before this happens.

I was a tiny bit disappointed by the ending – don’t worry, no spoilers here – because it felt a tad predictable and too crowd-pleasing. I personally thought it would have been braver to take it in the other direction, but at least it was uplifting.

Overall, I found this book amusing and entertaining, while still managing to remain meaningful and quite emotional. It isn’t amazing and it’s rather formulaic (don’t even start on the love story) but it’s warm and written with a whole lot of heart.

I wasn't really sure what to expect with Under The Whispering Door but after the first few chapters I was hooked. There's a delightful cast of diverse characters and the dialogue between them all sparkled.

It's a poignant and moving tale but one that also made me laugh. TJ Klune has a brilliant knack of making you laugh and cry within the same chapter. I particularly loved the character of Nelson and his commitment to causing mischief and giving them "the ol' what for".

I loved that Wallace was a bisexual man as I find it quite rare to read a book from such a perspective. The romance was touching, although if I were to be slightly critical it felt a little rushed. The emotions initially seemed to come out of nowhere and I felt we were told about the feelings they had for each other rather than being shown. However for me the romance was such a secondary plot it didn't really matter. The book is so much more than a love story.

It's a complex and thought provoking story that doesn't shy away from addressing some really dark themes such as murder, suicide and the death of a child. It is extremely sad in places yet never feels depressing. It's a story of love and redemption and hope. It shows how family is more than just blood and DNA.

It's quite simply a beautiful read and I loved it.

TJ Klune is definitely one of my favourite authors. After reading the house in the cerulean sea, I knew I had to pick this book up. I loved the writing style and the characters - I just found it such a lovely book.

TW: death, death of parents, suicide, murder, death of a child

What a weird little story. 😂
I read quite a few TJ Klune books by now and I can honestly say that none of his books/series is anything like the other.
Okay they’re all very queer and found family is a huge theme.
Same goes for this one!
Because we get a bisexual man as the MC. I will repeat: a bisexual MAN in an urban fantasy book published by one of the biggest publishers. I cried. I loved that so much.
We mostly get bisexual man in MM romance books for a small audience, not in mass productions like that. And an unapologetic bi man as well. Someone who was married to a woman he loved and was attracted to and also had relationships with men before that.

But let’s get back to the start.
Wallace is a successful attorney who only lives for his work. As long as he lived…because he suddenly dies of a heart attack.
When his ghost is picked up by a mysterious woman at his funeral, only very few people attended to to Wallace’s huge surprise, the whole story begins.

Wallace is completely in shock, angry and does not accept his new reality: that he is dead and now residing in a tea shop where he is supposed to cross/move on.
At the beginning I didn’t really understand why everyone I saw who read this book seemed to be in tears because I laughed my ass off.
It was absolutely hilarious, the way Wallace doesn’t even realise how absolutely horrible of a person he is and how the tea shop and his residents are such a huge contrast to his everyday life.
It was super funny to read about Wallace getting a grip on being a ghost and his interactions with his new roommates.

Of course this story includes a huge redemption arc. Being taken out of his life was possibly the best thing that could have happened to Wallace, because he slowly realises what it actually means to live and what he missed in the time he was alive.
It reminded me a lot of A Christmas carol.

To be honest though I have to admit that for most of the book I had absolutely no idea where this story was going and after finishing it I can say that I still have no idea.
Half of the book just seemed to follow the everyday life in the tea shop and I can’t say that I was bored, but it wasn’t exactly gripping either.
The main theme of this book is of course death, different kinds and the different kinds people who die and the bereaved come to terms with it and accept it. It’s about grief, and the different ways people grief.
It’s a rather quiet story without a lot of action until the very end. It was kind of jumping between different storylines, but not in a way that made sense to me.
To me there wasn’t a lot of plot present to begin with, the pacing was off and it became extremely abstract towards the ending. Especially with the stag and the manager and his form…it was all kind of weird to me and I don’t think I really understood the meaning of some of the story elements.

Also I sadly have to say that I didn’t really buy Wallace’s sudden change of character. It just felt like a switch was flipped and he simply didn’t act the way he did in the very beginning anymore.
I also didn’t really catch the moment he fell in love. There just wasn’t the kind of interaction that lead to characters being in love, especially if they didn’t like each other a lot in the beginning.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved them together in the end, the way to get there just didn’t feel like a way, but rather a huge jump.

