cadrian
Written on Aug 20, 2023
Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages.
When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he's given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they're likely to bring about the end of days.
But the children aren't the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: destroy a home or watch the world burn.
An enchanting story, masterfully told, The House in the Cerulean Sea is about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place - and realizing that family is yours.
- ISBN10 1250217318
- ISBN13 9781250217318
- Publish Date 8 February 2021 (first published 17 March 2020)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Imprint St Martin's Press
- Format Paperback (US Trade)
- Pages 400
- Language English
Reviews
layawaydragon
Written on Oct 31, 2022
lessthelonely
Written on Feb 27, 2022
I must say, after having DNFed a book that was, to be honest, really boring me, it was nice to grab a book that I immediately realized I was going to like. I also needed the distraction as my life has had quite a few hiccups lately, but that’s neither here nor there. I noticed, from the very first page, that this book was going to a be comforting book, and I wasn’t wrong.
This was my first book by T. J. Klune but it’s not going to be the only one, not only because I enjoyed this one but because I bought another book by him along with this one, this is just the first one I have read. Either way, this book has quite a few tropes that I feel have a very known reputation: found family, adoptive father that is more of a father than anyone else, et cetera.
Let’s start with the positives, because I feel like they vastly outweigh the negatives: the writing never felt like it was doing too much. It’s hard to write a book where you just keep reading and though you notice quite a lot of fun moments and quotes and things that are memorable, you don’t even notice the pages going by. This is obviously a good sign, but I must also say that the balance between dialogue and narration was interesting. Narration didn’t feel bloated with descriptions for the hell of it, dialogue read as actual people talking, which is great.
On another hand, I was surprised with just how much depth the author managed to inject into each and every character - the adults are obvious suspects and I was expecting this, since the synopsis mentions a romance between the adults -, but, at the same time, I wasn't expecting to connect and care so much for the kids, yet I did.
I can clearly remember something about each and every kid, though it’s obvious some are way more developed than others. Not going to lie, I got Good Omens vibes from the synopsis, which is a book I tried to read (in my main language, nonetheless!) and DNFed after a third of it. Now that I mentioned it, I can see it looking as me from the corner of my eye in my office. Funny.
Let’s move on to the two negatives, first off, the hardest shortcoming to explain: this book was very much streamlined. I should get some sort of term for this, but a thing that tends to dampen my enjoyment of books is when it’s clear a plot twist has just happened, I understand it, I get the vibe, I get this is a big moment in the book... But my reaction is to just carry on. Oh, this is happening, now, OK. Like, it doesn’t make me think back on what I read and how it makes sense, it doesn’t shock me or make me go “WOW”... It happens. And my reaction is next to non-existent. Granted, I don’t think the plot twist was meant to be such a big deal, but still.
The other negative is just the romance. Now, did I enjoy the romance? Yes. But when you advertise a book’s romance I expect it to be top-tier. Linus and Arthur are definitely cute together, but a lot of interactions seems to happen off-page, which isn’t all that fun in my opinion, not when you’re boasting “romance” on the synopsis. That’s really all there is to it: I wish I’d gotten more, and I don’t think adding a 100 more pages would’ve been so bad if that was the case.
Either way, I consider this book a win and it basically pulled me out of a little reading slump, so I thank it for that alone.
nannah
Written on Dec 13, 2021
I was over the three-quarters mark when I discovered T.J. Klune based this book on the Sixties Scoop, and I decided I might as well finish it and rate it 1 star when I was done.
The Sixties Scoop is the term referring to the “mass removal of Aboriginal children from their families into the child welfare system, in most cases without the consent of their families or bands” that happened in Canada beginning in the 1950s. These children were then placed into foster homes or residential schools and adopted out to middle-class white families. They faced cultural and literal genocide, as well as physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. The last (federally-funded) residential school closed in 1997.
Kas’s review explains why turning such a very traumatic part of a culture’s history into a fluffy, cozy fantasy is so disgusting much better than I ever could. But that should be self-explanatory.
Not only that, but the white heroes are made up of the master of one of these fictional foster homes and a caseworker in the system. And T.J. Klune changed the indigenous people into monsters/fairytale creatures and the actual Antichrist.
Do I actually believe he did so maliciously? No, I honestly don't. It’s not an excuse, though. He’s profiting off indigenous people's trauma.
