Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune || Queer Rom-Com Between Cinnamon Rolls

Under the Whispering Door

A Man Called Ove meets The Good Place in Under the Whispering Door, a delightful queer love story from TJ Klune, author of the New York Times and USA Today bestseller The House in the Cerulean Sea.

Welcome to Charon's Crossing.The tea is hot, the scones are fresh, and the dead are just passing through.

When a reaper comes to collect Wallace from his own funeral, Wallace begins to suspect he might be dead.

And when Hugo, the owner of a peculiar tea shop, promises to help him cross over, Wallace decides he’s definitely dead.
But even in death he’s not ready to abandon the life he barely lived, so when Wallace is given one week to cross over, he sets about living a lifetime in seven days.

Hilarious, haunting, and kind, Under the Whispering Door is an uplifting story about a life spent at the office and a death spent building a home.

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Perfect for readers who want:

• Cinnamon roll male protagonists
• A sweet M/M rom-com
• Big narratives about the consequences of how we live our lives
• So. Many. Feels. (The heartwarming type, mostly.)
• Interesting lore about what happens after death

This review is extremely overdue, but like all good things, it’s worth the wait. I knew from the moment it was announced that I was going to pick up Under the Whispering Door. Ever since I discovered T.J. Klune’s work last year, I have systematically been working my way through reading everything he’s ever written. Which, of course, includes his new releases. So obviously I was going to pick up Under the Whispering Door as soon as I could!

Under the Whispering Door is a queer rom-com between two cinnamon roll men, where death is really only the beginning and everyone deserves a second chance. It’s heartwarming, mired in feels, full of laughs, and has an irresistible cast.

While I didn’t love this book as much as some of Klune’s other works, it’s yet another example of why he’s a freaking fantastic author, and I wasn’t disappointed. My biggest qualm was really just with how quick Wallace’s character growth occurred. A little too quickly, and every time he talked about what he used to be like, I was reminded how unrealistic it was. To be fair, though, this is a relatively small nitpick about a book that I very much enjoyed.

Meet Wallace Phineas Price, who was a remarkable businessman but a wholly unremarkable person in life. But in death? Well, that’s another story.

Wallace is an entirely unlikable character. There, I said it. Intentionally so, of course, but the point still stands. He’s the sort of person that literally no one will miss when they die. And, in fact, no one does. That’s just how awful he is.

That’s just how the story begins, though. This wouldn’t be a Klune book if it was left at that. Because as far as Wallace is concerned, death is really only the beginning. While it’s exceedingly clear to the reader from the very beginning that Wallace is a garbage person, it comes as a bit of a surprise to him. I guess no one really wants to think that they’re truly awful, do they?

Despite starting as an unlikabale protagonist, that isn’t always the case. Throughout the book, I warmed up to Wallace and his plight. I mean, even from the beginning, I appreciated his sarcasm and his no-nonsense attitude. He just needed to dial it back a little. He was at about a 29 and he needed to be around a 7.49.

Klune crafts a compelling take on the afterlife, where souls are given one last chance to ready themselves before moving on.

I absolutely love this world. Honestly, I hope this is true, because what could be better than one last perfect cup of tea and good company before passing on into the afterlife? Sounds perfect. Well, not to Wallace, but as we’ve already established, what even does he know, hmm?

There’s a whole complex system to the afterlife, and there are rules. Can’t have souls running around all willy-nilly, can we? It’s not important for everyone at each step in the process to understand the rules, but needless to say, they exist for a reason.

I actually don’t want to say too much about this, because the reader discovers what happens in the afterlife along with Wallace, and there’s a sort of beautiful symmetry to that. So go in without expectations and prepare for a fun journey.

The romance in this book is too. stinking. sweet. I know I’m not normally one for romance, but it’s impossible not to fall for both Wallace and Hugo. And also Wallace and Hugo.

One thing I’ve found out is that I absolutely cannot resist the way Klune writes romance. It’s so warm and wholesome and full of banter. Honestly, in this day and age, is there anything better? It’s like sipping hot cocoa under a warm blanket in the dead of winter. Who could possibly say no to that?

Wallace and Hugo themselves couldn’t be more different on the surface. Then again, they do say opposites attract, right? I’m just not so sure that they’re truly opposites, when you get right down to it. Even better, they’re technically an interracial couple (though, that seems less important somehow when one of them is dead because there are more important considerations here?!), which is something that I don’t see often when it comes to fantasy romance. That’s not the focus of the relationship (and isn’t even brought up in the book), but it was nice to see an interracial queer couple that was allowed to just exist in these pages without needing to be quantified in some way.

And the banter! Oh my gosh, if you’re into absolutely hopeless, easily embarrassed cinnamon rolls throwing around banter and accidentally flirting, this relationship dynamic is for you. I need all of my fantasy romance to be like this, please.

This cast of characters is *chef’s kiss*. I love every single one of them.

Let it never be said that Klune can’t write characters, because he freaking can. Ones that worm their way into your heart like a bad parasite and refuse to let go. It might hurt, but only a little. Probably. Mostly in a good way.

Mei is my favorite, because of course she is. She’s fiercely loyal, mouthy, and quick to stab things. What’s not to love about her?! There’s definitely more to her than there first appears, but even what you see on the surface is pretty great.

Nelson is the cranky old Black guy who died and refuses to move on. In other words, he’s the character who says what everyone is thinking . . . unabashedly and unashamedly. And of course I love him. Because he’s honest, even when the truth hurts. But he also cares (though he would vehemently deny that if ever pressed).

Klune touches on a lot of deep, philosophical questions like the consequences of our choices, second chances, and our place in the universe.

This book does a lot. It’s funny and romantic and adorable, but it also asks some big, important questions. Wallace realizes he messed up his life and he’s lost any chance he had to do . . . well, anything. Death has that effect on people. So what do you do, at the end of your life, when all you have left is regrets?

Even the afterlife isn’t as simple and straightforward as it appears. Hugo has a pretty tough job of his own, trying to help souls move on (wherever “on” is). But there’s not exactly a handbook to what he does (though there is a rather extensive rulebook, as it turns out). Hugo is plagued by a lot of normal emotions, though, like insecurity about whether he’s doing the right thing and regret for things that didn’t go the way he had hoped.

In short, if you thought the afterlife was going to be easy and straightforward, think again. There are a lot of moments that will really make you stop and think in this book.

Favorite Quotes

As one might expect from a T.J. Klune title . . . I had waaaaay more quotes that I absolutely loved than I could reasonably fit into a review.

About T.J. Klune

TJ KLUNE is a Lambda Literary Award-winning author (Into This River I Drown) and an ex-claims examiner for an insurance company. His novels include The House in the Cerulean Sea and The Extraordinaries. Being queer himself, TJ believes it's important—now more than ever—to have accurate, positive, queer representation in stories.

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