Under the Whispering Door

This year might as well be labeled "TJ Klune" in the annals of my life because all of my top books of the year really should be by TJ Klune. I'm late to his game. My agent told be that I HAD to read his books, though, when I said that I wanted to write a magical realism novel next. So, this is where I started, and I am so glad I hopped on board this train because O. M. G! There are no words to describe how absolutely wonderful this book is. And I swear I cried my way… show more.

If you follow me, you know I’ve written a novel about a girl who has died for the third time and is stuck in the afterlife. The afterlife in my novel is modeled after Mohonk Mountain House.

TJ Klune’s afterlife is a completely different world than mine and it fascinates me. I know the complexity of imagination and emotion that went into my story, so it’s always intriguing to be inside someone else’s head the same way.

Hugo’s tea shop and the cast of characters that cross its threshold are interesting, complex, relatable, and they will touch your heart. Klune… show more.

I am always on the lookout for books that combine fantasy, humor, and pathos, and TJ Klune is a master at all three.

Wallace is a contemporary Scrooge: mean, hard-hearted, and self-centered. So he can’t believe he’s dead and stuck in a strange coffee shop in the woods that appears to be a halfway house for spirits not quite ready to go through the whispering door at the top of the stairs. 

Not only that, Wallace feels a strange attraction to Hugo, the owner of the shop. With only seven days before he has to cross over, Wallace has difficult… show more.

Having recently undergone open heart surgery, my mortality was front and center when I read this book about life after death. I was almost afraid to read it, but I am so glad I did. 

The main character Wallace dies and ends up in a charmingly peculiar tea house with another ghost, his human reaper, and another human Hugo who is there to help Wallace cross over to the other side. Wallace behaves as I expect many of us would. He’s shocked. Then he’s afraid. Then he’s angry. Then he regrets his life, the way he lived it, how he… show more.

What’s unique about Klune’s psychopomp, is that he is human.

Hugo Freeman is able to interact with the dead but unlike the usual eternal beings, he is alive, has a backstory, and the ability to empathize with the fears and regrets of his reluctant clients, most recently, the jerk-lawyer, Wallace Price.

The action is circumscribed, taking place entirely within Charon’s Crossing, which serves as a teahouse for the living and a waystation for the dead. And as any fan of Klune’s work will anticipate, the hearth that gathers a found family. 

What’s not to love about a ghost who evolves into a more humane, functional version of the person he always believed himself to be, but could never figure out how to be—not until someone cared about him? It’s the perfect vehicle for the theme that change can be frightening—especially when it’s forced upon you, unasked—but what awaits you on the other side may be even better than the familiar reality you stubbornly clung to. If you prefer serious topics to be served with a side of joyful ridiculousness, this book is for you.