REVIEWED by Jay V.
TITLE: The House in the Cerulean Sea
AUTHOR: TJ Klune
PUBLISHER: Tor Books
LENGTH: 393 pages
RELEASE DATE: March 17, 2020
BLURB:
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.
REVIEW:
What does a misfit bunch of children all with extraordinary abilities all have in common? What is the government hiding? Why does the Antichrist like to go on adventures to find treasure?
Linus, a Case Worker at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth has been tasked to find out. What he discovers is much more than he ever thought.
It feels like now is the perfect time we need something to lighten our hearts and distract us from the world and this book delivers. With his wry humor, pathos, and a touch of magic, TJ Klune spins a tale that lightly dances on the edges of the fantastic. Mixing in a bit of grounded realities, supernatural abilities lore, a touch of Edward Gorey dark humor, and a whole lot of precociousness from the children and you have a fun story of breaking the rules, overcoming prejudices, found family and some love to go around. Plus the Antichrist, that rascal.
Told in a contemporary style almost leaning to the whimsical, the book could be considered for all ages (well, 12+). Others have called it a modern fairy tale, but it’s something just, well, more. He writes with such realism that sometimes I was taken aback when something was named fantastical – Extremely Upper Management? That’s not a real work term! Surprisingly beyond that, there’s not a curse word in it, just a few light references to sex, but it does have a very twisted little boy that could frighten small children, let alone poor Linus. And speaking of our main character, Linus is grounded in such an ordinary way that it is almost painful. He keeps his head low at work and tries to do the right thing without overextending himself. He doesn’t really realize he is lonely, but it seeps through in all he does and he needs a change. Klune paints a wholly realized character that speaks to the base of loneliness without making us pity him. And when that very scary Extremely Upper Management swoops down to give Linus the assignment to check on a secreted orphanage, his whole structured world starts to crumple. He’s dealt with extraordinary children his entire career, but he might not be quite ready for these ones.
And the children are quite extraordinary, and not just for their abilities but for their unique personalities that shine. I won’t go in to detail about each child as the book explores all the individuals so you get a sense of every one of them and you’ll come around to loving each for a myriad of reasons. You’ll have to tell me which one is your favorite. You’ll think the first one is special and then you’ll get to know the next and the next and then… I’m sure I will get mixed answers as every child has some delightful, and some not delightful, traits. And keeping them all in line is Arthur Parnassus, who is calm almost beyond reason but will vehemently fight for the rights of the children in his care.
Variations of this story have been told before, but Klune always puts on a new spin. Along the way, you will likely be surprised, delighted, sometimes a bit disgusted, and always charmed in the way the tale is told. And hard-core TJ Klune fans won’t be disappointed with some obvious and not so obvious Easter eggs, but this won’t impede on the casual reader. There is such insightful writing, I wanted to quote many sections of the book, but I’ll leave that up to the reader to find their favorites.
Great themes always run through Klune’s writing, but it’s never preachy nor does it bog down his storytelling. This book marks the next chapter in Klune’s life as this is the first in a series of novels to be published by Tor Books, the well known publisher under Macmillan, and should bring his works to a larger audience. Many of us can say we had the honor of reading his early works and now he’s going to the big leagues, continuing to enchant us even with his books. Just delight in getting a chance to read a story that weaves a fantastical mosaic of themes that touches your heart and your funny bone.
RATING: 
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