Book Review: Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

A subjective literary analysis of Under the Whispering Door.

Overview

emotional, hopeful, inspiring, mysterious, reflective, sad

Pacing? Medium
Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It’s complicated
Loveable characters? It’s complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It’s complicated

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.

Review (3.75/5 stars)

Under the Whispering Door has a lot going on for it. The concept of a teashop being a waystation for ghosts is very cute and fun. I loved the diversity (and absurdity) of the characters; how they matched the eclectic, cozy environment they were in. I admire the way this story touched on grief, and it reminded me of my own personal losses and brushes with death. The found-family aspect of this book really resonated with me. I especially loved when Wallace was going to cross over, but everyone held onto him, holding him in place — it felt taboo somehow, but in a good way. The concept of the love story was also very interesting: what would happen if a ferryman fell in love with the ghost he was helping to cross over? What would the moral consequences be?

Unfortunately, I felt a bit let down by the delivery. While this book was filled with aesthetically pleasing world-building and interesting themes, it felt very on the nose. (Something I also experienced with House in the Cerulean Sea.) The characters often have deep talks talking about life and death, but everything they say is kind of generalized, like something you would read on an inspirational poster. I felt like there was just too much going on, like the author was trying to bring attention to too many things instead of focusing on one singular thing, which both confused and bored me at times.

Wallace was the main character, but he didn’t feel like it. His character and personality were very strong at the start of the novel — I knew immediately that he was a cold, cruel man who cared only about himself. But as the story progressed, Wallace’s personality diminished. It became all about his attraction to Hugo. He mostly just asked questions instead of forming opinions on things, or taking any real actions — then his character changed. He became kinder, made kind choices and said kind things. I couldn’t pinpoint what exactly made his character turn on a dime like that. I wish there had been some kind of clear motivation, other than his attraction to Hugo.

Overall I thought this book was a cozy, light-hearted, entertaining read, despite a few technicalities (and grammatical errors — I spotted one wrong use of the word “there.”) I laughed out loud during the Ouija board incident, something that doesn’t happen often when I read, and teared up a little bit at the end.

3.75/5 stars.

Character(s)

Wallace was the main character in this story, but as stated before, he didn’t feel like it. Something about him just felt like it was lacking substance. In my opinion, Nelson was the most fleshed-out and concrete character. He had the motivation of sticking by his grandson’s side after his family died, then when he realized his grandson didn’t need him anymore, he moved on.

The next best character was the dog.

Mei was another close favourite of mine. I loved her spunky attitude, strong backbone, and kind heart.

Hugo had his own unique personality quirks that stood out, including his anxiety and soft nature. My problem with the characters was the way they spoke. Sometimes their voices all melded together, and all I could think was: “this is how the author sounds. I’m reading the voice in the author’s head right now.” I couldn’t separate the author from the characters, because they all spoke the same and didn’t have their own unique voices.

Also, the Manager. I thought this guy would be a fantastic tie-in to how Wallace used to be. But I have to say, I think this character served mainly as a literary scapegoat. His character argues the concept of free will, and in the end, that moral theme remains unchanged: nobody has free will. The only reason Wallace is alive is because the Manager, on a whim, decided to make him alive because he thought it would be entertaining. I was lost on the purpose of this character and what he represented, other than to push the plot along and provide a divine intervention solution.

Moral Argument

It’s very difficult for me to pinpoint what the moral argument of this story was, again because I think there were too many conversations trying to be had. If I were to try and pick one overarching theme, I would say that the moral theme of this book was that even once a person has died, they continue to exist. They are never truly gone.

I think that if the author really wanted to hammer down this moral theme, though, they could have made it so Wallace essentially made himself alive instead of having some divine intervention. Wallace could have believed in his existence enough to physically touch Hugo or something.

Story World

Charon’s Crossing is a teashop that acts as a waystation for ghosts on their journey to the other side. It’s very aesthetic, disgruntled, and kind. I loved how every ghost had their own personal flavour of tea. There were Reapers, people who find ghosts and take them to Ferrymen: special people who help the ghosts cross over. I don’t think the story world is intertwined with any particular themes, other than the fact that the teashop is a family, and those who enter become part of that family until they are ready to move on to the next step.

Symbolic Development

I guess you could say that ghosts were symbols in this story. And what it means to be a ghost is the development of that symbol. Once they realize that they do exist in the world still — it’s just a different kind of existence — they can manipulate their surroundings and interact with the world again. The seven stages of grief, I guess, were another symbol. Although I find it difficult to identify how those symbols developed or changed in any way, and I am reaching a bit.

Plot

The plot kept me intrigued throughout. Something was always happening that made me curious enough to turn the next page. Despite being landlocked to one place, the author did an excellent job of keeping things interesting, whether it was a progression of a backstory or a new development in Wallace’s powers, or just someone new showing up. (I will say that when Desdemona arrived, the amount of time spent describing her breasts made me uncomfortable.)

Also, Wallace is told not to be affiliated with his old life whatsoever, but the first thing he does is call one of his colleagues? It didn’t make a lot of sense.

Prose

I think this author’s prose is an acquired taste. I thought it was charming in some aspects, and repetitive in others. I think there could have been just a touch more editing done in some places where certain words or phrases were repeated within a couple of pages of each other. (There was also one grammatical error that I spotted.) I sometimes didn’t know what the author was trying to say, and the usage of the word “Oh” got on my nerves.

Story Structure

Hero: Wallace Price

Weaknesses: Cruel, selfish (I am just now realizing there’s no clear reason or explanation for his weaknesses, other than a description of his parents.)

Psychological Need: I’m not sure. He needs to accept that he’s dead. Then he needs to … not accept that he’s dead? But this has nothing to do with being cruel and selfish, so I’m lost on this one.

Moral Need: He needs to be kinder to people.

Problem: He has died from a heart attack.

Desire: This is another unclear one. I would say he wants to be with Hugo.

Opponent(s): The Manager, and Alan?

Plan: There is no plan that I can think of.

Battle: There’s a battle with Alan versus the group, but there’s also a battle of words between the Manager and the group near the end of the book.

Psychological Self-Revelation: He realizes he wasn’t a good person, I suppose.

Moral Self-Revelation: He realizes that a fulfilling life is a kind life.

Moral Choice: He decides to give Cameron his hook. (Loved this.)

New Equilibrium and World Change: Wallace is granted life again by the Manager and lives as a Reaper with his found family.

Notable Quotes

“The first time you share tea, you are a stranger. The second time you share tea, you are an honored guest. The third time you share tea, you become family.”

“What’re a couple of years in the face of eternity?”

“Why?” she asked as she trembled. “Why do you care so much?” “Because I don’t know how else to be.”

Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Death

Moderate: Animal death, Death of parent

Minor: N/A