So, instead of buying this book, maybe, here are some places you can donate:
The Indian Residential School Survivors Society
Kamloops Aboriginal Friendship Society
Legacy Of Hope Foundation
Orange Shirt Society
True North Aid
---
Okay, now for the actual book review:
Content warnings:
- fatphobia (mostly internal)
Representation:
- the MC is plus sized and gay
- the love interest is gay
-one secondary character is Black, and another is Black-coded
Linus Baker, a 40-something-year-old caseworker at DICOMY (the Department of Magical Youth), spends his days making sure magical children in government-sanctioned orphanages are well taken care of before going home to his little house with his cat and his old records. He never knew what a quiet, lonely life he had before Extreme Uppity Management put him on a very classified case: an orphanage with a were-pomeranian, a gnome, a wyvern, a sprite, a jellyfish-like being, and the actual Antichrist. If they were the only mysteries the orphanage kept, the case would be hard enough, but it also comes with a caretaker who has secrets of his own. Linus was ordered to remain objective, but it becomes more and more difficult as the children (and their caretaker) become his new definition of home.
Many people see this as a comfort read, and although I can see why, the reasons above, the patronizing attitude of the narration, and the preachy nature of the entire thing ruined much of it for me. The relationship between Linus and Arthur, the caretaker, however, was very well done. It was sweet and had just the right amount of focus in this book, which has so many characters. There was even a scene with them near the end that made me tear up. Granted, I’m pretty emotional, but still.
But it’s difficult to believe this isn’t YA. I mean … yes, the protagonist is in his forties, but everything is so simplistic, from the writing to the voice to the humor. The narrative talks down to the readers, it tells us how to feel, it stuffs us full of its moral lessons till we mumble it back in our sleep. It’s also a very predictable story overall, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing if done creatively. There are little and wonderful glimpses of imagination here and there (Zoe is a fantastic character, as are her conversations with Linus, and the descriptions of the sea and all it represents is lovely), but love beats all, and kindness defeats oppression. There’s nothing new here.
The heroes are ultimate Goods, and the bad guys are ultimate Bads, with no nuances in between. The character of Lucy -- Lucifer, get it? -- the Antichrist, almost, almost got there, but only almost. The children are all extremely sweet, with Hallmark-like inspirational quotes instead of bits of dialogue. I feel like T.J. Klune has never heard a child speak before. But then again, these kids are simply mouthpieces to carry the lessons the audience is meant to learn (even if I agree with them, I’m annoyed! I don’t want to be force fed).
And the lesson we got from this is one we’ve learned plenty of times before: prejudice is bad, kindness is good; don’t hate others for being or looking different. It’s also another issue I have, because kindness won’t magically solve oppression (is this a spoiler …?). There will always be oppression as long as there’s a class of people who want to remain in power in society. To do so, another group of people have to be subordinated, creating an oppressed underclass. In a YA book (and especially an MG), this could work, but in an adult novel it feels way too shallow.
Okay, just one more thing, and I promise I’ll be done. I can’t let the book’s fatphobia go unmentioned. Again, I’m sure the author didn’t mean for the fatphobia to be anything but Linus’s internal fatphobia, but there’s so much of it. The author places Linus in ridiculous situations just so that he can make his weight stand out or so someone can joke about it (i.e. the aisles between the desks at Linus’s workplace are so narrow he can’t walk them without knocking things off people’s desks), that it seems like these situations are supposed to be comic relief. Trying to resolve Linus Baker’s weight issues as “his love interest likes his appearance, so now he doesn’t even think about how he looks,” isn’t good enough.
Anyway, it’s apparent I didn’t enjoy this. If I didn’t know what the book was based on, I would probably have rated it 2.5 stars, rounded down.
Quirky Cat
Written on Jun 28, 2021
How has it taken me so long to pick up The House in the Cerulean Sea?! I've even had this book directly recommended to me by fellow readers, and I'm only now picking it up (thanks to my library, which finally got a copy in for me!).
Linus Baker is the sort of man who never had a problem living a quiet life. He was good at his job (the Department in Charge of Magical Youth) and loved coming home to a house full of his records, cat, and nothing else.
That is until his work sent him on an odd job. A job that changed Linus' life, arguably for the better. He's been assigned to go out to an island in the middle of nowhere and assess Marsyas Island Orphanage, home to some of the oddest children around.
“We should always make time for the things we like. If we don't, we might forget how to be happy.”
Holy cow. I can see why everyone that has read The House in the Cerulean Sea has gushed about it. I am in love. This is a novel that thoroughly enchanted me, and I want more of it. Please? I'd take a novel, novella, or even an adaptation. I'm not fussy. (Actually, a loyal movie version of this book sounds divine!).
I've seen The House in the Cerulean Sea compared to many other stories here and there, but the one that comes to mind, for me at least, is Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Many elements are the same.
And yet, not quite. I feel like The House in the Cerulean Sea takes the premise of Miss Peregrine and takes it several steps further. (And that's coming from a fan of both, to be precise). The messages within this story are profound and yet so human. It's simply stunning.
