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An amazing book dedication👌🏻

I heard Klune on a podcast mentioning this book is darker than Cerulean Sea or Whispering Door, and he‘s not kidding! I‘m glad I knew that going in. Otherwise, I really enjoyed this story and the sociopathic robot nurse is one of the best characters I‘ve ever read—I loved her!

I thought this was an interesting book to be reading amongst all the current angst in my profession about the impact of generative AI (like Chat GPT). I agree with some of the other Littens who think this book doesn't quite have the same charm as Cerulean Sea or Whispering Door, but it almost makes sense to me given the mechanical nature of the characters. Loved the vivid characters, especially the Nurse Ratched/Rambo duo.

In the acknowledgments Klune says he wished this were the book he had spoken to his sensitivity readers about, but the world isn‘t ready for that book. I think maybe that‘s the book I would have liked to read?

This was a low pick, almost less than that. It makes me sad to say that. It just doesn‘t have the same heart for me as Cerulean Sea and Whispering Door.

If you‘re letting “puppet” in the title hold you back, don‘t. The relationship ⬇️

It‘s a perfect day for patio reading!

O M G … look what came today!

I LOVE IT!

I ordered this book from Waterstone‘s on 5/5/23. I got the shipping notice from Waterstone‘s on 5/10. Here it is!

HOLY SMOKE THAT WAS FAST!

ODDLY … I ordered from my book-seller-nemesis … Waterstone‘s. The box it came in says … BLACKWELL‘S … how can a bookstore I‘m not fond of be associated with Blackwell‘s? I love Blackwell‘s! I‘m so conflicted right now.

But I love the book! ♥️

Someone has played Portal, and it shows.

Adult FairyLoot subscription box .. was a let down … it‘s a pretty book but the second I saw it I picked up my phone and ordered the Waterstone‘s special edition. The whimsical art is part of the charm, right?

No words. So so so good. Oh my heart!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

April‘s FairyLoot was delivered today. It's very different from the original green cover. More subdued but very pretty.

This is a fantastic take on Pinocchio. In this story Victor, a human boy, who has been raised by his father, Geo an android and with his friends Nurse Rachet, a nurse Droid and Rambo a vacuum Droid. Together they all live happily out in the forest and then one day they find a new friend 🤖
#NoShameReadathon2023 #robots @Nessavamusic #WickedWords #doll @AsYouWish #Booked2023 #moderntakeonaclassic @alisiakae @Cinfhen @BarbaraTheBibliophage

4 star read. Not my favorite of his but still really good. A book about a boy growing up with robots and the quest they must go on to save his "father" It is reported to have been loosly based on Pinocchio but i also feel it has Wizard of Oz, Murderbot Diaries, The Brave Little Toaster and The Search for WondLa vibes/ references.

Wow! I absolutely loved this novel! I loved the characters, the story, the messages and the themes. The messages about humanity and technology, as well as love and family, are so relevant and moving. Henning gave life to each of the characters through the voices, inflection, and especially the timing within the delivery. Between Klune‘s story and Henning‘s narration I fell into this world, experiencing the events alongside the characters.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Like the other books I‘ve read by T.J. Klune, I was swept away by the creative world and endearing characters in this tale. Equally playful and profound, it made me smile (especially Nurse Ratched and Rambo), it made me feel the beautiful imperfections of being human, and it made me think about the future of technology and what defines humanity. I highly recommend it via audio! 🎧

TJ. Klune writes comforting bedtime stories for adults. This story is a sentimental AI fairy tale. It is punctuated with silly and cute robot banter. The book also not so subtley points out that sexuality exists on a spectrum, which I think even most grown people don't realize. It brings up many life philosophies to ponder while remaining humorous and poignant. Things that are real can make choices.

I could gush over the book for paragraphs!

Had to learn this the very hard way.

Set in a dystopian future, a human is raised with a robotic family, including an android scientist, a sadistic nurse, and a neurotic vacuum cleaner in a dense forest. When the discovery of another android boy is found, it brings a threat from outsiders and a revelation of the end of the world in this homage to Pinocchio and the film AI.

