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A review by aliciawhatsthestory
Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
There are a couple of things that I want to address before I give my rating on this book.
First, PLEASE be cautious of content warnings before reading. This book contains mentions of de@th, including by sui©ide and murd3r, tense parental relationships, de@th of parents, children, pets and spouses, dealing with grief, terminal illness, and more. Read with care.
Second, I avoided reading this eARC for a long time after I saw TJ Klune’s comments about his previous novel, The House in the Cerulean Sea. These comments trivialized the experience of real Native American families and especially children in forcible removed and placed in boarding schools to just a plot device, which he exploited in that novel. As far as i know, Klune has not apologized for his actions or made any moves to directly support Indigenous communities, despite there having been an uptick in awareness of the atrocities committed at these schools. I likely would not have read this book if hadn’t received it for free and if I was not trying to clear my NetGalley shelf, due to the author’s behavior. I already owned the other book even before I was given access to this one, but it will likely be quite a while before I read it, if I do.
That said, I did really enjoy this book. It got off to a slow start for me, but by the end I was close to tears. The characters are likable and the story is both deep and whimsical, despite dealing with very heavy topics. In the end, it’s very hopeful and an uplifting read. It is also sweet LGBTQIA+ representation.
Based on the book alone, I would give it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. I could see this book having a lot to offer for people who are dealing with grief. Still, I will always encourage reading critically and with as much information as possible, including considering when authors have been harmful in some way.
Thank you to #netgalley and #torbooks for the eARC of this book.
First, PLEASE be cautious of content warnings before reading. This book contains mentions of de@th, including by sui©ide and murd3r, tense parental relationships, de@th of parents, children, pets and spouses, dealing with grief, terminal illness, and more. Read with care.
Second, I avoided reading this eARC for a long time after I saw TJ Klune’s comments about his previous novel, The House in the Cerulean Sea. These comments trivialized the experience of real Native American families and especially children in forcible removed and placed in boarding schools to just a plot device, which he exploited in that novel. As far as i know, Klune has not apologized for his actions or made any moves to directly support Indigenous communities, despite there having been an uptick in awareness of the atrocities committed at these schools. I likely would not have read this book if hadn’t received it for free and if I was not trying to clear my NetGalley shelf, due to the author’s behavior. I already owned the other book even before I was given access to this one, but it will likely be quite a while before I read it, if I do.
That said, I did really enjoy this book. It got off to a slow start for me, but by the end I was close to tears. The characters are likable and the story is both deep and whimsical, despite dealing with very heavy topics. In the end, it’s very hopeful and an uplifting read. It is also sweet LGBTQIA+ representation.
Based on the book alone, I would give it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. I could see this book having a lot to offer for people who are dealing with grief. Still, I will always encourage reading critically and with as much information as possible, including considering when authors have been harmful in some way.
Thank you to #netgalley and #torbooks for the eARC of this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Child death, Animal death, Suicide, Murder, and Terminal illness
Minor: Cancer, Car accident, Mental illness, and Blood