In the Lives of Puppets

Where to begin? This book is so special. So well done. It is interesting, funny, heartbreaking, heartwarming...I've never laughed or cried so much reading a book before. The characters are perfect, the story rich and intriguing. The love between these machines and this human...I'm so sad to have finished this book! TJ can you please write a never ending book that details the rest of the lives of Vic, Hap, Gio, Nurse Ratched, and Rambo? I want to stay with them forever. I have recommended this book to SO many people and will continue to do so.

I loved this book after not being sure I would read it since I wasn't a fan of Pinocchio. I am so glad I read it, I loved the characters. It was such an emotional read. Another fabulous book by TJ Klune.

I had started TJ Klune's book "In the Lives of Puppets" a long while ago and I hard time getting into the novel, but then I decided to pick it back up during my vacation and then and only then I could not put it down. I really loved all of the characters from Victor, who is the only human; and Nurse Ratched and the vacuum named Rambo and Victor's Dad, Giovanni; and I loved Hap, who was once a machine whose main purpose was to terminate humans but Vic found him in the trash yard and put him back together with the only difference being a homemade heart with a drop of blood; and that made Hap, even though he was a machine that was programmed to terminate all humans, become very human and who began to think for himself and began to realize how precious life was. Also, I thoroughly love the intense chemistry between Victor and Hap. The journey that all of the characters have gone on was so intense. Also, there was so much humor spread out through this wonderful novel. I don't want to give too much away. I highly recommend TJ Klune's "In the Lives of Puppets." I even enjoyed the bonus material - "Rambo's Care Manual" and "Reduce! Reuse! Recycle" which was also a wonderful short story about a machine who is given a week to enjoy life but then has to return to the factory to be terminated... well, reduced, reused and recycled, but the machine decides that he wants to be alive after experiencing life for a week and does not want it to end. It was so awesome!

Victor Lawson is a human boy being raised in the forest by Giovanni, the AI who created him. His life is filled with adventure and experimentation, spent in the company of Gio, the AI vacuum Rambo and Nurse Ratched, but he is growing up now and beginning to wonder about the rest of the world. One day while exploring the Scrapyards, the friends come across an AI that is almost, but not quite, “dead”; Vic decides to save it, unaware that he is aiding a killing machine. Hap, as the AI comes to be called, is himself unsure of his purpose, but when the AI overlords discover the hidden family, he joins forces with Vic, Rambo and Nurse Ratched to reunite the family and maybe save the world…. I loved T.J. Klune’s previous novels, “The House In the Cerulean Sea” and “Under the Whispering Door,” so was happy to find this new work; unlike the previous books, however, I’m left a bit conflicted with this one. It has something to do with the original Pinocchio story (not the Disney movie), something to do with futuristic sf/f and something along the lines of queer coming-of-age story, but not all of it quite jells for me. There is some frank language about human anatomy and sexuality that might not be suitable for younger readers, and the fact that aside from self-professed “sociopathic” Nurse Ratched there are no female characters in this entirely male/masculine-adjacent world bothered me, a female reader. That said, there’s a great deal of inventiveness here, and Mr. Klune’s knack for creating characters that the reader becomes easily emotionally engaged with still stand out in this work. So, a mixed review from me; I’d recommend starting with the two earlier books mentioned and going on from there.

This book had me laughing out loud one minute and sad the next. I felt anything was possible along the journey of the characters!I'm so curious how the author seems to have been forced to make changes to the story because "apparently the world is not ready for such a book". What were the changes? This is now my second read by this author and I'm coming back for more.

This book spoke to my soul. To put it simply, it is a whimsical tale for anyone who has ever felt like they didn't belong. It made me feel less alone. I can see why a few people might not LOVE this story, it's a bit abstract and wildly whimsical and airy-- but to me, it felt like the story I have been waiting for. I cried. I laughed. I loved. It was everything I didn't expect when I started it half-heartedly. It was perfect! I am glad I was in the right headspace to enjoy it. ♡

El libro de pasta dura tiene una buena calidad de materiales y de impresión. Los colores de la.portsda son hermosos.En cuanto a la historia, me decepcionó para haber sido escrita por TJ Klune.

This was such a emotional ride beginning to end. Tj Klune really stepped up his game with this novel. It just amazes me how much we can convey with his words. What does it mean to be human? This book definitely answered that question beautifully. I don’t want to spoil anything but I must say that was one of the most bittersweet endings I have read from Tj. I loved these characters to bits. I would love to see this be turned into a film.I have no words to describe what this book did to me. I can’t wait to see what else TJ plans to make from now on. I have high hopes for the future stories.1000/10 stars ⭐️

I was an avid reader in my childhood... And somehow in my adulthood I couldn't even finish 5 books in a year.This book was THE one that changed it — crazy how it happens, but I couldn't put it down.It's an adventurous, really adventurous story. About love, moral, philosophy, new world and new ethics, more love and robots.It's light reading, but very touching one. It's sarcastic. It will leave you with a lot to think about.I highly recommend it <3

The story was beautiful. It is mostly about found family. It was quirky and beautiful. The hardcover was of good quality. I loved the purchase.

This book gets 5 stars just for Nurse Ratched and Rambo as I absolutely loved them both, and they had me laughing out loud from the beginning and throughout the whole book! The best way to describe this book is that it was like a hug! It was so wholesome, and I absolutely nailed the found family trope. It was full of adventure and heartfelt moments, and I really rooted for all the characters! This was the perfect reason for a cosy bank holiday weekend. I had a feeling this would be 5 stars from a few pages in, and i wasn't disappointed!