I Love Lucy! No, Not THAT Lucy...

 

TITLE: The House in the Cerulean Sea

AUTHOR: TJ Klune

PUBLISHER: Tor

PUBLISHING DATE: March 16, 2020

PAGES: 394    

SOURCE: Library

 

FROM GOODREADS: 

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 THOUGHTS: Let's just say that I've been burned by extremely hyped books in the past.  Add that to the fact that I'm not a huge fan of children (as in around me, not that they are necessarily bad), and I didn't really intend to pick this book up.  However, curiosity got the best of me and man, am I glad that I did.  The hype is real people!  Yes, I said it.  I loved this book in so many ways and it will certainly be on my "best of" list at the end of the year.

Linus is forty and works as a caseworker - I can relate to that.  He spends his days investigating cases at The Department in Charge of Magical Youth.  Now that's where the fun begins.  Linus is sent to investigate an orphanage on the island of Marsyas where only six children and their caretaker Arthur reside.  But these aren't your average magical children - they are supposedly the worst of the worst.  

So Linus departs with his cat in tow and finds himself on a fact-finding mission for Extremely Upper Management.  Not only does he fear what he might find, he is so dedicated to remaining objective that he almost misses what is in front of him.  

I don't want to give anything away but I will say I absolutely loved all of the children. They were so cute and ornery and perhaps a tad bit dangerous.  And most of all, they are highly misunderstood.  In fact, my favorite child of all, Lucy (short for Lucifer so are we really surprised my dark heart fell in love with him?) is probably the most misunderstood of all. 

This book has a lyrical fairy tale feel to it throughout.  I've not read any of Klune's books before but I already have my sights set on his newest release coming out later this year.  He made me fall in love with the house on the sea and all of its inhabitants.  And the character development for Linus was spot-on and in my opinion, couldn't have been done any better.

Go grab a copy of this book now guys!  That is if you are one of the few, like me, who hadn't already read it.

RATING: 5 Paws

A FEW OF MY FAVORITE LUCY QUOTES: 

"Do adults think about death a lot?" Lucy asked.  He cocked his head at an odd angle.  "That must mean I'm an adult too because I think about it all the time.  I like dead things. I would like you if you were dead, Mr. Baker.  Maybe even more."

"If the cannibals start chasing after us, they'll see you first.  We're little, and you've got all that meat on your bones, so it'll give us time to get away.  Your forthcoming sacrifice is appreciated."