Under the Whispering Door

I enjoyed this for multiple reasons. As a person of faith, I believe we have an eternity to exist. Our life doesn’t end here on Earth. I can understand the depression some people experience when life gets hard, unkind, and unexplainable. Thinking this is all there is becomes pointless. However, believing in an afterlife and living in a way that may result in a better afterlife, should encourage one to be a better human while here.

Wallace Price, a rather mean, self-centered man, encounters Mei, a Reaper, at his own funeral, who’s there to bring him to Charon’s Crossing—the tea house way station for the dead, run by Hugo, a ferryman, who lives with his dog, Apollo, and grandfather, Nelson. A lively bunch on a typical day, but to Wallace, a totally bizarre collection of beings who can’t seem to give him the only thing he desperately needs—to be alive again. What Wallace doesn’t understand is there’s no going back. Once you’re dead, you’re dead, and your only choice is to move forward.

What ensues is nothing short of magical. The house at Charon’s Crossing is an impossible feat of architecture with a cozy atmosphere and delicious tea and scones. Mei is a fierce, no-nonsense woman, Apollo loves to lick and have his stomach scratched, Nelson gets a kick out of practical jokes, and Hugo . . . well, Hugo is just about the most warm-hearted perfectly imperfect person ever that could be in charge of lost souls. Together, these eclectic characters help Wallace find himself in so many unexpected ways.

Death is a difficult subject at best, even in a fantasy, and Klune handles it with both curiosity and great humor, as well as deep questions and introspection. There were times I laughed at Wallace and times I wanted to hug him, times when I thought he was ridiculous, and times when I understood his fear of leaving the world behind. And for most of the last third of the book I cried, because facing the unknown is terrifying and he is so brave and so full of love for the people who have become his friends.

Under the Whispering Door is like an all-day pass to Disneyland, full of thrills and chills, death-defying drops and soaring adventures—the greatest ride of your life (pun intended). And through every moment, the biggest, most wonderful love you can imagine. TJ Klune has done it again. Get your ticket now, because you definitely don’t want to miss out.

I was a major fan of The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune, so I was very excited to pick this one up. I’ve noticed a lot of similarities between the two books. Unlike Cerulean Sea, this story is full of grief, death, and the new beginnings that come after. We follow Wallace, a recently deceased man, who is known for his selfish and unpleasant behavior. Wallace is brought to a tea house, where he meets the Ferryman, Hugo, whose purpose is to help those who have passed cross over. And that is just the beginning of the adventure that Klune puts you on, as Wallace is introduced to new friends, new lovers, reflecting on his decisions while alive, and the new emotions he now feels in death. Kline excels at writing feel good stories with amazing characters that you’re sure to fall in love with. I think Mei, the Reaper, responsible for bringing the dead to the Ferryman, is my favorite character. She’s fun and full of spunk. This fantasy world easily captivated me and the humor and banter between the characters is entertaining and appreciated. The lesser positive thing I will mention is there were parts of the story that have a slow burn, so that may be hard for some, but I hope you decide to push through until the end. The story is full of important life lessons, both in life and in death. I absolutely sobbed at the end. Like, ugly sobbed. This is another 5/5 ⭐️ for me, and I’m starting to believe that there isn’t a T.J. Klune book that I’m not going to like.

I don’t recommend reading the official blurb for this book as it gives away WAY too much about events that happen way far into the story! Like ¾ of the way into the book! Who does that? Luckily I had only read the first couple sentences and read the rest after I finished the book. So don’t do it! All you need to know is that selfish and cruel Wallace dies suddenly at age 40 and a reaper, Mei, takes him to a tea shop in a remote area where a ferryman, Hugo, is meant to guide him to the afterlife. Wallace puts off crossing over, instead taking his time coming to terms with his life and death, and getting to know Mei and Hugo (who are alive), and Hugo’s grandad and his dog Apollo (who are both ghosts). It’s a redemption story with a found family and a little romance and I thought it was just wonderful!

This book was pretty slow to get going, at around 30% I was wondering if this was going somewhere anytime soon! Wallace is so unlikable that whole time, so it was a bit tough for me at first. I had faith that TJ wouldn’t steer me wrong though, so I stuck with it and am so glad I did. The book is about Wallace’s redemption, so it makes sense that he was a self-righteous ass and so annoying at the beginning. But he slowly learns in death the lessons he didn’t learn in life, loosening up and becoming more kind and more likable. I was quite engrossed for the last half and wanted to get back to it every time I had to stop listening!

This book talks a lot about life and death and was very heartbreaking and emotional at times. I definitely shed a few tears at several points in the book. It also has a lot of funny parts. The ouija board scene had me laughing so hard my 11 year old asked me what was so funny. So I played the entire scene for her and she was cracking up too. Such a fun, interesting, creative book! I had a great time listening to this one.

I listened to the audiobook which was narrated by Kirt Graves. I’ve listened to a few other audios from him and I think he did a fantastic job narrating this one. He was great at having all the character voices sound very individual and they all sounded right for the characters. It was easy to know who was talking just by the sound of their voice.

Wallace Price is not a nice person - a lawyer, he values efficiency and winning over all else, including human relationships. So when he suddenly dies of a heart attack, there are few mourners at his funeral. He is surprised when one of them, a young woman he has never seen, not only appears at the funeral but actually sees and responds to him when nobody else does; it turns out that she is Meiying, a Reaper sent to bring his soul to a waystation where a ferryman while guide him across. Hugo Freeman is unlike anybody he’s ever met, and along with Mei, Nelson the ghost of Hugo’s grandfather and Apollo the ghost-dog, Wallace begins to learn how to become a better person, despite being dead. After all, the potential for personal growth doesn’t stop with the mere end of life…. T. J. Klune is getting a lot of praise (and probably some hate too, unfortunately) for centering queer folk, people of colour and queer people of colour in his books, but what I think he does best is centering human relationships, connections and honest emotions throughout his work; I’ve only read two of his books (the other being “The House in the Cerulean Sea”), but in both cases the fantasy worlds are anchored by the characters’ humanity and care for each other. I pretty much knew what would happen in this novel from the beginning, but that didn’t detract from the story at all - indeed, it was fascinating to see how he would get his characters to that ending! Above all, this story is engaging and thoughtful, and it takes no time at all for the reader to become invested in Wallace, Hugo and the rest - they’re all people (and dog) that we would want to know in our own lives! Recommended.