“Change often starts with the smallest of whispers. Like-minded people building it up to a roar.”
I was captivated by the mysteries of this island. From the secrets each child carried to the secrets of their caretaker. There is so much to learn from this tiny island and the life they have built upon it.
You know how sometimes when reading, you stop seeing the words and start imagining the world itself? That is what happens in The House in the Cerulean Sea; only everything feels like it is in 4K. The details come to life, full of vibrant color and bubbly characters. It carried me off into a whole new world, and I believe I am forever changed because of it.
Much like the characters in the story, come to think of it. Once again, I find myself understanding why people loved it so much. While I regret taking my time to pick it up, I am happy to have finally done so. Add me to the list of people eagerly waiting to see what TJ Klune will write next.
Read more reviews at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
nora
Written on Mar 13, 2021
Witty and Sarcastic Bookclub
Written on Jan 18, 2021
Linus Baker has worked for the Department in Charge of Magical Youth (or DICOMY) for years and years. He does his job by the letter and is very good at it. He gives his all for it. Then he goes home and is quietly lonely, with only a cantankerous cat for company. When the bigwigs at DICOMY send him to a little island to evaluate a home for magical youth, he expects more of the same. Do his job. Do it by the letter. Go home. However, things don’t go as planned, with absolutely fantastic results.
Linus is blown away by the children he meets. They’re unlike any other and they are their own little family. Among them is a six year old antichrist (who also likes to sing and dance to old records), a large boy with a small amount of self-confidence, and a…something, whose only goal in life is so delightfully simple and sweet that I fell in love with him immediately. Caring for the children is Arthur Parnassus. Kind and quiet, his protective love for the kids endeared me to him right away.
Of course, I have to mention Linus Baker. He feels he does his job well and that’s enough. He doesn’t see the effect he has on those he meets and he doesn’t realize his worth. He quietly helps everyone and is the sort of person this world needs more of. He listens without just waiting for his chance to speak. He always manages to say the one thing a person needs to hear, and he does it without realizing how much he’s changed that person’s outlook. He is wonderful. I so badly wanted him to discover his place in life, and find contentment. Following him through the book was a joy.
And the writing! Oh, how I loved it! It painted a picture not only of the setting, but of the emotions of the characters. Linus’ story started in shades of gray and slowly shifted to a beautiful cerulean blue. The little details scattered throughout elevated this book to piece of art, and there is a poem within that will stay with me for a very, very long time. It was incredibly moving.
I really could have just said that The House in the Cerulean Sea is pretty much perfect. My ramblings really haven’t done it justice. My copy is now sitting on my “favorite books of all time” shelf, where it rightfully belongs. So…who should read this book? Simply put: everyone.
https://wittyandsarcasticbookclub.home.blog/2021/01/31/the-house-in-the-cerulean-sea-by-tj-klune/
Leigha
Written on Dec 29, 2020
Case worker Linus Baker investigates an orphanage full of magical misfits in this charming and whimsical adult fantasy.
Romance novels are my go to feel good stories. They have drama, no doubt about it, but their entire being is focused on developing meaningful relationships between characters along with characters finding their happily-ever-after. While I would not classify this as a romance per se (although romance is a strong component to it), it gave me the same feel good experience. Readers will find themselves falling in love with all of these children and their caretakers.
Linus is a blank slate at the beginning of the novel – he accepts his humdrum life without much thought or complaint. His dreams, if he had any in the first place, have been beaten down by the minutia of everyday life. It’s not until he arrives at the island and meets the zany cast of characters that we see him slowly recognize his need to connect to others and to experience life outside of his structured routine. Learning to be open to new experiences and to new people are important lessons for us all.
The worldbuilding expertly captures the whimsical and heartwarming tone. I loved all of the various magical creatures incorporated into a setting very similar to our own. Does the ending tie up loose ends a little to neatly and quickly? Yes, it does, but I’m okay with it as it ties back to the “anything and everything is possible” theme. In this world, dreams really do come true.
tl;dr An absolutely charming read with a vibrant setting, heartwarming tone, and a loveable cast of characters.
mrs_mander_reads
Written on Sep 30, 2020
roundtableknight
Written on Aug 10, 2020
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Starting this book, I have to admit that I was deathly afraid. The amount of praise I had heard through the grapevine about the mere grace of this book was enough to put this book close to the top of my tbr, but still scared to read it.
I'm happy that I read it.
All of the characters are beautifully written, in that they are human. Even though they are seen as beings or not human, their characteristics and mannerisms make them more human then some of the "normal" people in the story (those without magic). And Linus, oh I loved his character, and more than that I loved his growth as a character. I truly hope that there is a sequel written, because I already miss the children, and Zoe in this book. And Arthur, always Arthur.