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As Linus spends more time with Arthur and the kids, he starts to question a world that would shun them for being different, and he even develops romantic feelings for Arthur. Lambda Literary Award–winning author Klune (The Art of Breathing, 2019, etc.) has a knack for creating endearing characters, and readers will grow to love Arthur and the orphans alongside Linus. Linus himself is a lovable protagonist despite his prickliness, and Klune aptly handles his evolving feelings and morals. The prose is a touch wooden in places, but fans of quirky fantasy will eat it up. Linus clings to the notion that his job is about saving children from cruel or dangerous homes, but really he's a cog in a government machine that treats magical children as second-class citizens.
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Linus clings to the notion that his job is about saving children from cruel or dangerous homes, but really he’s a cog in a government machine that treats magical children as second-class citizens. When Extremely Upper Management sends for Linus, he learns that his next assignment is a mission to an island orphanage for especially dangerous kids. He is to stay on the island for a month and write reports for Extremely Upper Management, which warns him to be especially meticulous in his observations. When he reaches the island, he meets extraordinary kids like Talia the gnome, Theodore the wyvern, and Chauncey, an amorphous blob whose parentage is unknown. The proprietor of the orphanage is a strange but charming man named Arthur, who makes it clear to Linus that he will do anything in his power to give his charges a loving home on the island.
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It’s the type of book that reminds you of being outside on a sunny day with a cool breeze blowing through. It’ll warm your heart and perhaps even bring tears to your eyes. If you’re in the mood for an all-good-vibes-type of narrative mixed in with creatures of lore, then this is a good book to consider. It’s a happy, uncomplicated story about inclusivity and discarding prejudices, and it’s a quick and easy read.
Editorial Reviews
The House in the Cerulean Sea is a queer fantasy novel by TJ Klune, Lambda Award-winning author of The Extraordinaires and the Green Creek series. The House in the Cerulean Sea was published in March of 2020 and made the USA Today bestseller list. Klune is a queer author whose works often explore supernatural elements.
He would do anything to keep the children safe, even if it means the world will burn. Linus Baker is a by-the-book case worker in the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He's tasked with determining whether six dangerous magical children are likely to bring about the end of the world. In the previous book, the inhabitants of Trisolaris, a planet with three suns, discovered that their planet was doomed and that Earth offered a suitable refuge.
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He is cautious in life and careful with his words, making him particularly well suited for the inflexible structure of DICOMY. Early in the novel, he is unexpectedly summoned to a personal meeting with Extremely Upper Management, elusive figures that are often whispered about but rarely seen. At the meeting, Linus is given top secret clearance to review an unusual orphanage run by Arthur Parnassus.
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He will be sent to the orphanage for a month, during which he will send thorough weekly reports. Mr. Werner, a young, handsome member of Extremely Upper Management, warns Linus to “beware” and to leave no detail out of his reports. At times I found it a little too black-and-white for my tastes, with saintly “good” characters, villainous “bad” characters and pretty much no one in-between. While sweet and upbeat, The House in the Cerulean Sea was lacking in dramatic tension for me, since it was always quite clear how the story would play out. There's also Zoe Chapelwhite, an undocumented, adult island sprite who has lived on the island since before the orphanage. She helps to take care of the children in an unofficial capacity.
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TJ Klune Interview - VirginiaLiving.com.
Posted: Fri, 22 Jul 2022 07:00:00 GMT [source]
About this book
The writing was fine, and the narration is occasionally funny. There is a very sweet (queer) romance component to this novel, which I thought was cute. Also, if you are a cat-lover, I’m pleased to let you know that Calliope the cat makes for a pleasingly feisty side-character in this book.
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This tension is exacerbated by the extremity of the children’s magical natures. One of the children, Lucy, is listed in his files as the Antichrist, or the son of the Devil. Among the other children are a wyvern, a gnome, a forest sprite, a shapeshifter, and a gelatinous, tentacled child named Chauncey. Linus Baker is a case worker for the Department in Charge of Magical Youth (DICOMY), a governmental agency that monitors the behavior and well-being of magical children living in orphanages and group homes. Some of these children have powers such as telekinesis, and some are from non-human species, many of which we would consider mythological.
On Earth, the Earth-Trisolaris Organization formed to help the invaders, despite knowing the inevitable outcome. Humanity’s lone advantage is that Trisolarans are incapable of lying or dissimulation and so cannot understand deceit or subterfuge. The Planetary Defense Council, meanwhile, in order to combat the powerful escapist movement (they want to build starships and flee so that at least some humans will survive), announces the Wallfacer Project. To combat this, the ETO creates Wallbreakers, dedicated to deducing and thwarting the plans of the Wallfacers. The chosen Wallfacers are soldier Frederick Tyler, diplomat Manuel Rey Diaz, neuroscientist Bill Hines, and—Luo Ji. Luo has no idea why he was chosen, but, nonetheless, the Trisolarans seem determined to kill him.
The plot’s development centers on Liu’s dark and rather gloomy but highly persuasive philosophy, with dazzling ideas and an unsettling, nonlinear, almost nonnarrative structure that demands patience but offers huge rewards. 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. This is a fairly simple and “neat” story, probably more suited to people who enjoy YA novels, but I think as long as you’re aware of that going into it, you can enjoy its sweet and uncomplicated tale.
When Linus goes to investigate, Arthur tells Linus that he grew up in a DICOMY orphanage and was abused. When he tried to ask the DICOMY for help, the master of the orphanage intercepted the letter and locked Arthur in the cellar. He was eventually released when the DICOMY came to investigate months later. As an adult, Arthur requested to be put in charge of the orphanage because he wanted to turn it into a place where kids could truly get help. That said, if you like the idea of a breezy, feel-good novel with some romance mixed in, for the right reader this would be a great read. There’s a wide range of mythical, magical beings, but we don’t really see them showcasing the full spectrum of their abilities.
Lambda Literary Award-winning author Klune (The Art of Breathing, 2019, etc.) has a knack for creating endearing characters, and readers will grow to love Arthur and the orphans alongside Linus. Linus, a man accustomed to rules and structure and proper behavior, is wary of the children at first, but he begins to fall in love with them and their guardian as he spends more time on the island. There is romantic tension between Arthur and Linus, which Linus isn’t sure how to deal with. After further correspondence from Charles Werner, a young, attractive member of Extremely Upper Management, Linus discovers that Arthur is a phoenix who was raised on the island by one of the homes’ abusive former masters. He also discovers that Arthur and Werner were in a romantic relationship, which explains Werner’s deep interest in the orphanage.
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