Of course I loved the found family element in this one though. This will always be a trope I love and that never fails to give me all the warm feel good vibes.
The ending surprised me personally a lot, I didn’t expect it and I’m somehow a little disappointed by it as well as happy about it at the same time. For me it didn’t really fit the overall idea of the book? But on the other hand I was glad? 😅

All in all it felt like a really weird story to me, that just didn’t feel as smoothly as I’m used to be TJ Klune.
I enjoyed it, but I didn’t love and and it’s probably not a book I would reread.
As per usual I loved the characters and the found family element in this a lot though and would still recommend reading it.

I have no words to describe this book. I went into it completely blind and I was amazed. It made me laugh, I was close to tears... THE FEELS. I know grief too well, since my grandparents and parents passed away years ago, if I had the opportunity to say somethibg knowing what I know now... Honestly, this book is an emotional rollercoaster. I appreciate that there was a trigger warning! Exceptional writing and plot. Someone has to get this book and make it have its own tv show or movie!

Reading this less than a fortnight after losing my beloved dog was certainly an experience. Exploring grief and the meaning of life, the reader is introduced to ferryman Hugo, reaper Mei, and the ghosts of his grandad, Nelson, and dog, Apollo. It employs the found-family trope which TJ Klune writes so well and there's such a sense of cosiness to this story.

Yet it deals with heavy topics and ones that left a grieving reader broken and then set on the path to healing. There were pages that hurt to read and left me sobbing and others that had me laughing out loud or quietly smiling. It was thoughtful and thought-provoking and urges the reader to ask what makes a life worth living? Highly recommended.

After adoring The House on the Cerulean Sea I was so excited for this book, but somehow it didn’t manage to live up to my expectations at all.

The first half of the book was alright, but very slow. Nothing really happened, so I grew a little impatient for some actual plot.
The book picked up pace after that 50 percent mark, but I still couldn’t get invested.

Unlike with HitCS I didn’t feel any connection to the characters. They were alright, but lacked that certain aspect that makes you love a character.

Overall Under the Whispering Door was a nice read, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I hoped I would.


[I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.]

It’s rather unavoidable that I talk about the author’s other book which was my introduction to this author’s works. I really enjoyed that book and fell in love with every character I came across in that book. The reason I am still talking about House in the Cerulean Sea is that I didn’t really love any of the characters to the point where I fell in love with the book too.

We meet Wallace as he’s trying his level best to dismiss an employee who’s singing his praises for being understanding. Wallace is not a lovable or perhaps even likeable man from what we see of him in the initial chapters and that’s generally not a tipping point for me but the thing with Wallace is that we never see the growth in his character. We are shown how casually thoughtless and cruel he can be and then he dies and taken to the afterlife and throughout the first half of the book, I kept looking for signs that show that he’s changed as a person or even seeing things from a different perspective and to a certain extent, he did change but I was left wanting more.

This book tries to deal with the age old question of what it means to be alive and how to accept death but it never reached the potential I hoped it would. For what the author set out to do, there’s not a lot of depth to the characters or to the conversations that took place with the characters. It didn’t add anything to the question it posed and for me, it didn’t seem like anything worth keeping was added to the story. Not a lot happens in the story or even to the characters in a way that would have made this into an enjoyable read. Not much changed and not a lot of stakes were present either to raise the tension.

There’s the humour that I expected from the author though. The start of the book is pretty brilliant because he really knows how to write soulless corporate people. It was thoroughly enjoyable and definitely worth a laugh or two. I think the humour was well done throughout the book but humour alone couldn’t save the book from other disappointing areas.

I think the love story didn’t feel real to me, they were not quite getting along with each other and then suddenly, they were? And then, they were also in love? I never felt the feelings bloom or even had a hint of what might have gone behind the scenes. It wasn’t the most convincing of love stories and that made me sad too.

I am not saying this book was a complete disappointment because it simply wasn’t but it lacked logical sense and growth of character and that played a huge part in me not finding it as lovely as I could have. It has a charm to it that would definitely lure in people and keep them happy because the author is an expert in writing charming stories, I think. I just wish the characters and the pacing with which things happened made a bit more sense.