In the Lives of Puppets is an understated retelling of The Adventures of Pinocchio, steered by neurodivergent Victor & his found family. A futuristic fairytale about the beauty & destruction that comes with humanity. Startlingly satirical. Beneath it all, beams of hope in the dark. I cried. I laughed. I can say with certainty that I've ever identified with a vacuum more! Klune has outdone himself. My only complaint is that it did not last forever.

"Humanity is awful, angry, and violent. But we are also magical and musical. We dance. We sing. We create. We live and laugh and rage and cry and despair and hope. We are a bundle of contradictions without rhyme or reason. And there is no one like us in all the universe. Don't you think we should make the most of it?"

T.J. Klune has done it again! ?? Another beautiful, heartbreaking masterpiece!

This was a pre-order and my least favorite of the of TJ Klune‘s imaginative, quirky, queer found family sagas. It‘s still a pick as I‘d give up my roomba for his anxiety-driven vacuum, Rambo. I never completely fell into this fantasy and I believe my issues were so many sexual innuendoes that I‘d groan rather than chuckle as they kept coming. Neither was my heart caught up in the man-machine love story. ↓

Dinner was chicken hibachi at my favorite restaurant! 😋 Mmmmm, it was so delicious! 💕 #bookndinner

This is not Pinocchio, thou has similar themes. Better thinking it‘s not the same. I loved all these varying characters. Not as heartfelt as his previous stories; more on humanity‘s horrid yet lovely view on the world. How humans are extinct because of the robot uprising, and the downfall of freedom. Which I found intriguing and wish there was more psychology on. Yet a story of a robot learning to release its past and forgive itself. #lgbtq

😍🥰

I had been looking forward to this book signing for a couple of months. Last night, I got to meet TJ Klune! There were a few people who drove up to 7 hrs to see him, I only had to drive 20 min. He was very entertaining & funny.

"This is you. Not as we found you, but as you are now. It is much better, in my opinion."

~ In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune ♡.

“But be warned, a heart is not like the battery you used to have. It's strong, but fragile."
"H-how can it b-be both?"
Dad laughed, though it sounded hollow. "It just is. It might be for the best that you don't remember what your life was before because it's not going to be the same. The heart, it's ..." He shook his head. "It's something special. It will lift you up. It will ache without reason.”

YAYYYY highly anticipated #bookmail!!

Starting today, I have the next ten days off from work! 🎉🎉🎉 I decided to take some PTO since my birthday is Sunday, and I'm so glad I did! I'm SO READY to read, read, read this week! As well as drink copious amounts of tea and take lots of bookish walks in the park! 🌿📚💕 I'm kicking off the fun with a mini picnic!

"In an old and lonely forest, far away from almost everything, sat a curious dwelling." ??

And so, we begin.... I'm so excited! ?

My pre-order arrived 😊

So so so so happy to have gotten these two today! Especially the tagged book! T.J. Klune has become one of my favorite authors, and I am SO EXCITED to start this! 💚📚

Happy Publication Day!! I absolutely adored Klune‘s latest- a futuristic re-imagining of Pinocchio. Victor & his father live in the remote forest, with two robots- a talking vacuum, Rambo & Nurse RATCHED. But a discovery of a different kind of robot in the scrapyard soon changes everything. With humor & heart, this fresh spin on the familiar is a genuine delight from start to finish! I laughed, I cried & can‘t wait to see what Klune writes next!

For my May #bookspin I numbered the books sitting on my TBR bookshelf.

 @TheAromaofBooks

🎧 This is my favorite TJ Klune book!

Did you like Under the Whispering Door? The House in the Cerulean Sea? This is more of that. More adult. Funny & heartbreaking.

BOOK OF THE YEAR!

Found family. Quest. Pinocchio for adults. Wall-E in it‘s quirkiness. There‘s adult concepts & thoughts. LGBTQ rep.

I just loved this story of a boy, his robot creator father & 3 robots & a Quest.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This book will be published on 4/25/23 👇🏻

#ARC #Netgalley #InTheLivesOfPuppets

his ARC was provided by Pan Macmillan (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review.
The Pinocchio, Terminator, Wall-E smash up I never realised was missing from my life.

