The House in the Cerulean Sea
by TJ Klune
A magical island. A dangerous task. A burning secret.
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.
My Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Blackwell’s | Book Depository | Bookshop | Wordery
Now that I’ve read The House in the Cerulean Sea I can’t believe it took me so long to read it, but I’m so glad this story was my first novel of 2021.
40-year-old Linus Baker has been working as a Case Worker at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth for many years and, though he leads a solitary and rather humdrum life, he takes pride in his work making sure that orphanages for magical, non-human children are taking good care of their charges. He never lets himself get attached to the children—until he’s sent to Marsyas Island Orphanage, run by a Mr. Arthur Parnassus, where six extraordinary, potentially dangerous children are living. There’s Talia the garden gnome; Chauncey the tentacle ‘monster’; Sal the were-Pomeranian; Theodore the wyvern; Phee the forest sprite; and Lucy, the son of Satan. Linus must live with them for a month, reporting back to DICOMY, and decide if the orphanage should stay open.
And DICOMY would prefer it if he didn’t fall in love with Arthur and his little family of misfits while he’s there.
The House in the Cerulean Sea is a big, warm, comforting hug wrapped up in a novel, and it’s one of the most hopeful fantasy novels I’ve read. If you’re looking for a book that will bring you shameless joy and fill your heart to the point where you think it might burst, then look no further than this one. It’s such a tender story and a love letter to found families.
As Arthur himself states, calling his house an orphanage makes no sense; no one is coming to adopt these children, as far as Arthur is concerned the children are his, and as such he is incredibly protective of them. Unfortunately he needs to be in a world where magical and non-human people are treated like monsters that need to be feared, to the point where some of the children believe it themselves. With Arthur, however, they’re given a chance at a childhood where they’re able to learn and play and express themselves without having to worry about being punished simply for existing. The orphanage might be where these children live, but Arthur is their home.
It would be so easy for this novel to be twee and so overly sweet it could cause cavities, but Klune writes these children so well and in such a way that it’s impossible not to fall in love with them. They all have their own strong personalities, and their own issues to work through, but at their heart they’re all children who are desperate to be loved and desperate for a place they can call home.
Linus and Arthur are also utterly lovely and it was so refreshing to read a romance blossoming between two adults in their forties, one of whom is a little overweight and whose hair is thinning. Linus isn’t a young Case Worker who’s fresh on the job and learning the truth behind some of the behaviour DICOMY’s strict rules are allowing, but a man who’s been trying to do his best for children for years and is finally able to discover the courage he’s needed to say what he really thinks when he falls in love with this little family, and having an older protagonist at the centre of this novel made the story all the more powerful for me. You don’t have to be 25 and classically handsome to change the world, and some of the smallest changes we make can make the biggest ripples.
This story reads like a Middle Grade novel from the point of view of the adults and it’s wonderful. I can’t recommend it enough.
Jessticulates 
Great review, Jess! If you enjoyed this book, you may be interested to know that the author has a new book out soon: ‘Under the Whispering Door’. My review is here: https://wordywitterings.com/2021/04/14/book-review-of-under-the-whispering-door-by-tj-klune/
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Great review, Jess! I’ll read it this year. 😀
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So happy to see you loved this one, it was my absolute favorite last year! It’s such a lovely and gentle book. And funny!
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Yes, gentle is the best way to describe it!
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I am so glad you loved it! This was one of my first read of the year, too and I am so glad to have, finally!, read that! I have to confess that in the beginning I had some small problems with Linus because he was too Kafkian for my tastes, in some ways. But in the end he became dear to me, like all the other amazing characters in there! 😍
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Wonderful review! I loved this book so much, and I’m so glad you did too!
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It’s definitely a new favourite!
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I love this book so much! This was also my first book read of 2021 and it might be a big claim to say already, but it might be my favourite book of 2021. I can’t get over how beautiful and wonderful this book is. Like you said, it really is a warm, big comfortable hug. And the kind of hug we all need right now. Great review! I love reading about other people who love this book just as much. – Amber
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I know, I think this one is going to be on my 2021 favourites list, too! I’m really happy to have started my 2021 reading with such a lovely book. 😀
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Great review! I just gpot my copy and I’m so excited to pick it up!
(www.evelynreads.com)
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I hope you enjoy it!
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Yay! I didn’t plan on reading this one until I saw it on all the “Best Books of 2020” lists. Now I’m on a very long waitlist for it. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
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I hope you enjoy it! 😀
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I’ve said it a million times already but I really hope I can get around to buying and reading this book this year because literally everyone is loving it. 😍
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I hope you love it when you get to it! I read it on my kindle but I loved it that much that I’ve pre-ordered the paperback so I can have it on my shelves.
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*SQUEE!* Yay! I’m so glad you loved it, Jess! 😍 “…a book that will bring you shameless joy and fill your heart to the point where you think it might burst” is SUPER accurate. Just thinking back to how I felt when I read it makes my heart feel so full 🥰 Such a beautifully feel-good story. Wonderful review!
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Thanks Dini! 😀 I loved it so much – and I’d seen so many people rave about it that I knew I probably would – but it’s such a lovely feeling when a book is worth all the hype it gets. I’m a tiny bit annoyed at myself for not making the time for this one last year, but this was the perfect first novel to read in the new year, I think! I want to read things that make me feel good this year. 🙂
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