A review by kenzieburns
In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune

adventurous emotional funny medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

As soon as I saw this book was coming out, I reserved a copy from my local library. Normally, Klune is an auto-buy author for me, but I am glad I got this one from the library. I found the characters lovable, for sure, and we definitely got some of Klune's characteristic sass and humor, but overall I wasn't in love with the premise of the plot. I liked the found family and adventurer's guild aspects, but there was a lot about what seemed to be forgiveness for the past. I found it really hard to believe that
Victor would forgive both Hap and Gio for their literal crimes against humanity. I enjoyed the intense monologue about it not being his (Victor's) place to forgive them, but he could choose to move on, which was moving, but the aspect of condoning literal genocide was not okay to me.
Also, there was just a bit too much borderline robot-porn for my tastes? Don't get me wrong, I found the jokes quite funny, but the whole "in-love-with-a-robot" thing was very weird. Might just be my somewhat PG tastes though. On a separate note, I really loved Nurse Rached and Rambo as the comedic relief and best friends/sidekicks. I grew very attached to them and their relationships with VIc and Gio. I'm knocking off a star mainly because this wasn't "House" level for me, and I really wanted it to be. Also, the title could have been more descriptive/relevant to the plot. Perhaps I'm just a bit dense, but the title didn't draw me in, I was mainly reading this because it's Klune. Fingers crossed for an extension on the Torr deal and a "House" sequel!!
Expand filter menu Content Warnings