A great story with a great cast and I can definitely see a movie somewhere in its future.

Full review here https://thereadersroom.org/2023/04/25/in-the-lives-of-puppets-by-t-j-klune/

Deep in the forest is a family of humans & machines. After finding an amnesiac robot in the forest, their idyllic life is interrupted by secrets coming out.

Charming & sweet, but ultimately a bit of a let down. Based on Pinocchio, with flavors of Frankenstein & Oz, the characters are interesting but relatively flat, sci fi aspects aren‘t explored in depth, an underdeveloped romance & the ending left me feeling unsatisfied. 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑

This is a thought provoking story (loosely based on Pinocchio) , told with some great humour and some moments of sadness. It reminded me of both Haig's “The Humans“ and Shoemaker's “Today I Am Carey“ in the way they all deal with what it means to be human without being 'preachy'. It is also a bit of a cautionary tale about the use of AI and robots. I do wish the ending left me with more hope for the human race, but still really enjoyed it. 4/5

This is the book I needed this week. I adore Nurse RACHED and Rambo, and obviously I want to live in their Swiss Family Robinson- style treehouse with them. ❤️
Release date April 23 2023
#netgalley #arc

This new vision of the Pinocchio tale delighted and amazed me, as do all of Klune‘s stories. And the thing about Klune‘s work is that my heart always breaks open when I read it. Human existence is celebrated in all of its joy and delight and love and heartbreak. When I finished reading the book, I set it on my chest and tried to absorb all of the goodness into my heart and being.

I received this book from NetGalley. Available 4/25

My #bookspin for March! 💚

This is magical. It's a Pinocchio retelling. But backwards. A real boy grows up surrounded by robots. And they go on a Wizard of Oz style quest. Basically, what does it mean to have a heart (also a theme from WoO). There is something very engaging about this author's books.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Pub date is 4/25/23
#ARC #Netgalley

This is a book with total Swiss Family Robinson and Pinochio vibes but with a TJ Klune twist. This author has a great ability to craft characters that are lifelike and likeable (even if the characters are in fact not human). This one is perhaps not his best work but it's still worth picking up. There is a wee bit of issues with pacing but for the most part that's my only real complaint. Available in April, y'all!

#NetGalley

I adore TJ Kline and the fantastical worlds, and characters, he creates.

In this fairytale retelling, Klune has a mix of Pinocchio and The Wizard of Oz. The story revolves around Victor, a human living in a world of robots. Parts of the story get rather dark, but Klune still manages to deliver a heartfelt story of acceptance, love, and found family.

This was one of my favorites for this month. 💚

I received an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

3/5⭐ I loved Nurse Ratched. The pacing and vibe of this book were all over the place. I feel like the post-climax part just killed all of the previous development. Up until that point, I really enjoyed the themes of creation, purpose, and choice. The writing and story kept me hooked, and the Pinocchio retelling was flipped well.

You are finite. Your time is already slipping through your fingers. It creates an urgency within you. To do all that you can. To make things right. I wonder what that must feel like, to have a sense of true motivation.

No civilization can survive indifference. It spreads like a poison, turning fire into apathy, a dire infection whose cure requires more than most are willing to give.

All beings deserve a chance to find out what life could be when they don't have to serve others.

Happiness isn‘t something that can be sustained continuously, not without something to keep the fire burning.

This novel was inspired by Pinocchio, with the author‘s tweak and imagination. It did start slow, thankfully it started to pick up midway. I have enjoyed Victor‘s journey, who grew up surrounded by robots. It was more engaging when the chaos started and when it ended, though expected, I felt relieved Lol! Recommended especially for Klune fans but I still prefer Cerulean Sea 🫰🏻

January was not a very good reading month for me, between a whole lot of migraines and way too much stress, my ability to read was just shot. That said, I'm proud of myself for reading as many books as I did and looking forward to reading even more in February.

Lives of Puppets ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Stone Blind ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Five ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Alternate History ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tower ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tasting History ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️