On the HahaFiction shelf
Under the Whispering Door
Wallace Price has spent his life being a ruthless lawyer. Death brings him to Charon's Crossing, a tea shop where Hugo helps souls prepare to move on. Wallace wants to stay, and his growing affection for Hugo gives him another reason to resist leaving.
From the publisher’s blurb
“The tea is hot, the scones are fresh and the dead are just passing through.”Read the full description at Tor / Pan Macmillan publisher description
Paid link · We earn commissions from qualifying Amazon purchases. Affiliate disclosure
What makes it funny?
Before he dies, Wallace tries to fire an employee who thinks he's offering her emotional support. As she thanks him for his kindness, he considers an office ban on plants. Klune lets Wallace's private complaints make him look worse with every interruption.
The comedy at work
Wallace expects people to follow his agenda. Their refusal to do so exposes the distance between his opinion of himself and his behavior. The Library Ladies reviewer especially praises the mockery of corporate callousness and finds more comic moments later in the story.
Try this if…
A strong prospect for readers drawn to queer fantasy romance and chosen families, with tenderness and wit accompanying a story about grief.
Good to know
Death and grief are central. This stands alone and is separate from The House in the Cerulean Sea. The Library Ladies reviewer found some jokes and moral lessons repetitive.
More funny paranormal romance
Sources & further reading
Something we should correct? Let us know.