In the Lives of Puppets is another shining example of T.J. Klune’s incredible imagination. We follow Vic, Nurse Ratched, Rambo, Hap and Gio as they vanquish foes and build closer ties. A queer retelling of Pinocchio, but reversed, where the Androids are the creators.
Vic has grown up, though I missed his exact age. Given how sheltered his life is, I wasn’t surprised that he came across as being anywhere from his mid-teens to his early 20s. I think of Vic as being in his early 20s. His human quirks made me laugh because he’d obviously have been taught those quirks by Gio. For example, he wants privacy to shower or “evacuate his bowels.” Unlike the actual Pinocchio, Vic is kind, thoughtful and lovely.
Nurse Ratched, Rambo and Hap make excellent companions for a quest. Various skills and temperaments are involved, and everyone is engaged in making the journey successful. The coachman and his house reminded me of Howl from Howl’s Moving Castle. Rambo is hilarious and exactly what I would expect from a vacuum if it could talk. Nurse Ratched’s personality contrasts her “objectives” and is more in line with her name, but it’s all a tough front. Hap is more challenging to pin down. The newest companion to the group, they’re still sorting out his dynamic.
Sometimes, I find T.J. Klune to be too poetic for me. In the Lives of Puppets was lyrical and descriptive but not poetic. There are some gaps in the world-building on the tech side, but they weren’t big enough to disrupt my enjoyment of the story. If they’re on a neural network, wouldn’t the androids just ping each other to validate their identities? That sort of thing.
In the Lives of Puppets gave me warm fuzzy feelings. It was silly and, at times, it was heartbreaking, but it always came around to warm and fuzzy.